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Old 06-21-2017, 02:08 PM   #1
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3126 caterpillar engine

Good Morning Gang;
I have a mechanical question for someone. I now own a 2001 Blue Bird A3RE bus with a 3126 caterpillar engine, 439 cubic inches, 7.2 liters and an Allison MD3060 transmission. Overall the bus operated in what I say was normal specs except for the Gas and Brake pedal kept sticking.
At one point during our trip home, the Gas pedal had to be pulled back into place by hand. My older brother stated it is an electronic issue and spray them both down with some kind of electronic cleaner. Similar to 5103 Quick Dry Electronic Cleaner - 11 Wt Oz. 11 Ounce, USA, Brand CRC or WD-40 11 Oz. Specialist Silicone Spray.

Well I need some input from Team Skoolie

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Old 06-21-2017, 03:18 PM   #2
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Good Morning Gang;
I have a mechanical question for someone. I now own a 2001 Blue Bird A3RE bus with a 3126 caterpillar engine, 439 cubic inches, 7.2 liters and an Allison MD3060 transmission. Overall the bus operated in what I say was normal specs except for the Gas and Brake pedal kept sticking.
At one point during our trip home, the Gas pedal had to be pulled back into place by hand. My older brother stated it is an electronic issue and spray them both down with some kind of electronic cleaner. Similar to 5103 Quick Dry Electronic Cleaner - 11 Wt Oz. 11 Ounce, USA, Brand CRC or WD-40 11 Oz. Specialist Silicone Spray.

Well I need some input from Team Skoolie
was the pedal physically stuck down or was it pulled all the way up but the bus continued as if it had pressure on the pedal? im assuming there's no air throttle since its a 3126, that theres just 5 or 6 wires going to the pedal?

-Christopher
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Old 06-21-2017, 03:30 PM   #3
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Christopher
It was physically stuck down and the bus was still moving as if someone had their foot on the pedal. The brake pedal was hard to push down and even harder with the gas pedal sticking. The wiring, well I didn't get down there yet. We just parked it and getting to battle another day.

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Old 06-21-2017, 03:35 PM   #4
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Ghost bus?

If you're not accustomed to air brakes they're definitely going to feel difficult to apply. I locked my brakes up several times before getting a handle on it. Nothing about this is like driving a car.
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Old 06-21-2017, 04:35 PM   #5
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Christopher
It was physically stuck down and the bus was still moving as if someone had their foot on the pedal. The brake pedal was hard to push down and even harder with the gas pedal sticking. The wiring, well I didn't get down there yet. We just parked it and getting to battle another day.

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Look up how an air brake valve works. It should not be hard to push down if your foot is in the right position on it. It is possible the fulcrum point is dirty, etc., Even the fuel petal should be easy to push down whether mechanical linkage or the electronic ones. After all, both of these controls are meant to be easily manipulated for hours at a time every day.
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Old 06-21-2017, 04:50 PM   #6
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Drain your air tanks ?
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Old 06-21-2017, 07:10 PM   #7
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I've seen pedal assemblies get stiff sometimes after the truck or bus they're in has been parked for an extended time. The ones I've seen it happen in have a cast aluminum pedal assembly and a steel pivot pin. The stiffness was due to corrosion which is common in steel to aluminum contact.

If that's what you have going on, the pin can be removed, the parts cleaned up with some emory cloth and a small file, and reassembled with a touch of grease. But be careful not to break the cast aluminum tabs while removing the pins.
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Old 06-21-2017, 07:24 PM   #8
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Rameses
When I get home from work I'm going to try your first and see what happens where exactly is this tab I should be looking for because I can't afford to break nothing. LOL

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Old 06-21-2017, 07:38 PM   #9
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I just went out and looked at my pedals. Mine's an A3 also, so they probably have the same pedals. The throttle pedal looks to be made of plastic, so just spray that hinge pin down with WD40, or Kroil, or PB Blaster, or whatever your spray lube of choice is, and that'll probably work.

Try the same thing with the brake pedal before you take the pin out. It's pretty tight down there, with the steering column on one side of the pedal and the throttle on the other. In order to get the pin out, you'll need to pull the brake pedal assembly out. That'll mean pulling several bolts out that go down into the floor (and probably have a nut on the underside.) Once that's out, you'll be able to see that it's basically an aluminum plate with two tabs that stick up with holes in them. The pin goes through those two holes and the pedal is affixed to the pin. The pin rotates in the holes in the aluminum tabs with the pedal moving with the pin.

Hopefully just spraying it with lube will get it moving freely, because taking that assembly out is probably going to be a pain.
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Old 06-23-2017, 04:27 PM   #10
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Stuck throttle sounds scary! Hopefully it is as simple as a little well placed lube.

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Old 06-23-2017, 04:33 PM   #11
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Well I sprayed the brake and throttle pedal down with WD-40 the other day. We have been working hard inside removing the seats so far. The plywood is shot. Its turning to dust and splintering as we pull the seats. The metal isle strips came up by hand without removing the screws. I am praying to God about the condition of the metal floor.

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Old 06-23-2017, 04:38 PM   #12
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Where did the bus come from? Pictures please!

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Old 06-23-2017, 04:57 PM   #13
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the thing about air brakes.. there is not nearly as much pedal travel as there is in hydraulic or car brakes.. so the pedal feels "solid" right away when you step.. and it takes very little pedal movement to get quite a bit of braking.. so some think it feels "hard".. but trust me if you stomp down the air brakes will engage hard.. it takes finesse to learn them.. then you'll get really good at how they operate.
-Christopher
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Old 06-23-2017, 05:00 PM   #14
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Yeah but you got to understand I used to drive a tractor trailer back in the day (20 years ago) and I can feel that there is something restricting it.

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Old 06-23-2017, 05:38 PM   #15
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Yeah but you got to understand I used to drive a tractor trailer back in the day (20 years ago) and I can feel that there is something restricting it.

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Oops! sorry I didnt know you were familiar with air brakes.. I have a lot of people telling me their brakes suck only for it to be they arent used to how air brakes feel...

-Christopher
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Old 06-23-2017, 06:12 PM   #16
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No worries however it has also been over 20 years

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