Train C Car (86TS) For Sale

Why would they do this? It's unique..I appreciate they're short on space, but really??

They did once plan to send it to the Electric Railway Museum in Coventry but that sadly closed down of course.

I'd urge caution with this, unless and until it's been verified by someone at LTM or the Friends it is genuinely up for sale. This car has been "put up for sale" before (can't remember by whom or when) but wasn't actually put up for sale by either the museum or the Friends.


Edit to add: I've now looked at the advert. Other than a change of image, this advert looks to be ide3ntical to the one which was subsequently found to be fake. 

The easiest way to find out if the advert is fake or not is to speak to the person who's email address is shown in the advert, a chap called Bob Bird by the looks of it. The address looks authentic enough and a Bob Bird is involved with the LTM.

I understand that the Museum Depot is short of space and the LTM are looking to sell the vehicle as it is felt does not fit with current curatorial needs, I think it has been offered for sale previously without any offers made.

I wonder if I put a bid in on amazon prime if they would deliver it before Christmas...to Canada 😂

And it might have to be taken to the local post office, as some letter boxes have quite small slots.

The shipping would be more then the actual cost of the unit

It has always been an oddball in the Collection and I recall it's arrival at the then Ash Grove Garage store very well for the reason it very nearly got a parking ticket!

LTM were always very dubious about acquiring it - as has been discussed above the feeling always was that prototype vehicles didn't reflect the 'normality' of delivery fleets, although there was some curatorial debate about how protoypes could show significant design 'evolution' as this Green car does in terms of body styling and equipment leading towards the 1992-ts. This 'protoype' debate was one of the reasons that the Leyland bus T1 was declined (can I say 'bus here?) and T567 was taken instead. There's a enthusiasts affinity to 'Number One' or Number 'the last' and LTM was in the day keen to get as bog standard an example as possible!

The car languished at Neasden if I recall correctly with a fleet engineer who was really keen it should be saved and a Museum that most certainly wasn't keen until one day we literally got a phone call to say that it was on its way across London on an Allerley's lorry and could we be at Ash Grove to let it in. We met the lorry (and car) on Mare Street where it had stopped to a) ask directions and b) to discuss with some traffic cops why it was being moved in broad daylight and not, as usual for large loads across Central London, at nightime. The debate concluded to allow it to move up the road as it was realised that it would cause more hassle to send it back across town than let it proceed.

During this discussion a parking attendant appeared and started a second discussion as to why the lorry and load was stopped on various yellow lines and, if we didn't shift it, a parking ticket would be forthcoming. We (a couple of us LTM juniors) were tempted to let this happen so we could claim to be the first Underground car to be booked for parking but ... It reminds me of the time we moved the Covent Garden bound 38-ts car through Trafalgar Sq one night and caused trouble with several night buses but that is another story.

I have one other recollection about the arrival of this car. We had several cars in the Garage by then and getting them to move off the low loaders was always a trial. Their weight, the fact they hadn't moved, etc, etc, and it took a lot of moaning, pushing, pulling ...

The Green Car by comparison, and much to our amazement, shot off the back of the low loader and set off at some pace across the garage's concrete floor with us by then hoping the low loaders restraint cable would do what it was designed to do and slow it down. There was a grim second or two when we had visions of it not slowing down, given its merry pace, and finding the end wall and so being the one tube car written off in a bus garage.

I can fully understand LTM's space constraints yet it is of some value so I hope it finds a home - sad what happened to the Electric Railway Museum but, goodness, Ian & Co did an astonishing job saving what they already had at such short notice.

Hi All
I can confirm that London Transport Museum is looking for a good new home for the 86TS car. Interesting as it maybe, it is not representative of the fleet or a massive step change in technology as a prototype. As many have already observed in the thread we have very limited space at the Museum Depot and we have to focus on items that are core to our Collections Policy. A review of our vehicle collection some years ago concluded that the car was suitable for disposal and we are following our Asset Disposal process. We have been advertising the unit’s availability in specialist Museum forums for several years without success in finding a home with a related collection. Having exhausted this avenue we are now advertising the car for sale to a suitable home.
Also I can confirm that Bob Bird is real (he is our Senior Vehicle Curator) and is the person to contact if you are interested in the vehicle.

Had the phone call with Bob Bird today and is for sale as the LT Staff member has said No room at Northfields.

A well known picture of the afore mentioned car.
www.flickr.com/photos/36844288@N00/49266254907/

Have a read...

www.flickr.com/photos/cjw2/31198844745/in/album-72157675353413932/

Who on earth writes this stuff...

The article reminds me where I was in June 1987. I helped install the Central line diagrams in the cars. Various different sizes.

I also had to get the posts and red ropes in place to separate the bay road. It rained one day and a lady ruined her white trouser suit by getting too close to one of the ropes. I also had to acquire some rubbish bins - tried to hire some but the Marketing budget had to buy them.

The window apertures on the blue train looked like they had been cut with an old fashioned can opener.