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Old 01-05-2018, 01:43 AM   #1
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Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: NorCal
Posts: 4
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Glaval
Chassis: Ford E450
Engine: Ford 7.3L Diesel
Rated Cap: 20
First timer, starting E450 Shuttle build!

Greetings community. I just registered although I have been gleaning ideas from this page for a while. I'm looking forward to learning more!

So, I just bought my first bus! I bought a 2002 Ford E450 with 7.3L diesel off craigslist for 57 hundo. It was the first bus i've looked at and I feel I may have overpaid while in a rush, but I don't know. I have realized that the seller lied to me about some things, which makes me fearful if there are other things lurking under the surface... I am reasonably handy but not very mechanically minded and did not have an inspection done

It has 202K miles. It seems to run, drive and shift fine. Body is in good shape. The blower fan isn't working except very weakly when you've been driving for a while, and then it smells like mice. The second battery has been taken out and cables cut or nonexistent. AC not blowing cold, seller told me it just needed a recharge. Nope!

Enough boring details. I'm in for the ride now! I've got the seats out and a bit of a floorplan ready. It's going to be a tour / house bus for me and my wife-- we're both musicians getting ready to take our music to the next level!

I'm daunted but excited. I'm grateful to have found this vast awesome resource!

Daniel
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Old 01-05-2018, 03:47 AM   #2
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Join Date: Dec 2017
Posts: 973
Quote:
Originally Posted by danielwander View Post
Greetings community. I just registered although I have been gleaning ideas from this page for a while. I'm looking forward to learning more!

So, I just bought my first bus! I bought a 2002 Ford E450 with 7.3L diesel off craigslist for 57 hundo. It was the first bus i've looked at and I feel I may have overpaid while in a rush, but I don't know. I have realized that the seller lied to me about some things, which makes me fearful if there are other things lurking under the surface... I am reasonably handy but not very mechanically minded and did not have an inspection done

It has 202K miles. It seems to run, drive and shift fine. Body is in good shape. The blower fan isn't working except very weakly when you've been driving for a while, and then it smells like mice. The second battery has been taken out and cables cut or nonexistent. AC not blowing cold, seller told me it just needed a recharge. Nope!

Enough boring details. I'm in for the ride now! I've got the seats out and a bit of a floorplan ready. It's going to be a tour / house bus for me and my wife-- we're both musicians getting ready to take our music to the next level!

I'm daunted but excited. I'm grateful to have found this vast awesome resource!

Daniel
Have fun...

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Old 01-05-2018, 07:17 AM   #3
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Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: Cuyahoga Falls Ohio
Posts: 592
Year: 1997
Coachwork: Startrans
Chassis: Ford e-350 single wheel
Engine: 5.4 litre
Rated Cap: 12
If the seller lied to you. Go back and tell him to refund some of your money to cover the added expense. Worked for me several times.
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Old 01-08-2018, 07:02 PM   #4
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Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: Vacaville, Ca
Posts: 1,634
Year: 1988
Coachwork: Crown / Pusher
Engine: 8.3 Cummins
Welcome, Where in NorCal are you??
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Old 01-08-2018, 10:35 PM   #5
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Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: NorCal
Posts: 4
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Glaval
Chassis: Ford E450
Engine: Ford 7.3L Diesel
Rated Cap: 20
Hi, thanks for the welcome folks! I am in the woods about 30 minutes outside of Grass Valley in the Sierra Foothills.
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Old 02-24-2018, 01:07 PM   #6
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Iowa - originally
Posts: 15
Year: 1998
Chassis: Shuttle Bus w/ co-pilot
Rated Cap: 24 Passenger - Originally
Sounds like you might want to start with the mechanic before you dump a bunch of money into the build. If the seller was doing stuff like cutting the second battery out, he probably wasn't the best maintenance man ..
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Old 02-24-2018, 01:40 PM   #7
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Posts: 973
Quote:
Originally Posted by danielwander View Post
Greetings community. I just registered although I have been gleaning ideas from this page for a while. I'm looking forward to learning more!

So, I just bought my first bus! I bought a 2002 Ford E450 with 7.3L diesel off craigslist for 57 hundo. It was the first bus i've looked at and I feel I may have overpaid while in a rush, but I don't know. I have realized that the seller lied to me about some things, which makes me fearful if there are other things lurking under the surface... I am reasonably handy but not very mechanically minded and did not have an inspection done

It has 202K miles. It seems to run, drive and shift fine. Body is in good shape. The blower fan isn't working except very weakly when you've been driving for a while, and then it smells like mice. The second battery has been taken out and cables cut or nonexistent. AC not blowing cold, seller told me it just needed a recharge. Nope!

Enough boring details. I'm in for the ride now! I've got the seats out and a bit of a floorplan ready. It's going to be a tour / house bus for me and my wife-- we're both musicians getting ready to take our music to the next level!

I'm daunted but excited. I'm grateful to have found this vast awesome resource!

Daniel
Welcome to the adventure...

Sent from my VS500PP using Tapatalk
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Old 02-25-2018, 09:17 PM   #8
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Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: NorCal
Posts: 4
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Glaval
Chassis: Ford E450
Engine: Ford 7.3L Diesel
Rated Cap: 20
Yep...

Phew, it sure is an adventure! And due to unforeseen circumstances I am about to be living in it while building it! With my lady.

You were right about going to the mechanic first. It started bogging down really bad and wouldn't go up hills... needed a big fat service which busted a bunch of my build budget. Lesson learned!
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Old 02-26-2018, 04:09 AM   #9
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: Iowa - originally
Posts: 15
Year: 1998
Chassis: Shuttle Bus w/ co-pilot
Rated Cap: 24 Passenger - Originally
That sucks .. I hate when I’m right sometimes. Oh well at least it’s done. Sucks your moving in timeline is outta whack too.

Adapt and overcome!
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Old 03-06-2018, 02:41 PM   #10
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Feb 2018
Posts: 12
I just bought a 2001 E450 and I feel that I may have similar issues.

It’s runs well and has a ton of potential.

Not sure my A/C works because it’s like 30 degrees outside and I can’t tell yet.

Some minor issues of course but it’s all about the journey.

Looking forward to see your progress.
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Old 05-08-2020, 11:50 AM   #11
Almost There
 
Join Date: Dec 2019
Location: Upstate NY
Posts: 85
Year: 2001
Coachwork: Girardian Handicapped Commercial
Chassis: E-450
Engine: Ford 7.3L
Rated Cap: 9,000
Any updates?
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