thoughts about this schoolie please

[c_hasbeen]

I found this on craigslist, called the fella but the phone number is not the person selling the bus, so an email was sent. In the meantime any thoughts on this setup would be appreciated

http://kansascity.craigslist.org/rvs/4764866293.html
It is a ford I am guessing maybe 1990 ish no idea about miles on the clock.

the way the grill mounts is kind of neat, but it is quite large!


http://kansascity.craigslist.org/rvs/4764866293.html
schooly Bus Camper tow rig - $5500 (wellsville, ks)
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drive : rwd fuel : diesel transmission : manual cylinders : 6 cylinders

We have a bus that has been converted in to a very slick camper. This bus will sleep 4 easy with a full size queen in the rear bed room, a set of bunk beds. Has very nice counter top, sink , lots of cabinets lower and upper, fridge, on demand hot water, and toilet. Also has tinted windows, new roof top AC that has heat and cooling features both will run you out. has new battery's , fresh service. This bus has the ford 7.8l diesel and eaton 5speed transmission. Both run and shift good. bus also has a nice grill that hangs on side of bus and also has a receiver hitch. Bus avg's around 14 mpg.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I'm a little surprised that the bus is still yellow.

Here in NY, once a school bus is sold to anyone other than a school, they must repaint it to any other color BUT yellow. Legally, ONLY a school bus can be yellow.

I wonder how widespread that is? You might have to repaint the bus if you plan to travel extensively interstate with it.

Regards
John

 

[rvwandering]

It looks like a nice conversion but more information is needed. How large are the fresh water and holding tanks? Does it have a shower? Where does it get power - does it need to be hooked into the grid? Does it have a propane tank? If you want another cooking source besides the microwave you might want to install a propane stove.

 

[spd2918]

Look like a lot of work went into it. If that's the type of rig you want, you'd be miles ahead starting with it rather than starting from scratch. 14MPG is little optimistic in my opinion.

 

[corky52]

Bus won't be a speed demon, and you'd likely need alternative transportation for local trips, but at that price I'd be VERY interested in it if it was close. Question on my part would be could it tow a small car, enough power as a hitch is easy to add.

Corky

 

[c_hasbeen]

I kind of thought the mpg was on the hopefully side my self, I appreciate the input, I am putting plenty of these sugestions on paper to ask if/when he emails back before I drive to see it

 

[LeeRevell]

Bus won't be a speed demon, and you'd likely need alternative transportation for local trips, but at that price I'd be VERY interested in it if it was close. Question on my part would be could it tow a small car, enough power as a hitch is easy to add.

Corky

Or carry a small motorcycle/scooter on a Hitch Haul carrier! A couple I know who travel a lot in their RV carry two small Yamaha 250 bikes on a custom rear rack he made. A very nifty setup, but they have a big Class A.

 

[highdesertranger]

well it looks good and sounds good. I would at least check it out. you could always redo a couple of things to fit your needs. let us know what happens. highdesertranger

 

[c_hasbeen]

I guess he sold it, no bother to get back and say so or tell me it was not for sale so I guess I do not need that bus.

 

[compassrose]

I just love how you all think the mpg's are "optimistic". You would be surprised how how good the mpg's are on many skoolies. I don't say what mine gets because I got tired of being called a liar ("you must have made a mistake" X umpteen times). But I will say that every single last one of you would probably say that I made a mistake in calculating.

 

[Almost There]

I just love how you all think the mpg's are "optimistic". You would be surprised how how good the mpg's are on many skoolies. I don't say what mine gets because I got tired of being called a liar ("you must have made a mistake" X umpteen times). But I will say that every single last one of you would probably say that I made a mistake in calculating.

I get that a lot too, but then I figured out that it's my driving habits that get me the gas mileage that exceeds rated stats.

I time lights in the city, figure out where my best gas mileage comes from on the highway and don't exceed that. I never accelerate too fast away from a light, keep as high a tire pressure as is recommended, and in the car, make sure I'm not carrying unnecessary weight.

Oh, and I use cruise control wherever possible.

Each one individually doesn't make a big difference but between them all, they all add up.

The other thing no one believes me on, is how long I can make brake jobs last...same thing, I drive in a manner that gets me longer life...both on the vehicle and me...

 

[highdesertranger]

I am assuming those are diesel's. I agree that it has a lot to do with how you drive, that is the most important factor in fuel economy. highdesertranger

 

[IGBT]

It is wind resistance.   At 40mph our Isuzu flatbed with camper mounted gets 16mpg.  At 60mph it gets 10mpg.

 

[akrvbob]

No doubt wind resistence is a very big part of it, but it also could be the gearing in heavy rigs. I'd guess an overdrive or split rear-end could bring it up somewhat.
Bob

 

[c_hasbeen]

Well this guy posted thhe ad again on CL, this time he included a phone numbe that worked, I called and talked to him, I was in the area today so I was hoping to swing over and take a look, he said he had 6 other people who really liked it and he did not feel like it was right for him to be talking to me about it.

I told him he had my number if he wanted to call me when he felt like it would be ok to talk to me that would be fine.

all a bit confusing to me but I guess he has his reasons.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Well, If he DOES get back to you, you'll know that six other people looked at it and found some reason not to buy it.  That alone would be setting of alarm bells in my head . . .

Regards
John

 

[Wabbit]

...he said he had 6 other people who really liked it and he did not feel like it was right for him to be talking to me about it...

So he will talk to 6 people who are interested, but talking to 7 people who are interested just isn't right...lol, sounds like he did you a favor because that just sounds hinky.

Although, if you ever do get lucky on a skoolie, take pics and post about it. I would love a skoolie that got decent mpg!!

 

[c_hasbeen]

I got to go look at this bus finaly!
he kept putting things off Saturday untill it was after dark, well ok, I took a look and it is an ok bus conversion
was running when i got there
no shower
no fresh water tank
no oven or stove top
no propane tank but it has a on demand heater
I could not find a grey water or black water tank, he said they were under the bus some place but my flashlight just did not point them out I guess.
rear axke pinion seal was leaking
the parking brake does not work, I am not sure if the breaks work well enough to stop.
I checked on the type of brakes it has and they are the most expencive type and problematic that have ever been made (so the internet says)

I told him I was going to let someone else have it.

He told me he had so many people looking already
anyway it was only about an hour drive so it was what it was.

 

[Almost There]

sometimes you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find the princess!!

Ya think maybe there was a reason that he kept stalling until after dark... :dodgy:

The van I bought wasn't running when I got there but since the first thing I had to do was replace the battery, I'm darned sure now that they had it on charge while I was driving to see it and to pick it up...no wonder they kept phoning to see how far out I was....

I'd be terribly suspicious just on the starting it up and having it running when you got there. It means you didn't see what they went through to get it started or how long the cold engine knocked until it warmed up. It's an old trick.

The one you want will come along at the right time and place...have faith!

 

[highdesertranger]

good you walked away. if you are not comfortable that's the best thing you can do. for those who are saying wind resistance is the most important thing for mpg consider this under 45 mph wind resistance has very little effect. 45-55 it has a minor effect. 55-65 now we are talking it has a large effect. 65+ it has a huge effect. that is why our gov chose 55 mph when they imposed speed limits. this is one of the main reasons I said driving habits. others would be jack rabbit starts and stops, hitting passing gear, etc. highdesertranger