To buy or not to Buy, partially converted skoolie

[Rogue161]

I've been researching skoolies for the past two months or so and think I'm ready to jump into living full time in one. I've been researching buses around my area and found an ad on Craigslist for a partially converted 2000's Skoolie for $4000. It's got propane and water installed as well as most of the furniture, just needs to be finished and have electric installed in it. What I'm really concerned about is engine. It has a T444e engine and an Alison Transmission but the seller (or at least the person I texted) doesn't seem to know exactly what transmission it is. I plan on living full time in it, keeping it mostly stationary with a few trips here and there. I am a full time college student,s o I was really pretty excited that most of the work would have been done for me and it'll help save on valuable time. What do you guys think? Does anyone know what transmission it most likely has? Is this a good engine for what I want?

 

[musigenesis]

More details about the bus would help. If you don't want to post the link publicly you can PM it to me (I already have my bus and it is 100% that I will never buy another one regardless of what happens to it).

A lot of people drop big money into these projects and then quit, so I think it's a sound economic strategy to buy one since they sell for way less than what people put into them - even just for parts and supplies, not counting their labor. But you also run the risk of buying something that's being sold because it's fundamentally hopeless.

444 is a good engine but not really powerful, so it does better in a smaller bus. Your transmission is probably an AT545 which is the least desirable, but for your use case of only occasional driving both it and the engine would be fine. One advantage to having an AT545 is that they're relatively cheap to replace, so a fried transmission would be less of a catastrophe (unfortunately it's also more likely).

 

[Rogue161]

I'm pming you the link to the ad, however, it doesn't really have any information about the specs and stuff in the initial ad. I've been texting the owner as well, which is how I got the info on the engine and transmission.

 

[Rogue161]

It wouldn't let me send a private message, so here's the link

https://wichita.craigslist.org/rvs/d/wichita-schoolie/7104923590.html

 

[Danjo-SKO]

I’m unimpressed with the workmanship. Seems like things were done cheaply, so I wouldn’t buy it for what’s been converted. So then the question is if it’s worth it knowing there’s 235K on it. So I’d look at the rest of the platform to see if it’s worth it for a mulligan.

 

[Ronnie-SKO]

The plywood furniture is rough around the edges for sure but could be upholstered. Looks like foam board insulation has been added to the ceiling. Has some plumbing and a hot water heater.

The best way to tell what trans is to crawl under the bus and look at the data tag on the side of the trans. The 444 and a at 545 are ok. For your intended use should be fine, a bit of miles on them though. Not going to be a high speed cross country interstate cruiser, but short or medium trips taken at reasonable speed should be ok. See how it drives. also pull the tranny dipstick and look at the fluid bright red or getting brownish? Also smell, burnt smell is not good.

This bus does give a you a good bit of a start, and a not unreasonable price.

You might want to look up Johnny Mullet's build, "Thunder bus" He has a similar bus with the 444 and an AT-545. Also has the hot water heater set up about the same. His interior is pretty nice though compared to this one. Maybe some remodelling as you have time.

 

[Oscar1]

It wouldn't let me send a private message, so here's the link

https://wichita.craigslist.org/rvs/d/wichita-schoolie/7104923590.html

Here's

my opinion. Not to disparage the builders ambitions.
I would look at the quality of workmanship and expect that I would strip everything back out. Woodwork does nothing to impress, I see plumbing using Sharkbite fittings, that tells me the builder likely has very little or no plumbing experience. Shark bite fittings cost about 10x more than regular pex fittings so you could buy a proper crimper tool and still be well ahead. No electrical? There's some big money. Solar, batteries, electrical? Still all the big money left to spend. Unfortunately everyone thinks the value of their labor is something they can recover but if your skills are not there neither is the value. Just my two cents worth, don't get too excited on this unless the price is real
good and you can work with what the bus drivetrain is.
To me it's a start over.
Good luck with your search

 

[Sehnsucht-SKO]

Regardless of the current interior build, I will reiterate what's already been stated that shop the bus not the build. You can gut and redo the interior but if it blows an engine on you then you're at the mercy of that repair bill.

Also, the photos didn't show tire tread closeup so if they're not good and deep you're looking at good money sooner than later on tires which aren't cheap.

The wording in the listing is also a little vague, perhaps intentionally, whether it's titled as an RV. I'm guessing not which puts the onus on you to retitle it. And to do that you'll probably need to put more into it like the absent electrical system. Many states require like 4 of 6 things that need to be done in order to call it an RV and these include plumbing and electrical. Many states will also require the exterior to be something other than school bus yellow and all that school bus signage removed as well as the 8-way lights. These may be obstacles the seller encountered and decided he didn't want to deal with so trying to pawn them off on you.

The price isn't unreasonable if the powertrain is solid but I wouldn't want you to go into it thinking there's just a few more dollars to spend. I see a very pricey barely started skoolie conversion project and if anything ANYTHING raises a red flag just walk away and don't look back. You're not missing out on any kind of good deal by doing so.

 

[Native-SKO]

It has been said before but it is worth repeating:

Treat this like an unconverted bus purchase decision.


The listing shows it was listed 15 days ago. The poster said they need it gone within a week, make an offer. So ... make an offer if it fits your bus needs.


At this time, the pandemic will be causing people to reevaluate their holdings. This *could* be one of those situations. But all that means is the sellermay be highly motivated to work with you.