Driving the 1974 GMC Ward school bus in the field

[FUCK202]

i really feel like i missed out going to school in our typical UK double decker busses/coaches that they use..they are probably better..but they arent yellow!

[rembpilot172]

in my country, buses like that are even used today as public transport of passengers, Carpenter, Amtram, Blue Bird...

[partyboyperk]

u can let off the throtle in between shifting gears

[USATrainsGScaleGroup]

Play a prank and ask a parts guy for a air filter for this one. LOL, they have oil bath air filters, I remember servicing those.

[USATrainsGScaleGroup]

Boy does this bring back memories. I rode a 1968 Chevy School bus in 7th and 8th grade. I was going to be a mechanic growing up so I quickly learned about VIN plates and how to read them. I found the one on the bus I rode which was inside the body. Later on in life I actually worked on these buses. Everything from 1979 to 1988 school buses. You don't stick shifts any more in a bus.

[yukSchmuck]

Not very happy about the fuel wastage. Sad for the Earth. :,(

[tacomanfan344]

@yukSchmuck lol who cares. oh yeah, hippies. BURN FUEL TILL I DIE!!

[MrJonathanwalker44]

when he talks he sounds gay lol

[TundraWalk3r]

Does this bus have power steering or is it just not working? You sure seem to have to put a lot of effort into turning the wheel!

[retrochad]

@TundraWalk3r The power steering system has a leak in it...it does have power steering but I think it was very low on fluid when I made this video.

[tannerbob69]

@retrochad haha thats what i was about to say it prolly just was sitting to long and it needed some power steering fluid

[yamahonkawazuki]

teh first retrochad video i ever watched. love the manual buses. nobody is willing to drive bolt action anymore

[polaristrailboss250]

nice buses...how many buses do you have and do you think any of your buses will be road ready/road functional?

[SpiritsoftheWolf]

i even noticed the dashboard havent changed on your bus from 1974 to 1991 since i uploaded the video

[ford9572]

Yes it does have mirrors.

[ford9572]

@MonsterJam2010, No it is a conventional.

[bioshock26632]

do you like the new school buses

[00023smitty]

did you leave the door open?

[Kaynos]

Ah that familiar sound : Hmmm Hmmm HMmm Hmmmm ShiFT Hhmmm Hmmmm Hmmm Hmmmm SHIFT

[MonsterJam2010]

is it a flat nosed?

[SpiritsoftheWolf]

@MonsterJam2010, no it's not a flatnose, if it was a flatnose, the gauges would been higher than where it sits at, gliovebox wouldn't be there, and the stickshift would been next to the driver :)

[Ian74263]

Cool!

[AmauryGarcia]

Can you show us the yellow warning lights, the red lights, etc from the inside (if there's an exterior light monitor inside) and from the outside?

[JoshuaAndMom]

how'd you get it running. "s it "road-worthy" now?

[9409312]

Have you known that all School Buses have Automatic Tranmissions Now

[SpiritsoftheWolf]

@9409312, not ALL buses have automatic transmissions yet, LoL, some 2 to 3 years old buses around here still have manual transmissions in them

[drkwngduck]

Really cool bus, great ride. I have one question ? does it have mirrors?

[65Dart]

she's a runner

[boy3611]

that is a cool bus i wold like to drive it

[wickedblackcamaro]

this is a cool bus! what engine is in this, how much power does it have? Can you tow anything with it? How many miles are on it?

[retrochad]

Thanks! It uses a 366 CID GMC gasoline V-8. Not sure how many miles are on it or the horsepower. It does have a trailer hitch for towing but I haven't tried to tow anything with it.

[yamahonkawazuki]

@retrochad i do have a question though. been thinking about since 2008, why is it you park it in neutral?, im assuming there is a reason,

[retrochad]

@yamahonkawazuki I really should have put it in first gear when I parked it...now that I drive manual transmission vehicles more frequently I always try to remember to do this in case for some reason the parking brake would let go.

[wb5oxq]

What in the world are you going to do with all those old busses Some people do make motor homes out of them1

[00000872]

I used to drive a 5 speed bus before

my old bus was a 1984 International

[JT872]

I use to drive a bus with the 5 speed in 1983

[coolbluelights]

wow the camera held really steady!

[greywolf45]

What make is that red, and white bus at the begining of this video?

[retrochad]

It is a 1970 International with Wayne body...I'll try and make a complete video of it soon.

[zac0964]

Wow, that's old. Where did you buy it? And how much?

[retrochad]

It used to be a church bus...I bought it for $200.

[zac0964]

Wow! Just 200$?!? Do you have pictures of the bus on the outside view?

[fordmachinestman]

Would like to see a demonstration of the windshield wipers. Always thought they were cool!

[retrochad]

I will try and do that soon! I still need to change the oil and filter in the bus but it has been real nice weather here so I hope to do another demonstration soon.

[fordmachinestman]

Hey Retro Chad

Really cool video. I love this kind of stuff!

[retrochad]

Thank you!

[impala3607]

Okay I think most of us knows how to drive standard

[mgospeed31]

Don't be so sure.

[TrustworthyMtgGuy]

Great Video!!!!!

[yamahonkawazuki]

was teh engine knocking? or was that knocking noise something else?

[Setka1982]

whats wrong with the tires that makes it un-road worthy?

[Scoreboardmaster]

did u get the brakes working again?

[vettedude277]

Stick shift buses are nothing new to me...I grew up riding on them to elementary school everyday...seeing one nowadays tho is a pretty rare find.

[Arturaz1]

my bus drivers bus has a stick shift and its fairly new

[cmarlow480]

wow ive never seen a STICK SHIFT school bus... I thought all school bus's were automatic

thats very cool

How many gears does this have?

[retrochad]

It is a 4 speed...almost all school buses before the late 70's or so were standard transmission. I think by the early 90's they had mostly converted to automatics and today I don't know that there are any school buses offered with standards.

[vwestlife]

Around here, stick-shift school busses were phased out of service in the mid to late '90s. Generally the change from stick to automatic occured at the same time as the change from gas to diesel, so I only ever saw a handful of stick-shift diesel or automatic gas school busses. One nice thing about a gasser is that the engine can be almost completely silent and vibrationless at idle.

[andyofvermont]

Nearly every school bus I've ever ridden on was a stick shift. I finished riding school buses around 1993. Mostly rural routes, which might have something to do with it. Cities like to order automatics because sticks get to be a pain to drive in all the stop and go. Actually, I'm curious now if they ever did switch to autos in my old stomping ground, even now. I will find out and get back to ya!

[kaiyoshi2243]

Nice work. This reminds me of my old 1980 GMC Thomas. Only it had a 4 speed allison automatic.

[johnblessing]

Its a 366 V8 engine and 4 spd. so you are right.

[OwlMovieStudios]

Is there a key for the bus?

[thomasfreightliner]

Nice Video. Did your camera have enough extension cords for that ride or did you use your new digital camera lol.

[truckguy1016]

do you have to double-clutch

[retrochad]

No, it is synchronized except for 1st gear and reverse.

[truckguy1016]

is the seat air ride, an is the suspension leaf spring?

[retrochad]

No, the seat is just mounted firmly to the floor..too old for air ride:)

I think it does use leaf springs.

[chessie93]

I Wished I Drive This Bus

[Biggie1231]

I love the Ward Body,s The back kinda has the same look to the Thomas Body,s . I like that you get these Old buses back in service How many buses do you Own?

[Biggie1231]

Nothing like my 1995 Ford Thomas

[jefferyb304]

I remember one time my driver had to use another bus. She was always quick to shift gears. She wasn't going fast enough on several shifting occasions and made the bus go ka-chunk,ka-chunk,ka-chunk. lol.

[Trance88]

This bus reminds me of the old manual transmission buses I used to ride when I lived in southern Missouri.

[retrochad]

This bus actually came from Missouri originally, there is a sticker for "Allied Bus Sales" as a dealer inside. It was last used as a church bus here in Texas.

[bluebirdvision]

What does this have for a transmission. I love the wine of the AT-545. GET SOME BLUE BIRDs!!!

[retrochad]

I am not sure what kind of transmission it has, if it is actually made by GMC or not. It is a 4 speed, low 1st gear.

I don't actually have any Blue Birds, just Wayne, Ward and Carpenter. The school districts in this area used those makes along with Superior in the 70's & 80's...there are not too many vintage Blue Birds in this area although I think the schools are currently using them. On the Carpenter I have I think it is an Allison AT-545.

[southjk]

great job in getting the bus back in service.

[chrisw71]

the camera stays remarkably stable during the driving. how did you mount it?

[retrochad]

I just put it on a tripod which sort of straddled one of the seats...when turning I was a little worried it might fall over so next time I do this I probably will try and weight down the legs of the tripod.

[spatsbear1]

That was awesome :) I just love the sounds those school buses made.

[retrochad]

Oh yes, me too...the different engines and transmissions in different types of buses each have their own characteristic sound.

[jefferyb304]

That seemed a bit stressful

[retrochad]

Even though some of the features were being a little diffcult it was loads of fun, it will be a little easier to drive when I get the power steering/power assist on the brakes working.

[AllAmericanFiveRadio]

Terrific job.