Bus Buying Guide - Do's & Don'ts when buying a bus.

[Beluga Bus]

Drew and PJ,
You got a lot of good advice so far for beginning your search for a bus, I hope you are able to sort through that and the B.S. that when on in this thread. I do suggest you to come to Quartzite in January, within a matter of weeks you have a Flxible, GM, and Eagles rally. All made buses in the time frame you are looking at. There is also the BCI rally where you can see all makes of buses. Go to the BCM homepage and click on events to find these and other rallys and to check on any cancelations.
Matt

[Rockabilly]

Hi Everyone,

Wow first off, let me say thank you for all the replies we received.  To be Frank, we are all adults here and whether a person interjects irrelevant information on new buses, or irrelevant information to there own buses, the purpose is of course to gain any and all valuable information all the while encouraging "bus related conversation".  We would like to personally thank everyone whom is kind enough to reach out and answer back regardless of what direction that response was related to.  I have no doubt there are many "how to buy a bus" threads already in existence on here that we will over time stumble upon and also gain value from.  However we thought starting a new thread made the most sense and motivated us to reach out to others and get ourselves actively engaged in a bus related topic relevant to our current situation.

To answer a few questions we are sticking to a budget of around 15000 Cdn(11000 usd).  There is zero interest in new buses, or square looking buses, when my wife gets a vision in her head there is no arguing.(You guys should realize by now that there is no winning in an argument with a woman)  It has to have a nice rounded look and of all irrelevant things, she needs to know a detailed history.  The bus she is looking at right now is a 1965 MCI -MCC-5A 35ft - previously converted(rather odd older conversion - washing machine mounted in shower wall?!?) but has had some minor interior updates already(new flooring, reupholstered seats).  It has had a lot of structural/mechanical work, and was safetied 3 years ago.  The fellow whom has it, already put 24grand cdn into this unit doing a lot of required work to get it to pass safety including new yolks in the tire rod ends, brakes, used oil pan, rebuilt clutch, bearings, rear & front brake drums, steering ujoint, washer pump, Battery, and so forth... The list goes on of what this previous owner has invested into this unit, and he has provided shop bills outlining all work completed, as well as a copy of the safety completed 3 years ago in which this unit passed.  Unit is for sale for 15 grand the top of our budget. 

He said he fell in love with the bus when he bought it but his wife has hated it from the get go and did not approve of the purchase.  He also provided a walk through video of when he first saw the bus and yes in the video he manages to capture his wife's dislike for the unit.  This fellow is still working on this bus present day.  We aren't very happy it has a propane Genny and the guy currently is repairing the generator.  Having said that perhaps that is a minor thing as the guy did state you can still plug the unit in and run everything.  Even though this unit is for sale it is apparent this fellow does truly love this bus, and he is still continuing to do work on it, including getting a custom welded up slider rack built for the genny to make it easy to pull out and work on it/maintain it when needed.

So for all you bus experts & enthusiasts if any of you have any insight into a 1965 MCI - MCC-5A that would be a huge help.

My wife being the person she is researches into the history of everything and with us being Manitoban's the fact that MCI itself was founded in Winnipeg Manitoba my wife is all for promoting an original MB born company.  Realizing the build itself was probably done elsewhere(ND) We have classic vehicles and already own '72 Boler camper that was a product of the Winnipeg factory itself. 

Looking forward to hearing back from any and all whom would like to respond,

Kindest regards,

Drew & PJ

[Van]

Ah ha! the first find! Great post drew great bus. There are a few owners/past owners here I'm sure will chime in. All the best!

[benherman1]

I bought my 64 MC5A this February. As far as I know the only difference between the MC and the MCC is made in the US vs Canada. Here's a couple things I would recommend looking at.


The air bags and air frame: The air bags on the 5A are pressurized through the metal frame above them. This frame can rust and leak. If it does you will have to order block off plates and new air bag bolts to fix the leak. This will solve the problem at the cost of a slightly harsher ride. I have never been in one with the block off plates but from what I understand it isn't too rough. It is a huge pain to do the job though.


Rust: As others have said look for it. I found quite a bit on my coach that will need some attending to. I'd have still bought it but if it were worse I'd be in a jam. Look in the baggage bays at the edges of the metal that supports the floor. Look in the engine bay at the corners. look behind the front bumper in the spare tire compartment.


Engine: Make sure it is cold when you get there. Ask the owner to not start it for a day beforehand. Listen to it start and ask about anything that stands out. It is a 2 stroke so it will be oily and possibly a bit smoky at first. It should clear up relatively quickly if the bus hasn't been sitting.


Overall it sounds like you're looking at a great deal. I bought my 5A for $4000 but it hasn't been maintained or driven much for 20 years. I am now having to do all those things you said were done and more. I am in full agreement with your wife on all the parts about the looks of this bus. It will not be the fastest thing on the road and it won't be the most efficient but it will be loads of fun.

Ps. If she picked it you can use that as an excuse to get her in the captains chair a bit more. My girlfriend has staunchly refused to even think about driving it...

[Ed Hackenbruch]

Send a note to Lostagain  on this board.  JC has a 5C and drove buses for years including the 5s. He is in Alberta, might know of one or two that are available.....also BC BusNuts might be able to help you out.  We had a 68 5A and fulltimed in it for 12 years and loved the bus.....

[Rockabilly]

1965 MCI MCC-5A
8V71 With 4 Speed Spicer Manual Transmission
Thank you to everyone for the advice, we took the plunge and bought the old girl!  Bringing her  home in spring.

First time bus owners... Very exciting!

Drew, PJ & Family

[lostagain]

I am glad your got it! Looks good! 5s are some of my favorite buses. Drove lots of them in the 70s. We have owned ours for 10 years and love it. There will be a learning curve, and there will be some renovations and updates, but that seems to be a constant with any rig. Enjoy.

[chessie4905]

the amount of money you plan to spend is formost. Second is a converted rig or one you plan to convert.Fuel mileage expectation is important.

[kyle4501]

Fuel mileage expectation is important.

Truer words have yet to be spoken. 

I plan on 4 mpg & am happy when I get to the fuel pump 

Tires are one of the bigger expenses - I found that mounting them myself wasn't as bad as I expected - I even saved a few bucks in the process !

[chessie4905]

The 1948 ACF Brill I had had a 779 cu. in. 6 cylinder gas engine. Got about 4 1/2 mpg. Better after new cap, rotor and points. I then figured 5mpg and gained some fuel every fill up. No gage. Gas was 80 cents per gallon then, but money was small, so a fill up wasn't  easy. Still enjoyed its use.

[Lin]

I also have a 1965 5a, which has given good service.  I do like it being a 35 footer.  Everyone has their own preference but I would suggest getting one with an automatic (Allison) transmission.  Ours had the Spicer to begin with and I never liked it.  First gear and reverse are really way too high.  We even hit hills that it could not climb without a good running start.  We converted it to auto, which costed around 12k.  The price difference between Spicer and Allison on a already converted bus is relatively small.

We have the 8v71 engine.  It is a dependable workhorse, but you would be better off with a 6v92 since it has a turbo, which gives you more power and doesn't lose much horsepower at higher altitudes.  Also the 6v92 is shorter so it can fit an Allison 740 behind it. The 8v71 can only fit an Allison 644 or 647, which can be adequate but not as tough as the 740 series.  That said, I would not necessarily reject an 8v71/647 combo, but why not go for the better setup?

[kyle4501]

Custom Coach conversions from new would have a 8V71 with a 740 -- and a very short driveshaft!

[Lin]

Interesting, were the Custom Coaches with the 8v71 and 740 35' MC5's? The issue is not whether an 8v71 can take a 740.  It is whether there is room for it in a MC5.

[richard5933]

Can't speak specifically for MCI conversions, but not every Custom Coach has an automatic transmission. All depended on what the original buyer spec'd out. Mine was converted on a brand-new shell, and shipped with the 8V71 and a Spice 4-speed manual.

[kyle4501]

Interesting, were the Custom Coaches with the 8v71 and 740 35' MC5's? The issue is not whether an 8v71 can take a 740.  It is whether there is room for it in a MC5.

A friend in Tennessee has a 35' MC5 with the 8v71, 740 from brand new. So, yes there is room for the 740.

It also still has the original stainless steel holding tanks