Non-affiliated buses for sale - thread

[Inner Love]

With COVID-19, what do you think the bus market will look like over these next few months?



I think it's going to be a buyers market as people run out of savings, some of them liquidating assets for grocery money. Less people will bid on the auctions, making for lower bidding, and a few people will post some gushing posts from people who scored amazing steals. The next recession (depression?) is nigh, and recreation is going to be the first thing people cut back on. I expect lots of rigs to be put on the market in the coming year, including skoolies.



This recession will be worse than the last one, as nearly all of the "growth" was built on debt. Corps buying back their own stock with debt, unsecured student loans, subprime auto loans, and the reboot of subprime mortgages in select markets will be blamed for causing it this time around.




What do you think?

[musigenesis]

Not the normal kind of thing here, but: https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/...103576497.html

I've often imagined myself living in a houseboat (that's sort of what I'm planning my skoolie to be, just on land). This would be an interesting starting point for that.

[dgorila1]

Originally Posted by ermracing

Full disclosure, I know one of the owners of this shop and bought 3 used limos through him 15 years ago. Anyway, they have a 2002 shorty for sale, T444, with lift here. Looks pretty clean.

https://cherokeeautogroup.com/invent...00/3800%20T44e

I want one that size, but not at that price. He's real proud of that bus

[PNW_Steve]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

Not the normal kind of thing here, but: https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/...103576497.html

I've often imagined myself lhiving in a houseboat (that's sort of what I'm planning my skoolie to be, just on land). This would be an interesting starting point for that.

That would make a great looper.

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by PNW_Steve

That would make a great looper.

Well I tried to google it, but what's a looper?

[PNW_Steve]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

Well I tried to google it, but what's a looper?

A boat used to make the "Great Loop" trip.

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/great-loop.html

I could spend a year or two making the loop.

A number of folks buy boats and set them up to suit extended river travel. Others build from scratch. If I ever get around to that I will be building a "shantyboat" for the trip. Kind of a waterbound skoolie

So many highways and so much water to see. I better get rolling this morning and see what kind of bus progress I can make today.

[musigenesis]

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...3277136778470/

[WIbluebird]

Another oddball powertrain bus. 2000 Chevy conventional with a CAT and a manual transmission.



https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...7398667012193/

[Waddlebrow]

Hey everyone. I hope this is the right forum, if not please let me know where to post. Would like to get input on a bus decision. Its 5.9 Cummins pusher with an Allison MT643 transmission on a '94 Blue Bird 30 footer. It shows around it's around 70,000 miles but they said they aren't sure if someone rolled back the odometer in the past. The title is clean and it drives but needs new blinkers, horn and wipers. is it worth around the $6000 asking price?

[Sraycwb]

Originally Posted by Waddlebrow

Hey everyone. I hope this is the right forum, if not please let me know where to post. Would like to get input on a bus decision. Its 5.9 Cummins pusher with an Allison MT643 transmission on a '94 Blue Bird 30 footer. It shows around it's around 70,000 miles but they said they aren't sure if someone rolled back the odometer in the past. The title is clean and it drives but needs new blinkers, horn and wipers. is it worth around the $6000 asking price?

6k sounds high for that old a bus and the existing issues. Condition is everything of course, but at end of day, it's all a poke in the dark. If it fills your ticket and you're feeling the love, hey, maybe it's the right price.

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Originally Posted by Waddlebrow

Hey everyone. I hope this is the right forum, if not please let me know where to post. Would like to get input on a bus decision. Its 5.9 Cummins pusher with an Allison MT643 transmission on a '94 Blue Bird 30 footer. It shows around it's around 70,000 miles but they said they aren't sure if someone rolled back the odometer in the past. The title is clean and it drives but needs new blinkers, horn and wipers. is it worth around the $6000 asking price?

I agree with the previous reply. WAY TOO MUCH $$$ for it. Likely the seller is trying to capitalize on the purported low mileage, when cluster failures are quite common in newer buses and there is no easy way to put the correct mileage in the replacement.

If it's an activity or prison bus, or was owned by a private school, the mileage may be correct, but I would find out what the hours on the engine are, that will tell the tale.

FWIW, I'm thinking $3500-$4500 MAX, if it's clean and rust-free. And not sure I would pay that with the issues noted unless they are fixed as part of the price. The 5.9 / MT643 is a solid combo though.

[Waddlebrow]

Originally Posted by CHEESE_WAGON

I agree with the previous reply. WAY TOO MUCH $$$ for it. Likely the seller is trying to capitalize on the purported low mileage, when cluster failures are quite common in newer buses and there is no easy way to put the correct mileage in the replacement.

If it's an activity or prison bus, or was owned by a private school, the mileage may be correct, but I would find out what the hours on the engine are, that will tell the tale.

FWIW, I'm thinking $3500-$4500 MAX, if it's clean and rust-free. And not sure I would pay that with the issues noted unless they are fixed as part of the price. The 5.9 / MT643 is a solid combo though.

Thanks for the input. How do I find the engine hours?

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Originally Posted by Waddlebrow

Thanks for the input. How do I find the engine hours?

Depends on the bus. Some will have an hour meter on the dash, others (rear-engine mostly) will have it near the engine. Newer engines with electronic control may not necessarily have a readily-readable hour meter, these should be readable through the engine controller, which will require special scan equipment.

[Waddlebrow]

Thanks for the input, I'll look into it and post an update

[cowlitzcoach]

Cat power in a GM chassis was very common if it didn't have the big block gas V-8 under the hood. The vintage is hard to know for sure but it is most likely the 3116. The 3126 came along a few years later.


Both the 3116 and 3126 had some really bad electronics issues when they were new. This far from new most have had the bugs worked out. Most probable HP rating would be in the 190-210 HP range.


The only real odd ball part of the power package is that it has a stick shift. In Washington state the minimum spe'c for a transmission has been an automatic since the early 1990's. To get a stick shift cost more $$$ in addition to the problems of finding drivers who would want to drive a stick shift or even knew how to drive a stick shift.

[PNW_Steve]

Originally Posted by cowlitzcoach

Cat power in a GM chassis was very common if it didn't have the big block gas V-8 under the hood. The vintage is hard to know for sure but it is most likely the 3116. The 3126 came along a few years later.


Both the 3116 and 3126 had some really bad electronics issues when they were new. This far from new most have had the bugs worked out. Most probable HP rating would be in the 190-210 HP range.


The only real odd ball part of the power package is that it has a stick shift. In Washington state the minimum spe'c for a transmission has been an automatic since the early 1990's. To get a stick shift cost more $$$ in addition to the problems of finding drivers who would want to drive a stick shift or even knew how to drive a stick shift.

I asked the service manager at Snohomish SD why I don't see manual transmissions in WA buses and his take on it was that there were too many L&I claims for carpal tunnel syndrome among bus drivers driving manual buses.

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Originally Posted by PNW_Steve

I asked the service manager at Snohomish SD why I don't see manual transmissions in WA buses and his take on it was that there were too many L&I claims for carpal tunnel syndrome among bus drivers driving manual buses.

I guess I could see it with a route bus that stops 5 times per mile driven. Still kinda sounds like BS though. But I wonder if that isn't part of the trend for the recent exodus to automated manuals in Class 8 trucks.

[Oscar1]

Originally Posted by CHEESE_WAGON

I guess I could see it with a route bus that stops 5 times per mile driven. Still kinda sounds like BS though. But I wonder if that isn't part of the trend for the recent exodus to automated manuals in Class 8 trucks.

Agreed! If you can't drive a stick you shouldn't drive a truck. Of course that's just my opinion. Yes the autos are nice and comfy to drive but I think they make you relax too much and you have less feel for the truck and the road. Not sure how things are there for commercial drivers but here in BC they actually have a class 1 licence for drivers that can only do automatic and I think that's putting a lot of new and inexperienced drivers on the road.

[awilder]

Looking for opinions on: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...9921766173591/

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by awilder

Looking for opinions on: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...9921766173591/

Has fridge and a TV witch

Any Elizabeth Montgomery fans will understand why I got excited for a second.