I used to drive Marshall Capital's on a regular basis, and I have to say I never found the bodywork to be all that bad, the cabs were far more spacious than a Pointer's. Ours were ex-London so mechanically they were utterly shagged, but the bodies were ok. I always liked the Optare Solo too, another often panned vehicle which actually isn't all that bad. Yes they rattle I know, but then what doesn't?! Anyone who struggles with a shift in an Optare or a Dart has clearly never been on a minibus rota where every day is spent at the helm of an utterly knackered Iveco Daily with a shagged manual 'box, an impossibly heavy clutch and frighteningly uneven steering!
Regarding the Scania OmniCity, we had those too, 54 plate ones, and they were shockingly badly put together. A very nice drive admittedly, but a poor product in general. The bodywork was absolute crap, and they spent half their time stranded at the roadside with various faults. Some of the more common ones included emergency door sensors which imagined the door was open when it wasn't and then locked the handbrake on, and engine covers which managed to shift enough to move switches and isolate the ignition. The whole lot had replacement emergency exits fitted in the end. Now they're getting on a bit many of them have large rips in the flooring at the base of the rear seats, as the bodies slowly start to droop behind the rear wheels, and some of them sport a sexy metal plate which has been crudely riveted over the gap.
Other features included doors which would open only half a leaf unless you were utterly stationary when you hit the button, and wheelchair ramps which would lock the brakes on even after you'd stowed them. Worryingly for Scania, the chassis weren't brilliant either. Ground clearance was abysmal, and on lumpy roads the self-levelling suspenion would override the ferry lift just as you reached the crucial bump. I could go on
Give me a Volvo B10BLE with Wright Renown bodywork and I'll drive it all day long!
