Grant's Shuttle Bus Conversion

I am still in the pre-purchase, planning phase of this conversion. Having gone back and forth in my thinking, from an extended van to a small RV, I have decided to create a bit of a hybrid. I want to get a shuttle bus and convert it.

Rather than fill the thing with walls and cabinets, in a vain attempt to create a small house, blocking most of the windows in the process: I plan to keep everything either above or below the windows, so as not to block the view. I want to be able to see the world I am in no matter which way I look. I have already thought of lots of ways to include everything I need while keeping the windows clear. Even my shower will collapse down and hide in what will appear to be just another cabinet.

My biggest decision right now is whether to go with a shorter shuttle, with 13' of length inside the house (not counting the can) or to give myself a little bit more space and get one with a 16' house. These dimensions translate to about 22' or 25' total length, respectively. The shorter one would be no longer than a large dually pickup truck, and could go just about anywhere said truck could go. The larger one would impose a few limitations and likely have far more under the hood than I really need.

I know how to design and build a very light but solid interior, and I don't have much stuff. So my house will be carrying far less weight than all those walking bags of water it was originally built to carry. Thus, the original engine in a small shuttle will already be more than I need. An E-450 Superduty would be utter overkill. Not to mention: wasteful.

But that 13' seems as though it will be just a little too short. Not quite enough room for the desk I would like to have, while still leaving room for the woodstove I plan to make. Aggonizing reappraisal. (Extra points to whoever gets that reference.)

GrantRobertson said:

 Aggonizing reappraisal. (Extra points to whoever gets that reference.)

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You mean Dusty Rhodes or Sea Level connection ? (P.S. Just 1 "g")
KinA

Sounds like a fun project.

If you have the floor space, take some blue painters tape and tape off the foot print of the vehicle on the floor. Then tape off sections for your dinette, sleeping and cooking areas. Then move about the space. You'll quickly gain some spacial awareness as you about the area. You won't regret the effort.

The minimum length I would go with is 14'.

Grant,since you mentioned being in the outback due note the rear overhang,from the rear tires to the rear bumper,the departure angle,it will effect the places you can go

Ken in Anaheim said:

You mean Dusty Rhodes or Sea Level connection ? (P.S. Just 1 "g")
KinA

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BZZZZT! Next contestant. Hint: Think late 60s to early 70s.

Hey Grant, I just replied to your diesel vs gas thread. I would go with the longer version, if you plan to be in it full time, or at least for long periods. That said, my cargo trailer is only 12' long and 6' wide which is at least a foot narrower than the inside of a dually shuttle bus. It fits me, and sometime me and the wife or one of the boys just fine. 2 and a dog is the max though, unless you really like climbing over each other. I don't have a separate bathroom though - solar shower used outside and a porta potty that pulls out from under the sink.

As for overall length - my crew cab truck with an 8 foot bed is all of 25' long, and I don't have really any problems parking. But I have driven this size truck or larger for coming up on 40 years. With my cargo trailer in tow, I can still park across 2 parking spaces long ways at a shopping center, and only be slightly past the lines on each end, if that helps with size perspective.

Three things you can never have too much of as a vandweller:

1) Weight capacity
2) Room inside
3) Solar

Of course it's all a matter of balance. Any of those shuttle buses couldn't go about half the places I camped at this summer, and I have a 2wd 1 ton van. Height, width and length really clobber you when wanting to get to the backcountry.
Bob

LoupGarou said:

Sounds like a fun project.

If you have the floor space, take some blue painters tape and tape off the foot print of the vehicle on the floor. Then tape off sections for your dinette, sleeping and cooking areas. Then move about the space. You'll quickly gain some spacial awareness as you about the area. You won't regret the effort.

The minimum length I would go with is 14'.

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LG,

I've got plenty of experience laying out spaces and drawing floor plans. I have already sketched out my floor plan and it fits in 13' but only barely. You are right. That extra foot would make a big difference.

I'll post my drawing after I clean it up a bit.

Gary68 said:

Grant,since you mentioned being in the outback due note the rear overhang,from the rear tires to the rear bumper,the departure angle,it will effect the places you can go

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Yup. Most of these things have a huge amount of clearance on the hind end. This is because the suspension back there is made to handle all those bags of water. But, when the picture is taken, they are empty. I know my build won't weigh nearly as much so I won't have anything to worry about, in the beginning...

But later, I plan to attach tool boxes under both sides. Though I will make the boxes out of aluminum diamond-plate, the tools will eventually weigh quite a bit. I also plan to weld a rack/shelf sticking out the back, on which to carry a scooter (2-wheeled variety). So, I definitely will need to keep a close eye on GVWR, the weight rating on those back wheels, the weights and locations of all my tools, as well as all the clearances.

I even plan to find the most poorly planned parking lot entrances, pull up right over the worst part, stop, and get out and actually measure the actual clearances... actually. [FACE WITH STUCK-OUT TONGUE AND TIGHTLY-CLOSED EYES]

akrvbob said:

Height, width and length really clobber you when wanting to get to the backcountry.

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Yeah, that's the main reason I am deliberating over that extra three feet so hard. A 21' vehicle is more like a dually truck. A 24'vehicle is more like an RV.

Your not the first to go the Shuttle Bus route.
VanWithNoPlan;

Well, I'm off to take a look at my first shuttle bus. I'll post pictures later today.

GrantRobertson said:

Well, I'm off to take a look at my first shuttle bus. I'll post pictures later today.

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That's exciting! Keeping my fingers crossed.

Good luck

Nicole

OK, here's my report:

I didn't get any pictures except one, of the title, but I'll get to that later. I felt a little anxiety about taking pictures, though I guess I could have asked. I get that way sometimes.

Here is a link to the Craig's List ad: https://austin.craigslist.org/cto/5257391841.html

Here is  what I saw:

RUST! And lots of it.

Mechanically, it seems to be in great shape. The engine starts and runs clean and smooth. It has plenty of power.

Structurally, not so much. The front and cab area is fine except the whole area under the driver's door is rusted pretty badly. I'm surprised it could hold my weight. That would have to be completely replaced. But that could wait till later. The body panels and roof are all sheet steel. There is rust above both rear wheel wells, but it hasn't gone all the way through yet. It could maybe be saved without cutting out and replacing metal. The rest of the body panels and roof are fine. The longitudinal beams which support the weight of the whole thing are rusty all over but it hasn't gone past the surface. The transverse beams on top of those are pretty damn rusty. There are huge flakes the size of my hand just barely hanging on all over. I flicked a couple off with just a fingernail. However, it seems that the beams are still sound. All vertical beams for the walls and the ceiling beams are pretty rusty but still sound as well. The owner says there was a roof leak but he had that fixed.

The floor is just one sheet of plywood with carpet over it. I can tell it is the original floor because I can still see the impressions in the carpet where the seat mounts were located. What this means is that it will be easy to pull up the floor, yank off the lame walls, then sandblast the hell out of the entire undercarriage as well as the beams for the walls and ceiling. I will then paint and coat all the beams. The only problem will be what to do about the rust between the beams and between the beams and the exterior walls. I do not want to pull the exterior walls off of this thing. I know there are formulations that will convert rust to a black substance that acts as a barrier to rust. I just don't think it will penetrate so deeply between two pieces of metal. I'll have to look into that.

There will also be room for about four inches of insulation under the floor when I am done. I won't be able to put it under the whole floor but most of it.

The owner said he only bought it to use to move from Virginia down here to Texas. He had a tow package installed and pulled a horse trailer full of stuff, in addition to stuffing the body full of stuff to. He also had over $3k worth of work done on it before the move. New brake lines, new ball joints top and bottom up front. Almost two pages worth of work. Though it still needs a lot more work. The cab AC has been pulled out. The body AC is half gone and the rest will crumble in your hands. There is just a crappy window rattler hooked up to a mediocre generator which is bolted to the rear bumper.

He said he figured he could buy the shuttle and do all that work rather than rent a U-Haul and still save money in the end. So neither he, nor his mechanic, had long term life in mind when inspecting and repairing it.

On the plus side: It is just about the exact size I want. I could not go any shorter and if it were any longer it would be a lot harder for me to drive. As it is, it drives about like the same size of U-Haul, which I have had great luck with. It has a good diesel engine which the owner keeps repeating is worth more than what he is asking for the shuttle. It will be easy for me to get started working on it. Because I will have to pull the floor up, I will be able to take pictures from the top of the frame and record exactly where everything is underneath, for reference. I will be able to install lots of insulation.

Finally, another thing that I like is that it is registered as just a personal vehicle. The title says nothing about being a commercial vehicle. It just says that it is a Ford van. Here is a picture of the title:

(Yes, after being shy about asking to take pictures, the owner suggested that I take a picture of his title.)

If any of you are experts on the classifications of vehicles and such, could you please tell me if there is anything about this title that would indicate that this thing is anything but a regular van. If I can just count it as a personal vehicle and just a regular van, then getting insurance will be a lot easier and cheaper. Later, when I get it actually converted to an RV, I can see if RV insurance will be even cheaper.

So, what do you all think? The guy is now asking $3500 but he said he could maybe be flexible on the price. It has been listed on Craig's List for a couple of months now and he has already come down from $4000 to $3500 in his listing. But he sounded as if he might be willing to come down to an even $3k if that is all I can swing. He is also willing to take a deposit and then wait for me to save up the rest of the money. The thing is, I have to save up the money to buy it plus the money to get it registered. With all the additional rust removal work I will have to do, do you think it is worth it?

Personally I would steer clear of any vehicle with more than surface rust. But that's just me. I can deal with mechanical, although I do try and buy as well running and maintained as I can find and afford. I've never had much luck getting rid of rust, and body shops are expensive just because it takes so long to deal with. The price seems right, at $3000, however if it is really running well. I'm not sure how much time and effort your willing to put into the project, but if it were me I would see about the possibility of buying this one for the mechanicals, and another similar model with maybe a blown motor for say, $500. Then I would combine the 2. It would take a lot of work, and a place to do it. But you could end up with a great vehicle for about half of the cost of a similar one.

"rust never sleeps" ala Neil Young. I wonder where the rust came from Texas isn't really known for rust. unless it was in a flood. highdesertranger

highdesertranger said:

"rust never sleeps" ala Neil Young.  I wonder where the rust came from Texas isn't really known for rust.  unless it was in a flood.  highdesertranger

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The rust came from Virginia. That's where the owner bought it to move down here.

You are right that the rust could be an ongoing problem. However, that kind of seems standard for a skoolie. Though this isn't an actual school bus, most of the work will be the same as people have to do for school buses. Except I won't be required by law to paint the exterior, because it isn't school-bus yellow.

I do think if I sand blast the whole thing pretty thoroughly then give it a few good coats of paint, I can end up with a pretty solid structure.

masterplumber said:

Personally I would steer clear of any vehicle with more than surface rust. But that's just me. I can deal with mechanical, although I do try and buy as well running and maintained as I can find and afford. I've never had much luck getting rid of rust, and body shops are expensive just because it takes so long to deal with. The price seems right, at $3000, however if it is really running well. I'm not sure how much time and effort your willing to put into the project, but if it were me I would see about the possibility of buying this one for the mechanicals, and another similar model with maybe a blown motor for say, $500. Then I would combine the 2. It would take a lot of work, and a place to do it. But you could end up with a great vehicle for about half of the cost of a similar one.

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Playing mix and match with engines isn't really a possibility for me. I do not have the facilities to do that kind of work, so I would have to take it to a shop for that. On the other hand, with the attached generator, I think I can run a sand blaster just about anywhere.

I estimate that actually doing the work would take me about an extra couple of weeks. That just includes taking up the floor, sandblasting, painting, and then putting the floor back in place. However, I would also take the opportunity to do extra stuff like install insulation under the floor. That could stretch it out to an extra month. In the grand scheme of things, I don't think that is too very long.

I would consult a professional autobody place before purchase. My .02.

highdesertranger said:

"rust never sleeps" ala Neil Young.  I wonder where the rust came from Texas isn't really known for rust.  unless it was in a flood.  highdesertranger

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or along the gulf coast...