Metro Cammell Weymann

Travel West Midlands MkII Metrobuses seen in Dudley.

3-axle Metro Cammell Weymann Super Metrobus (11 m) owned by Kowloon Motor Bus in Hong Kong.

A double deck Metroliner 400GT with Yorkshire Traction, with a Megabus vehicle behind it

An MCW Metrorider

Metro Cammell Weymann (MCW) was once a major player in transportation manufacturing in the UK and Europe. It was formed in 1932 by Weymann Motor Bodies Ltd and Metro Cammell's bus bodybuilding division to produce bus bodies.

MCW bus bodies were built in Metro-Cammell's and Weymann's factories until 1966 when Weymann's factory in Addlestone was closed (the Metro-Cammell and Weymann brand names were dropped in the same year). From 1977 MCW also built bus chassis.

In 1989 the Laird group decided to sell its bus and rail divisions. No buyer for the complete group could be found so each product was sold separately. The Metrorider was bought by Optare who relaunched it as the MetroRider; the Metrobus design was bought by DAF (chassis) and Optare (body), who jointly reworked it into the Optare Spectra. The Metroliner design was acquired by Optare though not pursued. The Metrocab was bought by Reliant. Metro-Cammell's rail division and the Washwood Heath factory went to GEC Alsthom (now Alstom).

Products

Bodies

• London Transport RLH
• Orion series
• London Transport's DMS body built in partnership with Park Royal throughout the 1970s.
• West Midland PTE's standard bus body in the 1970s on both the Daimler/Leyland Fleetline (again built in partnership with Park Royal) and the Bristol VR.
• A generic double deck body range built in the 1970s on Leyland Atlantean and Daimler Fleetline chassis with notable customers being the Merseyside, Tyne & Wear and West Midlands PTE's.

Chassis/Complete buses

• Metro-Scania - semi-integral single decker using Scania running units
• Metropolitan - semi-integral double decker based on Scania running units
• Metrobus - double decker
  • Mark 1
  • Mark 2
  • Mark 2A
  • Note: also bodied by Alexander (mainly for the Scottish Bus Group and the Merseyside/West Yorkshire PTE's) and Northern Counties (for Greater Manchester PTE)

• Metroliner - single and double deck coach
  • Metroliner - Semi-integral 4.23 m high double deck coach
  • Metroliner 400GT - integral 4 m high double deck coach
  • Metroliner - Semi-integral 3.2 m high single deck coach
  • Metro Hiliner - Integral 3.4 m high single deck coach

• Metrorider - midibus

Others

• Metrocab - London taxi cab

Competitors

• Dennis Specialist Vehicles
• Leyland Motors - bus business eventually absorbed by Volvo
• MAN
• Mercedes-Benz buses
• Neoplan - now part of MAN
• Setra - under Mercedes-Benz buses
• Van Hool
• Volvo Buses