Rescuing Stevie, the 1974 Crown "Atomic" bus from a salvage yard.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 ต.ค. 2024
- First, a note - this video has lots more photos than actual video, because I lost almost all of the footage I shot during this rescue. Be warned! :-)
At the request of several people, I put together this video to document the rescue of a 1974 Crown "humpback" bus from an automotive salvage yard in Roberts, Idaho. This bus is named Stevie and she (yes, she identifies as a girl) had sat for 8 or 9+ years since she last ran. I fell in love with this stately old lady and we bought her...then I returned a couple of months later to see if I could bring her home. And I did.
The Detroit Diesel 2-stroke engines want to run. If you can supply them with air and fuel (and make sure they don't have a runaway situation) you can probably bring them back to life. In this case, she didn't even turn more than a couple of revolutions before she fired right up...scaring the crap out of me.
Stevie is now back in Arizona, where I've been driving her weekly for the past few months. She's destined to become our retirement home on wheels.
It is amazing that not only were there no air leaks after all that time sitting, but the tires didn’t have a come apart after a couple hundred miles. Someone was watching over you for that trip.
☝
As a retired Greyhound driver.....that is truly a cool story. I hope that you show more of the restoration of Stevie.
Thanks, Jeff, and thanks for taking all that self loading cargo all over the great USA!
@@RollingLiving Never heard it put that way before. LOL !!
I'm a Crown lover from way back when I would wash them when they were fairly new and I was on in house school suspension 30 plus years ago. A beautiful Crown you have & love the story behind Stevie!
Thanks, Josh!
I’m totally amazed that this old bus started so readily and was able to make it all the way to Arizona with no issues. I’m glad that you didn’t dramatize the story like so many storytellers do. Looking forward to seeing the progress.
Why? That was built back when GM was worth a shit.
Crown always did build nice looking buses. It may have been a school bus, but I'd keep the dark yellow paint. It goes well with the fluted silver siding. That's a nice find.
Not a school bus. No red flashers and no stop paddle.
Is it possible not to paint it? Just... polish it?
Crown buses were to say the "Cadillac" of buses, for there time. Very well build and a pleasure to drive and ride in . Love those old Detroit's!! I don't think there was a better engine that converted fuel into noise and smoke!! Good luck on your resto. Great piece of Americana.
I love these old busses with small windows. There's too much glass on modern busses and you can't scratch your balls without people seeing from the street.
You are a brave man driving a bus that's been sitting for 9+ years out in the open from Idaho to Arizona! My biggest concern would be the tires letting go on the highway at 60mph! Congratulations on getting it there safely. Looking forward to your videos on it's restoration!! 😁👍
I am also wondering about the tires!
You're extremely lucky to score this bus. I think I saw N60 injectors which gives 290hp and 740lb torque. I had a transit bus with 8V-71. I turbo'd it (same pistons) air to air intercooler, 7G75 injectors and was 375hp and 1125 torque-REALLY woke up the 8V-71.
I'm from Idaho Falls, ID and watched these busses going up and down the roads throughout my childhood. Rode on them for several years as an employee at the "site". Glad to see this old girl living once again. Keep us updated.
I remember back in the 70s when the speed limit on Hwy 26 was 60 mph and seeing these old buses fly down that road. We made sure to be off the road around 5pm the the buses ran by.
I attended Navy nuclear power school in the mid 70s .. lived on H street. Rode similar busses every day back and forth.
There is nothing like a oil smell of old car, truck or buss. . You are my type of dude to drink a beer and talk above old car and get excited.
Good job Sir.
Love that you have rescued one of those old monsters. I once worked for a food distributor and my job was to take supplies over to the bus area and load them into the massive storage under the bus for delivery to the cafeterias out at the “ site”. The buses not only hauled people but lots of freight to the facilities in the desert. Many times I had to search for a bay to stuff my load in. Good luck with your project, looking forward to see more.
She is a beautiful old lady, I wish you and her all the best.
Stevie is beautiful… I really love this style of bus, she will be beautiful and faithful for decades!
Always loved Crown and Gillig Coaches. That rear tandem axel is a thing of beauty.
I’ve never seen a Crown with horizontal dual headlights. They’re normally vertical.
I love these old buses because they’ve so iconic. This bus will make a great conversion. I subscribed!
Thank you very much for the support!
I'd love to see it done in a 50s west Diner "sunny" theme. (Yellow & chrome with white trim)
That bus looks beautiful. I'm really looking forward to seeing you finished project when it is finished .
Crown Coach made Quality products. When I repaired school busses in the late 1970's the crowns were by far the best build quality. You made great find there and I wish you many years of pleasure with Stevie !
I'm glad for you dude .what a great score to get. This video was really awesome .
I have seen quite a few videos like this one, an old vehicle in a scrapyard, a genius mechanic and he just get it running. Amazing, I always thought junkyard vehicles where there because they where beyond repair but how wrong I was! This was amazing and such a nice and useful bus!
Cheers from Scandinavia.
A lot of vehicles end up in salvage yards because of deprecation. Now some do end up there because they're "too far gone" but 90% its deprecation. But with some love and a some TLC (and some money) an old vehicle (and possible rare) vehicle can be restored to full working condition.
most of them run and just need love
Wow, that’s going to be such a cool looking coach driving down the road. Nice find for sure.
Wow!
Impressed with your optimism and skill set.
Oh man this thing is absolutely gorgeous
Thank you. She's got some rough spots from sitting out there for so long, but what a great bus. I am super happy to have found her.
@@RollingLiving I can see why. What a score. I absolutely love the older stuff. It Carries so much more character.
What a great find! Can’t wait to follow along in your rehab of this Crown!
They're used to be one of these in a salvage yard by my house when I was a kid. It was and white blue that the spirited sage looked like it was parked there yesterday. It had become a popular hangout spot for some of the teenagers. That would climb over the very poorly put together fence. And despite this it was supriisly never vandalized.
Last time I saw it was still in just of good shape as the first time. Only now with a very heavy coat of dust on it. Since dirt road you start running along the fence where the bus was and it got a lot of traffic mostly from the teenagers that would hang out in it.
The land was developed a few years later and everything that was more than 20 years old was demolished. This included 3 salvage yards, an old greyhound bus depot, and a ton of cool old houses. Many of which were still in great shape.
Always so impressed by folks such as yourself with mechanical ability (unlike myself) who can not only see, but pursue, the potential in such things as this bus. Best wishes for great outcome on the project.
As A Retired Diesel Fleet Mechanic And a Former Army Mechanic ,Tanks ,and Trucks,Ect. I'm Excited To See Your Up Dates this Was A Enspiring Video!!! Great Job!!!
That is amazing. With just a tool box in hand!....no hammock even! Wow
CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR NEW PURCHASE!!!! PLEASE KEEP US UPDATED ON YOUR PROJECT!!!! SO INSPIRING!!!! GREAT VIDEO AND THANKS FOR SHARING!!!!
What a fabulous project.
Very cool glad that you have saved it
Very cool looking bus
God bless you for rescuing Stevie! 💙💛💚❤️
This was one of the most inspiring vids for me. This has become mission as well. Great job.
One man's junk is another man's junk. Fred Sanford is smiling as big as you good buddy.😁
I am so glad you rescued this!
Its a very wise man that checks for stuck injectors before cranking a GM. Normally these bus recoveries are a serious challenge of minor mechanical maladies. Great find!
You are lucky man with all your knowledge happy life sir
Thank you, Chuck. I learn much from making mistakes...so I've learned a lot!
what an absolute beauty! I live in UK and have always loved the old Greyhound busses and those Detroit 2 stroke diesels! We now have a greyhound DOG and it would be nice to restore and old bus into an RV!! Brilliant to find her in such good condition, usually vandals and bandits just smash all the windows just for fun and anything else they can smash. I restored and old Army 12 ton Tank recovery truck in my younger days - she was a beast!
Looking forward to seeing her return to glory
Wow, thanks for a great story and what an incredible find!
I spent 12 years working on these atomics. We had 7 of them in our mine worker transport fleet. 1980 models. When we retired them in 2004, they were taken to a junkyard in Battle Mountain, Nevada. I rescued one of them 8 years later. Started on first crank just like “Stevie”. Changed a maxi brake can and a air bag and drove it home. I ended up selling it because I moved to a place where I couldn’t store it. Lady was going to make a motor home (I left seats in junkyard), but I don’t know if she ever got it done.
On the 1980 year, the fluted side metal was stainless, not aluminum. The roof was steel, and baggage doors and fender area were aluminum.
Well done she's fantastic !
Beautiful reliable bus! Super! Good luck!
What a wonderful find! Detroit Jimmys just want to keep running. Thanks for saving this beautiful bus from an uncertain future. Appreciated more than you know.
i am impressed. Stevey is a good looking bus.
What an awesome machine. Perfect for a live aboard with all that storage space...amazing. I'll be watching!
Why, thank you Willy B!
Oct 9 2021 ! Hope to hear more on your adventure, safe Journeys!
I am so glad that I stumbled upon your video. I absolutely LOVE watching the genius of others when it comes to restoration, reuse, and customization of things. Can no wait to see what you do. what an inspiration.
What an amazing find! Can't wait to see the great coach that you make Stevie into!
Thank you! I've been too busy working on other people's buses to do much except tend to the mechanical needs. But she's running great and driving great and I am resealing all the windows. Little by little. 👍
Extremely well done, from Australia.
A icon of its time and what a time it was!
Nice find looks a beauty! I found my 79 Bedford at wreckers and drove it across Australia after been sitting for 15 years in a pile of cars, only problem with getting a bus is you want another bus only bigger lol
I live 30 minutes from where you got your bus. I have lived here all my life and remember those buses running around back in the day. Good luck with your bus!
Thanks for sharing, Mike! I think I might be back for one of those others, someday...
Me too
Amazing save and incredible bus
Man I wish you were my neighbor! What a great story and trip!! Thanks for sharing~Neurotaffy
I've never seen a Crown Coach. Bus Grease Monkey would love to get his hands on this salvage yard!!
Haha! I seem to think that Scott has his hands full with all the buses coming to him. He's a busy guy! :-)
It's best butchers stick to selling meat
You would crap your pants if you saw our bus yard over here in California lol from old scenecruisers to old greyhounds and embrees buses, crowns and many others.. we have one of the original grand teton lodge crowns here with the original cummins 220
The smile on your face is priceless. That's a awesome rescue
I admire your adventuresome spirit. Thanks for sharing!
So awesome to see these buses back on the road.What a feeling that must have been rolling down the highway.
I would have been as nervous as a long tail cat in a room full of rocking chairs!
Whatta beauty. Had never seen one like it before. Hope u got it restored and running.
I've only had time to address some maintenance needs and a few other things, but she runs and drives great!
U should polish Stevie's aluminum sides and maybe buff out the paint a bit. U can do that yourself and shouldn't cost u a fortune. Then if you got new rubber on her spray amor all on it to shine the rubber out nice.
Stevie in Flagstaff, a wonderful community. He's really enjoying life now!
Absolutely amazing story!! Thanks for sharing!
Keeping the speed "down to sixty" says a lot to how good of condition this bus was in when you left on your journey.
Beauty
Don't apologize about "the still pictures"...that allows us to really study everything...too many videos are too quick to change images and that coupled with a camera being waved around make watching them real work...
What a great bus....
Thank you, Mark.
I know just how you feel. For some peculiar reason, I LOVE old busses. Always want to find one and fix it up. Growing up I was told my ancestors were from the nomadic peoples of eastern Europe.
Quite a bit of faith taking an old bus out of a salvage yard and driving it all the way from Idaho to Arizona. Sounds like the bus really wanted to be with you. Good luck with her.
What a Beautiful Bus !!!! Love from the UK :)
I came up on this on TH-cam and I'm glad I did. I'm an old retired truck driver. And a new subscriber. Can't wait to see the rest of this.
S&S Ranch From one ol retired truck driver to another, I hope all is going well with your retirement and I hope it is a great and enjoyable time in your life!
Interesting , Thank You . I hope that everything works well. Happy Trails
That's so cool...some would just talk and never get to even trying , but you did It hope to see your restoration
So cool that it started right up. A really good looking beast!
As I worked at Crown when this was built, it is entirely possible I built some of the electrical system on this bus. Crown made a total of 10 of these for the AEC Idaho. This is the first one I have seen in 4 decades! Thanks.
If you ever get near Flagstaff AZ, let me know. I'd love for you to sign the inside of the engine bay!
That could happen. I live in Lake Havasu. PM me on Facebook. We'll talk.
Mr. Bill
Really great story wish you well with the restoration. Looking forward to more updates
Another Detroit Diesel testimonial. Amazing engines...
Can’t wait to see progress with old Stevie
Good luck with restoring that gem! That looks like a great time and a blank canvas to make something special
Looking forward to following your progress with this project. Really cool bus.
I love those old busses.
I can't believe it fired right up and drove, if I were there, it would never have done that.
Beautiful bus and fantastic experience. . I will subscribe to see the progress on the bus
What an interesting venture..
"Uneventful" how amazing..!!!!.
Thanks for sharing
Great find. Great story!
I was stationed in Idaho Falls for training at the Naval Reactors Facility. Rode one of those yellow buses (I think they were Eagle buses) each workday from Idaho Falls to the NRF. Guaranteed two hours sleep each day.
I love reading all the comments from folks, like you, who rode these buses to and from work. Thanks for sharing your experience.
It's going to be a gem when finished!
Absolutely love that Old Bus.
very cool find
I'm not going to lie, I was going to blow right past this but scrolling towards the end I saw where you were pulling up to a gas station and I was hooked.
That's a great find! It shows in your smile. Keep us posted on Stevie's progress for sure.
Will do! And, yes, that was fun...and made me smile.
🔴AWESOME STORY 🙋♂️👍👍
I've just subscribed to your channel I'm looking forward to more of stevie good name I'm a lorry driver in the UK I like to see old American cars and buses keep up the good work
I came across this channel by accident, but have been well and truly 'hooked'. Its such a beautiful vehicle, and i am delighted to be able to follow its future from here on in.
David in the UK.
Thanks David...and Cheers!
This is cool. I actually rode on those buses, newer models, in the late 70’s I worked at the INEL as a Navy Sailor.
I rode them too
Amazing!! Thanks for letting us walk back memory lane. Please update us with the progress on this bus.
Wow. Just Wow. That is awesome!
Just found this while browsing. Really cool. Gonna subscribed so I can follow ur progress. Thx.
That's a real nice looking bus! Looks like you could turn it into a two-story RV with a spiral staircase!
I worked for Taylor bus service in California. We re powered them took the old hallscott 6 cylinder gas engine out and put a 230 6-71 Detroit in. Most of the crown busses were mid engine. We built one with a 3408 V8 cat with a Allison automatic. What a great job.
Everyone is amazed about the tires and no air leaks and here I am thinking "this guy showed up at a junkyard with not even a pillow or blanket to sleep on!"
Cool score Ross! That bus is very nice, and man that junkyard, more like goldmine! I would be in trouble at that junkyard, I think I would be coming home with something. Thanks for the video.
Thank you! It was pretty fantastic and I'm sure I'll be back someday. That little Nash was tempting...but so were about 1000 other things. :-)
@@RollingLiving how are the prices at that yard? It looks like there’s a ton of saveable vehicles there and just hope the prices are so folks can buy them and get them back on the road!!
I checked out your channel and you are gonna have a phenomenal channel very soon and looks to already have a ton of good info, especially for me!! I hope you share the journey of Stevie with us brother! I can’t believe how good she runs!!
Good score on acquiring Stevie you found it first. But that is the type of bus I always wanted.
Great adventure, looking forward to seeing more.
I can just imagine when you were under Stevie and she blasted into life and scared the crap out of you. Awesome.