In a Pickle

[Gina D.]

Allright, I haven't a clue what this looks like inside.. but I suppose it's a clever persons idea of a toy hauler, or motorhome that they don't have to tow a car behind.

It's parked 2 sites over from me right now. Tomorrow, I will be bold and ask for a tour.

[Lizbeth]

Be sure to ask to take inside pictures.

They get quite a few points for originality!

[Gina D.]

There is a camping club here now that is all toy haulers, but no toys (Kids with elctric cars, but I am sure the giant tri axles are not needed for those...)

I wonder if they are with that group?

They are across the way from me "Kumbiahing" right now..

ugh!

[jack smith]

There is a camping club here now that is all toy haulers, but no toys (Kids with elctric cars, but I am sure the giant tri axles are not needed for those...)

I wonder if they are with that group?

They are across the way from me "Kumbiahing" right now..

ugh!

Careful Gina! .... They could be Burro rustlers!!

[james kent]

Oh, man! Has that thing ever got a rude swing when cornering. It,s got more overhang back there than a teenie bopper with padding.

[Lee Hillsgrove]

I've seen several ex-school busses that have been converted in a similar fashion, though not as nicely as that one, to haul stock cars.

[Brian B-P]

Like Lee, I've seen this before, although the flat-front bus is an uncommon choice around here, because they're uncommon in school use (most have a regular hood). The flat-front design would give more interior space for the same overall length and almost the same weight, so it seems like a good choice.

While the rear overhang is long, my guess it that it is stock. The bus is converted by cutting off the body and relocating the back wall forward, with no modification to the frame.

[Donna D.]

with no modification to the frame.

I doubt that's true. There's no way the sheet metal is going to support the weight of the ramps and several thousand pounds of vehicle. You probably meant, no modification of where the rear axle sits. There's probably lots of modification to the frame on the rear portion of this vehicle, but was done well enough that it looks stock.

[Brian B-P]

I doubt that's true. There's no way the sheet metal is going to support the weight of the ramps and several thousand pounds of vehicle. You probably meant, no modification of where the rear axle sits. There's probably lots of modification to the frame on the rear portion of this vehicle, but was done well enough that it looks stock.

I meant with no modification to the frame (which is likely a pair of big C-channels); however, looking more closely at the proportions, it looks like Donna's right and either the frame has been cut off or lowered at the end, or the overhang increased by the ramp. The ramp would need to extend past the frame to get that low at the end, if the frame is not modified.

Perhaps the frame now ends where you can see the "well" between the wheels ends... the well floor is probably on top of the frame, and may be the original bus floor level.

The ramp, of course, would need structure under it to carry the load to the frame. I, too, doubt that the bus body is doing anything structural, but it is common to keep it like this to close in the sides.

The resulting overhang is not much beyond that of a common large school bus. That's why riding in those things over bumps was such an adventure... one I can live without repeating.

This one does look a cut above the others I have seen. It's too bad school buses are such crude things to start with, but for this purpose the body is an advantage over starting with a mechanically similar medium-duty truck.

[Gina D.]

I'd ask, but no one seems to have been home today.

[Lee Hillsgrove]

It looks like they have given the bus frame a beaver-tail.

Yes, I've never seen a flat-front bus converted like this because, like Brian says, they use mostly the conventional type busses around here. What's funny is seeing one of these busses converted to a stock car hauler where they are running a smaller car, something in a 4-cylinder class. The cars are small enough that they fit right inside the bus body, like a mobile garage. Makes it easier to work on if it's bad weather.

[Lee Hillsgrove]

Looking closer, aren't those race cars painted along the top edge of the side, near the roof?

I just noticed the built-in winch to pull the car up onto the bus. Nice! Someone put some work into this one. I bet the interior has seen the same attention to detail.

[Darwin Maring]

If This Is A Bluebird:

Bluebird makes both pusher School Buses and high grade campers out of their units. It is possible that this may be a Camper from the factory and not a modified school bus.

[Brian B-P]

I've seen photos of Bluebird factory motorhomes, so I understand what Darwin is suggesting, but this one has the school bus warning lights (replaced by clear driving lights up front, but still red in the back), which I don't think would be on a factory RV.

The "pusher" (rear engine) Bluebird buses are rare, but that's the layout used in both Bluebird motorhomes advertised in the current MotorHome Magazine. At least some of them carry the Wanderlodge brand name. The motorhomes are basement-style units, just like everyone else's Class A pushers, while the transit and school buses I've seen have lower floors.

I'm sure the "pickle" is front-engined. The front is flat to put the driver in a better position to see the area in front of the coach, not because of engine placement. A rear engine placement wouldn't suit the car ramp. Spartan (a company which makes chassis for various brands of Class A motorhomes) has a mid-engine model to make rear garages (or ramps) more practical. A bare Spartan chassis probably costs more than the the price of the "pickle's" starting point and the RV conversion!

It is interesting to see the original work some people have done with other types of RV, and it reminds me of how much easier it is to do major mods to a trailer! Motivation to do something radical?

[Gina D.]

I saw a news story last nite on school buses and a political issue. The busses they had on tape were new, and they had pug, er, flat faces.

Yes, those are little race cars on the graphic, and "Lucky Number 13".

I saw this thing waiting to register when I pulled out of the park on friday. It had a non descript black small pick up on the back, not tricked out or anything. Your basic Ranger, or other type of small pick up.

No one has been around all weekend, it just seems to be parked there, tho there is an extension cord out. I have seen no other vehicle in the space at all.

[Darwin Maring]

My Bad as I neglected to enlarge the picture and Once I did, it appears to me that it is a converted school bus. Looks really nice for a conversion.

[Jack Walter]

years ago I saw an Airstream trailer down at Sebring that had been converted to carry a vintage Porsche 906 race car in the back - the cut the back end of the body and hinged it up like the nose on a C-5 aircraft to load the car - it was pretty cool. There was still living quarters in the front half of the trailer.