Between 1977 and 1990, the bulk of State Transit's new buses were German made Mercedes-Benz and MAN chassis, bodied locally to VOV-standard designs by Pressed Metal Corporation, Smithfield.

 

The fourth generation, delivered between 1983 and 1987 and totalling 355 buses, were known as the 'Mark IV' or 'Mark 4s'. The prototype bus was numbered 2717, and the deliveries were allocated fleet numbers 2728 to 3082, with the exception of 3071 which was the Mark V prototype.

 

The Mark IVs were bodied to the VOV 'Stadt 80' design, featuring a much squarer design compared to the earlier marks. The windscreens are curved on their sides to eliminate the A pillars which created a rather large blind spot.

 

They also had a larger destination display, and whilst most were delivered with roller blinds, 20 vehicles (being the odd-numbered buses between 2761 and 2799) were delivered with STC-Canon flipdot destination signs. These soon proved troublesome in service, and all were converted to standard roller blinds after their time on the new Route 400 had finished.

 

The Mark IVs were delivered in an attractive livery of all over ivory with dark navy blue window surround and mid blue stripes under the saloon windows. All ended up in the State Transit corporate livery of blue and white with a red stripe by the early 2000s, and some later recieved repaints into 'John Lee' corporate which had no red stripe.

 

Major modifications included the removal of the a window on the nearside behind the rear door, due to concerns about the structural integrity of the design, and the removal of the lower 'Number 3' destination box.

 

The Museum's example, 2728, was the first production Mark IV. Pressed Metal Corporation completed the body in May 1984 with an official handover to the UTA with bus 2717 at Kingsgrove Depot on the 7th of June 1984. Its entry to service was delayed due to union objections regarding drivers air-conditioning and the lack of a vertical exhaust pipe, and it finally entered service at Kingsgrove Depot in August 1984.

 

In January 1985 the bus was withdrawn from UTA service, and commence a demonstration tour for Mercedes-Benz, visiting Melbourne and Adelaide. It returned to Kingsgrove depot from 7/3/1985, and was transferred to Newcastle later in March.

 

The bus recieved a repaint into the new State Transit corporate livery in October 1993, and was refurbished in October 1997. In December 2003 the bus returned to Sydney to be based out of Ryde depot, and recieved another refurbishment in April 2008.

 

It was withdrawn from service at Ryde depot in May 2012, and was donated to the Sydney Bus Museum by State Transit in July 2012.

 

 

 

Specifications:

 

Engine: Rear underfloor mounted Mercedes-Benz OM-407H 11-litre 6-cylinder diesel engine developing 147kw at 2200 r.p.m. Bore 125mm, stroke 155mm.

 

Transmission: Three-speed Mercedes-Benz W3D080 automatic gearbox with inbuilt hydraulic retarder to a hub-reduction rear axle assembly.

 

Brakes: Dual circuit air brakes with ABS, gearbox hydraulic retarder and spring applied parking brake.