My Son's Scenicruiser adventure

[Busted Knuckle]

This was an interesting thread when it was about Scenic-cruisers.
Now it is just another yawner.
BCO

Couldn't said it any better!
  BK 

[Jeremy]

Ok, this might rescue the thread - a 1950's British Foden:




Well, it does look a little bit like a Scenicruiser...


Jeremy

[rwc]

Transporting an old bus to a location where it can be worked on. I am certain that they were very careful and attentive to the condition of the bus and the safety of themselves and others. There is no intention of routinely operating this vehicle in this condition.  It will be repaired and inspected before being put in routine operation.  Lighten up!! Rod

[Ed Hackenbruch]

cool looking bus Jeremy!

[artvonne]

My Son Nick, has a friend in Alabama who has a Scenicruiser.  The videos below show their adventure in picking the Scenicruiser up in Arkansas and driving it to Alabama.

  Mike~

  Please accept my condolences. I know you just wanted to share your excitment for your son, and never expected anyone to find fault with their effort. Just remember that in Canada and all of Europe, that Bus would have been impounded and the boys charged with criminal acts, and everyone living in those countries knows it. 

  Just be glad they didnt see a portable air compressor anywhere, or some may have reached for their torches and pitchforks.

   I found the videos fun and exciting. I appreciate anyone making the effort to save something historical or unique. Surely that Bus was headed for scrap had they not made the attempt. And thanks to their effort, and our freedoms that allowed it, another old Scenicruiser was saved.

[kyle4501]

Mike,
Get your son to contact me or Tom McNally (or almost any other Scenicruiser owner for that matter). We can likely help with sourcing items some 'expert birds' claim to be nonexistent. 

Besides, it is always good to know another Scenicruiser owner! 

[Bill in KS]

I enjoyed the Videos.  Reminded me of when I was in college doing something similar with motorcycles.  From thoses unsafe college adventures I started building a sucessful powersports business.  Two thumbs up from me.  I love people that have a Get R done attitude. 

I'll never forgot when the cops in our small town pulled up beside me and a friend asked what we were doing ( on the main street of town ). I told him " We got tired or tring to kick start this ole harley so we're pull starting it " .  Cop asked " will the lawn mower ? will it go fast enough to do that? "  ....... rolled up his window while laughing and drove off.  Go have some fun!!

Bill

[scenicruiser997]

Mike, I second Kyle.  I own two of these girls and 1/2 of another.  There is so much knowledge out there these days as forums go for the Scenicruiser owners.  We are a tight bunch of guys that only want to help as many others get what's left of these great girls back together and on the road again.  Thank you for sharing your sons videos.  Please keep up up to date with their progress.  Aaron south of Tulsa, OK.

[mike802]

Thanks everybody for your support.  If I knew anything in the videos was illegal, or dangerous, I would not have posted them, obviously I did not think there was any dangerous, or illegal activity taking place and I stand by that decision. 

I am not offended by questions from people who live in different countries, where the laws are much different than ours, its a great way to learn about different cultures and expectations.  Here in the states, laws considering motor vehicles differ from state to state and what is legal in the southern states could earn you a hefty fine here in Vermont.  It has to do with the sovereignty of the states, but it gets muddy when states accept funding from the federal government, which always comes with strings attached. My congratulations to my Southern brothers and sisters for holding on to your freedoms.

I have full faith in my son and Rob's ability to properly asses the situation.  Rob, is a mechanical engineer and currently employed in that capacity.  Nick, just completed all his course requirements for a degree in computer science in digital media, he has also been by my side through countless auto restorations and hot rodding projects. I have probably taught him just about everything I know and I worked as a professional auto mechanic for the first ten years of my working life.  He is a talented sheet metal fabricator and amateur machinist as well.

And yes, everything these young men did was legal in the states they traveled through, to the best of their knowledge.  I asked Nick about the windshield issue and he said they checked it all out and it appeared to be quite solid, but just in case they were prepared if it was to give them problems.  It is safety glass and that stuff is very tough and usually comes out in a sheet, it is not at all like window pain glass.

So, all that being said, was it possible that some unforeseen circumstance took place and caused disaster?  Of course it was, every time we get behind the wheel we are courting possible disaster, even in a brand new vehicle, we put our lives in the hands of others and ourselves, but we accept the risk.  What would a perfectly safe world look like, would we all be warped in bubble wrap, safety harnessed to our sofa, unable to venture out side our homes for fear of eminent destruction? Maybe that would be safe, but would we really be living? And don't forget that 90% of all personal injuries happen in the home.

Maybe it's true that Americans think different than people in other countries, I never really thought about it.  But I think cowboys and the old west have mostly been romanticized by Hollywood.  I don't think people have changed much since the frontier days, we all want the same things, a good life with enough money to live comfortably and to be able to watch our children grow and become who they want to be.

The freedom to become who they want to be and live the way they see fit, as Americans we have ancestors who died for that and maybe that is what sets us apart?  I mean no offense to anyone reading this from another country, after all it is the British who gave the world the Magna Carta and at this moment it time I would proudly stand shoulder to shoulder with the Egyptians.

[Barn Owl]

If I knew anything in the videos was illegal, or dangerous, I would not have posted them, obviously I did not think there was any dangerous, or illegal activity taking place and I stand by that decision.

If I am correct, in VA you can go down the road with just about anything with a trip permit. The incentive to do it right is that if things go wrong your life will change in a very bad way. I didn't see anything wrong driving with those windshields. Without the ability to transport vehicles like that think of how many would just end up as scrap. The number of vehicles traveling with trip permits are so few it's a non-issue. I am amazed at how many get all wound up and spin out of control over something that has not been a problem, yet turn a blind eye to real problems that have proven extremely deadly, e.g. drunk driving.

[boxcarOkie]

At least once or twice a week, I come across some shell, some relic, and I think to myself, "that would make a cool project bus" and then I stop to consider the cost to transport it here to my shop and I snap back into reality.

I say ... Leave 'em alone, no harm no foul, leave "enforcement of traffic laws" up to the people who do it for a living.  Every day in Oklahoma, if you look for it, you can find bigger infractions of the vech. safety code than this.  I worry about all those wonderful folks who are driving around without insurance more than this.

BCO

[Mex-Busnut]

I really enjoyed the three videos. I also liked seeing them take the time to check out brakes, lights, etc.

One question I have: Does that have the 13-speed RoadRanger tranny in it?

[RJ]

Mike -

What a great adventure your boy had!

Just think of the "war stories" he'll have to share around the campfire at a busnut rally!

Glad to see another Scenic saved from the Salvage Gods.



Jeremy -

Hey, I've got one of those Fodens in my Dinky Toys collection!  Still with the original tyres, too (altho they're cracked nowadays)!

FWIW & HTH. . .

[rampeyboy]

It could be there trip was far safer than some trips in more prepared vehicles would have been. How often do we let our guard down when dirinvg? I bet these guys never let there gaurd down on this trip! Way to go guys, I loved it!

Boyce

[R_Allen]

Hi everybody, just wanted to jump on quick to say hi, and thanks for all the comments. I'm Rob, from the videos and the trip to get PD4501-855.

I heard from Nick the other day that he had put the videos up online and that Mike had posted them for everybody to see, so I figured I ought to be polite and log in to say hi. I'm glad you guys got a kick out of our little adventure, it turned into quite a weekend.

The time I get to spend on the internet usually works out to be few and far between, so I don't usually get the chance to dig into the forums too deep, but I'll do my best to get back on here soon and add some details to the story for anyone who's interested.