Looking at a Prevost...Need Help!!!

[Highway Yacht]

I'm going to look at a Prevost bus tomorrow. It is currently owned by a Church  .. I know what they say about Church buses... So far I have only had email contact with one of the Church members and they knows very little about the bus other than it is suppose to be in good condition.  I'm planning on meeting someone there tomorrow that knows the bus well and has all the info on it.  All I know now is that is a 1983 Prevost with approximately 450K total miles. I have not seen the bus in person yet since it is about an hour away. I don't know the engine size nor engine miles yet but should find that out tomorrow when I go to look at it. I have a few questions for the people that know Prevost buses. What body model is this 1983 Prevost bus? What do I need to look for such as areas that usually have problems...rust, etc? Does anyone know the approximate inside height?  And...is this model a good choice for a conversion platform without doing a roof raise? I already own one bus and sorta know what to look for such as smoke, strange noises, large puddles of oil, tire date stamps, etc, but have no clue as to what to look for in a Prevost. Any help from the Prevost people would be great..

[robertglines1]

I have a 89..it is condisered a 102wide..has a full 98 inches of floor space inside wall to wall... Prevost have a frame more so that mci..should not be a problem there..ck jacking points on rear frame rails that engine cradle sits on if they are pushed up that is a problem and indicates rust...is nornal for outside bottom   of engine bay passanger side door where air compressor is located to have rust damage..easy repair...ck for shoddy wires or burnt wires in the front left hand side under drivers window ouside control junction box also above engine inside is another box.. .fyi windshiwld are cheap  less than 200$ delivered to you from prevost...on the other hand the little upper ones are 450$ why ?soft floor above rear wheel area inside bus not a deal breaker easy repair maybe 100$ plywood and some sheet metal  .good bargining chip though::other is reg bus stuff...any other questions..pm me and I'll try to answer.Bob

[rip]

I have a 85 Prevost XL and I believe the first year for the XL model was 1984.Prior models were 96" wide.I have a 8" roof raise on mine,but I believe mine 7around 75" prior to the roof raise.I bought mine from a small tour company and had virtually no rust. I have an 8v92 and came with a 6 speed stick,but now has a 748 Allison.
   Don

[muddog16]

I like Bob's estimates for repair...... .    The LeMirage is probably the most expensive bus frame to convert!  Hands down!   I know this will probably stir up the "BCCS", depending on your skills and the length to how far you want to take the conversion.  Depending on the location of most of its commercial life should tell what to look for.........east coast rust............southwest dry locations best area to find a conversion.  I'd look at a MCI, they seem to be the most cost efficient conversions........and yes you can over spend!     

Back to the Prevost, 83 was the first year of the 102 wide.  Look along the rear walls for major problems,  then check over the baggage compartments for rust, also the chassis structure along the floors in the baggage compartments!   Tires don't really matter either they are out dated, worn out or recaps, odds are if they aren't new it's replacement time!  Look down the sides for bubbles or damage (bubbles could be rust growing under the stainless) drive it if you get the chance or insist that you do.......preferrable in a large parking lot at first then a short highway run........this should give you an idea of exactly what you are up against!

Good luck, don't worry about hurting their feelings when it comes to either saying no,  or making another offer!


If you need to check out what I'm saying look at the link at the bottom of this page!

[divinerightstrip]

I have a 1990 Prevost LeMirage XL.

I'm sure everyone is going to have their different opinions on this, and that's fine, but here's mine:
First of all: point #1: trouble spots. Look back at my post:http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=15133.0 from when I bought the bus. Squishy floors! I am not sure when they started putting that thin piece of steel under the wooden floors, but chances are you may want to replace the floors anyways. You may also have to replace some rusted frame pieces as well. Not a huge deal.

See, now, the topic of "converting" ... because everyone does their conversions in a similar way, you get certain types of expectations for different models when it comes to difficulty and cost. I haven't been in the "scene" long enough to have these expectations turn into solid beliefs yet, so I will tell you that it just takes creativity, thoughtful planning, innovation, and organized hard work. And of course, passion, enthusiasm, and desire. Whatever you truly want, you can make happen. It pays to DIY.

So, that's point #2.

Point #3: any replacement parts for my coach have been reasonably priced, and easy to find and order thanks to suggestions from fellow Prevost owners on this site.

#4: Roof raise isn't necessary. I removed the storage units that hung from the ceiling, and have more than enough headroom. (I'm also a 5'4" little girl, so you can take that however you choose)


-DRT

[BG6]

fyi windshiwld are cheap  less than 200$ delivered to you from prevost...on the other hand the little upper ones are 450$ why ?

The little windows are a custom item and don't often need to be replaced.  The big lower windows are probably standard to a number of coaches and are more subject to damage, so they make a lot of them and the price comes down.

[Highway Yacht]

Heading out now to go see the bus... I'll let you know what I find out when I get back.. Thanks for all the tips and info.. Keep them coming!!!!

[Busted Knuckle]

OH yeah we can always find you an Eagle, MCI or Mercedes emblem to put on the front of it too!
  BK 

[robertglines1]

Won't go there Bk! I like the prevost frame better for slides..that said most of our buses share similar engines Detroit ,similar trans Allison and similar axle's...just ask does this bus excite me? if not keep looking....I would think you are looking at a 6 to 10 thousand dollar bus hopefully less...good luck Bob

[Busted Knuckle]

Won't go there Bk! I like the prevost frame better for slides..that said most of our buses share similar engines Detroit ,similar trans Allison and similar axle's...just ask does this bus excite me? if not keep looking....I would think you are looking at a 6 to 10 thousand dollar bus hopefully less...good luck Bob

Now Bob, surely you don't think that I meant anything bad or deceptive by that do you?

By the way you gonna be home this weekend? I maybe in town, if so maybe we can hook up.
  BK 

[Highway Yacht]

Ok... just got back from looking at the Prevost. It actually looked better than I thought it would. The body is very straight and the motor looks halfway clean. I would guess by the looks of the engine that it doesn't have an excess of miles. I know you can't go by looks alone. It does have some rust on the 2x2 rails over the rear tires but has not rusted through yet. I also noticed one bad steering tire that has sidewall cracks in it. Other than that I didn't notice anything else that stood out. One drawback is that it is a manual transmission. It has a low gear and 1 through 5. Does that mean it is a 6 speed??? Bad thing is I didn't get to see it run because the two 8D batteries are too weak to start it and I don't think the Church wants to spend money to install new batteries. Dealing with a Church, its hard to get a lot of info because no one person seems to know it all. I am planning on going back with my 2 Group 31 batteries and seeing if I can get it started.
Here is the info I got from the person I met with. He is on the committee to sell the bus but has never actually driven the bus but has ridden on it several times. He says that the bus runs good and he knows of no other problems except the freon needs to be recharged and that the Amp Guage doesn't work. I will put my amp meter on the batteries after I start it to make sure it is the Amp guage not working and not the Amp itself. He stated the Church has owned the bus for approx 4 years and before they bought it, it was owned by a tour company called "Nancy and Dwights Holiday Tours". He said the Church is selling it due to not using it much. I don't think the bus has been on a trip in 2 years by looking at the licence plate. Here are a couple more photos. Does this look like a 8V71??? Also what kind of mileage would an 8v71 with a 6 speed manual transmission get?

[luvrbus]

That is a 8v71, those were dogs in the heavy Prevost 270 hp 4 to 5 mpg if your lucky 

[eddiepotts]

It looks like my 8v71. I have the 6 speed spicer and yes there is a low gear. With my genny running I get about 7.5mpg. I feel it has plenty of power but it is the only bus I have ever driven.

With it setting for so long did you look for big cracks in the airbags?

[Lin]

Since it is a church selling it, you know that it has had no maintenance done on it since the day they got it.  If you are serious about this, you would be best off by getting a good bus mechanic to go over it thoroughly.  It could cost many times there asking price to just get it into good mechanical order.  

[robertglines1]

My prevost with 2 slides granite floor and counter tops and everything full to go is 36,100 lbs...I don't think it is any heavier than any other 40 ft conversion...I would imagine the mid 6mpg range is fairly close...looks good..Definitely hear it run...did you notice the aux air conditioner compressor on the engine...If you do away with big bus air;it would be easy to make a drivers air out of it for the road..probably a 2 ton unit