Bus buying season - engines

Looking in JK, eBay etc it seems that coming out of lockdown busses are beginning to sell a bit again. So I thought it might be useful to get people’s opinions and real world experience on the three main engines that prospective buyers might come across, T1, T4 and Scooby-doo.

In other words things like T1 are easier to work on, easier to get parts for perhaps but the stock 1600 might be a bit under powered.

T4 some parts more expensive, less of a hobbiests engine, but better pulling power/cruise speed but heavier on fuel.

Scooby. Expensive but generally more reliable but best looked after by a professional?

Engines good and bad points really, and if you had your time again which would you own and why?

 

You pretty well covered it with your opening post.

 

Tesla motor, it's the future

 

Increasingly I think you might be right. It certainly seems that VW are gearing up for a major push on electric over the next few years. But I think an electric type2 conversion will cost the sort of money that makes fitting a Scooby look a cheap option

 

If I had my time again, I'd still have a stock T1 1600, because if I had any more power I'd drive it faster.
1, The brakes & handling aren't really up to going any faster
2, I'd be missing the point. T2's are supposed to be slowcoaches.
It'd be like having a quick shifter & a light weight flywheel - out of place & pointless.

 

Totally stock? Not even twin carbs?

 

T1. Millions made. New ones still made. Wear out every 50k miles in a bus. Even a 1600 will get you anywhere just not fast. Upgrade options plentiful.

T4. Fewer made, more durable , some spares no longer made. Weakness is overheated cylinder heads leading to valve seat problems. Some upgrades possible.

Scooby , cheap to replace. Oil leaks can be an issue. Complex engine. Spares without providing the donor vehicle VIN can be hard to source from Subaru. Overheating on some home brew installations. Maybe older simpler engine donors getting rarer.

 

Stick a tranny engine in, I've also seen a V6 in a bus. Go very fast.

 

Tell us more. I’ve had several transits and I cant for the life of me work out how they got one to fit without some savage butchery. What V6 was it? Was there any room left for an interior?

 

You want a Ferrari 5 litre flat-12 from a BB512.
Don’t forget to take the brakes too.

 

Tatra V8?
Corvair flat 6?
Any other aircooled engine swaps that make no sense at all?

 

Porsche 3.6 6 cyl aircooled. Often done in the past in South Africa. Two almost worthless vehicles grafted together to keep one useful one running.

 

Merlin V12?

 

At Techenders way way back there was a fella with a Corvair engined Bay....Dangerous Dave was it? Nice fella. Think he was an engineer in the RAF..... His engine was all linked up to a lap top and he was explaining to me and Mrs Tatt how it all functioned. I didn’t understand a word he said

 

That bus had been up for sale via an importer for over a year. I was saving up for it and when had enough I found he'd beaten me to it by a month. From what he said I had a narrow escape!

 

I got a 2.4 Transit in classifieds, if you want it!

 

I'm tempted, I've not been to the barbers in 3 months and could easily pass as a traveller type person.

 

The one I saw was a V6 Ford so if that goes in so will a 4 cylinder one. Interior was the same space, not sure about the butchery.

 

It’s like new!

 

There might just be room for the front seats...

The transmission would be interesting too as the supercharger is low down, crankshaft is high up ..