| Author | Message | ||
| Bryce Gaston (Busted_knuckle)
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Hello Brian just wondering what ya found out on the Neoplan? Busted Knuckle | ||
| Brian Elfert
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I drove down to the Cincinnati, OH area to look at the bus this weekend. It was around 15 degrees when I got to the site. The bus started reasonably well for not having a block heater and not having run in a while. The tires were described as new. The drives are actually recaps with lots of tread remaining, but also with lots of sidewall cracking. The owner claimed they had them checked by a tire dealer and are okay. I would probably want to replace all of the drive tires so I wouldn't end up losing one on the road and possibly damaging the coach. The paint had popped off in several areas, but there didn't look to be any underlying rust that caused the paint to pop. One other spot was bubbled out and appeared to maybe have underlying rust. The bus had some problems with air system during the demo drive. The air door would not lock properly and someone had to hold it closed. The bus could not be highway driven for this reason. After the bus was parked and shut off, the left side air bags lost all their air within 5 minutes. The right side stayed up just fine. Certainly an air leak somewhere. The speedo and fuel gauge were not working. The owner promised to fix gauges, air leak, and the air door before selling it. Their mechanic is also going to rebuild the air throttle before selling it. A good part was a lack of rust under the wheel wells and just very minor rust on the understructure. The wheel wells are known to rust badly on Neoplans. I didn't make any commitments to buy. I wanted to check on prices for tires before buying. I'm also concerned about parts and the ability to get them. I might end up going with an MCI or Prevost simply because parts are readily available. Brian Elfert | ||
| Bryce Gaston (Busted_knuckle)
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I know what ya mean and I'm not sure but someone may have bought it because it did get a bid before the end unless that was you! The problems you found are minor in my opinion. The tires would be my main concern! The air system will probably behave better when the weather warms up and if you were to buy it, check out the air drier and service it asap and it'll probably fix the door problem! | ||
| Brian Elfert
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We figured there was probably an issue with the air dryer as the air system worked fine in warmer weather. Tires I figure at probably $400 each and repainting the bus I wildly guess at $3000 or more for a basic job. I would probably own this bus if it had an 8V92 instead of the 6V92. I didn't want to invest a lot of money for tires and repainting and then decide I want a different bus due to lack of power. This was the first bus I took a serious look at. I wasn't sure I necessarily wanted to buy the very first bus I looked at. Brian Elfert | ||
| Bryce Gaston (Busted_knuckle)
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Brian you are wise to look at more than one bus, before you buy. You should be happy ith what ya buy! Personnally I like a 6V92 as well as 8V92's we run both of them! Yes 8V92 does have more power but if you don't plan on running in the mountains much a 6V92 will do a fine job at least they do for us with 47 people and full luggage bays, no we don't pass people on the hills with 'm like I do with "my ddec 8V92" (I say my because it's an '89 Setra and the others don't care for it, but I love it and wave as I FLY BY!) so yes I do love the 8V92 but like I said we are pleased with both (we don't do a lot of serious mountain driving as I suspect you won't either! But hey keep looking and good luck! You are smart to do yer research well before buying! You might try taking a look at Bob Tucker Motors in Marion, AR. I have personally deaalt with him and know some others who have and we've all been pleased with what we bought! He's honest, and fair! Just be sure to look things over well. (no matter who ya buy from!) Right now I know Bob's got several buses on ebay, one is a neoplan with an 8V92! His ebay id is usedbus1 I think! his web site is www.BobTuckerMotors.com like I said he'll tell ya what he knows about a unit (if he knows of a problem he'll tell ya up front) and he'll tell how far they brought in from and how it did! | ||
| Malcolm
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Brian if you are still looking at neoplan i have a friend who has 3 for sale i think one is in PA & the outhers are in CA the one in PA needs motor work he does not have internet & limitd cell phone he did have a MCI time he needs to move them i know some one can have a good deal, Send us a e-mail and we will give this guys contact information. Our e-mail is; motorcyclewerks@sbcglobal.net | ||
| Brian Elfert
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I'm certainly not set on a Neoplan. I only looked at the one I did because it was cheap. The biggest issue with Neoplan is parts. There are rumors that Neoplan is going under so parts could get real hard to find! Neoplan has not made coach buses in the USA for 4 or 5 years. They makes transits only these days. I go on several big trips every year. My longest trip takes I80 from Iowa almost to California. Lots of mountains to worry about. I would like a bigger engine for mountains. I'm not sure I would pay $22k for a Neoplan. I could probably find an MCI with an 8V92 for the same price. MCI coaches are much easier to find parts and easier to get fixed. I may not even do a coach bus. If I could find a decent transit or similiar, I may try that. I might go look at a Bluebird Q bus, but it has an ISB engine so it might not be a good mountain climber. Brian Elfert | ||
| Sean Welsh (Sean)
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Brian, et. al., Just to update the record: Neoplan USA (who is and has been completely unrelated to the European manufacturer, which is now MAN) ceased coach-building operations last month and shuttered the Lamar plant, probably forever. I believe they may still have a small headquarters operation in Denver. Otherwise, the only remaining piece of the company is the parts operation, Neopart, in Honey Brook, PA. Since they own the PA plant, I would expect to see them move HQ and any remaining Colorado employees to Pennsylvania sometime this year. It is absolutley unclear to me (or anyone else, including the investors) how long the parts business can sustain what is left of the company. Most Neoplan operators have found alternate sources for any and all parts that are not custom-made for Neoplan. That pretty much leaves them with glass, rubber mouldings, trim items, and parts for the very few German-built coaches still running in this country. One consequence of this whole deal is that parts for which there are no alternative sources are now quite costly, as they are sustaining the entire business model (and it is a captive market). For example, a single ride-height valve for my coach now costs $900 (yes, you read that right -- just shy of a thousand bucks for an air valve). Sadly, my advice to anyone looking at Neoplans now is to stay away from them, especially the German-built units. Parts are difficult to get and very expensive. That being said, the US-built units use fairly common suspension and running gear (Meritor axles, Haldex valves, etc.) and, of course, Detroit/Allison drive trains, and most of those items can be sourced anywhere. The transits, for the most part, use flat glass, which can be made by almost anyone, such as Peninsula Glass. Good luck. -Sean http://OurOdyssey.US | ||
| Brian Elfert
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I had heard the rumors of Neoplan USA ceasing production, but didn't realize it had actually happened. I think you're right to say to stay away from any Neoplan coaches at this time. Is Neopart really going to be able to get any new parts made for them after current inventory is depleted? The Neoplan I looked at had the plastic over the warning lights gone and Neopart would only sell the whole dash for $1200. The plastic should a $50 part at most. I'm really glad I didn't buy that Neoplam now even though it was built by Neoplan USA and had fairly standard parts. Brian Elfert Brian Elfert | ||
| Sean Welsh (Sean)
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Brian, My guess is that Neoplan's credit is so bad that none of their OEM suppliers will do any custom fabrication for them. So, no, don't expect new USA-specific parts to be made. Fortunately, there are not a lot of USA-specific custom parts. Some of the dashboards, as you discovered, are. Many of the weirdball parts are actually sourced from Germany, and are still available. At this moment, Neoplan USA is the sole importer of these items, however, when they disappear altogether I expect you will still be able to order these items from MAN. You will have to deal with Customs and pay the duties yourself, and finding the German part number may be a challenge, which is where the internet and email are helpful. -Sean http://OurOdyssey.US | ||
| Brian Elfert
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An MCI or other big name would be a lot easier to get parts for and more mechanics would be familiar with the coach. I could maybe save a few bucks up front on a Neoplan shell, but I don't really want to go to Germany to get parts in the future. Your coach was made in Germany, so you already probably have to go to Germany for some parts if you want Neoplan orginal parts. Brian Elfert |
