The Dennis Javelin, later the Alexander Dennis Javelin, was an underfloor-engined bus and coach chassis made by Dennis and then Alexander Dennis. It was unveiled in 1986 and served as a modern replacement for the discontinued Bedford Y series, while also taking over from the heavier Dennis Dorchester in the maker’s own range.
Dennis Javelin at a glance
| Maker | Dennis, later Alexander Dennis |
|---|---|
| Unveiled | 1986 |
| Type | underfloor-engined bus and coach chassis |
| Replaced | Bedford Y series, Dennis Dorchester |
| Built | over 2,000 |
| Ministry of Defence | 500 chassis |
| Main rival | Volvo B10M |
| Australia | four MotorCoach Australia bodied coaches, Fearne’s Coaches, 1996 |
| New Zealand | nine Designline and Kiwi Bus Builders bodied coaches, 1999–2005 |
Based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on the Javelin. British Wikipedia coverage of the type is brief, so this page is shorter than most in the collection.
History of the Dennis Javelin
A replacement for the Bedfords
By the mid-1980s the Bedford Y series, long the standard British coach chassis, was coming to an end, and operators needed a successor. Dennis answered with the Javelin in 1986: an underfloor-engined chassis that could carry bus or coach bodywork and that also supplanted the company’s own heavier Dorchester. It was a commercial success, though it never matched the sales of its nearest rival, the likewise heavier Volvo B10M. It did, however, do far better than Dennis’s earlier attempts at the coaching market, the Falcon V, the Lancet and the Dorchester.
Sold at home and abroad
More than 2,000 Javelins were produced, and 500 of them were bought by the Ministry of Defence, which made the chassis a common sight on military transport work as well as on school and private-hire duties. The type also travelled: in 1996 the Australian operator Fearne’s Coaches of Wagga Wagga took delivery of four Javelins with MotorCoach Australia bodies, and between 1999 and 2005 Ritchies Coachlines of New Zealand received nine examples bodied by Designline and Kiwi Bus Builders.
Design and features
- Underfloor engine: the layout gave a flat floor and a full-length body, which suited both service buses and coaches.
- Bodybuilder choice: the chassis was sold to independent coachbuilders, so bodies varied widely from operator to operator.
- Military orders: 500 chassis for the Ministry of Defence made the type one of the more numerous British coach chassis of its era.
- Export sales: examples reached Australia and New Zealand with local bodywork.
Dennis Javelin versions
- Dennis Javelin (from 1986): the original chassis, bodied by a range of coachbuilders.
- Alexander Dennis Javelin: the same chassis sold under the later company name.
- MotorCoach Australia bodied (1996): four coaches for Fearne’s Coaches, Wagga Wagga.
- Designline and Kiwi Bus Builders bodied (1999–2005): nine coaches for Ritchies Coachlines.
The Javelin sat between the lighter Dennis Dart and the double-deck Dennis Dragon in the maker’s range. More vehicles are in the Dennis collection.
Video: Stagecoach Inverness Dennis Javelin Plaxton Profile
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Dennis Javelin, English Wikipedia: launch, production total, exports
.jpg){kind=link}
