If you were to buy another bus, would you buy a 96" wide bus or would you buy a 102" wide bus if the price and everything else were the same and why?
Ninety six inches. Eight feet wide. I also, after much consideration, would like a 35 foot Bus Conversion and nothing longer. Very narrow roads; the first half of the old Bakersfield Ca highway going East to Lake Isabella comes to mind. Not much road width to correct instant mistakes.
I think the turning circle comes into it also. My old Crown 40 footer had a very wide turning circle. Kinda like the Queen Mary or Titanic. Lots of times tight right hand turns cannot be attempted. One has to make several left hand turns instead. Takes pre planning. The little extra inside room is not missed.
102 wide, not only is it wider but the feeling and visual effect of those 6" is noticeable. That feeling is enhanced by a raised roof, like a 102C3, lvmci...
I"ll wait till 108" wide becomes legal. I'm sure regulators will approve it in a couple of years as trucking keeps trying to take a bigger bite out of the railroads business. Are any of the newer major coaches still available in 96" ?
If you run mostly divided or interstate highways, 102" is probably preferred. Same as for taller coaches. Since so many owners are now 7 ' or taller, 10 foot ceilings seem to be the goal.
Quote from: HB of CJ on August 20, 2020, 12:29:45 PM
Ninety six inches. Eight feet wide. I also, after much consideration, would like a 35 foot Bus Conversion and nothing longer. Very narrow roads; the first half of the old Bakersfield Ca highway going East to Lake Isabella comes to mind. Not much road width to correct instant mistakes.
I once drove that road from Lake Isabella to Bakersfield in our MC 5a. I was glad I was on the outside lane and not the lane close to the rock face. That rock face is so close to the road that I could easily see a mishap. As I remember it (correct me if I am wrong) Don Fairchild said he would not drive that road in his Country Coach and would have to take a much longer route around it.
I've had 96" and 102" and I think wider is better. The 6 inch wider dimension is profoundly noticeable, especially in the salon.
In our opinion it greatly diminishes the need for slideouts.
But as with all things, it's usually a matter of personal choice. YMMV.
Mike in GA
wish we had a 102 wide bus. Our enclosed trailer is 102
Two sides to this one...
I'd love to have the extra width inside the bus, especially on a bus without slides.
But, I've driven 102" wide trucks and that few inches can make a huge difference trying to maneuver the vehicle through tight roads, even more so through construction zones with narrow lanes and concrete barriers.
In the end it would depend on intended use - mainly on the Interstate I'd take the wider width. Back roads, urban driving, etc. I'd stick with the 96".
I'd love to have the space inside of a 102 but with where I want to go and where is has to go (my driveway) 96 is the limit. Even with a 96 my clearance is measured in inches on my driveway. I'm going to have to trim the trees back again before I make my first attempt to drive back out.
The standards for highways is 12 ft wide lanes minimum it would need to be very old road for lanes to be less than 12 ft wide,Gary should know 1st hand lol his bus like most all the MCI's and Eagles in the early years were 96 wide on the front and behind the driver was 102 wide, the MCI 6 and the Eagle 07 were 102 wide from front to the rear but not many were made.All the newer buses are 102 wide from bumper to bumper.You are not talking but 3 inches on each side,Mirriors don't count in the width lol they are just something to get knocked off I am at 118 wide with mirrors so far traveling this year they are still hanging
Lots of narrow stuff in the east.
Grand Island bridges over the Niagara River, the border bridges at 1000 Islands over the St Lawrence...
Every little road in Florida...
102 is not for the faint of heart, or unsteady of hand.
Keep the mirrors snug with the line of the side, or kiss 'em goodbye.
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
Come on Cliff, come to the NE and drive some of the state and county roads You're spoiled being out West. Lots of sandy berms and scrub brush.
Quote from: chessie4905 on August 21, 2020, 11:53:45 AM
Come on Cliff, come to the NE and drive some of the state and county roads You're spoiled being out West. Lots of sandy berms and scrub brush.
I drove my Eagle down Bourbon Street in New Orleans before and I never want to do that again
Lots of very tight roads all over the country once you get off the Interstates and State highway system. More so when you get into wooded areas where the trees grow into the road a bit on each side.
Yes, the actual 'official' road width may be 12', but the usable width is often far less.
Anyone tried driving through Chicago on 294 or 55 recently knows how close to the road the crews are putting the concrete barriers nowadays.
Quote from: richard5933 on August 21, 2020, 01:18:24 PM
Lots of very tight roads all over the country once you get off the Interstates and State highway system. More so when you get into wooded areas where the trees grow into the road a bit on each side.
Yes, the actual 'official' road width may be 12', but the usable width is often far less.
Anyone tried driving through Chicago on 294 or 55 recently knows how close to the road the crews are putting the concrete barriers nowadays.
Most barriers are set at 10 ft and 12 ft that is the distance they always made me set mine at anyways,narrow roads with no shoulders do get a little tight in places,Az highways are 14 ft wide lanes all usable but some don't have shoulders to pull off either.I been watching the construction for interstate 11 those lanes are wide like 18 ft wide,the AZ round about's suck big time on the highways
Oatman to Kingman AZ, my favorite.
Quote from: Van on August 21, 2020, 01:46:16 PM
Oatman to Kingman AZ, my favorite.
LoL yea that section of old route 66 is a little tight for buses,but I came across it about a month ago but don't think I will be going back on that route,man was I happy to see the hole in wall they call call Cool Springs at the bottom of the mountain.89A from Jerome to Prescott is a treat too
Awe, come on guys that stretch is a good and fun road. . . . . In a car! Did it in March on the way back from the Bluegrass Festival at Havasu.
I have driven 8', 8" 6", 10' and handling is always an issue. To me though a bus that is 8' 6" wide means is has about 5 square feet of flat wall more fighting against the wind and draining the fuel tank.
If I was to live (or would when it is done) in my bus, my choice would lean to wards a 102" wide. With my 96" if I want more room, for now, I just will go outside.
IF I would do it again stick with 96" with a slide or two.
There are county roads in Ohio where the tires just fit between the lines, maybe the lines are nine feet apart, or a little less. The farm combines take up both lanes, grass to grass. Now there is a conflict, usually the combine goes off the road for you. Construction zones are tight, but get worse in tight curves. So, if you take country roads a lot, 96", but if you are lucky to have wide lanes, 102". The Model 15 102" Eagles are narrower in the front, and flare out on the sides, so there is less wind resistance, but the mirrors have longer arms to watch out for when making turns near things, and passing other Eagles. :o
I took the route to cross the golden gate bridge, as it turned out thru city streets of downtown San Francisco! Damn GPS...
To me I don't notice the extra 6 inches wider driving,I really never paid any attention to it
I think that the place I noticed it the most was at toll booths. Even though electronic in-motion tolling has been used for years on I-294 around Chicago, many of the exits still have the narrow concrete funnels that used to protect the toll booths. I swear some of them can't be more than 10 feet wide.
Check the massive scraping from mirrors up high on those old style toll booths...
And all the body scraping down low...
Put the driver's side ONE INCH away, hopefully, the other side will have just a little more... shy away on your side... kiss the awning goodbye...
The border booths are much the same.
Happy coaching!
Buswarrior
Been there and done the 96".....never going back.
I don't find driving the 102' to be all that much different
We were looking at Road Trec's and other small RV's, we went with the PD4106 because it was so much less expensive and will get close to, or the same mileage. I find it necessary to modify pretty much everything i own to make it mine. That being said this is a much larger project then a few mods to a road trec. LOL Bottom line, we will just remember that we wanted a road trec any time we think we need a bigger bus. Plus I agree on both the mileage and drivability some have said, we were just up a mountain gravel road and into a old field drive in Sturgis to get to our site. Longer or wider would have been difficult.