My Yet Unnamed Zombie Bus

By Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

The School Bus Zombie RV Conversion 

Being an avid camper and adventure seeker, I am always looking for new and innovative ways to experience the great outdoors.  I love to hit the road and enjoy the drive just as much as the destination sometimes.  In my wanderings, I purchased an 8’x 5’ enclosed cargo trailer, similar to the many tear-drop campers you see on the road.  I installed new carpet, built a bed, and added a side entry door to it, but I still was not happy.  The very low ceiling height made it quite cumbersome to change clothes in or do anything other than..uh… sleep.  Granted, that was my initial goal – but now things have changed.

I began looking at pop-up trailers and small RVs, but the cost and upkeep seemed like it would be more of a hassle than pleasure.  Plus, after being a police officer for a number of years, I’ve seen what happens to RVs after a crash or rollover.  There isn’t anything left.  Most RVs are made with very small 2×2’s and literally stapled together.  I wanted something cheap, sturdy, customizable, and stylish!

School Bus, enter stage right.

After scouring the web for ideas, I came upon several websites showing the conversion of retired school busses.  That’s when the lightbulb went on.  By law, a school bus must still look like a school bus after a rollover crash.  It is one of the many, many safety features built into the vehicle that transports tens of millions of children every year.  So, I had found a ‘sturdy’ vehicle in which to begin my mission with.

Roller Skate?  No, I said Cheap Skate!

1986 Chevrolet G30 Short Bus w/350 V8

Craigslist offers quite a few choices when it comes to school busses.  The newspaper or local auction are also great ways to find a retired bus.  I picked mine up for a cool $1,100 and purchased it from the Fleet Director of a small school district.  It is a 1986 Chevrolet G30 Short Bus.  Yes, I am the proud owner of a short bus now.  Don’t be jealous.  And be sure to wear your helmet!

When buying from a school district or similar organization, you should expect to receive the bus’ entire maintenance records.  In detail.  My bus came with two notebooks filled with entries such as, “11-20-1994, 117,933 Miles – 18.2 Gallons – Added 1 qt. of 10W 30 oil, added 5 psi air to front passenger tire”, “04-17-1999, 185,213 Miles – 14.6 Gallons – Replaced all brakes, master cylinder, and regular PM.  Washed school bus.”

Your mileage may vary, of course.  But regardless, you should not buy a bus if it does not come with a service record!  To my surprise, after reading through the hundreds of pages of notes, the engine in my bus had been replaced twice along with a new transmission, several complete replacements of major components, and other things.  But at least I know when and what was replaced.  It also helps my resale value if I ever plan to get a different bus or want something bigger!

Thunder Dome, here I come!

Zombie Response Vehicle

I am not your typical RV’er.  I do not wish to ride around the countryside in grand luxury, piloting a $215,000 wagon that looks like every single other $215,000 boat on the road.  No.  I want style!  I want to customize my ride!  And with that, my love of post-apocalyptic zombie movies helps.  When I decided on buying a bus, I wanted something that would make Mad Max green with envy; something that would protect me from the hordes of undead that would inevitably take over my town.

The Painful Part

Luckily, I decided to buy a short bus with only 8 seats.  Initially, I planned on buying a full 71 passenger bus.  The sheer number of hours I would have had to put in to take out the seats would have driven me insane.  Together, my girlfriend and I put in just over 5 hours worth of labor to get my 8 seats out.  I recommend you throw a party and tell everyone that if they want to drink your beer, they have to help remove seats!

Click to Enlarge!

After that debacle, I was able to pull up the old, black vinyl flooring and get a good look at the subfloor.  Which to my surprise, wasn’t in that bad of condition.  I had some rotted wood near the back door, which is to be expected after 23 years of little children and rain, along with a bit of rot near the driver side rear wheel well.  I noticed a bit of mildew and slight rotting under one of the windows, which I assume is merely from a leak.  Over all, I am impressed.  The floor still has good structural integrity and, I hope, does not have too much rust on the metal body underneath.

That is as far as I’ve gotten in regards to the cosmetics and remodeling.  A nagging idling problem and general tune-up has held my attention for the last week as I seek to find a cure for a rough idle and other minor hiccups.

When I opened up the hood, I noticed some leaking fluid from the master cylinder, a stiff brake pedal, and a very rough idle.

About 2am, 14 Degrees outside! Click to Enlarge

I also noticed a weak electrical system.  After testing the alternator, battery, replacing a few bulbs, changing out spark plugs, and trying to track down an annoying buzzing ‘alarm sound’, I think the bus is running pretty decent.  I’ve taken her out on the Interstate and hit 65-70mph without a problem, although I watch as my fuel gauge dips quicker than I’d like!  In short, I acquired a pretty decent, running bus for just over $1,000.  It will maintain its structural integrity in the event of a rollover, has plenty of power (sitting on a 1-ton dually, heavy duty frame), and doesn’t leak for the most part.  After calling my insurance company, I was able to get basic liability coverage as a motor home for about $140 per year!

Oh, and that annoying alarm sound?  It was the back door.  Most busses have an alarm for the rear emergency exit and it is annoying, to say the least.  Make sure your door is secure and closed all of the way!

Part II will include….

Click to Enlarge!

In my next installment of updates, I plan to document ripping up the rotting, wooden subfloor and replace it with new insulation and flooring.  Before doing that though, I will grind down any rust spots I find and give them a good coating of Rustoleum paint or similar.  Hopefully, I will not have to replace any of the metal!

I will also begin taking off the sidewalls for inspection and possible remodeling.  In the mechanical department, I plan to replace the carburetor gasket (as I think that is the source of my rough idle – a vacuum leak), new exhaust, and possibly replace the brake booster.

And last but not least, I will start the fabrication process for outfitting my bus in it’s new zombie protection!  Eventually, it will have expanded metal grills over the windows on square metal tubing.  I am up in the air as to whether I should bolt them straight into the support pillars or weld them on, but I have plenty of time to decide!

Also, on a sidenote… I am open to any ideas for a new name for the bus.  Originally, the bus was named “Short Bus #6” in the school district.  I plan to keep the #6 on the bus, but need to name it something.  My Jeep has ‘Tomb Raider’ on the sides of the hood, even though it’s not a real Tomb Raider Jeep.  When I named it, I had no clue that Jeep had released a version of the Rubicon Wrangler in a ‘Tomb Raider Package’, but nevertheless… all vehicles must have names on them!

I was thinking about naming her ‘ZERO’ – Zombie Emergency Response Operations.

Let me hear your comments!