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on the offside in mid-wheelbase

English translation: driver side, middle of front section

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:on the offside in mid-wheelbase
Selected answer:driver side, middle of front section
Entered by: Carmen Cuervo-Arango

05:46 Jun 22, 2005
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Tech/Engineering - Transport / Transportation / Shipping / Autobuses
English term or phrase: on the offside in mid-wheelbase
Volvo has launched a very ingenious vehicle. It is a bi-articulated city bus, based on the new B9SALF chassis with its engine mounted on the offside in mid-wheelbase in the front section

Could you please say in Ebglish with different words where the engine is mounted on this bus? Thanks in advance!
Carmen Cuervo-Arango
Spain
Local time: 22:12
driver side, middle of front section
Explanation:
On the same side as the driver, between the front and rear wheels of the front section (i.e. not right at the front).
Selected response from:

David Sirett
Local time: 22:12
Grading comment
Thank you very much to all of you for your help. I think this is the most accurate answer in my translation.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +4offside = the side away from the kerb i.e. towards the middle of the road
CMJ_Trans (X)
5on the Driver's side in the middle of the vehicle
airmailrpl
3 +1driver side, middle of front section
David Sirett
3right at the front end, but opposite to the side from where the passengers board the bus
Balasubramaniam L.


  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5
on the Driver's side in the middle of the vehicle


Explanation:
A Cummins ISL engine is mounted in the offside rear corner driving through a Voith D864 fully automatic gearbox to a ZF AV132 portal axle. The front axle is a substantial low beam design by Van Hool, with MAN hubs and Meritor disc brakes all round...Van Hool preferred to locate the engine ertically on the offside of the front portion of the vehicle, in mid wheelbase driving into the second axle.
www.busride.com/2005/06/Letters_from_Europe.asp

picture of the layout
http://www.vanhool.com/products_bus_detail.asp?TabID=1&ID=18...

airmailrpl
Brazil
Local time: 17:12
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in PortuguesePortuguese
PRO pts in category: 2
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
driver side, middle of front section


Explanation:
On the same side as the driver, between the front and rear wheels of the front section (i.e. not right at the front).

David Sirett
Local time: 22:12
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Thank you very much to all of you for your help. I think this is the most accurate answer in my translation.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Charlie Bavington: indeed, offside as against nearside. Presumably this means that the engine location varies according to whether the bus is left- or right-hand drive....
6 mins
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1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
offside = the side away from the kerb i.e. towards the middle of the road


Explanation:
as opposed to neraside, which is the side next to the kerb or pavement.

The wheelbase is the distance between the front paris of wheels and the rear pair of wheels (sometimes these pairs are double)

the front section is the leading or front half of the articulated bus - an articulated bus by definition having two parts.

This means to be specific that the engine is in the front half of the two-part articulated bus and that it is located on the side near the middle of the road and halfway between the front pair of wheels and the rear pair of wheels

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Note added at 2005-06-22 07:24:34 (GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

nearside - oops typo

pairs - another typo...

CMJ_Trans (X)
Local time: 22:12
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 16

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Charlie Bavington: Actually, I suppose this is even more accurate, if we allow for the possibility that the driving position may *not* necessarily itself be offside (e.g. central, or some other strange set-up)
1 hr
  -> you have to disconnect the engine position from the driving position in your mind - the two are not necessarily together - some of the protoypes I've seen....
agree  Vicky Papaprodromou
2 hrs
agree  Balasubramaniam L.
3 hrs
agree  Alfa Trans (X)
7 hrs
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45 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5
right at the front end, but opposite to the side from where the passengers board the bus


Explanation:
Right in the front end of the front section along the middle wheel base, but opposite to the side from where the passengers board the bus, that is, the right side.

I have arrived at this interpretation by going strictly by the dictionary meaning of "off" (Concise Oxford Dictionary):

8. a. farther, far, (on the off side of the wall); (of part of animal or vehicle, or road, or horse etc. in team) right [opp. NEAR, orig. w. ref. to side from which one mounted] (the off front wheel, hind leg, side);

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 49 mins (2005-06-22 06:35:17 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

The \"right side\" of course refers to the position of the engine.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 4 hrs 3 mins (2005-06-22 09:50:08 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

After looking at the pictures posted by airmailrpl, I will modify my answer as follows:

opposite to the side from where the passengers board the bus and between the middle and front set of wheels

Balasubramaniam L.
India
Local time: 01:42
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in HindiHindi

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Charlie Bavington: you're right in a way, because offside = driver's side, which is *likely* to be opposite side from where passengers board (as against nearside, which = the pavement side), but I don't agree this is *necessarily* = right side; depends on the country ?
48 mins
  -> There is another problem with the answer too, which I realized after seeing the pictures of the bus posted by airmailrpl. The middle wheel cannot be at the front end of the front section. It is at the rear end of the front section.
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