View Poll Results: Is this Bluebird All American a good purchase?
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Yes
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3 |
60.00% |
No
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1 |
20.00% |
Other (Please specify)
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1 |
20.00% |
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11-10-2019, 04:28 AM
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#1
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: California & UK
Posts: 16
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Is this Bluebird All American a good purchase?
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11-10-2019, 07:05 AM
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#2
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,764
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
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Yes that's a really top of the line bus. You'll not find many nicer. The price is high, but its probably a reseller.
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11-10-2019, 08:38 AM
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#3
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 1,259
Year: 2001
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American
Engine: 8.3 Cummins ISC
Rated Cap: 75
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EastCoastCB
Yes that's a really top of the line bus. You'll not find many nicer. The price is high, but its probably a reseller.
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Pretty sure that is the Bluebird dealer for Washington State. VERY clean bus, cleaner than mine and better tires. I'm guessing a bus like that would be 7-8k at auction but if you absolutely need a bus immediately then dealers are your main option.
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11-10-2019, 09:04 AM
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#4
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Jan 2019
Location: Philadelphia
Posts: 6,995
Year: 2003
Coachwork: International
Chassis: CE 300
Engine: DT466e
Rated Cap: 65C-43A
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That bus is essentially rust-free. Since there'd be no opportunity to weld over any giant holes in the floor, I'd give it a hard pass.
All seriousness aside, that's an absolutely fantastic bus for a skoolie: high ceiling (which comes with larger-than-normal windows), underbody storage, great engine etc. etc. But $10K is really steep.
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11-10-2019, 09:12 AM
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#5
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Johnson City TN
Posts: 441
Year: 2004
Coachwork: IC/AMTRANS RE
Engine: T444E 7.3 w/ MD3060
Rated Cap: 36000lbs / 78pass / 39'
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Def a nice setup there. But not quite 10k nice, at the most it's worth $7,500....
Check the date code on the tires make sure they aren't old. I've seen man with loads of tread and 8-12 years old... Mine has some great looking tread but are 8-9 years old which is a bit too old to trust for serious adventures. Def a plus with the powertrain setup.
__________________
If you would like to check out my website that has all sort of information especially for the T444E/7.3PSD engines check out www.PatrickTheSalvageGuy.com I've got helpful downloads and articles as well as a link to my YT for other how to videos mainly on the F series trucks.
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11-10-2019, 10:36 AM
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#6
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Bus Geek
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Eastern WA
Posts: 6,401
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American RE (A3RE)
Engine: Cummins ISC (8.3)
Rated Cap: 72
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Nice looking bus!
Maybe I am a little biased
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11-10-2019, 11:01 AM
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#7
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,764
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WIbluebird
Pretty sure that is the Bluebird dealer for Washington State. VERY clean bus, cleaner than mine and better tires. I'm guessing a bus like that would be 7-8k at auction but if you absolutely need a bus immediately then dealers are your main option.
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I've got a friend who bought one of the Renton WA buses on GovDeals. Nicer than this one even, and they went for 4k.
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11-10-2019, 11:15 AM
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#8
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Dawsonville, Ga.
Posts: 10,482
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Genesis
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466/3060
Rated Cap: 77
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Estimates of $7-$8k would make that the most expensive purchase price for a bus offered here. Is it really THE Holy Grail? 20 years old, high mileage. If you're not in a hurry, Beaverton is auctioning off more buses in the spring. I just paid $1650 for a 2005 , 40' Thomas. There are plenty of nice buses available for less than $4K out there.
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11-10-2019, 01:06 PM
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#9
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Georgia
Posts: 2,264
Year: 2001
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: IH
Engine: T444E
Rated Cap: 14
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Pros: Good engine. Looks to be high-ceiling. Underbelly storage. Decent tires. Air brakes. Relatively rust free (that I can see).
Cons: Mileage a bit high. No A/C (that I see). Windows not tinted (this helps greatly with summer heat). Asking price very high.
Unknowns: Fuel tank capacity. Is it actually a B500 Allison transmission? (Did school buses come with these transmissions?) What work has the seller done on this bus, if any? Any recent major engine work? (A recent overhaul might justify a higher asking price.) Gear ratio/top speed? (Was this set up for highway cruising?)
As others have stated, a similar bus can be had through an auction for a lot less money, so ultimately you have to decide if the extra dealer/seller convenience is worth the extra price. I'd haggle a bit, see if the seller will add some value to the bus (seat removal? Paint? RV title conversion? Delivery?) for the price.
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11-10-2019, 01:16 PM
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#10
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Bus Geek
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Eastern WA
Posts: 6,401
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American RE (A3RE)
Engine: Cummins ISC (8.3)
Rated Cap: 72
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It is near identical to my 2002.
I bought mine on Govdeals.com for $3450. It had a bit over 170k miles and custom "bodywork" on the rear cap
I am definitely biased but I do think that an A3RE with the 8.3 & MD-3060 is among the most desirable school buses short of a Gillig Or Crown.
Just my $0.02
Edit: JohnBaptist.... The best thing about Crowns and Gilligan's is that they could be had with two stroke Detroit's
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11-10-2019, 01:53 PM
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#11
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Dawsonville, Ga.
Posts: 10,482
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Genesis
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466/3060
Rated Cap: 77
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad_SwiftFur
Pros: Good engine. Looks to be high-ceiling. Underbelly storage. Decent tires. Air brakes. Relatively rust free (that I can see).
Cons: Mileage a bit high. No A/C (that I see). Windows not tinted (this helps greatly with summer heat). Asking price very high.
Unknowns: Fuel tank capacity. Is it actually a B500 Allison transmission? (Did school buses come with these transmissions?) What work has the seller done on this bus, if any? Any recent major engine work? (A recent overhaul might justify a higher asking price.) Gear ratio/top speed? (Was this set up for highway cruising?)
As others have stated, a similar bus can be had through an auction for a lot less money, so ultimately you have to decide if the extra dealer/seller convenience is worth the extra price. I'd haggle a bit, see if the seller will add some value to the bus (seat removal? Paint? RV title conversion? Delivery?) for the price.
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The B in B500 designates it as a Bus specific trans. That's a new one on me.
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11-10-2019, 02:07 PM
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#12
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Bus Geek
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Eastern WA
Posts: 6,401
Year: 2002
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American RE (A3RE)
Engine: Cummins ISC (8.3)
Rated Cap: 72
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Quote:
Originally Posted by o1marc
The B in B500 designates it as a Bus specific trans. That's a new one on me.
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You learn something new every day
Allison 's "5th generation" transmissions have a prefix that indicate application. TC for truck, B for bus etc.
That really makes me wonder about our schools today....... The only B series Allison that I have seen firsthand was in a garage truck.... I didn't check to see if there were any students in back.....
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11-10-2019, 02:13 PM
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#13
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Dawsonville, Ga.
Posts: 10,482
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Genesis
Chassis: International
Engine: DT466/3060
Rated Cap: 77
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Good B500 Info
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11-10-2019, 04:09 PM
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#14
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Bus Geek
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Eustis FLORIDA
Posts: 23,764
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: Freighliner FS65
Engine: Cat 3126
Rated Cap: 15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by o1marc
Estimates of $7-$8k would make that the most expensive purchase price for a bus offered here. Is it really THE Holy Grail? 20 years old, high mileage. If you're not in a hurry, Beaverton is auctioning off more buses in the spring. I just paid $1650 for a 2005 , 40' Thomas. There are plenty of nice buses available for less than $4K out there.
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No one's bus prices are higher than BGA.
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11-10-2019, 04:57 PM
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#15
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Whidbey Island, WA.
Posts: 1,109
Year: 1984
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: All American
Engine: 3208 na boat anchor
Rated Cap: 2
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Still a great bus.Yeah, the price might be a bit high, but is probably less than someone who buys a bus for $2k then replaces the transmission, or has something so rusty it's junk.
It's all predicted on drive-train health. One would need to correlate the maintenance records with equipment manufacturers' recommended maintenance items. Then you could figure out how much run time you get before expensive items are due. Things like heads, bearings, piston and liners.
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11-11-2019, 09:01 AM
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#16
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Bus Crazy
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 1,259
Year: 2001
Coachwork: Bluebird
Chassis: All American
Engine: 8.3 Cummins ISC
Rated Cap: 75
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Also that one has minimal understorage which also detracts from the value somewhat.
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11-16-2019, 03:42 PM
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#17
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Mini-Skoolie
Join Date: Mar 2018
Posts: 17
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yours looks great, I have a 98 and looks very similar... Love it I converted mine and I am living in it full time... very nice
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11-17-2019, 07:07 PM
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#18
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Bus Nut
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Snowflake, Arizona
Posts: 343
Year: 1996
Coachwork: Blue Bird
Chassis: All American Rear Engine
Engine: C-8.3-300 Cummins MD3060
Rated Cap: 40 Prisoners
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Value
One question you should ask is if it has an hour meter on it so you can tell how many of those miles that it shows are around town or highway miles. My 1996 All American has 320,000 miles on it but only 9000 hours on the motor which basically says the average speed for the life of the vehicle has been 45 mph which means it’s mostly highway miles. Major engine work is not required till 14,000 hours on the 8.3 cummins. Would be nice to know horsepower rating and differential ratio as well.
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