Coldstart 1986 GMC Bluebird Bus

[MrWill1985]

I can tell you painted the dash since back in that day the dash was white looked kinda tan when it got older. Then sometime in the mid to late 90s it changed to black. Then to gray in 2001. And now days the Blue bird dash is a vynal material. I know if I bought a school bus from the 80s or early 90s Id definitely replace the driver seat with a high back. Maybe one with a shoulder strap seat belt if possible.

[kaiyoshi2243]

@MrWill1985 Yeah, I had to paint it. I was really messed up and flaking off. And the color Blue Bird used is "Sand" Except for the older 1982's and older BB used a Green color.

I thought about replacing the driver's seat but it's bolted in there pretty good.. I gave up.  Besides, I kinda like the old seat style.

[MrWill1985]

@kaiyoshi2243 I think school buses are the only buses that can last the entire lifespan with only 1 driver seat. I know many transit agencies and some charter agencies wind up replacing driver seats when the original runs into mechanical error. But school buses do not have electronic controls on operator seats so there really isnt a reason for the seat to ware out.

[JSneaker]

Wow, that was what I call an ULTRA-MEGA PUMP-UP start, I didn't even count how many times your foot went down!

[cleosimble]

that bus looks like it had another 2 feet added to the back

[polaristrailboss250]

does that c.b still work?

[kaiyoshi2243]

@polaristrailboss250 It sure does. It's a little Uniden 510.

[MuffinMarley192]

@kaiyoshi2243 yeah because my bus needs a spare so much it must have promblems in the engine like yours might have

[kaiyoshi2243]

@ohiomonsters1990 Do they make a school bus? I don't think so...

[greywolf45]

you keep pumping that gas pedal too much, and you'll flood it.

[kaiyoshi2243]

@greywolf45 Nah.. ya can't flood a GMC/Chevy engine. At least I never have. Now a Ford, you can flood in a heartbeat.

But in this vid I was having to pump the gas all the way from the gas tank to the carb. I should have primed it first, but I just hate pouring gas in the carb. Fire hazard.

[greywolf45]

@kaiyoshi2243 you could fill the float bowl of the carb through the bowl vent on top of the carb, that way, you don't have to prime it, or pump the gas pedal so much.

[HamptonBallance]

i know what your talking about with the choke, that same exact thing happened with my bus.

[mercygrace2u]

Pump it you Bitch.

[fwriedwice]

low/no fuel pressure or intake leak if you have to hold the choke

[iib8903]

uploaded a response of the best bus iv ever driven

[iib8903]

was the motion block cracked

[auaiao9]

Good vid. Nice long start.

[kaiyoshi2243]

Thanks. This is an old video. I fixed the fuel system, she starts much faster now.

[55512123]

maybe use starter fluid next time?

[kaiyoshi2243]

haha, yeah. OR I could just fix the problem.

[biglinc1]

you said it was gas engine? our school buses are all diesels.... I see that one must really be old b/c it has a hand crank or something for the door. Ours have butons to open and close them. I've seen one or two 90s that had cranks tho - but they sold all those off a few years ago...

[kaiyoshi2243]

Yup, she's old. But they still make buses with manual doors. My dad drives a 2002 IHC Blue Bird with manual doors. Maybe in your area they switch to the air doors. Those are nice.

[biglinc1]

yeah they're air operated door... ours are both flat front and a few with long nose hoods but all them are diesels, not gasoline engines

[yamahonkawazuki]

true. id rather have a hand crank. ive seen teh button ones. BUT ive never seen a mechanical door opener fail.

[biglinc1]

@yamahonkawazuki haha true... sort of like electric power windows on cars, they break, but the old time crankers never seem to fail.. :)

[hangmandude2009]

@biglinc1 our school system has a few new buses and a few old buses, i got lucky and get to ride a new bus which has an air system (air breaks, air suspension, and air door)

[biglinc1]

@hangmandude2009 we have a few with AC on them... on hot days talk about a sweeeeeeeeet......... :)

[BusDriverStevo]

somtimes they were 77 pass bodies but only had seats for 72

[kaiyoshi2243]

Well, it is about 40 feet long, so I suppose it's possible.

[BusDriverStevo]

it looks like 77 pass body on it awful long

[kaiyoshi2243]

Nope, she's a 72 passenger. You were close though.

[naterade21]

does that bus have a horn???

[kaiyoshi2243]

Of course it does. ^.^ all vehicles have a horn.

[naterade21]

nice bus just need a new camera

[kaiyoshi2243]

Well, I did this video with a still camera cuz I don't have a video camera. Also, it was VERY humid that day and that effected the video quality.

[scottyboy9470]

WOW! 106 pumps without stopping....AMAZING!

[kaiyoshi2243]

WOW! You counted it??

Hmm... well that would explain why my foot and leg were so tired afterwards. ^.^

[floodedcar123]

that could be a party bus

[63817]

can u do a burn on that bus?

[kaiyoshi2243]

... a... burn????????

Do you mean a burnout? Like with the tires? I did that once when I got it stuck in mud. But I'll NEVER do that on purpose. Tires are $220 a piece. These tires are new, and I just won't do that to new tires. Sorry. Maybe if there were old tires I would. But is this bus capable of doing a burnout? Yes. Though it is difficult due to the weight.

[johnblessing]

It sounds like your choke needs some more adjustment. It also might have carbon in it preventing the choke from working right

[kaiyoshi2243]

Yeah... I just got some free time on my hands and found out that the carb needs a rebuild.... and also there are two fuel pumps. The one on the motor, mechanical pump I replace. but the one in the fuel tank is also bad. I'll have to replace it too. Darn my luck...

[K1ll3rM4st3r]

talk about crankage

[DieselMechanic09]

dude your fuel pump is bad

[kaiyoshi2243]

Yes... you are correct. BOTH of them were bad... Yep... there are two on this bus. A mechanical one on the engine and one in the fuel tank.

[DaylightRobberyCA]

sir why do you have a bus?

[89BluebirdGMC]

You think this is hard...I have a 1991 Chevy Bluebird with an 8.2 liter V8 Diesel. Talk about hard starting...

[GAPfilmsanddocos]

That is the gas mileage like?

[kaiyoshi2243]

Hmm... About 6.5 mpg at 65-70mph.

And about 4mpg in the city.

[gunnlover]

revv and gunn that monster man.

[LiveForVettes]

Awesome bus. Your fuel pump was obviously bad. Would be better to prime the float bowls than test the the life of the poor starter. I can't understand why anyone would crank and pump for that long... (Fuel stabilizer is a great product.) Draining the fuel system is a terrible idea, but if you were a mechanic, you would understand. As well, pouring fuel into a carburetor without holding the throttle open first is asking for a major fire caused by engine backfiring through the intake. Just my 2¢

[kaiyoshi2243]

I feel educated. ^_^

[crankitandfloodit]

Hey i was wondering are you ready to do another cold start again????

[cheyenneredneck2000]

mustve got a damn good starter

[kaiyoshi2243]

*knocks on wood* So far. ^.^;

[suppertooth]

Thats a good Battery what brand is it?

[kaiyoshi2243]

Just a new generic commercial truck battery from O'Relly

[Vintagesansui800]

Whats she running 427?

[kaiyoshi2243]

Yep

[bamaslamma1003]

One way to pre-prime the carb is to take a squeeze bottle full of gas and shoot it into the vent tube on top. That fills up the float chamber. Hopefully enough fuel to get the prime from the tank back.

Does this bus have a mechanical or electric fuel pump?

[kaiyoshi2243]

I didn't think about that, thanks for the tip.

It has a mechanical fuel pump... which I found out is bad. So it's off the parts store.

[jorgexportugal]

could you tape a woman cranking and revving the bus?

thankds

[bamaslamma1003]

What kind of battery do you have in that bus? Even after all those long cranks, it still didn't show any signs of getting weak.

[kaiyoshi2243]

I'm using an 875 amp commercial truck battery

[SanandreasKing23]

where is the stop sign

[kaiyoshi2243]

I took the stop sign off, the motor that opened the sign was missing when I bought it. And it's illegal to have a stop sign if your not using the bus as a school bus.

[PROgoth121]

Lol, I am going to give it credit. An old GMC actually starting in cold weather. You usually cannot depend on old GM junk!

[BusDriverStevo]

hey i work 4 a rafting comp. in pa i drive a 1990 chevy bluebird similer 2 this one but mine is fuel injected and manual shift 366fi it runs gd starts with no pumping even on the coldest days id like 2 race this bus

[kaiyoshi2243]

Sometimes I wish that bus was fuel injected.

[gmcbuses]

Fuel injection no fun, to complicated. I love carburators. As far as pouring gas into the carburator. I would only have did 3 tiny drops. Guy is right, could backfire. Starter fluid, I would just spray right over the top. Never into the carburator.

[kaiyoshi2243]

There is something to be said for Fuel injection.... Fuel injectors don't usually go bad just from sitting without use like a carb will. Also... I don't think there's a good way to pour gas into a carb.... there's always a risk involved and I honestly try to avoid it if possible. Dispite this video.

[dstarks80]

Thank goodness we have fuel injection these days.Those school bus carbs were always cranky and most mechanics are afraid of them.

[kaiyoshi2243]

So true.

[mastabrandon]

welll form my experince it sounds like the the idle is to low

[kaiyoshi2243]

I think your right. I'll check that and check for a vacuum leak next time I'm out there. Thanks!

[SanandreasKing23]

this bus is in very good condition and every thing do the stop lights still work on it and where is the stop sign

[kaiyoshi2243]

Thanks.

I took the stop sign off, the motor that opened the sign was missing when I bought it. And it's illegal to have a stop sign if your not using the bus as a school bus.

[bluebirdallamerican]

Thanks kaiyoshi2243. I learned something today. Does that apply across the country cause I live in Georgia.

[kaiyoshi2243]

It's been a while since I visited this video... to what are you referring to?

[kaiyoshi2243]

Thanks. And yes the yellows and reds still work.

[gajda1984]

Glad to see you're still making videos of this bus! if you are able to, take her for a spin next video. For the age of this bus and the fact of it being nonEFI, it is not uncommon for it to start that hard. Do you have any more audios of other buses?

[kaiyoshi2243]

I do have other bus audio files. Its just, taking the time to make a video out of it. With work, I don't have much free time any more.

[gajda1984]

i understand. it is time consuming. Hence is why i have no videos!  thanks for your effort of providing us with videos of these old girls!

[kaiyoshi2243]

'tis my pleasure

[SanandreasKing23]

sorry for all the messages but just take the carb fill a tub with gas and drop the carb in it and let it soak for about 1hr

[floodedcaddy]

dang, man, pump the floor out of it :)) i'd try pumpin it like that *while* i was cranking too...see if that works any better.

[kaiyoshi2243]

Yeah... I usually just turn the key and pump the gas pedal, while cranking, a few times, no more than 15, and she starts right up. but.. there was no prime in the fuel line.

[floodedcaddy]

I thoroughly enjoyed seeing you get it going. I hope you'll be able to post some more cold start videos of it, too.

[retrochad]

Great video! I would check for any vacuum leaks. On my 1974 GMC bus with 366 I discovered there was a vacuum leak either in the hydroboost unit or the vacuum line leading from the intake manifold to the booster. It would only run with the choke all the way out...as a test, I plugged that vacuum line and it ran fine. It looks like yours has air brakes but you might see if there are any other vacuum leaks.

[retrochad]

Sorry, I meant the "hydrovac" unit not the "hydroboost" unit.

[kaiyoshi2243]

Okay, thanks!

[SanandreasKing23]

hey i know whats wrong with the carb just take it and soak it gas

[kaiyoshi2243]

that's a good idea. but I found out that the fuel pump isn't working. I've got a new pump and am waiting for good clear weather to install it.

[bluebirdvision]

Thanks for posting this video, I'll see if my dad knows the cause of the choke.