German version
Mercedes-Benz O 322: An intermediate step on the way to modern bus design
- Production of the Mercedes-Benz O 322 started in 1960
- Genuine urban bus with rear-mounted engine and bus stop brake
- In-between the Mercedes-Benz O 321 H and the O 302
Mercedes-Benz O 322 City Bus, 1960.
In the impressive bus development history of Mercedes-Benz, the O 322 is an important link between two outstanding vehicle generations. With a production volume of 959 units between 1960 and 1964, the Mercedes-Benz O 322 itself may not have been a great success, but it stands between the Mercedes-Benz O 321 H and the O 302 – each boasting five-digit production figures. A third successful bus model – the regular-service O 317 – also played a major role during this period. The O 322 nevertheless ranks high, as the transition from the buses with rounded bodywork contours in the fifties to the modern, generously dimensioned people movers with rear-mounted engines.
Early specialist urban bus
Around 1960, the majority of regular-service urban buses were still variants of the large multi-functional model series, covering everything from regular service bus to touring coach. Examples of this approach are the Mercedes-Benz O 321 H series from 1954 and its successor, the O 302 series from 1965. In-between, however, there were specialists like the O 317 of 1958, a thoroughbred regular-service bus with a horizontally mounted engine between the axles. At the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1959, Mercedes-Benz presented another urban bus, the O 322, production of which started in August 1960. With a length of just under ten metres and a wheelbase of 5.1 metres, the O 322 was a distinctively compact and easily manoeuvrable bus. A lightweight, vertically arranged six-cylinder in-line engine from the 300 series worked at the back of the bus, generating – initially – 110 hp from just 5.1 litres.
Mercedes-Benz O 322 City Bus, 1962.