Prevost H3-45 or MCI E/J4500 ?

[someguy]

Lets say I have a budget of $20 to $50K to spend on a conversion shell.  I want a 45 foot coach with lots of storage.  I'm a very good mechanic.  I'll probably put slides in it.  I'll probably be pulling a 10,000 pound trailer. 

What would you buy, a Prevost H3-45 or MCI E/J4500 ?

[lostagain]

It is like Chevy vs Ford, or Peterbilt vs Kenworth. They are both great buses. They both have lots of storage. They are very comparable. Either one are built for the highway. The sure footed drivability, and ride comfort puts any other RV in a much lower category.

Personally, I prefer the MCI J. For me, the Prevost is overrated. A lot of the systems are very complex and harder to fix. The H with the solid front axle has a harsh ride. The ones with the independent front suspension ride better, but will be expensive to maintain. Prevost have done a great marketing job the last 20 years to make people think their buses are the best. They are the only manufacturer that still offer empty shells for conversions. Most of the entertainers tour in Prevost H or X. Most of the high end travel companies demand Prevost coaches from the bus charter companies. Most charter company shop foremen will tell you that the service is better from Prevost than MCI.

But, after 45 years, and still driving part time brand new MCI and Prevost coaches (until at least before the virus), I prefer a J over an H any day...

[someguy]

Thanks for the advice, lostagain.

The ironic thing is that in the used market you get a much better MCI (newer, lower miles) than Prevost for the same price.  The other thing is that MCI claims their J coaches get a lot better fuel economy than the H Prevosts.  More aerodynamic ?

How is the ride of the MCI straight axle compared to the Prevost and MCI with IFS?

[lostagain]

The fuel economy doesn't matter. If you have to ask... They all get about the same 8ish mpg.

Your 20 to 50G budget will get you into a seated bus of the 2000 years. 2010s and up would be more money.

Thinking back about the ride quality, the straight axle cars actually ride pretty good loaded. The harshness is found mostly driving empty. It is also caused by the tires being inflated to the max 110 or so psi. Once your conversion is completed, you would inflate the tires according to the weight, which will not vary much, as it would in commercial service, with pax and luggage on and off.

With all that said, you should consider buying a used professional conversion in a H or a J. They can be found with low miles, and at a small fraction of the new cost, much less than it will cost you to build your own. A 10 to 15 year old used seated car will have 1 or 2 million miles, and be on it's 2nd or 3rd engine. 

[someguy]

With all that said, you should consider buying a used professional conversion in a H or a J. They can be found with low miles, and at a small fraction of the new cost, much less than it will cost you to build your own. A 10 to 15 year old used seated car will have 1 or 2 million miles, and be on it's 2nd or 3rd engine.

I've been looking.   Anything with a slide is really expensive and would need an interior refurbishment at the least.  There are some H and Js out there with 3-400,000 miles for $50K.  $20K gets 5-600,000 miles.

How does one know if a coach has 300,000 or 1.3M miles on it ?  Will the ECM verify the miles ?

[neoneddy]

My $0.02 on miles on any vehicle is maintenance.  I often find better luck with buying used vehicles over 100k miles than under, because all the large maintenance items came due.  Let the PO eat those costs and sure the odometer says 120k or whatever, but I'd say it's in better shape now.

Same is true for these buses in service, you want to know where the components are in the life cycles.  I'd think over a million miles on a chassis with a Series 60 means it has had some work done / rebuild / or something.  Last thing you'd want is a tired bus that a charter company is dumping.   

[Boomer]

Why do you want a slide?

[someguy]

Why do you want a slide?

More room.  I've had 5th wheel trailers for years, so I know what no slide/slides feels like.

[6805eagleguy]

More room.  I've had 5th wheel trailers for years, so I know what no slide/slides feels like.

True, but some how inside a bus is different. Especially a 102 body. IMHO

[luvrbus]

I never wanted slides on the CC I lost that battle,now with slides out we are 11ft 8 wide in kitchen and dining room and 10'8" in the bedroom they do make a lot of room so I understand what you are saying 45' long and slides they are huge on the inside

[someguy]

My current 5th wheel is a 36 foot triple slide.   An MCI is about 38 feet from the back of the driver's seat to the rear wall. 

The space gets used up fast if you want a living area, eating area, kitchen, bathroom, washer/dryer and bedroom.  Space is really nice when you start spending a lot of time in it, especially if there is more than a couple living in it.