| Author |
Message |
bruceknee (12.76.100.39)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 13, 2003 - 7:35 pm: | |
for the same money, $6000. I have a choice, the eagle runs, the 102 needs a motor but does dot have rust like the eagle |
TWO DOGS (66.90.219.146)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 13, 2003 - 8:42 pm: | |
that's a hard call.....but ,depends how much rust...not real bad...would go with the Eagle....a bus without an engine isn't worth much and costs a bunch to have moved...and...if your neighbors find out ....ya' might not get to keep it...guess it depends where you live |
BrianMCI96A3 (65.40.247.28)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 13, 2003 - 9:15 pm: | |
For what it is worth, the 102 would be my choice, if you already see a rust problem with the Eagle, how bad will it be where you can't see?
Originally, when I decided that I would buy a coach, I wanted to buy an Eagle. I've always loved their looks, and in fact I missed out on buying a really nice looking one in St. Louis... but after hearing all the rust horror stories concerning Eagles, plus the fact that Eagle went belly up, along with the discovery that MC-9's 96A3's and 102A3's are 90% stainless steel and aluminum below the waist-line, well, when I got a great deal on my 96A3 I jumped on it.
Another benefit to the MCI is a fairly flat roofline...easier to fit cabinets to...
PLUS MCI has a website where you can order parts directly from them online.
As for the engine, I ended up with having my engine overhauled as part of the deal for my coach, so I essentially have a new engine... but before that, it had always been in my plans to set aside money and have the engine overhauled before I put serious miles on my coach.
If the condition of the two is comparable, and the 102 is fairly straight, it is far and away the better investment even without considering the rust.
This would be, by far the lowest priced 102 I've ever heard of... even factoring in a new engine (Ronthebusnut may still have a 6V92TA brand new on a pallet for $7800) there are 102's out there selling in the 30 to 50 thousand dollar range.
One last thing, the 102 is basically a MC-9 that got a facelift, and is on steroids... and the MC-9 was the result of Greyhound (who owns the company) coming to MCI with these design parameters for a new Greyhound bus: Build us a coach that will last us thirty years and three million miles.
Brian |
gabby (171.75.11.64)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 13, 2003 - 9:16 pm: | |
Add a motor for about10K tops and you only have 16K into it. Very little rust on the 102 but I know that all eagles I have ever looked at have a lot of rust. I am presently building up a 102A and had a little rust around the windows. |
BrianMCI96A3 (65.40.247.28)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, November 13, 2003 - 9:36 pm: | |
Something I read reminded me that another thing with
Eagles are the torsilastic suspension, a really nice ride, but if you run out of adjustment and need to replace one they are around a thousand dollars a piece...MCI uses airbags also a really nice ride, but and air bag might run you $150 or so.
Brian |
Richard Bowyer (Drivingmisslazy) (24.196.191.70)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 7:09 am: | |
Torsalastics are readily re-adjusted by re-indexing them to give the proper adjustment range. No need to replace, unkless the rubber insert is bad.
Richard |
David & Lorna Schinske (Davidschinske) (67.29.247.217)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 8:32 am: | |
Go with your heart! Choose the one that you like best. We went with an Eagle simply because David liked the looks of them. As far as rust goes, any of them will rust. We looked at an RTS (originally from Chattanooga) that the bays had rusted completely away. We have stripped the skin off of our Eagle (TX Trailways/ SC tourbus) and we don't think the rust is all that bad. But bear in mind we are from FL (David originally from MI snow country) and we have seen some pretty bad rust buckets. If you would like to see our rust go to www.freewebs.com/aluminumasylum and look at the photos. The photos of the worst places got posted (I've misplaced my other disks). What ever bus you go with, I would recommend that you find all the rust and fix it (POR-15 has been highly recommended). Many people refer to rust as "cancer" and for a very good reason. There is no sense in putting all that time, effort and money into a conversion only to have it rust away on you. We know someone who had (now sold to another in same town) an Eagle that the siding was turning loose from the frame due to the rust. Apperently when converted (professional) it wasn't rustproofed or they didn't do a very good job.
Lorna |
TWO DOGS (66.90.217.219)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 12:32 pm: | |
OR.....don't choose either & keep looking...think you can do better than those choices for 6,000 and if you are going to spend 16,000 before you even start converting...buy a better bus,OR ,buy one already converted.. |
ChuckMC9 (Chucks) (66.167.165.209)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 1:40 pm: | |
DosDogs, your words were exactly my initial thoughts, but didn't say anything because I'm so 'new' to the community. Bruce, I'd spend $2-6K more now on a better beginning and be mighty happy if I were you. |
Sam Sperbeck (206.230.105.230)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 2:59 pm: | |
Hi BrianMCI96A3,
In your above post you mention Greyhound owning MCI, you are right in that Greyhound owned MCI when the MC9 was developed, but not anymore. In 1993 MCI was spun off from Dial Corp. to become Motor Coach Industries International (MCII), then in 1994 Dina of Mexico and MCII merged. In 2000 about 61 percent of MCI was purchased by a New York investment firm. All this information came from an article on the history of MCI in the October, 2003 issue of National Bus Trader magazine. By the way, the last I read, Laidlaw owns Greyhound Lines now.
Thanks, Sam Sperbeck
La Crescent, MN |
Brian96A3 (198.81.26.38)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 3:10 pm: | |
I took a quick look online just now and the lowest price I found for a 102A3 was 26,000 for a coach with nearly a million miles on it. the average price was in the mid 30k with a few being sold for 31K some for 75K and one for 200K that sold. With this 102A3 for 6K, you could buy A BRAND NEW 6V92TA from Ronthebusnut for $7800 (no core} and even if in the end it cost you 16K in total, you'd have a coach with a brand new, not rebuilt engine that would probably be worth at least the average price somewhere above 35K.
Unless this particular 102A3 is totally thrashed it is a great investment.
Heck for that matter,
you could stick an engine in it, sell it for a quickie 26K and pocket 10K!
Brian |
Brian96A3 (198.81.18.138)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Friday, November 14, 2003 - 5:11 pm: | |
Sam, thank you for the info, I'd been wondering if Greyhound divested itself of MCI, now I know.
It's strangely ironic, but my coach was built by MCI, who was owned by Greyhound at the time, and the last company to run my coach in (semi) regular service, is Laidlaw, who owns Greyhound now!
Brian |
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