Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 07-26-2016, 09:33 PM   #41
Bus Nut
 
Carytowncat's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Richmond Virginia
Posts: 932
Year: 1984
Engine: 366 Big block Chevy! :) w/ Stick shift
How exciting! I been watching this thread hoping for something simple, and here you have it.

Congrats!

Carytowncat is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-26-2016, 09:51 PM   #42
Bus Crazy
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
Posts: 1,791
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: B3800 Short bus
Engine: T444E
Rated Cap: 36
The stock housing looks about the same, but is made from stamped steel instead of machined aluminum or stainless steel.

You'll probably be fine running with a thermostat while the hot days are upon us. You don't want the engine running below normal operating temperature in the cooler days, though, so you should get that thermostat back in there eventually.

A Powerstroke thermostat should work. Check Rockauto.com. I use that to cross-reference parts all the time. They'll have your B3800 in there.
__________________
My build page: Armageddon - The Smell of Airborne Rust
jazty is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-23-2016, 07:59 PM   #43
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 52
Year: 1996
Coachwork: Mid-bus
Chassis: international
Engine: t444e
Rated Cap: 49?
Just a quick update, we made the move with only a few hiccups. One being that the bus did overheat a tad on a steep pass leaving western NC, lost some coolant before I was able to get it pulled over, but I dont think it got hot enough to do any real damage. I watched the gauges real close after that and pulled over to cool down whenever it got over 215ish.

The second calamity was that the water pump started leaking really bad the second day, but we were already at a campground where we were able to find a local handyman/ mobile mechanic who used to work for the school district on their buses back in the day, and he knew where to go for parts (place had everything we needed on the shelf!). So it only took a day to get it fixed, cost us only $600, and we didn't have to go anywhere!

Other then that, the bus did great, although it didn't like the hills too much (pulled over a good dozen times to let it cool down) and we spent a few long days driving at about 57 max speed.

I am interested in options for upgrading the fan / cooling capacity of the engine and wonder what improvements could be made. The mobile mechanic said there was little to no play in the fan clutch, so Im assuming it was working as it should.

Of course we had this think loaded to the gills, probably well over its rated capacity. Should we travel in it in a more leisurely style, it wont have half that much weight so it should do ok, but am still interested in options for keeping those temps down.
Bungeekord is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:43 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.