New Guy

[International360]

Hello I just registered today and I am now a bus owner. I have a 1991 international dta360 bus and was just curious on if it has a block heater plug and where it might be located at. I have not really looked for one yet.

 

[oredigger-SKO]

Welcome! I'm very new myself. Just starting demo of my 1990 3800 Carpenter with dta360. My bus has a heater receptacle at the rear of the passenger side.

 

[International360]

Thanks I will have to take a look and see if my bus has one back there too. I plan on doing a swap with this motor because I have heard many good things about them.

 

[cadillackid]

mine is under the hood in my 1991 DTA360

what bus bodies do you guys have?
-Christopher

 

[cadillackid]

Thanks I will have to take a look and see if my bus has one back there too. I plan on doing a swap with this motor because I have heard many good things about them.

you are going to take out your 360? I think the DT360 is a great motor, just not near as much power as a DT466 but they have a great reliability reputation.. plus, like a DT466 theu can be rebuilt in the truck.. the DT360 is all mechanical so no electronics to deal with... fuel-air-compression and it'll run

-Christopher

 

[International360]

Yes I plan on taking the motor out but not to put another motor in that bus. The motor is going to go into an older international bus. I have read up on these motors and I also think they are one of the best motors produced. I just want to gather as much information as possible on these motors.

The body I have is the 1991 international 3800 body, long bus like 60 some passenger I think.

 

[cadillackid]

thats your chassis... the body is usually a separate company... like amtran, carpenter, bluebird, wayne, ward, thomas, etc...

for instance I have 2 IHC 3800's.. one is a carpemter body the other is a bluebird body..

11 windows would likely be a 66 passenger bus...

the bus I have a DTA360 in is a shorter bus.. (7 windows).. {just drove 100 miles in that bus today}...

the DTA360 works great in a shorter bus... I do slow down on the hills having an AT545 transmission.. if I had an MT-643 I probably wouldnt... but im not worried about it.. that bus runs great..
-Christopher

 

[oredigger-SKO]

Ours is a 1990 IHC 3800 Carpenter with 11 windows, 65 passengers and a trash can. We have the DTA360 but haven't figured out the transmission yet.

 

[cadillackid]

if its an automatic its probably an AT545..

if it sounds similar to this one.. with the whine and the RPM's vary easily with pedal pressure its a 545...

here's an experimental (crappy) video , you can skip forward in it to hear the transmission

-christopher

 

[International360]

Not quite sure what the body is but I do know that it has 11 windows and that it has the Allison at545. From your experience is this a good transmission to have?

 

[Carytowncat]

Ah how cool to take a ride with a friend i have never met

 

[cadillackid]

you'll fimd a lot of hate om these forums for the AT545... mainly because of its lack of a torque converter... if you plan to drive your bus in the rockies or lots of mountainnees terrain it can get hot.. it doesnt have a lot of holding power going downhill..

that said its a workhorse... taken care of they last many hundreds of thousands of miles... they are everywhere.. so finding remans, or parts is not too tough for them..

I have 2 busses each has one... ive driven the 'DEV' (carpenter) over the appalachains, adirondacks, smokies, even ran up and down monteagle and didnt see what the big deal was.. i never even got the brakes hot on the downhills... sure I slowed on the uphills... its a bus not a camaro so I let it go slow up the hills.. ive put 10000 miles on that bus this year... my 2nd bus a little bluebird ive put 2000 on it and ran it up the smokies to get it to ohio....

the MT643, and the 1000s,2000s,3000s are looked upon much higher for MPG's and for serious mountains.. the latter 3 models are overdrive electronic models mainly on 02 and newer busses.... the MT643 is a non-overdrive but has locking torque converter and was on older busses..

that said if for some reason i do ruin one of my AT545s ill most likely replace it with a 1000 series..
-Christopher

 

[International360]

ok. do you think this transmission would be a good candidate to upgrade to withstand some upgrades to the dta360? Do you think it would handle it or should I look for a different transmission.

 

[DoubleO7]

you'll fimd a lot of hate om these forums for the AT545... mainly because of its lack of a torque converter...-Christopher

You mean a "lock-up" torque converter?

 

[cadillackid]

yeah sorry lack of locking TC..

the AT545 isnt rated very high in HP / TQ capacity... however in my old bluebird years ago I built up a gasser 454 chevy pretty heavy and never wasted the transmission... doesnt mean I wouldnt have eventually though..

if you are planning to build your DT360 or put in a DT466 then I would want a beefier transmission, otherwise I think you'll have over-heating issues with it. to use a different trans on a DT360 you may need an SAE2 to SAE3 adapter plate.

I have only dug partially into a trans swap.. (possibly for my T-444E bus), an allison 1000 is a nearly direct fit except for 3/4" difference in length so a simple driveshaft shorten on the front shaft is likely all thats needed.. its not cheap though...

-Christopher

 

[Tango-SKO]

Ya...no lock up. Which wastes fuel and generates a lot of heat which is hard on the fluid.

Then there are those "downhill" issues...

Not a horrible tranny. They are really tough little units, just limited by it's design.

 

[International360]

Ok what transmission would you think would be half way descent if I was going to shoot for around 300 to 400 hp? I still want the dt360 to be as reliable as possible but want a little more out of it.

 

[cadillackid]

you can definitely build up a DT360 though you'll likely lose longevity out of it..
look at the allison 1000 and 2000 series spec sheets... CUmmins-allison-conversions is a comopany that makes allisons for people with built up cummins, but the transmissions will fit anything if you have the right SAE adapter plate... ive been in contact with them about a posisble 1000 series for my newer Bus...

you can ask them what it would take to handle that kind of horsepower.. most likely a 2000 series of some type beefed up a bit..

I find the AT545 isnt bad in a short bus, but like tango says there are better options and it has some short-comings... im considering the 1000 mainly because i plan to use my little bluebird in as close to a daily driver role as i can so itll be out and about lots in many different places..
-Christopher

 

[International360]

I plan on using mine for pretty close to a daily driver as well. I was just looking to squeeze a little more horsepower out of the motor. I was thinking of upgrading the turbo and adjusting the pump up a little bit. Nothing real major just want a little more juice out of it. The model i have is 185hp at 2700rpms.

 

[cadillackid]

you have the same version I do, mine is in a short but heavy bus... mine is a Jasper that was put in 2004.. it definitely could use a little more power on the hills.. thats also the AT545 hindering in the hills too.. the TC eats up some power..

my other bus is much lighter and has a 190 HP T-444E, thats the one I'll use as a daily.. its a ittle shorter and im keeping most all of its seats..

the DT360 can definitely be turned up.. esp if yours is otherwise in excellent shape.. if its not you could in-frame it and turn it up at the same time, then you would have a real Beast on fresh sleeves, pistons, bearings, etc.. 3200 is considered the max RPM you'll ever get out of one (at least in the IH docs).. people say the valves float at 3400.. but if you in-frame you might be able to go to bigger springs, I havent looked into it, but turning the pump screws is simple and easy.. though getting the pump worked could net you bigger gains. wondering if something as simple as a DT-466 turbo on it would make much of a difference.. some of the turbos the cummins guys use may be able to be fitted.. if you do any more than just turning up the screws you'll definitely want a Pyro and look into a different radiator setup.. that 1/2 Rad half turbo has resulted over the years in a lot of over-heated trucks on long pulls uphill...
-Christopher