Bus operator installs Allison transmissions to improve fuel economy

Allison xFE transmission

Scottish coach and bus operator Prentice of Haddington, has installed Allison xFE automatic transmissions on several of its ADL Enviro 200 buses.

The Allison auto versions replace the auto manual transmissions (AMTs) which were fitted as standard. The xFE models are anticipated to return improved mileage, while also a better customer experience.

The upgrades started in January 2023, following reports of improvements from fitting the Allison transmissions were delivered by other bus companies.

“We prefer Allison because their transmissions are very smooth, relatively simple, nice and easy for drivers to use and give us very little trouble,” said Ross Prentice, owner and MD, Prentice of Haddington.

Ross Prentice, Prentice of Haddington

“We’d been wanting to move this current fleet over to fully automatics for some time, and we’d heard about the fuel economy advantages of the xFE range. Since switching, we’ve noticed a substantial improvement in fuel consumption of around one mile per gallon compared to when the vehicles were fitted with the AMTs.”

xFE transmissions are designed to lock up at lower speeds, specifically for the constant gear shifting and lower average speeds of bus fleets. The means lock-up happens significantly earlier and vehicles run longer where they are the most efficient. This delivers the fuel savings and improvements in operation.

More than 50% of buses operated by Prentice are considered low emissions.