Help! I have a 1985 Neoplan I need to sell and no clue on pricing!

[jnelson62]

Hello BCM folks thanks for the add. My father recently passed and left us this bus conversion. It's a 1985 8V92. There is an interesting story behind this coach. It was originally a NYC transit bus that was involved in a riot fire bombing. Apparently someone tossed a Molotov in the open door and the bus body mostly burned up. It was purchased at auction by the owners prior to my parents who had it converted into the coach. My parents paid $150k in 1995 I think (not sure of year..sure of $) for the bus and drove it for several years. It currently has 177k+ miles on the odometer and one of my brothers notes that mileage is since the conversion and doesn't count any original city bus miles. I have driven it a grand total of about 40 feet to it's current position from beside the house. I know my Dad had a $13k bill for a tranmission rebuild a few years back at a shop in Oregon.

My recollection of the origin story was that it was an almost brand new city bus when it was fire bombed. The previous owners spared no expense on the rebuild and conversion, installing Corian countertops on gorgeous black walnut cabinetry. It's in what I would describe as fair shape. Dad had gotten too broke down bodily to do proper maintenance but not too broke down to drive so it got somewhat neglected for a couple years. It has sat for the last several years (5+) outside their home in Yuma. One of my siblings moved there and lived in the coach while she helped to take care of them before Mom passed in 2017 and Dad just last month.

So this is my pickle folks. I'm clueless when it comes to this stuff as are my siblings and I'm the one stuck holding the For Sale sign. Unlike our parents none of us caught the RV bug. We have no clue of the value of this bus currently and in it's current condition. The batteries were long gone so I replaced them. The tires will need replacing as I"m sure they are pancaked on one side althought all but one is holding air. The good news: once we had power to the engine and a tiny squirt of starter fluid it fired right up and ran like a top. The air came up as expected, it shifted into and out of gear and ran up and down the gears with no perceivable issues.

So I beg of you any input you may have on a value for the bus. If you want to please include your opinions on if the estate should spend some $ to fix it up before trying to sell it or let it go as-is for the next owner? If you think we should fix it up, how much should we spend and what would be the primary areas of concern that we should address (besides the obvious tires)? I want to thank any of you that take the time to read my novel and respond in advance.  At one time this thing was stunning and I truly believe it can be again. I have all the wheel covers!

Some notes on condition: The entire inside and outside needs to be seriously cleaned. The body is showing some signs of rust. There is some streaking along seams in the paint and in the engine compartment rust is visible. There is substantial corrosion from the batteries visible which I expect would clean up with some effort. There is no bed. There used to be a cabinet in the bedroom that my father removed and used the area for a ham radio cabinet. Some minor repairs need to be made to some of the cabinetry. There are two large areas in the kitchen/dining area where the wallpaper was removed and will need to be replaced. The status of the electrical system is unknown and I have no clue how to even begin to check things but I'm not aware of any issues.

There are 10 photos available here.

[windtrader]

Just be prepared that what you will get in your pocket is much less than the $150k your Dad spent. These are not investments and like boats, you can never throw enough money into them. The other major issue is the market. Bus conversions were huge back in the mid-90's. Unfortunately, it was a one generation hobby/fad, and sadly many of that generation are no longer active, many buses now sit and collect dust. There is a dearth of new blood of younger generations getting onboard, if anything the buzz is the skoolie bus crowd and that in fact has held up. Yesterday's hippies are reborn and still gravitate to the carefree school buses.


If you clear 20% of that original purchase, be satisfied. Other factors are tire age, seven years is the end life and a new set all around will set you back five grand. And so it goes with a bus that has not been maintained, serviced, and roadworthy.

[hogi6123]

Value will depend on materials used, the build quality, the condition, maintenance, etc.

It is not clear from your description what is the true condition of this bus.  Rust could be surface only, not a big deal, or it could be about to split this bus in half going down the road.  You want to find that out.  Find a mechanic friend and get their opinion.  And what does "needs to be seriously cleaned" mean?  Wet and moldy and smelly, or just thoroughly dusty?

I would recommend applying a shop vac to every inch of the interior and storage bays, and soapy water and a sponge to every surface inside and out that can handle it.  Then browse Facebook Marketplace for a while looking at similar rigs, I think that will give you a decent idea what someone else would pay for it.  And it might take 6 months before a serious buyer contacts you about it.

Edit:  I think the best route for you is to put in a minimum amount of money, clean it up well and fix any quick easy cheap things (like burned out light bulbs or loose trim), and replacing the start batteries was a good thing.  And make sure all tires hold air long enough for a test drive.  I think a buyer will not mind getting their own new tires, though they will ask for a deduction for them.

[luvrbus]

The Neoplan commuter buses are bad about rust and that scares people off along with the German running gear, they are not a bad bus .List it high say $35,000 and take $20 to $25,000 for it, you picked a bad time to sell, high fuel prices kill a 5 mpg bus sale fwiw that is a nice looking Neoplan sad but you won't get anywhere close to what your Dad spent

[6805eagleguy]

I will back luvrbus. He's the man around here

[jnelson62]

This is right in line with what I was guessing. 

The Neoplan commuter buses are bad about rust and that scares people off along with the German running gear, they are not a bad bus .List it high say $35,000 and take $20 to $25,000 for it, you picked a bad time to sell, high fuel prices kill a 5 mpg bus sale fwiw that is a nice looking Neoplan sad but you won't get anywhere close to what your Dad spent

[Busted Knuckle]

I second what Luvrbus said.
Get with Gary Hatt the owner here and list it here.
Also on facebook their is a busforsale site you can list it there for free!
I'd sell it outright and not let a broker get involved as #1 they will take a chunk of what it brings as a commission and usually they don't do a good job of representing or marketing it any better than you can!

OH and I would not spend any $ you don't have too!
Yes spend a little to get it cleaned up adn looking the best you can, fix the one tire that needs it and make sure it has plenty of fuel in it for test drives.
Don't go fix'n a bunch of stuff the new owner might tear out anyway!
Make it presentable and driveable and you'll get the best return for it!

[chessie4905]

if it has odd smells in it, get an ozone generator and run according to directions.