School Bus Mechanic Archives

From Paper Trail To Electronic Vehicle Inspection Reports

With safety being the main concern on school buses it’s important that drivers help us with our preventive maintenance program by keeping an eye on their bus with daily pre-trip and post-trip inspections. They are the eyes and ears that the shop depends on to catch problems when they happen between regular services. Drivers have… Continue reading From Paper Trail To Electronic Vehicle Inspection Reports

Getting Into The Mechanic Trade

The ‘Mechanic Trade’ As I See It This is the reason blogging is cool. I can post anything I want about the mechanic trade including my opinions. Please comment below if you agree or disagree or have something to add in the way of your own experiences or advice. Think of something that you feel… Continue reading Getting Into The Mechanic Trade

EGR Code Repair Mercedes Diesel Engine

Results From Replacing EGR Valve After replacing the EGR Valve it fixed the engine code problem and the engine is back to speed. The code was indicating the EGR was in the wrong position. The old part was gummed up and that caused the valve to stick. The driver said he noticed the codes on… Continue reading EGR Code Repair Mercedes Diesel Engine

Allison Automatic Transmissions – The Best Powertrain Component For Fleets

Allison Automatic Transmissions Exclusive to School Buses I was thinking how many Allison automatic transmissions are operating in North American school buses. There must be thousands (probably more)….no other brand that I know of is being used more than Allison. Automatic transmissions are by far the best drive train component to run in any fleet… Continue reading Allison Automatic Transmissions – The Best Powertrain Component For Fleets

Cat 3116 Engine Rebuild Photos

Cat 3116 Diesel Engine Rebuild In a previous post I covered Cat 3116 tools and adjustments. This one is all about the rebuild stage. In our fleet we acquired 13 of these engines and a few of them needed rebuilding. This involved removing the entire block. The photos you see in the video above cover… Continue reading Cat 3116 Engine Rebuild Photos

New Gardian Angel Lighting System Increases School Bus Safety

The Gardian Angel Light System On School Buses Saves Lives It’s an ongoing problem…. students getting on and off a school bus through a gauntlet of drivers who still don’t know or don’t care about the traffic rules concerning school buses. When a bus is stopped on the right side of the road there will… Continue reading New Gardian Angel Lighting System Increases School Bus Safety

Cat 3116 Diesel Engine Tools and Adjustments

Cat 3116 Diesel Engine During the late 1990s Caterpillar designed and developed the 3116. It only had a one exhaust valve and one intake valve configuration which was a weak spot. Especially with the exhaust valves. In our fleet it was usually #5 exhaust valve that would fail ( in other words break in two).… Continue reading Cat 3116 Diesel Engine Tools and Adjustments

Used School Bus Buying Tips

It’s buyer beware when you’re shopping for anything online. You haven’t met the seller face to face and sometimes advertisements for products for sale can have a little embellishment added in. Used school buses however are (most times) a good buy simply because of the regulations that a school district fleet has to follow. I… Continue reading Used School Bus Buying Tips

School Bus Windshield Replacement

School Bus Preventive Maintenance Windshield Replacement I wanted to record the Speedy Glass technicians installing a windshield on one of our Thomas C2 Conventional school buses. This unit is a 2009 and as you can see it’s not a job for one man. The approximate weight is 60 pounds or more. The hardest step… Continue reading School Bus Windshield Replacement

DT466 Diesel Engine In Frame

International DT466 Diesel Engine In-Frame One disadvantage to diesel engines with wet liners (meaning that they are removable from the engine block) is the o-ring seals that separate the coolant from the crankcase DO fail eventually. That is what happened to one of our buses while it was out on a run. The tell tale… Continue reading DT466 Diesel Engine In Frame