That's Bainbridge Island number 00 from Washington state. It was driven down from WA to Southern CA and was guest of honor at this year's Crown get-together in the high desert, and I rode in it for a few miles on that day. It's in great condition inside and out, and with a 14-liter Cummins of at least 360 HP (maybe closer to 400?) and well over 1000 lb/ft of grunt, and a Road Ranger 10-speed, it flies! This bus, and another similarly-powered Crown tandem that I've also had the pleasure of riding in, will not just keep up with cars climbing Cajon Pass and the Grapevine, but will pass some of them on the long 6% grades uphill. Crown tandems with turned-up big Cummins and 10-speeds are monsters! Yes, Al's asking a lot for it, but I think it's well worth it as a collectible and an excellent example of the finest buses ever made, anywhere, by anyone. It's still cheaper than some crappy little mass-produced boring snotbox econocar - I know what I'd prefer!
John[/QUOTE
I'm actually quite amazed at how much people complain at the costs for any decent school bus, of any make. Non Crowns for $1.5 to $4.5K usually, to Crowns from $6k (if you're lucky) to now usually over $10K for a runner and still needing work, and you're STILL way ahead of any car pricing. I just don't see the outrage in these prices that so many seem to feel and vent. You have to look at all the value and the many miles left on these vehicle to get the whole picture of the great deal you're getting.
When compared to ANY car costs today at $20k+ for a cheap econo-box to a proper $50k+ mid-size suv or pick'em truck I'm shocked, SHOCKED, I tell you at how much all that iron costs. When you add all the CRAP that they carry to destroy mileage, engine life, power, with the computers to guarantee that no one without a computer degree plus thousands of dollars of test equipment and begin to work on it, and you wonder why I prefer to spend my hard earned money on a Crown, just about ANY Crown.
I'd be perfectly happy to tootle around town with my 35ft Detroit Crown in place of my car most of the time, which I do some now, as I get the chance, since the car when it breaks costs almost as much as the Crown to fix, and my Jeep is a 2003! The Crown doesn't break and if it does I, that's ME, can usually fix it and not some vulture shop sitting there sharpening his knife waiting for victims to come in the front door with a wheelbarrow full of cash. I'm not biased or anything.....but I much prefer a pure mechanical, non-dpf cow-piss polluted, SAE tooled, wrench and fix, type vehicle every single time, even my cars, I look for that as much as possible, been there done that, got the book. I have no interest in any of the new cars, I'd be locking the chains on my own wrists and selling my soul, with any of them. Electric or hybrid?? Perish the thought and back yea to the underworld.
At any price and, pretty much in any condition, a Crown is worth more in long term value versus costs to a whole car hauler full of new or mostly new normal cars. It will run them all into the ground and be running long after they are converted back into razor blades, and by any metric you can figure will exceed any expectations you can name. That's a pretty good track record and one very few vehicles can match.
So, yes, the asking price seems high by today's comparables, but in about five years I suspect that will be the normal going price for any crapped out Crown as a base to go much higher from there. They will become one of the futures most rare and collectible vintage historical vehicles. And most will still be in running and serviceable condition. Pretty cool actually. And with luck I'll be around still to enjoy driving them and I will most definitely have that wide sh*teating grin on my face, that my friends know so well. I just love me my Crowns, and yes I am not just biased, but evangelistic about them and want to see all that can be saved and restored in private hands and kept on the road as they were meant to be, and driven as much as possible.
