for whom the bus tolls?

[joshjohnson17]

Ok, so we have been looking at so many busses and told/read so many varying opinions! I had eliminated the cat 3126 with the allison 545 until I got a callback from a school district looking to sell off their remaining fleet. I was told they have GMC busses with cat 3126 and allison 545 transmissions. They have been maintained by the same mechanics and inspected quarterly up till the end of the 2017 school year. All maintenance records and all running great, assured they would not sell to me if anything was an issue and if their was an issue they would have caught it at last inspection. Also told they run at between 60-70 mph and no overheating issues, the mechanic I spoke to said he just drove one of the busses cross country with issue. He also said the cat 3126 before 2004 is great and swears the allison 545 is more than enough for a school as they have sold many for just that purpose. So... what am I to do? Should I go with one of the GMC cat 3126 with allison 545 transmission? Thanks, I plan on looking at them today or tomorrow.

[joshjohnson17]

the bus in question is not a allison 545 it is the allison transmission that replaced the 545, I think that is the 2000

[EastCoastCB]

So- you eliminated that combo till someone is trying to sell you one? lol
Here's a nice test of if you should own a cat- pretend you have a major issue with one and price the parts/repair. If you can afford a Cat they're great. But you need special tools etc just to work on em. Makes them overly expensive and complicated for most of us.

[Tango]

Heed the wisdom of ECCB!

Some people love Cats...but most of those that do are selling parts for them.

Likewise the 545. It was a good tranny in it's day. But that was long ago, on a planet far, far away.

[Rusty]

Tel the bus yard: if the price is right.... get a bonus bus for parts.

Cat engines on ebay


edit: here is a plug drain for a cat- $5,000

[joshjohnson17]

Thats what got me thinking about this type again. The bus yard has maintained the bus since it was bought new and that they have a glut of parts for the bus should i need anything in the future. But again, they swear by the bus and told me they just need to make room for the new fleet so have no problem selling for cheap. Am i correct in thinking that I should stay away from this engine unless week maintained with records? Also it has just over 100k on it and it is the allison transmission after the 545 which i think is the 5speed 2000

[joshjohnson17]

thats a good salesmans job right? lol... Honestly I think I have read neg articles on here about every engine and transmission built which is why its easy to be swayed towards the 3126 again.

[BowserJournal]

Originally Posted by Rusty

Tel the bus yard: if the price is right.... get a bonus bus for parts.

Cat engines on ebay


edit: here is a plug drain for a cat- $5,000

When I clicked on the link it said it was 11 dollars. Now sure where you got the 5k number from.