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Hi...
I have three possibities for buying a diesel school bus with the intention of running it on veggie oil later...
FOR ALL YOU GUYS WITH EXPERIENCE.... TEACH ME... THESE ARE MY CHOICES... ARE AM I BUYING THE WRONG BUS ENGINE???? HELP....
THE 3 CHOICES ARE...
65---1991---FORD---7.8---5\hYD. CARPENTER ---173,000
OR
65---1991---CHEVY---366---AT\HYD.---THOMAS ---74,000
OR
59---1990---GMC---366---AT\HYD.---BLUEBIRD ---120,000
WELL, WHAT DO YOU THINK? BUY ONE OF THESE OR ??????? THANKS
JONOTHAN
I wouldn't touch any of those three buses with a ten foot pole.
I personally do not like any Ford school bus. In my experience they all ride and drive like trucks. The gas engine powered buses have parts availability issues and the diesels tend to be oddballs as well. Most of the Fords did not come with tilt hoods which makes working on them a real exercise in climbing.
The GM 366 is a good engine. It pulls strong and will move a bus down the road okay. Just don't expect to be anywhere except for the slow lane on any real hill and don't expect the top speed to be much more than 60 MPH.
Changing spark plugs is a lesson in contortions--you usually can't reach them from the top and it is a really long reach from the bottom (GM didn't put a lot of tilt hoods on school buses either).
The stick shift will get about 10% better fuel mileage. Plan on about 3-6 MPG average.
My first choice would be an IHC with a DT466. It has enough HP to run 60-65 MPH up hill and down. They start very easily, even when it gets really cold. Fuel mileage averages in the 6-9 MPG range. The engines are rock solid and good for 300K+ miles.
PLEASE TELL ME MORE ABOUT
IHC with a DT466
I DONT KNOW WHAT THAT IS... INTERNNATIONAL? PLEASE TELL ME MORE...
I WAS TOLD TO GET A DIESEL BUS 1991 OR NEWER BECAUSE THEY ARE BETTER ENGINES... IS THIS TRUE???
Out of the 3, I would have to say the Blue Bird, because out of my converting experiences Blue Bird bodies are the easiest to work on. I have a 73 BB with a 454 Chevy in it, its a stub nose with air brakes and I love my bus. It has 233000 on it, and its still goin way strong. The bus originally had a 366, but when I bought the bus the previous owner dropped in the 454, which only has around 90000 on it. The only problem Ive had with the bigger motor is that it gets a little bit warm. I'd still go with a Blue Bird!
Dude:
the 366 is a gas engine and can't run on diesel, bio or otherwise.
yes, ihc is an international. you should buy the newest you can afford, not because it is a better engine but because you'll need time to learn how to do work on it. if you plan on having someone else work on it....consult them before you buy anything!
i would guess you'll need $5k to purchase and will need $2k in reserve for insurance and modifications.
good luck
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