You may have seen this bus at 2:20 and D this year; white with red stripe.
I have over-revved the engine and bent the valves. This is not a disaster
for me, since I want a newer and bigger bus anyway. But the bus needs
a full valve job -- or a one way trip to Bus Heaven.
If you are a good mechanic, or have an other use for the bus, you may
have it for free. It is located in Clearlake, Northern California, about 100
miles north of San Francisco and Sacramento.
We drove it home 300 miles with the dead cylinder this weekend, and I
think it can go a bit further like that. But it sounds like a steam engine
and won't idle worth a hoot. I pulled a valve cover and found a badly
bent pushrod.
It is a 1981 International S-1700 with Bluebird body. It is a
"conventional"; that is, it has a hood out front. It is 35 feet long.
The engine is a gasoline V8 model MV404. The transmission is an
Allison automatic model AT545. The tires you get on it are very old but hold air.
Most of the seats are out (I have the rest). There is essentially no interior.
This bus can not be registered in California or other smog inspection state
because the school district (in Oregon) removed the smog pump. It has a
temporary permit to drive it until December 31 2006. I have the title
from the school district.
