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To start with, almost all w/c equipped school buses have the lift and lift door at the back of the bus. Some of the Type A & B buses that are on the cut-away or GM P-series/Workhorse chassis have the lift just behind the service door.
The problem with a forward placed lift and lift door is it creates a huge blind spot for the driver.
So if you find a bus with the lift and lift door towards the front, you have found a rare one indeed.
As far as power packages go, rarely will you find the DT466 in the smaller buses. It is an expensive option and isn't really necessary in a small lift bus. (Understand your needs are most likely very different from a school needing a bus to pick-up and drop-off on the way to and from school.)
If you go to a Type D bus, you will likely find the power package you want but you will never find a lift and lift door towards the front on a Type D bus.
If you go for a Ford, you will more likely find the I-6 engine than in an IHC. Ford chassis usually had the DD 8.2, the Cummins 5.9 B-series, or the Ford Cargo 6.6 with the Cummins being teh more popular.
The 7.3 hooked up to an Allison is sort of a weak sister in a large bus. It just doens't have a lot of go. Banks and others have packages you can bolt on to get a lot more go out of the 7.3. The downside is it can get pretty $$$ to hop up an engine.
The 7.3 in a large bus with 150K miles is getting towards the end of expected service life. 200K is about all you can expect since it has to work so hard in that application. 350-400K can be expected in a smaller bus if it has had good maintenance during its service.
You will not get much from anyone for a used 7.3/AT540. The transmission will have more value than the engine.
Swapping in a DT466 is going to be $$$$. You will need to find a MT643 to go with it because the AT540 is too small for the DT466.
For the price of the swap you can get a pretty good bus with the power package you want.
Currently Schetky NW (www.schetkynw.com)has a couple of Genesis Type D buses equipped with a lift for sale. Asking price is $8000.
They appear to be pretty nice buses and they fit some of your search parameters.
Good luck.
Mark O. |
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