89 Ford B700 being scrapped for diesel driveline for wrecker

[Gateway-broker]

Just bought a 1989 Ford B700 midsize school bus (30 passenger I think). The bus has no title, but it's not in bad shape at all. It's been sitting under a cedar tree for at least a couple of years, so it's been shaded from direct sunlight for the majority of time. The tires don't appear to have any weather cracking at all, they look like they are brand new, and the ground is soft, so I doubt they even have any flat spots from sitting. I put in 2 side post batteries that I had, barely was able to get the top post terminals to tighten at all over the charging posts that I bought for my experiment to see if it would start (I actually had to use electrical tape to keep them on), and it started immediately on the first turn of the key. The engine sounded great, and the tranny seemed to pull fine (didn't drive it because the rear tires are in some pretty deep mud and would only spin). I may sell the bus, but I am hoping to pull the 6.6L diesel, and Allison automatic to use in a tow truck (if it fits). I have a couple of options, and I'm also not worried about building a Frankenstein truck. I have a 94 Chevy HD wrecker with no diesel engine, a 5-speed tranny. I WILL NOT GO BACK WITH A 6.5L DIESEL IN IT, AND I DON'T WANT A 5-SPEED. I also have a 99 UD with a bad diesel and auto tranny with about 400k showing on the odometer. I like the cabover trucks for the turning radius, the way they maneuver in the city...and they tend to look newer than a typical work truck as they age. Some of the cabover tow trucks have 4 cylinder diesels, and some have 6-cylinder. I have a 94 Mitsubishi wrecker with a 6 cylinder and Allison automatic. I think I can make it work in either truck. I don't know what either truck weighs, and I don't know a lot about the bus driveline. I keep hearing they have no power, but they will pull down a house. I'm hoping if it can pull a midsize bus around full of kids, it should be able to handle a tow truck. Any thoughts on this???

[nevrenufhp]

A lot of people complain of them being underpowered, but that can be overcome very easily. I say pick your truck, and have at it. The 6.6 will run forever, and makes a GM 6.5 seem like a turd. It may start with 170 or so hp, but can also become a monster with simply more fuel & air.