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Old 07-24-2021, 02:54 PM   #1
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2007 Cat c7 Allison md3000, should I do it?

I've heard horror stories about these engines but I've come across a vehicle that's still certified by highway patrol and just came out of service with regular maintenance from the school district. It's a 2007 with the cat c7 Allison MD 3000 and 170,000 miles. It looks to be in beautiful shape, has no indicated issues from the maintenance records or the highway patrol certification. Under bay storage, no rust, good tires and the configuration I'm looking for. It's a great price at under 3k and I'm wondering if I should go for it.

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Old 07-25-2021, 06:57 AM   #2
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Location: Toledo OH
Posts: 781
Year: 2006
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: MVP-EF
Engine: Cat C7 + Allison 3000PTS
I had the same initial worries about the C7, but ended up getting a bus with that exact combination of engine + transmission and I’m happy so far. The C7 is very reliable as long as you keep up on oil changes. Parts and service will be expensive because it’s CAT specific, but these big engines are built to be reliable over long distances and use. The typical skoolie use case is fairly easy on them by comparison.

Look up “adept ape” and his CAT videos on YouTube, he’s a really sharp CAT tech that gives the real lowdown on the C7 and 3126.
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Old 07-25-2021, 10:24 AM   #3
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Join Date: May 2006
Location: mid Mo.
Posts: 869
Year: 1976
Coachwork: bluebird
Chassis: F33695
Engine: 427 chevy converted to 466
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If it ever gets a miss in it get it looked at, I didn't and now I am using a quart of oil every 50 miles in my C7. That goes for any diesel not just a C7, you burn pistons and score cylinder walls if the injector gets clogged and sprays fuel on just one side of the piston which overheats it causing catastrophic problems. Mine runs fine after it heats up just runs like crap and smokes like crazy when cold (bad injector and low compression). If you look at a bus or any diesel for that matter and it's already warmed up when you get there be wary, always start it cold and see how it performs or walk away if they won't let you do that simple test.
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Old 07-25-2021, 03:02 PM   #4
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Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Toledo OH
Posts: 781
Year: 2006
Coachwork: Thomas
Chassis: MVP-EF
Engine: Cat C7 + Allison 3000PTS
Quote:
Originally Posted by sportyrick View Post
If it ever gets a miss in it get it looked at, I didn't and now I am using a quart of oil every 50 miles in my C7. That goes for any diesel not just a C7, you burn pistons and score cylinder walls if the injector gets clogged and sprays fuel on just one side of the piston which overheats it causing catastrophic problems. Mine runs fine after it heats up just runs like crap and smokes like crazy when cold (bad injector and low compression). If you look at a bus or any diesel for that matter and it's already warmed up when you get there be wary, always start it cold and see how it performs or walk away if they won't let you do that simple test.
Very good point. They had pre-started mine when I came to look at it because the batteries were old and dead. Fortunately mine seems to have been genuinely well cared for, so I’m not too worried.
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