I won a bus

[2martins]

thats the issue with an issue like that, it coulda been as easy as a blown fuse on the allison TCM... or it couldve been a bad allison TCM or bad wiring, solenoid, etc....

by time i got there it was already night and marc's time is limited .. plus the coolant and oil leak? just seems like a misrepresented bus on the auction..


was a fun ride talkin old-school Race cars on the way! thanks for some great race stories Marc! I made it as far a bowling green ky and snagged a room... id already been san antonio to OKC yesterday then to memphis..

I learned Redbyrd can Haul A** when it needs to.. Marc was ROLLIN WHEELS!! at the helm.. no slowin that dude down... not even heart surgery!! way to go!!
-Christopher

Sounds like y'all made some lemonade out of the lemons. What a fabulous testament to the benefits of this community!! May the next bus be 'the one' with a less interesting story about getting it home.

 

[brokedown-SKO]

The Red Byrd is a bit of a hotrod and might put impossible dreams of passing people in cars into the minds of us mortals...

 

[EastCoastCB]

The Red Byrd is a bit of a hotrod and might put impossible dreams of passing people in cars into the minds of us mortals...

The Duck will be rolling even faster! :biggrin:

****- my bus is faster than my van.

 

[cadillackid]

The Duck will be rolling even faster! :biggrin:

****- my bus is faster than my van.

that duck will definitely roll !! that little bus of EC;s is a runner!

knowing what marc is looking for. gives me some ideas of busses he might look for..

first off, trying to go over 75 in a school bus brings the manufacturer limits into play, from what ive seen most all highway-capable busses are built with 70-75 as the maximum.

for one, tires.. while we know that you lkikely wont explode a 75 MPH tire by driving it 80, a school bus manufacturer wont build a school bus that will exceed the norm for standard truck tires.. (and fleet managers dont want to have to buy special tires)...

Next, expected majority use-case. even school bus routes that require highway travel, usually require 20 miles or less of it.. and much of it around the city where limits are 65 or less.. a 70-75 MPH bus is still very adequete and isnt running against its governor for hours and hours..

from experience and testing, ive come up with the fact driving a diesel engine at 85% or lower than its max governor RPM is highly favorable.. this is non-lugging.. dont build it so low that it lugs at your cruise speed..

Redbyrd is over-geared.. i think we calculated last year that it has a mathmatical 117 MPH.. at 2700 RPM.. my highway RPM is so low that im always dropping a couple gears on any type of hill...

if you want a front engine bus to go 80 im thinking it may have to be built.

an Amtran High ceiling FE with a DT-466 and MD-3060 is probably going to be the best bet.. a mechanical DT-466 could easily be turned up to 250-300HP without much effort.. however those are not easy to come by..

a 230 HP DT-466E is out there.. just not sure if ive seen it in an FE or only RE.. for some reason most of the powerful busses are RE configuration it seems.. thats where you find the cummins 8.3's which is one of the best for highway cruising.. just not seen it in an FE bus.

the CAT 3126 is a good motor. but its not very powerful from what people say.

Im still thinking a DT-466E AmTran with an MD-3060 has the most potential to be a bus that can get you close to where you want to be out of the gate.. and still possible to find at a decent price.
-Christopher

 

[brokedown-SKO]

So are you back to looking for a bus? Where is this discussion happening if so?

 

[o1marc]

So I've had my heart set on a bus coming up for auction. Seller says it recently, while parked for the winter, sprung a leak at the tranny (643). This weekend he checked it out oping it would be a simple line leak and replacement. Turns out it leaking pretty good but coming out of the bellhousing. Any ideas on what it is and how hard to repair? This bus checked everything on my list, I'm extremely disappointed.