Hello all,
For many years I've wanted a scenicruiser. Searched and thought about it. Never found one that would be in my price range. Not one that runs anyway. I stumbled across PD4501-686 in my hometown. It's been parked for many years and as far as I can tell is unknown to the scenicruiser community. The previous owner bought it when greyhound sold them. He spent many years and dollars converting it to a private coach. He did a great conversion which is now very, very dated. I've waited a few years now for the estate to get figured out and was offered the bus as is for a very fair price. It has not been on the road for 15 years except to move between a couple of barns. I put a couple of batteries in it. Fired it up without even the slightest hesitation. I drove it to my place under its own power. We are going through it. It has air leaks, a bad alternator, and who knows what else? But, it runs and drives. Our intention is to get it road worthy this year and put a few miles on it. Do some shakedown and make sure we have everything in order. Unfortunately, finances will require that the interior while dated, if functional will take a few years. I promised the wife a new kitchen before a bus remodel. A good cleaning, maybe furniture reupholstering, a new mattress, and fresh carpet should tide us over for a couple of years. This bus was sold to me at the price that it was because the owner would like to see it stay around here and be brought back to its former glory. It was his fathers pride and joy. We hope one datyit will be ours too. We are excited even as is but know the potential it has.
Specs for those interested.
8v71 (re manufactured engine installed with 10k on it. Last owner blew the original 8v in the Smokies and replaced it with a reman rather than rebuild)
original 4spd
5kw Onan gasoline generator. (Haven't tried. Worked when parked but fuel smells bad 366hrs on readout). Stainless steel gasoline tank. Custom made for location
The house electrical is all untested. Haven't tried the generator or inverter. After bus is is road ready we will tackle getting things going.
Water tanks unknown size. Custom made stainless steel to fit the locations he wanted them in.
1 rooftop air and 1 window shaker mounted under bed exhausting into engine bay.
1 cracked vista window (Very sad, but hopefully fixable. I own an auto glass shop. Connections may be helpful in this dept)
Front and rear bumpers have sadly been replaced. As well as all the side windows. They are now rectangular units.
Custom awnings for all windows and a large awning for camping.
I'm sure I'm missing some things.
As stated above. We will not try to tackle house power until the bus can safely and comfortably be driven. We were told by the owner (owners son). That it was all operational when parked. His father spared no expense on it when building it and maintaining it. However he died in 1999 and the family has been fighting over the sizable estate since then. It was started and driven roughly 40 miles 2-3 years ago and has again sat. Fingers crossed all the 110v power and accessories are still good. If not we will certainly bring this bus back to as much of its former glory as our finances will allow!
Thanks for reading and I look forward to sharing and hearing your thoughts and suggestions.
Sean Tien
Kalamazoo, MI
Huge Congrats and welcome!
Thank 1-L. I've been lurking here for years and signed up a couple of weeks ago. I just my confirmation today and I'm excited to learn and share.
I've always dreamed about owning a Scenicruiser. Post some pictures if you can! And keep us posted!
Congrats!
Did you get any manuals or build documentation with it?
Pictures will be much appreciated!
As for the dated interior, live with it for a bit, you might be surprised at how it grows on you. Often, while it ain't what you would pick today, at the end of the day, it is more than fine. ;)
Enjoy your new ride
Congratulations on your scenic. I recently bought one also, but I'm still working on getting it home. I'd love to take a look at yours sometime. I live in northern Indiana maybe I'll see you around sometime at a bus rally in the area.
Sean -
Welcome aboard! Busnutitus is not curable, but it can be controlled.
FYI, PD4501-686 spent most of it's life assigned to Southeastern Greyhound Lines, before being reassigned to Central Greyhound Lines.
A couple of photos would be nice, when you can.
Tom McNally is the go-to Scenic guru, a wealth of Scenic knowledge. pd4501-771 is his handle on this forum, IIRC.
FWIW & HTH. . .
;)
Trying from my phone and failing.
Again?
Getting somewhere.
Good looking Bus you've got there. Know you folks will enjoy it. Show us some of the inside when you get her up and ready. It's amazing how some of the systems will fire back up and run with a little TLC. Mine had been sitting about 7 or 8 years when I jumped into it. Good luck.
This is a beautiful cruiser. I can't wait to see more!!
We did receive some of the original GM manuals. A very thick book.
We are very hopeful for the systems to come back to life. The old Detroit certainly wants to be worked. I've never seen a diesel motor fire so quickly. It honestly didn't even roll over. Just the moment I turned the key, it came to life. It felt very promising. Although I need to be cautious and not overly optimistic. 15 years is a lot of dust to sort through.
Quote from: Installglass on July 18, 2015, 11:40:30 AM
I've never seen a diesel motor fire so quickly. It honestly didn't even roll over. Just the moment I turned the key, it came to life.
That's an awesome feeling! My 8V92 is the same way, as the key makes the circuit, it's running.
Bruce
You have a fine looking coach - even tho I prefer the original look over the current restyling of the windows & front bumper ;)
Your coach does make a nice statement just as it sits. If the former owner did all the work himself, it looks like he did nice work.
As for all the systems, the best plan would be to ease them back into service when possible - IE: start with water pressure very low & watch for leaks as you slowly increase the pressure.
For electrical - locate as many junctions/ connections as you can (in the shore cord to breaker panel etc) & check the temp as you increase the electrical loading.
If you "sneak up" on each system a little at a time, it won't be as intimidating. ;D
Good luck & have fun with it!
Yes Kyle, I agree with the restyling not being to my liking but being done quite well. I wish I had the original stuff but what we have now is quite nice and I'm not complaining. Especially not for what we paid. I know the son and was told that this was the third conversion his father did and was his pride and joy. He spared no expense while still doing the conversion himself. The quality of the work seems stellar even though I question his taste and decorating sense. I will also concede it was the late 70's and early 80's. I'm not sure any decorating from that time period has withstood the test of time.
Thanks for the advice on the other systems. I will keep that in mind when beginning that part of the journey.
All decorating styles fade over time.
Then they fade back in style.
However, when the late 70's style comes back around, it will likely last for only a couple of minutes. :o
In '87, the popular color was 'dusty Rose' - guess what the main color is in my Newell. . . .
Now 'Radiant Orchid' is a trending popular color (looks exactly the same as 'dusty rose' to me).
As much as I would rather not have that color in my coach, the more time I spend in it, the less I care about that minor detail.
We have that lovely 70's gold/light brown color along with white vinyl. The walls are all tongue and groove hardwood. The wood was done really well. Unfortunately it's about 30x the amount of wood that I'd like. We will see what we can live with and what will need replacing. Some things we can live with short term, some long term, and some won't last 5 minutes. It's going to be an experience.
Welcome Installglass. Very nice Bus. if you get time you should drop by busgreasemonkey.com where there are quite a few Senic owners to include Tom and many others.
Dave5Cs
I wouldn't change the interior, just because it is dated a bit. Look at the retro Brave Winnebago has come out with. And also some of the models of Airstream. Good Luck, TomC
Sean -
And just in case you're interested. . . The PD4104's front bumper, headlights, etc. will interchange with the Scenic, but not the windshields.
Oh, and please take a minute to update your forum profile with at least your name, home base city/state and coach model, similar to mine below. That way we can better help you by referring you to more local parts and service sources. Just click on the profile tab above. When that menu opens, in the LH column click on Forum Profile Info and follow the prompts. Easy to do, and only takes a couple of minutes. TIA.
FWIW & HTH. . .
;)
Welcome! I actually like the look of the eagle bumper on the front. My wife would say it takes away from the originality. Nice bus! Hope to see more pictures.
Good luck on the vista windows. I had to buy a whole bus to get some for my 4107. Might try Curved Glass Inc. They can bend laminated glass and if you can get the broken one out in one piece it would make a good pattern for them.
Ken
I own an auto glass shop. That should give me a leg up with the laminated glass. I will see what happens. Not a top priority at the moment.
If I ever do decide to return to the original bumpers that info will be of great help. It was something I would've asked about if we ever decided on that. I thought they looked the same.... But, looks can be deceiving.
Nice Scenic!!!!
We call St. Joseph, MI home so when we are there we'll have to pop up and see your Scenic :)
That's cool. I'm in St. Joe and Benton Harbor all the time. (More Benton Harbor. I'm sure you know why.) My shop services all
The way to South Bend and Michigan City. Id love to check yours out too.
If you're in the auto glass business I understand exactly why you're in Benton Harbor more than St. Joe haha. Yikes. Anyway, we won't be back home until December for Christmas but at some point I can assure you we will meet up. Our newest bus is parked in Berrien Springs at the moment but we are currently living out of our older coach.
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Update
Have the alternator out for a rebuild. Haven't started on the generator but did decide to try shore power today. Both ac units fired up,and blew cold right away. All of the 110v inside the bus seems to be working. No further info at this time. Water systems, generator and inverter still to be tested. Fingers crossed. All is going well so far.
Would love to see the inside of this one, especially if the floors are lowered to be flat in the upper deck.
I can get some interior pictures. I don't like the interior at all so I've neglected those photos. It's functional though. I will have to look closely but I believe they have. Bathroom and closet doors go all the way the floor. The lounge isn't raised up at all. I think front floor was left as is.
you lucky bugger! Looks great (other than the bumper and the square wheel surrounds). As fuel goes up and guys get old there will be more deals, makes it hard to work on mine. BTW care to share what you got it for?
I'm thinking I'll keep the sales price under wraps. It was quite cheap (from what I know of Scenicruisers)is all I'm really comfortable with.
I also verified today that the upper floors are flat except the engine bay. There is a rise in the floor next to the bed on both sides.
Hi Sean
Congrats on your Scenic purchase. I get to K-zoo 4 times per year for work. I have been going there for 15 years, and never knew of this bus. I will have to check my serial number roster tonight to see if I have any other former owner info beyond GH. There are a few other Scenic owners in your area: Tim Binder in Saugatuck, and Ron Isenhath has two in Eaton Rapids.
Looks like your bus has been re-skinned? what is that guys, buffalo skin? It looks wider than 4501 or 04.
Good luck, and please stay in touch. Take care
Yes, it was reskinned. I wish it was more original but you can still tell its a scenicruiser. Thank goodness. The previous owner really liked Eagles. Hence the bumpers. Maybe the skin was from an older eagle?
Back in the seventies orange shag carpet was the going thing in motor homes .I even got used to that after a while.If you are going to be using your bus like a lot of us do,I.E a couple of moths a year,that Dusty Rose will work fine.As I am always telling my wife,it's a darned RV not a show Palace!!lol
Don't think that Eagle model 05 front bumper and corners are stock!!LOL
Hi Sean
I checked my records for PD4501-686. I had nothing beyond the Greyhound fleet history. It looks like I will be in K-zoo Sept 14-18. Any chance we could meet up? I would love to check out your coach, and snap some photos. Maybe get any former ownership records you may have as well. Take care
Tom
Sean
I am headed to K-zoo tomorrow for the week. Any chance I get a look at your Scenicruiser? Thanks
Welcome to this community (read madness). This board is a source of a great wealth of information and soooo many ready to help out.
Nice bus. Really nice bus.
As far as the mechanicals, it may be prudent to remove each wheel and check bearings, linings, cams. Our local government has introduced mandatory wheel pull for annual truck inspections and already we are finding more leaking wheel seals and other defects than we normally would have.
When you plan on testing the water system maybe use air pressure or suction to test first round. It may save filling a cavity that you are not interested in converting to a wading pool.
I can understand the shyness about posting interior pictures, but what about the heart! Engine bay pics .... ;D
It seems to be an initiation to feed the rest with as much bus porn as possible.