Hello from Hamburg in Germany

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by alpine44

Just thought of another example to make the point that vehicles which are totally sensible in one country are at odds with the conditions in another country.

I don't know whether you guys are old enough to remember the huge Chevy pickup trucks the GIs were driving around the military bases in Germany. They appeared to be twice as big as the surrounding "normal" cars and made the people driving them look like dwarfs.

In America this is a classic full-sized pickup truck. I use one of these in SUV configuration as our trail rig in the National Forests around Asheville, North Carolina and it looks absolutely reasonable in this landscape even with a 6" lift and big tires as you can see in the photo taken at an overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Attachment 34360
I replaced the backseats with a platform for a full-size mattress, which saves us pitching the tent for the night. All our gear and food for 2-3 days fits easily under the platform. So, it's just the right size for an American weekend.

In Germany that vehicle would fall squarely into the category "Monstertruck". With its V8 6.2 Liter diesel engine and retrofitted 4 speed transmission with locking converter it costs me about 14 cents (~0.12 Euro) of fuel per mile to operate. Driving this truck for 1.6 kilometers in Germany would cost you about twice as much. A school bus would double your fuel cost one more time.

Looking for one of those Blazers for my wife to drive to work.
I drive the pickup version-

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by Dèsirée

—-//
The cars in Europe as well as Japan and China are so petite compared to our standard size. I remember when I was in Rome, a Cadillac was taken out of an old enclosure and it took up the entire cobblestone street... we couldn’t even walk in the sideway.

And even though that was many many years ago and our cars keep getting smaller and smaller, somehow we seem to forget, so is their vehicle scaling.

As a matter of fact, the coolest cars now, are their 3 wheelers.

OUR cars keep getting larger and larger.
Compare a 1980 Honda Civic to a 2018 Honda Civic. The 2018 isn't a compact car and weighs more than MANY old clunkers. The average weight of vehicles has gotten really bloated.
https://jalopnik.com/the-surprising-...ger-1785292229

Another example would be REAL beetle vs "new" beetle.

[HazMatt]

Don't sleep type!

Originally Posted by haz.matt.1960

Thay sounds precisely like Mew Enhlamd
...

New England...

[Dèsirée]

Originally Posted by haz.matt.1960

Don't sleep type!New England...

What time is it in Texas now? I guess you really don’t sleep!

[alpine44]

Originally Posted by EastCoastCB

Looking for one of those Blazers for my wife to drive to work.
I drive the pickup version-

Nice!
Sending you a PM to avoid further hijacking of this thread.

[Stoneage]

Originally Posted by EastCoastCB

Honestly I'd expect it to cost a bit more.
[/URL]

Unfortunately I think so too!

Originally Posted by alpine44

Hallo Mirko,

If you want to use the vehicle in Germany, I would not buy a school bus in America and then try to import it. If the customs people do not kill the idea, the TÜV (German inspection) will...

Other people in Germany have also import one, I think this is not a problem, it will be probably exhausting

Originally Posted by alpine44

I would go with a Sprinter. One of my brothers who lives in Dortmund bought an empty high top, designed his own interior and had it build in Poland by some furniture makers that were very reasonable with pricing. It is a nifty design with a full sized bed that gets pulled up under the roof during the day.

If you need something bigger, look for a delivery truck with a reasonably clean box and build that out to your needs.

Have you ever been longer than just one weekend in one of those Sprinter or alike? For me it's just to small to stay there longer than just weekend!


That's the reason why I prefer a bigger one.

Originally Posted by alpine44

An American school bus would be a very unique and attention getting vehicle in Germany but just not very practical considering that everything is smaller (backroads, cities, travel distances, the whole country) and traffic moves at a faster and more aggressive pace...

The traffic is for real very fast, but with a bus you can slow it a little bit down...

The roads are maybe not so wide as in the US, for an 40' it may be not funny to drive on, but for one like those it's ok I think.




Greetings
Mirko

[peteg59]

Is there no American school bus already in Germany, for sale? One that has already been run through the frustrating and expensive import process. Maybe one that someone started working on, but gave up on?
Might be easier/faster to go that route?...

[EastCoastCB]

Originally Posted by Stoneage

Unfortunately I think so too!



Other people in Germany have also import one, I think this is not a problem, it will be probably exhausting




Have you ever been longer than just one weekend in one of those Sprinter or alike? For me it's just to small to stay there longer than just weekend!
Attachment 34378
Attachment 34379
That's the reason why I prefer a bigger one.




The traffic is for real very fast, but with a bus you can slow it a little bit down...

The roads are maybe not so wide as in the US, for an 40' it may be not funny to drive on, but for one like those it's ok I think.
Attachment 34380
Attachment 34381
Attachment 34382

Greetings
Mirko

I say you should get a black and yellow school bus and keep that color combo. Make it a BVB bus!

[Dèsirée]

Originally Posted by Stoneage

Unfortunately I think so too!



Other people in Germany have also import one, I think this is not a problem, it will be probably exhausting




Have you ever been longer than just one weekend in one of those Sprinter or alike? For me it's just to small to stay there longer than just weekend!
Attachment 34378
Attachment 34379
That's the reason why I prefer a bigger one.




The traffic is for real very fast, but with a bus you can slow it a little bit down...

The roads are maybe not so wide as in the US, for an 40' it may be not funny to drive on, but for one like those it's ok I think.
Attachment 34380
Attachment 34381
Attachment 34382

Greetings
Mirko

—-//
Oh Mirko... yes, the scale is a bit more user friendly than what I thought you wanted!

There’s a guy here on Long Island selling his skoolie but it’s not yellow in color and it has gone through some conversion. I been trying to schedule an appointment with him for the last two days. Once I check it out I will pass the info along. I have no idea how many miles the bus has. This is some of the information he posted.
:::
“2007 Ford E [PHONE NUMBER HIDDEN] miles on*Diesel engine
we all know Diesels are Diehards capable of driving a Million miles

Excellent tires, Engine, Transmission
This Truck runs great and will last forever
You could use this as
A Spare Room, Tiny home Apartment, Tailgater party Van

Solar panels and Batteries FREE SUN POWER- charge ur phone, etc”
—-//
But Mirko if a mini skoolie will work for you, that’s a good thing! At least the investment made is not so detrimental, should your little experiment not work out the way you thought it would.

Did you check on eBay?

One thing though, best if you speak first with an importer or freight consolidator/forwarder... someone who can tell you the requirements, documentation, emissions certification... all the stuff you will need to get the vehicle in the country..

Some of the things you may want to inquire about is, does it make a difference what year the vehicle is? (I think for sure, it will)

Or will it make a difference if is not a Diesel engine? (I think it will)

Do the tires have to be brand new? How much gas can the vehicle have in the tank? (It may have to be drained)... is there a height that you need to guide yourself by?

I would suggest going on your government’s website and looking this up, but I can almost guarantee you, a skoolie or even an American School Bus category may not even exist.

When all is said and done, I really think, you may have to shop according to what they tell you, rather than, what you really may want!

And who knows, they way things are going here with our non-existing climate change and environmental protection policies, they may not even allow imports of vehicles of a certain age, make or model or to play it safe, any vehicle bigger than a ‘breadbox’ — And that’s not even funny! Ha. Ha. Ha.

Keep in touch, let me know what they say!

LG!!

Dèsirée

[peteg59]

Anything can be done with the right amount of $$$.
Plenty of "gray market" foreign, performance, sports cars are running the roads here.
Ones that are strictly banned due to safety and/or emissions specs that don't pass muster with our federal DOT regs.

People with money usually get what they want. Especially when it comes to their "toys"...

[alpine44]

Originally Posted by Stoneage

Unfortunately I think so too!



Other people in Germany have also import one, I think this is not a problem, it will be probably exhausting




Have you ever been longer than just one weekend in one of those Sprinter or alike? For me it's just to small to stay there longer than just weekend!
Attachment 34378
Attachment 34379
That's the reason why I prefer a bigger one.




The traffic is for real very fast, but with a bus you can slow it a little bit down...

The roads are maybe not so wide as in the US, for an 40' it may be not funny to drive on, but for one like those it's ok I think.
Attachment 34380
Attachment 34381
Attachment 34382

Greetings
Mirko

I share your feelings about the Sprinters. Even the fancy ones for over hundred thousand dollars feel claustrophobic in my opinion. Hence I went a little bigger with my box van/truck.

Here is what I would do in your shoes. If your heart is set on a (short) SCHOOL BUS then take a few month off, fly to the US, buy a bus or pick one up you bought online, build it out simply and expediently, hit the road and enjoy the beauty of this country. There are several folks from Germany who have done that before you and have documented their adventure online. Some of these buses turned out to be works of art.

Towards the end of the trip it will be easy to decide whether to export the bus to Germany or sell it here.

If you are flexible on the type of vehicle, then apply first principle reasoning like this.
Statement: Vans like the Sprinter are too small inside. Regular school buses are too big on the outside.
Correct Question: What VEHICLE (not necessarily a bus) that is readily available in Germany offers more space than a sprinter with less overall size than a normal schoolie?

I also fell into the trap of analogous reasoning. Like: Sprinter too small. How about a bus? Too big. How about a smaller BUS?

Then, I spent months looking for short buses and shuttle buses until I realized that the amount of interior space I want exists in a delivery box truck without having to raise a roof, block out some windows, insulate an entrance door, remove dozens of stuck seat bolts, drill out hundreds of rivets, have to deal with a rounded roof and walls that are not plumb, etc. With the decision to choose a box truck as the base vehicle I may have lost some cool factor but also weeks of unnecessary hassle. Plus this thing has legs and can keep up with traffic on the highway unlike most school buses.

There is another snag in Germany I just realized when looking at the Bluebird data plate you posted. If I understand the current, very complicated drivers license classification system right, you would need a class C license for this vehicle (over 7500kg gross weight) and that licence can cost you as much as a bargain bus (>2000 Euro).

BTW, during my days in Germany life was still simple and we had only 3 license classes, instead of several dozens. Class 1 (motorcycles), 2 (heavy trucks), and 3 (cars) but even then the heavy truck license was expensive.

[alpine44]

Originally Posted by peteg59

Anything can be done with the right amount of $$$.
Plenty of "gray market" foreign, performance, sports cars are running the roads here.
Ones that are strictly banned due to safety and/or emissions specs that don't pass muster with our federal DOT regs.

People with money usually get what they want. Especially when it comes to their "toys"...

Bill Gates' Porsche 959 comes to mind here. America is market driven and "Where there's a dollar there's a way". But in Germany what is verboten stays verboten no matter how much the customer threatens to pay.

[HazMatt]

Very well stated, sir.

[peteg59]

Originally Posted by alpine44

Bill Gates' Porsche 959 comes to mind here. America is market driven and "Where there's a dollar there's a way". But in Germany what is verboten stays verboten no matter how much the customer threatens to pay.

I'd almost bet my next paycheck that if the CEO of Mercedes Benz wanted a foreign vehicle imported into Deutschland, not many people would tell him no.
What say you, Mirko?...

[Dèsirée]

Originally Posted by peteg59

I'd almost bet my next paycheck that if the CEO of Mercedes Benz wanted a foreign vehicle imported into Deutschland, not many people would tell him no.
What say you, Mirko?...

—-//:
The CEO of MB works for a company that’s in the Import/ Export business... I don’t think Mirko is.

[Stoneage]

Originally Posted by alpine44

...
Here is what I would do in your shoes. If your heart is set on a (short) SCHOOL BUS then take a few month off, fly to the US, buy a bus or pick one up you bought online, build it out simply and expediently, hit the road and enjoy the beauty of this country. There are several folks from Germany who have done that before you and have documented their adventure online. Some of these buses turned out to be works of art.

That's what I would like to do the most! But my wife, the job, the house, I don't want to leave that behind!
Europe has also great places to travel there, maybe later we will roam around the USA!

Originally Posted by alpine44

There is another snag in Germany I just realized when looking at the Bluebird data plate you posted. If I understand the current, very complicated drivers license classification system right, you would need a class C license for this vehicle (over 7500kg gross weight) and that licence can cost you as much as a bargain bus (>2000 Euro).

BTW, during my days in Germany life was still simple and we had only 3 license classes, instead of several dozens. Class 1 (motorcycles), 2 (heavy trucks), and 3 (cars) but even then the heavy truck license was expensive.

I have the old Class 3, Vehicles up to 7,5 to. Currently I make the class C, it cost me about 1.500 €, because I have the class 3. When you don't have the class 3, then you have to pay a lot more for that.

Originally Posted by peteg59

I'd almost bet my next paycheck that if the CEO of Mercedes Benz wanted a foreign vehicle imported into Deutschland, not many people would tell him no.
What say you, Mirko?...

With money in your hand you can do anything...it's so all over the world, not only in Germany!

Greetings
Mirko

[Dèsirée]

Originally Posted by Stoneage

That's what I would like to do the most! But my wife, the job, the house, I don't want to leave that behind!
Europe has also great places to travel there, maybe later we will roam around the USA!



I have the old Class 3, Vehicles up to 7,5 to. Currently I make the class C, it cost me about 1.500 €, because I have the class 3. When you don't have the class 3, then you have to pay a lot more for that.




With money in your hand you can do anything...it's so all over the world, not only in Germany!

Greetings
Mirko

—-//
Wow.. if your wife is ok with the idea of you importing a bus and go through all that, she deserves a big round of applause!!

[peteg59]

Originally Posted by Stoneage

With money in your hand you can do anything...it's so all over the world, not only in Germany!

Greetings
Mirko

Right on~Right on!

[Fern]

greetings!

I'm just starting my conversion and it a blast! Respect your inquiry and please know you are doing great with your English! Have found many very helpful people on this site! Stay focused and keep us posted! Best!

I'm

Originally Posted by Stoneage

Hello,
my name is Mirko, I live in a small village near Hamburg in Germany.

For over two months, I've been infected with the Skoolie virus.
For hours I looked at Youtube videos, and read a lot of pages about conversions of school buses.

For some time now I've been thinking about buying a van, but somehow I do not like the conventional ones that much. The furniture is more plastic, the space is not very big and they are very expensive.

Now I'm really thinking about buying a school bus in the US and convert it here. In Germany there is unfortunately no large selection of school buses from the USA.

In september I travel to New York, maybe there are some good dealers for school buses in the area that someone can recommend to me?

Please excuse my bad English, do not write very often in other languages, speak a little better.

greetings
Mirko

[magictom69]

Hi Folks

Its my first post here... sorry to jump in like this without a formal welcome from my side.

Well i have a Ford E-450 with a Navistar T444E 7,3l powerstroke Engine and Ford 4R100 transmission.
230.000 Miles on the speedo.

https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/s-anzeige/ford-e-450-f350-schoolbus-usa-wohnmobil-foodtruck-lkw-mit-tuev/1138715361-276-17122?utm_source=copyToPasteboard&utm_campaign=soc ialbuttons&utm_medium=social&utm_content=app_ios

Ive bought it for myself last year and im still not sure if i do the conversion in a mobile Home...
Tüv and Road legal in Germany...

@Mirko
call me and pass by...

Best Regards
Tom