A little Mileage assistance, Please.

[Meandering Mitch]

I found a Bus I'm interested in but have concerns about the mileage. It's a 93 bus with a DT466 mechanical motor, 210 HP, with about 285K miles. Seller doesn't have any maintenance history for the bus but seems very confident the bus is in good mechanical condition.

It was a school system bus until 2014 then not sure after that.

Question is should I be concerned about the mileage?

Your thoughts and opinions are most appreciated.

Thanks

[brokedown]

285k isn't out of line for the year but honestly that's more than I would want to see on a new project. School districts tend to take care of their stuff but that's not a guarantee, and who knows what happened in the last 5 years since they sold it.

With that many miles and no service history I would need to see a very low price to stay interested.

[o1marc]

I've got 252k on my DT466 and she runs like a champ, I would not be concerned about the mileage alone.

[cowlitzcoach]

The mileage doesn't concern me as much as what it has been doing since it left the school district.


The DT466 is a good half million mile engine in a school bus if it is taken care of properly. Not taken care of properly it would be lucky to see 100,000 miles.



The big thing for which to be concerned is the coolant pH. The DT466 uses a lot of dissimilar metals when it is put together. If the coolant isn't properly treated the electrolysis can go unchecked leaving pinholes in the cylinder liners and failed liner O-rings.



If the coolant checks out okay, if the engine starts easily and stops smoking almost immediately, and the transmission goes from forward to reverse without any hesitations then it might be worth a chance if the price is reasonable enough. I would not go over $3,500 for it as long as the body is in good condition. If there is any rust I would walk away very quickly.

[Meandering Mitch]

Thanks for the responses, really appreciate your input. While pondering wether or not to purchase the bus I had originally posted about, one came up in my city. The other bus was a couple of states away. This bus had the DT466, 643 tranny and was a flat nose front engine which is what I was really wanting. It actually has more miles, 330K but no rust, seems to run well and was $2800. It’s a 98 amtran genesis, 40’, which I know some folks don’t like but it seemed like a really good price and several thousand cheaper than the other bus...and local.

Did I screw up?

Thanks again for your responses!

[o1marc]

Originally Posted by Meandering Mitch

Thanks for the responses, really appreciate your input. While pondering wether or not to purchase the bus I had originally posted about, one came up in my city. The other bus was a couple of states away. This bus had the DT466, 643 tranny and was a flat nose front engine which is what I was really wanting. It actually has more miles, 330K but no rust, seems to run well and was $2800. It’s a 98 amtran genesis, 40’, which I know some folks don’t like but it seemed like a really good price and several thousand cheaper than the other bus...and local.

Did I screw up?

Thanks again for your responses!

No, you did not screw up. I paid $3500 for my 99 with 250k.

[Meandering Mitch]

Thanks, I feel better

Now the fun begins...