Reconsidering selling my bus...how much is an inframe rebuild?

[ilyafish]

After doing some research, and especially in this economy i am beginning to think i may be better off keeping my coach for now and doing the repairs.

Out of curiosity, how much would parts and labor be on an inframe rebuild with a possible cracked head for a 6v92 (roughly)?
Also, how much would it cost to replace the driver side tag axle air bag (professionally, and if done myself) and a wheel bearing on the front curb side tire?

Thanks!

[Don Fairchild]

There are some variables,like will you do the work if not what is the labor rate of the shop thatwill do the work, are you going to use DD parts or after market, ie; fp, interstate, clevite mahle. Where will you buy the head, Me, nemco wrecking yard or another shop, will they redo the blower and turbo or not. Need to know the scope of the work to be done.

I can only answer the engine Questions the rest will have to come from another nut.

Don

[jhaggerty]

Just changed left air bag on tag axle this spring. Along with replacing a couple of air lines it took about 6.75 hours. At least that is what I was charged  by the shop. I don't have time to do the work like some of the guys on here. So I have to pay the price. I do trust the guys that do my work and I know they have reduced the hours on some other bills. As we all know some jobs can take a lot longer than ANYONE expects!

Jim

[ilyafish]

the shop will be doing the rebuild.

how much does an airbag cost? i will be doing that myself most likely.

i believe the shop rate is 70/hr.  he has an already rebuilt 6v92 that he said would cost about 7k after everything to swap out with mine.  just trying to figure out the price difference roughly between installing one that is already rebuilt, and getting mine rebuilt.  they will be using dd parts.  they will redo the turbo.

[bobofthenorth]

One data point: my 8-92 inframe cost me just under $16k.  That was one new Detroit head and all genuine Detroit parts (shells, liners, rods and bearings).  We didn't touch the turbo or the pump.  That was pretty well an even split b/n parts & labor - slightly over 1/2 of that was labor.  Luke charged me 75 hours of labor but I think he was extremely fair with that number - Oscar I & II put in a lot of hours.  And they put up with me getting in their way regularly too.

I can't find the invoice for my airbags in what I laughingly call my filing system but I think airbag pricing is all over the map so you'd need to get a price for your own specific bags.  I was told that it was no biggie to replace them but elected to have a shop do them while I watched.  I wouldn't hesitate to do them myself another time because they were dead simple.  We changed all the shocks at the same time and I ended up doing two of them myself because the shop refused to do them when they turned out to be the hardest part of the whole project.  FWIW I found Prevost Parts to be the cheapest source of both the airbags and the shocks. 

[ilyafish]

so essentially 7k for an engine swap is a pretty good deal seems like?

[bobofthenorth]

Depends on the engine but the labor is significant - not as much as an inframe - but significant nevertheless.  So depending on what number you put on the labor you aren't paying a lot for the engine.  Which might be all its worth, depending on what you know about the "rebuild" it has.

[buswarrior]

A tag axle bellow is simple to do. Price the bag and do it yourself.

A bottle jack and some hand tools. Support the axle, pull off the wheel, and take it apart. Adjust the jack as required.

Be sure to get the fine thread nut that goes with the bag, not always easily found at the hardware store.

Wheel bearing is a little heavier job, again, DIY with some reading and some sweat. Replace the axle seal at the same time. Bearing is one part, what condition is the bearing running surfaces? Take the tire and drum off as one piece, need a piece of sheet metal and some oil/grease to slide it sideways on and off the spindle.

On the engine, pay a good shop that has a reputation for honouring their work.

Glad to see you are still in the game, nothing wrong with the emotional swings after blowing a major component!

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[JackConrad]

For an airbag price, check with Mohawk MFG www.mohawkmfg.com  I think they have one of the best prices.  Jack

[Tenor]

Wheel bearing is easy.  Not too expensive for the parts either.  Airbag through Mohawk should be under 100.00 (mine for an MCI 7 were, and I think the tags were the cheapest).  Have some good stiff brushes/screwdrivers/shop air to clean the pockets that the bolts for the airbag go through.  I had several inches of dirt to remove.  Do you have access/knowledge on running a set of torches?  That was helpful in doing my tag bag.  Don't want to scare you off, just thinking of worst case scenarios.  Have faith, keep your options and mind open and good luck!


Glenn

[Busted Knuckle]

FWIW and remember you mileage will vary! On December 30th, 2005 the 6V92TA engine in our 102A3 MCI blew while dad was loaded & headed for a ski trip in NC.
With our buses being revenue based and our pockets being small (we started with nothing, and still have most of it left!) we looked at all options very long and hard! We finally ended up going with a re-manufactured engine with a 2 yr 50,000 mile warranty from American Fleet Services in Springfield, MO. After all was said & done and the receipts were totaled (engine w/ new turbo, head core, {rebuilt starter, compressor, alt, pwr strg pump}, belts, hoses, power grip shrink fit clamps ($$$), and every thing else (even some hired labor, but mostly dad & my free labor) or total came to just under $16,000 and adding the gas $ to carry the core to Springfield a hotel and trip home it was just over $16,000 for all.
Now keep in mind we went the more out of pocket ($) route of a re-manned unit over a used take out, or rebuilding ours in a time & reliability situation since we depended on ours for making our living! I'm sure your $7000 option would be fine for you purposes, but we needed a sense of security of knowing what we put in was going to last a while and not leave a group of customers on the side of the road.
Your $ your call!   BK 

[NJT 5573]

I wouldn't let R&Ring a head scare me. Just make sure you take the bad one off. You can do almost all the work with some pretty basic tools.

My DD manual starts right off in the very first few pages telling how to tell what is reusable and what is not. For years Greyhound shoved a piston in an engine that needed one and swapped a head on another one that needed a head and sent it back across the country. We still do the same with trucks today.

Its always nice to have a "rebuilt engine" but many times they don't last any longer than a repaired engine.

No more miles than conversions roll I will never completely rebuild mine, I will just fix it and put it back into service.

Call around and you will find a used or rebuilt head for a reasonable price. Many shops weld heads and return them to service as "rebuilt" and you never will know it, get yours repaired if its cheap enough, because you very well may just get a welded one anyway. Used would be my first choice if I could find one, pressure test it, lap the valves by hand at home and go busing.

You can rent a torque wrench to pull the head down and my local DD shop does road service. I would just call them out to the shop to set up the rack if you don't know how, and take a quick look at my work and have it back on the road in a couple of days if I were you.

Go to a parts site and take a quick look at the gaskets you need to change one head. That's what you have to R&R. Not really an overwhelming situation unless you time is real valuable. Hell, I bet alot of girls could do it roadside.

[NJT 5573]

I don't know the story on you steer axle wheel bearing, but it is indeed rare for a bearing to fail. Are you sure you don't just need a seal. Those bearings are almost indestructible, give us a little more info on whats going on there.

If that bearing is bad, you are "Out Of Service" on the spot until its repaired. If its a seal, it still should be "Out Of Service" on the spot, but the wheel and hub won't likely leave the unit if its moved to the nearest safe place to be repaired. The wheel hub actually holds enough oil to lube the bearing even if the seal is gone. I have seen them run 1500 miles home after the oil level dropped below the seal level with a leaking seal.

Give us a little more info. Jack the wheel off the ground, put a 6 foot pry bar through a wheel hole and tell me how much slop you have pulling up on the wheel with the bar in a bottom hole.

[onrwey9]

re air bag for tag I just done both sides at Jack Cs this past winter 09 & ordered from Mohack  good price but wrong air bag had to send back  & order from Luke. Some bags are differnt in the way the bolts line up. Mine is 83 mci9 . I would order from luke as u will be sure too get proper bag  might cost a wee bit more but it will be right bag Gary ONRWEY

[TomC]

Depends on which way you want to go.  Most shops- & to give some kind of warranty (like 2yr/200,000 mi) on the work will totally rebuild the engine and replace all but the crankshaft (and camshafts if OK) with new stuff.  This is called a rebuild-and it costs the most-but will usually afford the longest time before next rebuild.  But-with our kind of driving, we don't need an engine that will last 500,000 mi before next rebuild.
The more cost effective way to go is to have the engine overhauled.  This takes a smarter mechanic/shop to be able to remove all parts from the engine, inspect parts for damage and wear, then only replace what is questionable.  This will save you a lot of money.  To demonstrate the difference-most shops will just install new cylinder kits (new cylinder liner, pistons and rings), when many times you could just get by with a new set of rings with a quick cylinder hone.  I had my engine overhauled and saved close to $5,000 because of it.  Since year 2,000, I've driven almost 23,000 miles in the bus-so you see a long lasting engine isn't really important.  Only if you're a full timer driving all the time you might consider a full rebuild.  Good Luck, TomC