to fix or not

[tekebird]

GM 4106, cabin fire damge to drv seat and other seats in the front.  Moderate smoke damage.

do you fix it then sell or sell as is?  Idea is to get the most $$

your views?

[Tenor]

How is the electrical?  I'd think rebuilding the harness can be the worst job.  Are the seats just toasted, or are we talking about a melted beer can powered by an 8v71?

Glenn

[tekebird]

seats gon or not worth doing anything with..thats all I know..... guy posted on the Gm board.....

I thought it an interesting question as to what would be his best choice

fix or sell as is

[FloridaCliff]

Its probably hard enough to sell a good conversion right now!

I would think to gut out any damage and make it drivable.

Get servicemaster into to help get rid of the smoke smell.

I doubt in this market that I would invest much money in it.

But I would expect a heavy discount to move it.

This is a good reason to have agreed upon value insurance.

I can't hardly remember an insurer not totaling a burned vehichle

Cliff

[Tenor]

Good point about the insurance!  My little fire in the 4905 totaled it, and it only burned a 1ft by 6inch hole in the floor, crisped the harness and melted the throttle cable and I drove it home. This bus probably has a salvage title too.  I'd vote to part it out.

Glenn

[oldmansax]

Is it drivable? If it is, I would clean up the mess, meaning what ever you can throw in the dumpster,. sweep it out & sell it. If it is not drivable, I would try to make it so with a little money as possible & sell it same as above. In todays market, everyone is looking for a bargain. There are a lot more potential customers for something that is $5000 vs something that is $25000.

FWIW,

  "El Cheapo" TOM   

[Sammy]

Doug,
What's one of those things worth in good / equivalent condition?
How much $$$ can I pull out of it if I part it out?, then scrap remainder?
How great is the demand for parts from that bus?
Once I know those parameters, it would be a no brainer. 

[Lin]

Considering that when you try to sell a good conversion you will not get paid for all the work you did, I would assume that most work done on a fire damaged salvage would be wasted.  Since you say you drove it home, it must be running.  At least a potential buyer can check out the drive train etc.  So having it running is the biggest potential asset.  After that comes cosmetics.  Anything that can be done cheaply to make it look less like a disaster could make a difference.  Throwing some fabric over the seats, if they are sitable, and things of that nature.  Try to think of what you would pay for a given improvement if you were the buyer.

[tekebird]

here are some photos before

http://www.gmbusguy.com/gallery/index.php?cat=16

from the owner:  Now we have had a small fire in the bus.  The drivers chair, passenger chair and couch are burned and will need the carpet replaced.  That is about the extent of the damage, the fire was put out in about 3 minutes from start and the smoke damage is minimal.

I think the asking price was about 8 grand too high to begin with, it is nice and straight looking from the outside, no photos of systems or engine and it's a stick.

I'd say pull out the seats, replace the driver;s seat so it can be driven and sell it for 15k and it would probably move pretty quick

[josephgranzier]

Teke
Your right about fixing it enough to drive - but your still to generous - 8-9k would make it sell.
We'll see 

[Charles Seaton]

In this market, I would go no higher than 10 grand.  Looks nice, but will need work and the price of diesel is driving a lot of folks right out of the market.  Even before the fire, I agree that it is about a $20-25,000 bus.