40 Miles On The Freeway!!
Made it to Russell’s a little before 6:00a this morning. Sunrise was absolutely gorgeous…. Added a half quart of oil, installed the new air cleaner from Wolfsburg West and hit the road. Added about 5 gallons of fuel so I’d be sure and not run out and finally got on the 51 about 6:40. Drove about 50-55mph the whole way to my house, about 40 miles.
Buses and freeways are not meant for each other.
So here are my initial impressions:
Driving without a seatbelt is Just Wrong! A new set will be here today and I’ll install it right away. The Amazon units we tried to install would work on a Van but not on any type 2 Bus. Now we know.
Needs an alignment. Mike got the toe in pretty close but it still wanders some. We had previously tightened the steering box a little but need to have another go at it. It’s not horrible but I think trying to improve it all we can is a good idea. Probably do that when we install the new steering wheel donated by Kochs Steering Wheel Restoration. Thank you Mike for making that happen.
The transmission works as well as we hoped. It shifts smoothly, stays in 4th on the freeway, doesn’t make any noise and just feels really good. Quite a win for us!
The brakes stop well. Pedal is solid though a little lower than I’m used to in my Van. I don’t think it needs anything but someone who drives a bus all the time needs to give it a final ok. I’ll readjust the parking brake after another few hundred miles helps things wear in. It’s ok now but I know it should be tighter.
Finally and probably most importantly, we need a fire extinguisher. Maybe a BlazeCut? Seems as though someone was going to donate one? I don’t want to drive it without something. I can use the one in my Van very temporarily, but this really needs to be addressed now.
So I think we have a real winner and couldn’t be happier with how things are now. Very little to do going forward and very, very grateful for all the support and hard work by everyone who made this possible and brought us this far!
You folks are the best!
Author: John Manning
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