Homeless

[thepojtoo]

Long story short: We survived the Camp Fire; I drove my children through it. Insurance has decided we have had enough time to rebuild and are not paying our rent after September 30. We still need to submit our house plans, our home has been FINISHED on a lot in California since June 2019.

I don't need any horrible comments on our stupidity to rebuild. I need a place to stay while I continue to fight our insurance, California and take care of my family. My husband has an excellent job. We simply cannot pay a mortgage for a home we cannot use and rent.

We do not need financial assistance. We need good advice on a bus. We can do the work of conversion. If you would like more answers I am happy to give them. You can look at our family website if you like and I can post some news articles about us if you like.

I really need to know if this is a good bus. What is the real mileage on these things. I hesitate to throw my family headlong into another trauma. Thank you.

https://www.lasvegasbussales.com/in...008-thomas-saf-t-liner-hdx-school-bus-b07246/

 

[Ronnie-SKO]

Hard to say what the real mileage is. Some schools have to sell them after X many years service. So the mileage might be real.



Just in case you are asking about fuel mileage, 7-8 seems to be realistic, although some claim more then that.


I like the safety liners, nice driving buses, and with the rear engine they are quieter. Has high headroom so another plus.


2008 has more emissions equipment, and is more prone to issues with the emissions equipment then an older one pre 2004. The fine print says not compliant in California. Once converted that should not be a problem but you need to check to be sure. Bummer to buy something you can not register in your home state.

 

[thepojtoo]

Thank you for your response

Thank you. I appreciate your response. We are not returning to California. So, we do not need to register there. Thank you for the heads up on emissions. I will check with Nevada or Wisconsin to see which is best to license.

The first trip will be them delivering it to us her in Wisconsin sans seats. We will pack it up and we intend to get close enough to California, Reno, to finish the rebuild and sell the home in Paradise. We have had it with California. The new fires do not help . . .

Again, thank you. I am glad you did not say this bus is out of the question. Much obliged.

 

[Ronnie-SKO]

Your welcome, I wish you well on your bus journey.


ps very clean engine on that bus

 

[BeNimble]

$14k for an old school bus is very expensive.
If you need a "place to stay" especially with children, then there are much better options than taking on an expensive project.

 

[Brad_SwiftFur]

I'd *RUN AWAY*. Way overpriced. Mercedes engine (which may be a good one, or not so much, parts may be reasonable, or expensive), newer than '04 (expensive emissions hardware).

 

[ACamper-SKO]

That's a lot of money for an old used bus. You are also going to have to dump a lot of labor time and money into it to make it livable for a family.

 

[peteg59]

Maybe I'm slow but if your home has been FINISHED since June 2019, then why are you homeless?

As others have said in not so many words, that bus will likely be a serious money pit to be able to convert into a livable space by 01 Oct.

My sugg., look for a completed bus or RV if you need something in short order...

 

[thepojtoo]

California

We have been "homeless" since our town burned down. Our home is a modular home and has been sitting at the factory since June 2019 because California, COVID and USPS.

We have insurance and they have been paying rent in a small apartment for the last 20 months. They will no longer pay rent for us. So, now we have to move or us our savings to pay both rent and mortgage.

You may understand that the last two years of apartment life, dealing with insurance, home schooling four children, dealing with rebuilding, giving up pets, listening to children say, "Stupid PG&E" though tears, and driving to California three times a year to clear the lot, talk to tree people, designers, contractors . . .

I guess you could say I want a home of my own now. I want the kids and the dog that survived with us to be able to go outside without going down an elevator and walking to a park. I grew up in Alaska and love to be outside. I learned to work with wood, metal and sew before I finished elementary school and know how to plumb and do electrical work. In fact, if you look at our website, you will see I was teaching the kids to do all of this when we first moved to Paradise.

The bus, for me, is a way to move what furniture we purchased to live in the apartment closer to my dad in Reno. After that, we will use it as a "tent" to finish that darn house in California. After that, we do intend to glam it up.

The reason I am willing to pay more is that the dealer is doing all the work of making reasonably sure we can make those trips. I negotiated my excellent hook-ups with my lifelong friends in Alaska to take him fishing and house he and his family in my hometown in Alaska.

A trusted aquaintace pointed me toward this group. She said there are people who "live skokie" and would love to advise me. So, now you know why I began my first post with, "Long story, short". Thank you for all your advice and questions. I know by explaining all this we may get some good advice.

 

[thepojtoo]

$14k for an old school bus is very expensive.
If you need a "place to stay" especially with children, then there are much better options than taking on an expensive project.

So true! Please critique this breakdown:

Alternative cost . . . pay rent here using our savings=$7500/3 months rent, uhaul rental and hotel rooms to move=$3000

Still a gamble that our house will be done in California and I have another winter in Wisconsin!

Stay with family=free, and there is a saying about fish and guest . . .

We will use this judiciously.

It is an expensive bus, but as I said, in another post, the dealer is checking the engine thoroughly knowing our situation. We have a negotiated bonus of free housing and fishing in Alaska if the engine take us on this trip.

I figure, the bus, although expensive gives us the opportunity to have a swanky motor home after it is a lifeline for our transition to our real home. Life costs money, we are not super rich, hence the willingness to buy a bus instead of waste our savings on rent and moving.

Anyway, these are the things I tell myself as I go completely crazy. And, because I know I am at my wits end, I am listening to your advice seriously. Thank you.

 

[peteg59]

Not to discourage you but my earlier sugg. of buying an already converted bus, (with lots of insulation if you're going to be in Wisc. or Alaska in winter), or an RV that is not in need of full restoration is your best bet.
If you are still determined to do a skoolie conversion look around the country you might get lucky and find a bus that someone has done most of the hard/deconstruction work on that has then, for some reason, lost interest in the project. Often times these folks will sell the project at a loss just to get out from under it. If going that route, you must be really careful and have good knowledge of what to look for both mechanically and bodywise.

A full blown school bus conversion that will offer some form of comfort/shelter from the storms of winter is a serious undertaking at this point in the calendar year.
While it can be done, it will not be a project for the feign't of heart or budget minded person to take on.

Good luck to you and your family, and post pics of what you find if you go forward with a bus conversion...

 

[Ronnie-SKO]

I would be cautious about buying someone elses conversion, so many times you end up removing all that has been done because either is does not suit or was poorly done.



Having a dealer that is reputable service the bus, take seats out, deliver it, is all value added. And it takes the biggest scare out of buying a bus, will it make it home? In this case if it does not make it that is the dealers problem. So the dealer has every incentive to be sure it is roadworthy in this case as they are delivering it.


We do hear stories of people buying a bus sight unseen and driving half way home and having it break down, and the cost of repairs is so much it gets left behind. So was the cheap bus a good option then?


So bottom line yes it seems a bit high priced, but is it worth it? For us cheap wads of course not. But really if it meets all the other criteria and it is within affordable range for the person buying it who am I to say what the value is for them.

 

[thepojtoo]

I would be cautious about buying someone elses conversion, so many times you end up removing all that has been done because either is does not suit or was poorly done.



Having a dealer that is reputable service the bus, take seats out, deliver it, is all value added. And it takes the biggest scare out of buying a bus, will it make it home? In this case if it does not make it that is the dealers problem. So the dealer has every incentive to be sure it is roadworthy in this case as they are delivering it.


We do hear stories of people buying a bus sight unseen and driving half way home and having it break down, and the cost of repairs is so much it gets left behind. So was the cheap bus a good option then?


So bottom line yes it seems a bit high priced, but is it worth it? For us cheap wads of course not. But really if it meets all the other criteria and it is within affordable range for the person buying it who am I to say what the value is for them.

Absolutely everything about what you said, is where I am right now. I am from Alaska and have super skills. I truly hope to be in a place very soon where I have the luxury of puttering around glamorizing this out with the kids. Preferably, in the back yard of my new home!

 

[cadillackid]

I look at it as total value.. I paid more for my DEV bus when i got it in 2016 than I shouldve.. I couldve gone to auction and bought the bus for less.. however the dealer I got it from.. i did talk it down a good amount.. they serviced it fully, they painted it, they showed me where it came from, i got to driver it as much as I wanted ahead of time, it was a bus I could have rather quickly.. I needed it for a research project I had embarked on , i didnt have time to bid and lose multiple auctions over months time..



sure I had a failure on my way home (air compressor unloader springs broke).. the dealer was more than helpful in getting me back on the road.. now the service guy.. different story.. but nevertheless the complete value of that bus met my needs and wants and I had plenty of $$ to get it so I did..



the next bus (yes i have a few).. I didnt need in a hurry or anything.. in fact I was just playing on the auctions and wont it sort of by accident.. nevertheless yeah it was a lot cheaper.. its been a great bus too..



if your perceived value meets your needs then go get it and start building!..

 

[thepojtoo]

We did it.

Thank you all for your help with our decision. We bought the bus. I have a new thread on the Conversion area called Midnight Blue. I hope you will continue to help us. We are living in Reno at an RV park in a 33 foot bunkhouse trailer until we get Midnight fixed up. I already have tanks, heater, toilet and other project materials.

When I first posted, I was so worried because I never dreamed I would do something like this. It wasn't a dream or a thought. Now, I am excited to live the skoolie life and love the people we have met along the way.

What a ride!

 

[CHEESE_WAGON]

Welcome to the community! I sent you some preliminary info. It appears you moved on the '08. While it's a nice looking unit, an '08 with a Mercedes engine wouldn't have been my first choice, but you could've done much, much worse.

It's not a MaxxForce engine, and it's likely not an AT545 transmission (hopefully). I do share others' sentiment, however, it was a bit overpriced even for an '08. However, there is something to be said for desperate times and desperate measures. And as I stated, you could have done much worse.

Don't take this as flaming, I am simply speaking from my time as an OTR truck driver and observations of others' experiences here. Tons of useful info here, and most of us are willing to help with info, though like any other site, the answers you get to your questions will always be a bit subjective in terms of opinion and one's experience.

 

[Native-SKO]

Congratulations. Now to find your other thread and pick up the story there.

 

[Gustav]

It's Midnight Blue.

 

[thepojtoo]

Yes, Midnight Blue. We are using Lou Gramm's song as our theme song. "Into the Midnight Blue . . . "

No regrets!