The BlueBird has landed....

[pocphil]

My name is Phil and I'm the owner at Vintage Motorcycles in Cleveland
We run a motorcycle podcast called clevelandmoto (it's free on itunes).
It's all about building motorcycles on a budget and motorcycle maintenance etc.

We bought our bus to use as a mobile recording studio for doing podcasts from events.

We got a medium-short bus 126" WB- it's a 2000 Bluebird TC2000 with the 5.9 Cummins ISB and Allison AT545

I just brought it home from the Franklin County School District with a measly 137,000 miles on the clock and a clean bill of health from it's last 6000 mile service.

We're going to make some changes for light camping and fun in general.

I'm sure I've got all the questions everyone else has (how do i defeat the 65 mph limiter, what's the best a/c unit etc.) But I'll try to be kind and read the archives before wasting a bunch of your time.

The bus runs great and was a real eye-opener in traffic for me. It's been 25 years since I drove an M1A1 Tank and this is the closest thing I remember.

Interested to see what you guys have come up with and feel free to stop in and check us out any time you're in Cleveland (ample parking available and power in the parking lot).

 

[opus-SKO]

You dont defeat the speed without getting a different rear gear ratio or a different transmission.

 

[bansil]

First off welcome, and 65 is fast enough for a 20k pound house isn't it? :mrgreen:

Your tranny will not like turning up the fuel either, good luck and keep pictures coming

 

[family wagon]

Hmmm... 5.9 ISB. 24-valve? I have its big brother in mine (8.3 ISC, also 24 valve) and found a speed limit programmed into the ECM. Yours could be similar. It was a simple matter to change mine with Cummins INSITE software. In my case I still can't get past about 70-72 MPH because of the RPM limit (which relates to ground speed via transmission and axle ratios as alluded to by opus). Not that I would care to faster, but I would care to run the engine slower while holding that speed. Whole different problem, though. Also, if yours doesn't have cruise control already present, it's probably supported in the ECM and could be enabled (and a few dash buttons added to operate the feature).

 

[Crazy]

Nice bus. Question, why does everyone want to go fast(in a bus I mean)? If I hit 70 in a bus, it feels like 170 mph to me. Also, your fuel economy drops quickly.

 

[EastCoastCB]

I think 70 is ok.
Some school buses can do 70 easily. A buddy has a TC with a 5.9 that will go faster than that. Unmodified all stock as the school was running it.
That said mine will do about 62 or so, but 60 is fine with me. But thats only 5 over the minimum in some areas.

 

[family wagon]

I worked a brief stint with the local bus transit company years ago. They hired a few hundred temporary drivers when the Winter Olympics came to Utah. Most of my routes were suburban, but there were a few commuter and dead-heading segments that put me on the interstate where the bus ran 65 like most other trucks (the speed limit here, then). In my bus I usually prefer to drive at least fast enough that most passenger car drivers don't feel the need to tailgate and then cut me off when they decide at the last moment that they absolutely must take an exit in front of me, not behind.

 

[Tango-SKO]

Could be a mechanical or electrical governor, but even if you override, there are still limits. The tranny won't like the extra heat...the tires are very likely not rated any higher and the rear end could get grumpy if pushed much harder. Pretty easy to dial in a few more HP on that engine via turbo & injectors, but there again, you'll need to compensate with more cooling on both the engine & tranny.

 

[EastCoastCB]

I worked a brief stint with the local bus transit company years ago. They hired a few hundred temporary drivers when the Winter Olympics came to Utah. Most of my routes were suburban, but there were a few commuter and dead-heading segments that put me on the interstate where the bus ran 65 like most other trucks (the speed limit here, then). In my bus I usually prefer to drive at least fast enough that most passenger car drivers don't feel the need to tailgate and then cut me off when they decide at the last moment that they absolutely must take an exit in front of me, not behind.

This is an issue for sure.

 

[WIbluebird]

At my work we have Bluebird buses with the same power train setup you have. Most of them are governed at 65 but there's a few without it. You can easily hit 75 on the right stretch of highway. Once you get about 65 the MPG really drops unless it's got a certain gear setup which most of these buses don't typically have.

 

[leadsled01-SKO]

Nice to see another Buckeye on this sight. Nice motorcycle business you have there. Looking forward to your bus build.