The problems with the WV/VWM types are exactly what DC07 said: nothing to do with Wrightbus, and everything to do with Volvo.

The Volvo B6BLE is the worst chassis Volvo ever produced - it is severly underpowered and is very prone to going on fire; to this day Volvo has never bothered to make another midibus chassis.

There was nothing wrong with the AW apart from the fact that Dublin Bus didn't like them, in particular the vertically mounted engine is supposed to make access to certain engine components more difficult than a standard bus. Wrightbus parts are more expensive than ADL parts to the best of my knowledge - but as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Wrights are worth the extra money IMHO because they are as the ad says 'worth it'.

VWL120-144 are what you get when you make a single deck version of the AW type and many have been repainted in the past few months - so they will be sticking around for another while, and why wouldn't they, because there is plenty of life left in most of them. They are not as good as the older VWLs but they are still a very good bus. Believe me a Cork bus has a much harder life than one in Dublin (a city bus in Dublin may clock up more miles but Dublin has hardly any hills and better roads so a bus in Dublin is not under anything like the pressure a bus in Cork is under) and I know from travelling on Wrights bodied vehicles that they are by far and away the most hard wearing body.

In recent times Cork has tried Scania Integrals (poor), Mercedes Citaros (totally unsuitable) and ADL/Plaxton (absolute crap, the less said about the DPCs the better, these make a VWM/WV look good they're that bad!) and nothing has come even remotely close to Wrights (with Volvo chassis of course!). Even the newer VWLs, with their lower standard of build quality (in the case of the 08 VWLs the quality has taken a bit of a nosedive and yet it is still much better than an SL), are still miles ahead of Citaro, Scania Omnilink and ADL!

I know Broadstone (BÉ) doesn't like the VWDs but this is because they are limited to 65 km/h (the speed limit for a double deck citybus) whereas the DDs are limited to about 70 km/h. Whatever about the rights (to pardon the pun) and wrongs of 65 km/h being a ridiculously low limit for a modern vehicle, it is the law so the lower speed limit of the VWDs shouldn't be a problem. In any event it's not Wrightbus's fault that they cannot go as fast - it's Volvo's since Volvo sets the speed limiter!

Despite what the technical department in Broadstone/Phibsboro might think, Wrightbus are the best of citybus body builders - they always have been, and while they might have taken a bit of a dip in the last decade, the VWDs show that they are back to their best! Many operators in the UK have Wrights bodied products, and they go for repeat orders the whole time.

The best example I can think of is Lothian, since they have had DTs, Volvos and Dennis with the Plaxton President body, and then finally decided on VWDs, which they have stuck with for the past number of years now. They tried Scania Omnicities in 2006 and then went back to the VG/VWD type. They also have a fleet of VWLs! When it comes to buses, Lothian know what's what and if the VWD/VG type is good enough for them then it should be good enough for anyone else out there!