Made a big mistake!

bigskypc50 · 09-15-2023, 09:35 PM

I seem to have a bit of a problem I happen to be on Facebook market place and saw a 2010 IC CE commercial bus with a whopping 324K miles on it listed for $1900 not running. And yup it has the dreaded black maxforce DT. I could not control myself and the urge to go take a look at it came over me and I caved, and sadly $1200 dollars later it will follow me home on Monday.

So how bad did I F-up? LOL?!?!? Honestly I only bought it because it was that cheap and thought I could tinker with it in my free time and might get it running. Worst case I could use it for storage or sell it for a storage building.

Story I was told it has a major electrical problem, it got parked one night and would not do anything the next day no crank no start. It was used by a large construction company for crew transit. I guess a traveling mechanic working on their other stuff, had a quick look at it and came up with that. And I guess no one at the local shops wanted to mess it too busy and the construction place just wants it off their lot.

I am sure with 324K it's on it's what third or forth engine? Is there anyone way to find out if has been in framed or replaced etc? What's your thoughts on it total waste of money maybe that thing will start and drive?

ewo1 · 09-15-2023, 09:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigskypc50

I seem to have a bit of a problem I happen to be on Facebook market place and saw a 2010 IC CE commercial bus with a whopping 324K miles on it listed for $1900 not running. And yup it has the dreaded black maxforce DT. I could not control myself and the urge to go take a look at it came over me and I caved, and sadly $1200 dollars later it will follow me home on Monday.

So how bad did I F-up? LOL?!?!? Honestly I only bought it because it was that cheap and thought I could tinker with it in my free time and might get it running. Worst case I could use it for storage or sell it for a storage building.

Story I was told it has a major electrical problem, it got parked one night and would not do anything the next day no crank no start. It was used by a large construction company for crew transit. I guess a traveling mechanic working on their other stuff, had a quick look at it and came up with that. And I guess no one at the local shops wanted to mess it too busy and the construction place just wants it off their lot.

I am sure with 324K it's on it's what third or forth engine? Is there anyone way to find out if has been in framed or replaced etc? What's your thoughts on it total waste of money maybe that thing will start and drive?

I would put it back up on Facebook, craigslist and get rid of it...but that's just me...

nikitis · 09-15-2023, 09:53 PM

You can probably scrap it for more than that and make a quick couple hundred bucks. Or sell it on FB Marketplace for more.

Dbacks2k4 · 09-15-2023, 10:50 PM

My advice - Scrap it.

You can go into oncommand via repair link shop
https://www.skoolie.net/forums/f37/n...ase-38729.html
And pull the original engine serial number and compare to see if it's been replaced. Won't tell you about any rebuilds though.

Its possible you can fix it. You'll need a cracked version of servicemaxx or NED and a nexiq to read the codes to see what's actually wrong with it. Could be electrical, could be anything. Probably a combination of problems if I were to wager a bet.

Nice looking bus, though. If you like to tinker and fabricate, pickup a pre-emissions dt466e on a rust bucket for dirt cheap and swap it in

What's it got for a tranny??

BarnYardCamp · 09-16-2023, 08:04 AM

It is a nice looking rig....saves you a lot of work and $$$ on paint. Like Dbacks said, maybe swap the engine out. I think I'd try to diagnose the problem(s) first though.

bigskypc50 · 09-16-2023, 08:30 AM

Surprised to hear so many of you saying to scrap it. Is it because of the miles or the engine? The miles are not school bus miles so that’s a positive. I believe the trans is an Allison 3000 fluid loos a little dark on it. Engine oil was fine. Coolent did not see any in the overfill so likely low. Ya I will find out what’s wrong before going any further. Who knows might be a fuse or relay. I have heard that those maxforce dts did ok in things beside school bus duty’s. Where everything had a change to get nice and warm

ewo1 · 09-16-2023, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigskypc50

Surprised to hear so many of you saying to scrap it. Is it because of the miles or the engine? The miles are not school bus miles so that’s a positive. I believe the trans is an Allison 3000 fluid loos a little dark on it. Engine oil was fine. Coolent did not see any in the overfill so likely low. Ya I will find out what’s wrong before going any further. Who knows might be a fuse or relay. I have heard that those maxforce dts did ok in things beside school bus duty’s. Where everything had a change to get nice and warm

The reason I would walk away,
engine swap=5-10 grand???
electrical repair = 1-5 grand?
Engine repairs ==??? easily more than a grand ???
Emissions / exhaust issues = 3-5 grand???

Mileage too high for me to take a chance...

All these number are really, really rough estimates....could be cheaper, could be much worse...!!!!

But who knows, maybe it could be an easy fix too!!

But for me, not worth all the effort...and yes it is a nice body/shell and if I had access to a CHEAP donor bus to do a swap, then I would consider it only because I have the space, time and tools to waste my time on it.

Best thing you can do is without spending large amounts of cash, analyze what you think the non running problem is and then see if it can be repaired.

I got a good friend that got an International flatbed work truck with a VT365 in it and 4 mechanics told him it would never run and comes along a back yard mechanic who knew about the electrical system and got it running for less than $500 bucks. His case, someone butchered the electrical wiring...

Something about backyard mechanics not following dealership rules and protocols... LOL...

Time to roll the dice to see what you get.....snake eyes ????

BamaBus · 09-16-2023, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigskypc50

Surprised to hear so many of you saying to scrap it. Is it because of the miles or the engine?

I believe it's because you can and walk away with some $$ in your pocket. You don't seem to be upside down as so many that fall in love with a dream or a fantasy pushed by social media. The profit is in the buy.

sportyrick · 09-16-2023, 10:53 PM

OH YA...... possibilities of getting a bus for little of nothing and just needing some wiring work YES. Study study and study the bus, research wiring and ask lots of questions you just might figure it out. If not your not in too deep and might be able to make your money back by scrapping and selling tires, transmission, rear end could be sold here, etc. The rear end could almost bring your purchase price. If you fall in love with it then yes transplant an older mechanical DT466 like I did to my bus and you would be golden. Patience grasshopper.

joeblack5 · 09-17-2023, 06:16 AM

That is s nice bus.. headroom..rear entrance. Lots of possibilities.. if it has no rust I would not scrap it. Nada nothing and yesterday all ok sounds like a minor problem.
If coolant and oil look normal for the age then bypass the starter and listen to how it sounds cranking..

Johan

Dbacks2k4 · 09-17-2023, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigskypc50

Surprised to hear so many of you saying to scrap it. Is it because of the miles or the engine?

To me it's the engine.

I had one, it was just as I reliable as the stories. Even if you get it running for cheap, the question is for how long? If you don't need reliable and are just wanting a run bus and will be staying local with it you're probably ok. But if you want to do any significant traveling it's a headache. As with any engine, anything can go wrong at anytime. But my Dt466e's it's less likely. I know at about what intervals my major repairs are likely going to be and I have the electronic diagnostics to watch for the warning signs. I can also budget for that big ticket items.. Injectors, hpop, and turbo. With that maxxforce there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to timing of failures and that emissions system was always having issues at the most inopportune time.

The last one before I got rid of that bus was 1/3 of the way across the long, narrow, and high 2-lane US20 bridge over the Mississippi River at Dubuque, IA. She started billowing so much white smoke I couldn't see more than 6 inches behind me in the mirrors and speed dropped to 10mph. And about the time I got over the bridge she was back to normal, no smoke and full power... We're pretty sure it tried to run a regen cycle and something went horribly wrong.

Omnibot2000 · 09-19-2023, 11:03 PM

If its rust free, $1200 is nothing. You could part that out for more. If I have the means, I'd swap out the engine. Purchase a rusted out rig with good running gear pre-emission and go.

If the body is toast then its a lost cause.

Really at the end of the day with our buses that are converted, engine can blow up tomorrow. Would we write off a bus for a blown engine or a rusted body?

I've always leaned on, if the body is solid its worth fixing. With that said I've scraped cars 10-15 years newer then my 97 OBS Ford just on the rust alone and I didn't blink twice dropping in a $3200 transmission last winter into the truck.

bigskypc50 · 09-20-2023, 04:14 PM

Bit of an update. It arrived on the tow truck Monday. And got a more detailed story on what happened to it. Come to find out last winter when it was -30 -35 below 0 the bus would not start. They towed it into the shop got it thawed and started, pulled it outside to warm up and then it just died. And I guess never restarted or they never tired to restart it. Then just towed it off to the side and left it. I was hopeful at that point. So I found the car fax report and found the transit company that owned it since new and gave them a call and asked it it had every been rebuilt etc. it’s never been rebuilt but has had turbos injectors, EGR coolers etc etc. and he said he is surprised it still runs that they ran that fleet into the ground and it’s flat worn out. I was like oh wow now I just wasted time and money on this. I am currently waiting for an ignition switch and key to see if it will even crank or start etc. so I am hopeful but not expecting much They did run full synthetic oil since new and normal fleet maintenance so I don’t know LOL. I

It will never be used for long distance travel just an around the town toy. I just love buses and like looking at them and owning them. Not rusty some surface rust on the thin metal pannels it built like an RV. I did find out the exhaust is cut or something missing there

Tejon7 · 09-20-2023, 05:08 PM

I hope you get it running, but if not, that Telma might be worth more than than you paid for the bus.

Omnibot2000 · 09-20-2023, 05:43 PM

What is that Telma used for?

Tejon7 · 09-20-2023, 05:56 PM

Extra weight. Keeps it from blowing away in a stiff breeze.

It's a driveline retarder for managing speed without using and heating up your brakes. Similar effect to Jake brakes, but... different somehow. No expert here, I just know they're cool and not cheap.

Omnibot2000 · 09-20-2023, 06:26 PM

Oh....cool. I'll have to google it.

As for the bus.....I mean if it has had all the fluid changes and synthetic oil. Maybe it's still good. Maybe the fuel had gelled and plugged the filters. Does seem odd that it ran and then just died. Maybe a simple scan can say something. Sometimes just sending stuff to a dealer and get them to diag. and engine can be just a few hundred dollars and a quick answer. Do your checks, look it over. To me it sounds electrical. I had a DT that was a no start. Found the DOC was face plugged. The dumbest things you find....

cadillackid · 09-20-2023, 09:15 PM

if you werent halfway across the country id take it off your hands.. its really a beautoful bus.. ive wanted a body style like this..

maybe its ruined but heck with those that just say scrap it.. id probably make it run.. the god node service max and a nexiq will connect to it's computer.. -30 and they garaged it long enough to thaw then started it then it died.. sounds to me like the fuel wasnt all the way ungelled.. and i remember as a kid dad's scout gelled up in super cold weather.. even when we got it warmed up there was like a jelly in the RACOR fuel filter.. we hasd to replace all the filters to get the fuel to flow again...

most certainly the batteries are probably ded from sitting.. Internationals dont take kindly to jump starting.. you'll likely need to put a good charged set of batteries in it to even get it to try.. the underlying DT466 inside of that maxxforce can easily last more than 300K.. injectors/ EGR coolers, clogged DPF, turbos, are all things that typically ruin one.. those things have been replaced so it very well may run again..

2010 was a pivotal year so if its got the 09 engine it is a stabdard HEUI engine with a single VGT turbo.. pretty standard stuff.. essentially a DT466 with a DPF..

if its got the 2010 engine it will be compound turbos and common rail injection..

fo4imtippin · 09-20-2023, 10:34 PM

I like the body style and underneath looks pretty clean. Looks like someone stole your emissions parts or cat. If you do go the route of scrapping it or selling parts, let me know, i would like that telma.

cadillackid · 09-21-2023, 07:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fo4imtippin

I like the body style and underneath looks pretty clean. Looks like someone stole your emissions parts or cat. If you do go the route of scrapping it or selling parts, let me know, i would like that telma.

fortunately the DPFs are still there... although I might be inclinded to think abourt an Export engine control file

the Telma is a nice addition.. if it gets removed to be sold theres a lot of support parts that need to go with it... the only trick is if it was sold factory then the ECM will be the controller for it which means retrofitting it to another vehicle gets difficult unless it has the retarder controller in its ECM.

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