Help needed with buying decision!

[Kdondley]

Hiya, I am new on here but I have been researching and reading for quite some time now. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with deciding between buses.

*I live in Virginia*

First bus:
Located in Oregon
1995 Amtran
DT466
MT643
Handicap lift
7-8 windows
what looks to be a tall ceiling height
240,000 miles
Was sent all service records
currently at $4,400
-This is the bus I was most excited about

Second bus:
Located in Virginia
1999 Blue Bird TC2000
5.9L Cummins
AT545
Handicap Lift
8 Windows
173,145 miles
No service records available
currently at $1,425


Honestly, I really want the one in Oregon. Is it worth it? What's the most that bus is worth? The only real reason I'm thinking about the one in Va is out of location convenience and price. Any advise?

 

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Decisions, decisions...

The one in Oregon is a better bus, no doubt. But in that part of the country, rust is a concern. Have you seen pics of the underbody and frame rails?

The one in Virginia is less likely to have rust, but an AT545 is the Achille's heel there. Where is this one located? I am local to VA myself.

 

[Kdondley]

Neither have pictures of the underside.
The one in Oregon is in Bend which has a high-desert climate, so, I'm not too worried about rust. The one in Va is located in Salem.

 

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Neither have pictures of the underside.
The one in Oregon is in Bend which has a high-desert climate, so, I'm not too worried about rust. The one in Va is located in Salem.

If it's on Public Surplus and it's being sold by Roanoke County or City government, I wouldn't do it. I bought a used police car from Roanoke through Public Surplus and they were completely dishonest about the vehicle. The engine was shot and they said it ran good, did not note any problems with it.

Final entry in the service records proved that they knew the engine was blown (oil pan drain plug was also magnetic and not factory), and I wound up paying $1200 for an auction car that I spent $1800 repairing before I could even put it on the road. Not the kind of people you want to do business with.

Do you have any specific wish list you're looking for? I run across a few deals here and there.

 

[EastCoastCB]

Neither have pictures of the underside.
The one in Oregon is in Bend which has a high-desert climate, so, I'm not too worried about rust. The one in Va is located in Salem.

Bend has some good buses. Not much rust there.

That 95 is what I'd go for. TC2000 was a budget model. And VA buses can definitely have rust depending on where in VA they're from.

 

[cadillackid]

busses from the central / eastern part of oregon are often fantastic for having next to nil rust..



I brought a 40 year old bus home from oregon and am amazed at the fact it pretty much as zero rust (except for a hinge here or there).



the drivetrain is solid but you will want to make sure it can drive the speeds you wish to drive.. the 466 / MT643 is about as solid drivetrain as it gets, depending on what it was used for it may have been geared low and not have a high top speed.. if you can get its VIN, international dealers can tell you the rear gear ratio it was built with as well as its engine Horsepower rating.


for a bus in that price range id expect it to have very little rust, be in good operable order and have good tires..



alot of what you get depends on your intended use.. will it be something you trek the country all over the place? on the road alot? a weekend warrior camper that goes to the lake 3X a year? a full-time home parked?



the AT545 trans isnt bad for a weekend warrior or an occasional camper that doesnt traverse the big mountains lots.. the oregon bus has a drivetrain that will traverse the big hills and do it well..

 

[EastCoastCB]

mechanical DT466 with 643 trans is as good as it gets IMO.

 

[Drew Bru]

mechanical DT466 with 643 trans is as good as it gets IMO.

Word. Price doesn't seem bad to me, esp. if you want to just get the bus and move on with the build instead of holding out hope for a $2000 unicorn.

 

[EastCoastCB]

Word. Price doesn't seem bad to me, esp. if you want to just get the bus and move on with the build instead of holding out hope for a $2000 unicorn.

YOu and I share taste in buses, as you know!

For the rest of you reading along- Drew stole my dream bus from under me! lol

 

[Kdondley]

Wow, thank you all for responding so quickly! I think I'm going to stick with the Oregon bus until it goes above my budget. I am looking to live full-time and travel with whatever bus I end up with, tow my car or possibly get a motorcycle, maaaybe leave the country. Thanks for the Roanoke warning and the tip about contacting International!

 

[PNW_Steve]

Decisions, decisions...

The one in Oregon is a better bus, no doubt. But in that part of the country, rust is a concern. Have you seen pics of the underbody and frame rails?

The one in Virginia is less likely to have rust, but an AT545 is the Achille's heel there. Where is this one located? I am local to VA myself.

I hear the comments regarding rust problems with Oregon and Washington. I have spent a good chunk of my life in OR and WA and I haven't seen it yet.

I bought my first Seattle bus in 1993 and my last one in 2016. My current Bluebird came out of Western Oregon and has almost zero rust. It had a couple small spots of surface rust on the floor but that was it.

The vehicles that come out of my area don't have rust issues. Some folks don't realize that a big chunk of Oregon and Washington are desert.

Regarding the buses you mentioned, condition is paramount. Assuming similar condition I would definitely be looking at the Oregon bus with a mechanical DT466 and MT643. The mileage is high enough that I would be looking close at condition and maintenance records.

The price on the Oregon bus is not had if it is good mechanically. Many of us paid a little less for similar buses but prices seem to be trending up.

Good luck with your search.

 

[CHEESE_WAGON]

The vehicles that come out of my area don't have rust issues. Some folks don't realize that a big chunk of Oregon and Washington are desert.

This may be true, but having driven tractor-trailers through both states, I have seen snow in both. Guess it really depends on what part of the state it's coming from. As mentioned elsewhere here, even Virginia buses can have rust, but it's not that common.

 

[EastCoastCB]

I hear the comments regarding rust problems with Oregon and Washington. I have spent a good chunk of my life in OR and WA and I haven't seen it yet.

I bought my first Seattle bus in 1993 and my last one in 2016. My current Bluebird came out of Western Oregon and has almost zero rust. It had a couple small spots of surface rust on the floor but that was it.

The vehicles that come out of my area don't have rust issues. Some folks don't realize that a big chunk of Oregon and Washington are desert.

Regarding the buses you mentioned, condition is paramount. Assuming similar condition I would definitely be looking at the Oregon bus with a mechanical DT466 and MT643. The mileage is high enough that I would be looking close at condition and maintenance records.

The price on the Oregon bus is not had if it is good mechanically. Many of us paid a little less for similar buses but prices seem to be trending up.

Good luck with your search.

My experience with the auctions tells me OR is a good place to look for surplus stuff. LOTS of clean, rust free older trucks and vans, buses, etc.
One of these days I'm gona hire ya to bring me a Crown or soemthing. :wink1:

 

[cadillackid]

This may be true, but having driven tractor-trailers through both states, I have seen snow in both. Guess it really depends on what part of the state it's coming from. As mentioned elsewhere here, even Virginia buses can have rust, but it's not that common.

oregon tends to sand more than salt.. sure in the mountains you see quite a bit of snow. but ive also notives a huigher mix of sand or all sand used as opposed toi the midwest and eastern way of chemical the **** out of the road..


my 40 year old oregon bus is about as rust free as one can get. espo for its age..

a rusty screw or hinge here or there. but no body,frame or floor damage..

 

[EastCoastCB]

Dang, that is clean for 40!

 

[PNW_Steve]

This may be true, but having driven tractor-trailers through both states, I have seen snow in both. Guess it really depends on what part of the state it's coming from. As mentioned elsewhere here, even Virginia buses can have rust, but it's not that common.

It rarely snows in Western Washington and they don't salt the roads. It snows quite a bit more over here but, again, we don't salt the roads. The one rare exception that I have seen is Snoqualmie pass.

I have purchased quite a few older cars in Washington over the last fourty years. Mostly on the West side. None of them had any rust issues.


It isn't a big deal. Just trying to give OP a perspective from someone who lives here.

 

[PNW_Steve]

My experience with the auctions tells me OR is a good place to look for surplus stuff. LOTS of clean, rust free older trucks and vans, buses, etc.
One of these days I'm gona hire ya to bring me a Crown or soemthing. :wink1:

Yup. My last Oregon auction find only had a bit of surface rust under a window that didn't close properly.

I have seen a number of really nice buses coming out of Oregon.

 

[musigenesis]

my 40 year old oregon bus is about as rust free as one can get. espo for its age..

a rusty screw or hinge here or there. but no body,frame or floor damage..

View attachment 45155

Anybody else hearing angels singing in the background?

 

[WIbluebird]

Someone needs to figure out where all the Wyoming buses are ending up!!



My Bluebird used to be #12 for Fremont County WY but I have yet to see any Wyoming buses end up on Public Surplus, Govdeals or other auction sites. As far as I can tell they have ordered top of the line Bluebird AAREs with 8.3 ISCs, high roof, factory AC and full understorage for a long time (mine is a 2001). Google Earth images of the bus garages show entire lots stacked with those buses.

 

[MontyPK]

Stay away from the 545. The other MT643 is kinda high $ for the miles, you can do better if ya look a little longer.