Doesn't, "No va," mean, "it doesn't go," en Espanol..?

[HazMatt]

Howdy, fiends and neighbours!!!
The rumours of my deceaseditude and corpsification have been greatly over-exaggerated.
So far, at least... [emoji1696][emoji1696]
I'm finally crawling out from under my T444E rock, due to a nearby score that is potentially entirely too sweet to ignore. But available data upon which has been next to non-existent.
(Which similarly describes the social life here in the sticks. But I digress...)
What does the community know about the NovaBus? Good, bad, or indifferent. Which is more'n I have to go on at present.
Specifically, the beasts in question are:
2001 RTS, Diesel, 8.48L, 35ft Long, 102in Wide, Vehicle Starts and Drives, Has Wheelchair Kneel Feature, GVWR: 39,500 lbs., GAWR: Front 14,500 lbs., GAWR: Rear 25,000 lbs., Engine – Detroit Series 50, Transmission – ZF, Wheelchair Lift – Lift-U.
Like most any guy, I'm always looking to get more head (space). My 6' frame keeps the ceiling center well dusted in my Int'l 3800. And speaking as an experienced spelunker, it can feel better a mite claustrophobic in there.
I'll be heading out yonder manana (hopefully) to inspect several. If anyone wants info on any, OTHER than, in descending order: 105, 121, & 115, I'll try to oblige.
[emoji3577]
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[CHEESE_WAGON]

I've heard talk of transmission issues but not sure if a common problem exists. BTW, you posted this about three or four times. I know it's frustrating when the site is slow, but let it do its thing...

[musigenesis]

We haz HazMatt again! Always nice when people turn out to be not dead.

[HazMatt]

Originally Posted by CHEESE_WAGON

I've heard talk of transmission issues but not sure if a common problem exists. BTW, you posted this about three or four times. I know it's frustrating when the site is slow, but let it do its thing...

Only 1 out of the 12 Aggy busses being offered was stated to have a blown tranny. (Not that I'm one to opine on another's preferences and predilections.)
Four times. The auction ends tomorrow, and I figured that if I widely (pardon the expression) disseminated, there would be a much better chance of there being a happy ending for me.
Learning about Nova's, natcherly...

Originally Posted by musigenesis

We haz HazMatt again! Always nice when people turn out to be not dead.

I thought I was dead, but I'm feeling *much* better now, thanx!
Just had to adjust my meds...

[Truthseeker4449]

I once attended a dealer-offered class on introduction to Vanhool coaches. Talk of transmissions did come up and it was touched upon that ZF transmissions are not good. There were two techs there who experience with working on them and their opinions were not pleasant ones, but I cannot recall the specifics of what was said.

From what I recall in that class, they are automated manual transmissions and were not reowned for shift quality. They are not trouble free units like Allisons are. They were supported by Cummins but Cummins dropped them a while back so finding someone to work on them is not easy now.

Personally I worked around Volvo coaches for a very short time with automated manual transmission (iShift), was horrible and scary. They lurched hard and would roll back on hills very freely before the transmission would catch under half throttle and then launch the coach.

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Originally Posted by Truthseeker4449

Personally I worked around Volvo coaches for a very short time with automated manual transmission (iShift), was horrible and scary. They lurched hard and would roll back on hills very freely before the transmission would catch under half throttle and then launch the coach.

Don't even get me started on the iSh*t POS. You think that was bad, try descending the east side of the Cascade mountain range with 44000 pounds behind you and unable to gear it down.

[HazMatt]

Originally Posted by Truthseeker4449

I once attended a dealer-offered class on introduction to Vanhool coaches. Talk of transmissions did come up and it was touched upon that ZF transmissions are not good.

Thank you very much for the input and insight! I found little of relevancy regarding the tranny, and it's asymetrical driveline feels kludgey to me.
I still made the trip to inspect, but with *much* greater wariness.
Not an entirely wasted drive: as provisions were to be had at the tobacconist, supermarket, and Lowe's!

[HazMatt]

Just didn't catch a vibe strong enough to send any of those Texas A&M busses to the first draft. The 80" ceiling *was* nice, and that the inward-facing, wall-lining seats were suspended from said ceiling would be a cool breeze to excise...
I didn't much care for the majority of it's glass being fixed in place, with but a bitty l'il hinged strip long the tops. Too bad, the open floor was awfully tempting.
Ultimately what decided me was, after being an Aggy bus for 19 years, the decon and deodorizing details were too damned daunting.
I'd have to buy a drum of Febreze to contravene the convolutedly combined noisomeness of ovine lanolin, porcine feces, bovine uteri, not to mention protracted, crushingly compounded, future debts...
(To anyone who matriculated at A&M: as we used to say, back when the world was younger:
"Just bustin' yer aggies...")