MCI Model 9 and MCI Model 12,

MC 9 -  1978 to 1987
MC12 - 1990 to 2005     

MC12.5- 2006 to continued
Second production run of the MCI 12 was for
Greyhound and Special buyers only... i.e. Prisons, Govt. etc

First timers!!!!....
One of the most scariest, most trying and traumatic events in your life will be Marriage, Child Birth,
 and buying your first Bus.
Shop carefully,.... and don't forget, if you need us, Call our free advice hotline, it's a free call 610-767-8000

A little about a  Passenger Bus known as MCI 9 and it's  identical twin MCI 12.  
The most popular buses in the U.S. with over 75% of the New and Used Bus market is MCI .
MCI's are the highest rated passenger Bus's in: Service, Longevity, Maintenance and in Resale Value .
The MCI 9 was manufactured to last over 3 million miles when other Buses were built to go approximately
1 million miles. The MC9 was built from 1978 until 1987.
In 1984 they introduced the MCI 96 A-3, then in 1985 the MCI 102 A-3

However later Greyhound wanted their old trusted  MCI 9 back.  So MCI started building the same bus again,
but this time they called it the MCI 12.  Built specifically for Greyhound and other Government applications.
This coach was built from 1990 until 1997 with some special applications up to 2006 for certain Government contracts. 
So there are plenty of these MCI 9's and MCI 12's out there with more to come and service parts for another 20 years .
This is why the MCI 9-12 makes one of the best used Bus conversions in the industry

Don't'  forget,..." Our free advice hotline is always open .. 610-767-8000

MCI .....
What to look for, 
Below is a list of areas you should be aware of on a MCI 9 and MCI 12.
Even though these coaches are  famous for all the stainless steel and aluminum in its monocoque chassis.
They too have had some corrosion issues ...

As most of you know we are MCI bus Re-builders and Specialty Bus Converters, so most of our advice will be based around our 40 years of working with MCI's .
However, we do have decades of experience with  Prevost, Neoplan  and others. Call to see if we can help you ...
Don't'  forget, Need Help free...
" Call Our free advice hotline  .. 610-767-8000"

Do you need RV insurance ?

MCI 9 and MCI Model 12's
Are you familiar with a MCI 9-12  Body /Chassis?....
Get a  copy of a MCI 9 Operators Manual Free                                                                    Back to Menu Top Line

Call   610-767-8000


Click on images to go to Manuals
     

Front End Area,                                                                                                                  Back to Menu Top Line
    
Behind the front bumper is the spare tire area, look in the ceiling of this compartment, check around the drivers foot controls i.e.: brake pedal throttle pedal and other switches. Open electrical circuit box beneath driver window, check for leaks or deterioration. Below this electrical panel door open the service door in front of the left front tire .

See if this coach has power assist or integral steering                                     Back to Menu Top Line
  
From the 1950's to 1979 and some up to 1983 MCI's  had  power assisted steering .." This you do not want ..."
Power assisted  steering can easily be detected. Open the service door in front of your left front tire. Beneath the drivers window, if the steering gear box has a hydraulic piston attached to the pitmen arm you will see this hydraulic piston. This hydraulic Piston means you are looking at the power assisted model ..
You don't want that at all ..The standard, full integral steering has been available as a standard with MCI buses since 1980 and is just like what you have in your automobile, you definitely want the more modern steering system I would pass on that bus or allow $2,000. for an upgrade .

Beneath the Drivers Side Window,                                                       Back to Menu Top Line
 
Here is your 12/24 Volt circuit breaker panel, make sure there is no water damage in that compartment.

In the drivers compartment, make sure the  gauges don't have water damage.
On the left of driver you will have switches. Make sure they work smoothly, check for looseness or electrical short damage .
MCI 12 shown  (note the different style steering wheel, same as the newer 102 's)

Check the windshield rubber,                                                                           Back to Menu Top Line
     MCI 12 shown  (note the square headlights)                                                           
You should not have black or clear silicone smothered all over the rubber seals, that's a sign they had leak problems.

Windshield  Wiper Arms, Check the main post                              Back to Menu Top Line

MCI 12 
On the outside of the lower windshield you have windshield wiper arms.
Check the main drive post it can turn left or right in a wiping action but it should not wobble or pull in or out.  If it does you have excessive wear, you will have a problem down the road. To convert everything to up to electric would run about $1,000.00 .

There is a Fuel Door behind your right front wheel                                 Back to Menu Top Line
Lift this stainless steel door (see images below) it should be straight and undamaged.
Make sure you don't see any damage or corrosion .

To the left of that door is your Battery Door,                                           Back to Menu Top Line

Make sure you don't see any damage from a Short, fire, or corrosion. This Bus will  have 2- 8 D Bus batteries make sure all your terminal ends are clean and it doesn't have heat or corrosion damage.

Above the batteries in the same compartment is a  24v / 12v Converter / Splitter Box      Back to Menu Top Line
You want to make sure this box is there. This is what gives you 12 volts to run the 12 Volt headlights, cell phone and other 12V accessories.  If there is none then see how they are getting 12 volts to the Headlights . if is drawing 12v from one battery there is a good chance the alternator will ruin the other none used battery.

Above the battery box, look at the  
Side passenger Windows, look at the Windows and Window  seals.                                        Back to Menu Top Line
This style of window is very easy to open from the inside. A lot of maintenance people will open them and set a stick out to hold the window open like a canopy. Over the years this has a tendency to expose the seals more often to sunlight. Make sure you look for cracks in the rubber. Over the years these seals eventually start to crack and deteriorate after a lot of use.
This Seal is one of the largest reasons you can get water in your walls and down in the luggage bay.
 ..You  don't want a wet bus !..      See luggage bays and window seals  next ...

After time, The side windows rubber seals dry out                                                                      Back to Menu Top Line
 
A lot people aren't aware that a bus creates a negative pressure ( vacuum) traveling down the hiway at hiway speeds . Rain and salt spray from the highway will have a tendency to be pulled into the window wall around these dry and cracked rubber seals . When this happens the salt spray will start to soak into the wall beneath the window and sometimes above the window. This wall from the window to the luggage bay is built with mild steel bracing. The aluminum skins on the outside and inside are simply skins over this  steel. If this rubber window seal leaks and salt spray ever gets into these walls and saturates the insulation this wall will rust out.

See if you see any rust marks in the Luggage bays,                                          Back to Menu Top Line

Although MCI's are famous for their stainless steel chassis. They only build stainless and aluminum in areas where they have had problems with corrosion in the past. For example, the front and rear end of the bus, the under carriage and the surrounding luggage bays would be constructed of stainless and aluminum. But the walls that hold the windows are built of regular steel AND WILL RUST SEE BELOW ...

                                                                                                                  
Luggage Bay Ceiling                                                                          Back to Menu Top Line
        
    Good                           Good                                    Not so Good                Not so good 
Look up underneath where the Luggage door piano hinge is attached to the Chassis . This area is all stainless steel and aluminum with steel screws ..If you see any rust from those mild steel screws at all. This means salty water is coming from your upper wall and the windows have been leaking.
 
Be aware this means rust in a place that should be dry ..This means your windows have been leaking and the walls have been rusting .Those screws can rust but only if they have been soaking for awhile..  These sample images have been caught just in time but any worse and it would mean you have a serous rust issue upstairs and it could be really bad ..You wont know however unless you open up the walls                                                 

                                                                                                       
Luggage Bay Door latches                                                             Back to Menu Top Line
 
At the bottom of the luggage bay compartment. These latches are made of cast iron and will have a tendency to rust. Be aware if you see rust, this tells you its been wet in this area. That's your first warning ..Heed it , start looking how it got wet . That area should always be dry ..continued...
                                                                                     
Next look at the area beneath the side windows,                                        Back to Menu Top Line

This is the outside wall we call the letter board area . Make sure there is no sign of water rusting through the pop rivets, due to salt water soaking into the walls from the windows leaking. This means the steel wall is rusting from inside of the Bus.
See if you can find any bubbling  paint around rivets .. This is a sign of corrosion from within too ..

                                                                            
The marker lights on the Roof , Front and Rear Caps .                              Back to Menu Top Line
                                                             
Sometimes MCI marker lights leak and seep water into the coach. Make sure you check the  front and rear fiberglass cap  rivets and all the marker lights ..see if you see any sign of silicon
 

Rear  Section                                                                                                Back to Menu Top Line
This is a description of the rear, Engine Compartment, Blower Box, Radiators  etc.    

The blower box area,                                                                                   Back to Menu Top Line


                                                                                  
When you look at the ceiling in the engine compartment there are 2 clips holding the blower access door. Lift one clip than the other and lift the door at the same time . This is your blower box compartment. Look out towards the radiators from the inside make sure the radiator fins on the inside are cleaned and not corroded, make sure the lower sections of the radiator are still in good condition. Some buses (1978-1980) have mild steel around the turn signals inside the engine compartment, this steel will have rust problems too.

For more images of Blower Box area  
This Squirrel Cage Blower pulls high volumes of air and salt spray through the radiators and blows it down over the engine to the street. The older MCI's used to have a problem with rusting in this area but MCI later from 1980 on  fixed that with stainless steel.
Make sure the right angle gear box controlling the twin blowers is stable, non corroded and does not wobble. . Check your Blower box level plate, this air cylinder will mover the complete gearbox up and down on this plate to keep the belt tight. Make sure it moves right after you crank the engine to tighten itself. There is a 12 psi  air cylinder that keeps pressure on that huge  plate to keep the fan belt tight, make sure it doesn't leak and the belt flops.

Louvers,                                                                                                                         Back to Menu Top Line

Look for bad belts, corroded copper wiring, any rust spots around the engine, also check on the outside of your radiator. There are louvers in front of the radiator for extreme cold weather and they close automatically. Make sure they are opened by themselves, sometimes people will have a problem with them and will force the louvers to stay open with a stick or something. Also, you want to be aware if the coach has fiberglass scoops attached to the radiators to act as a air scoop. This will tell you they have been experiencing cooling issues. Be careful this bus will probably need new radiators..

                                                                                                Back to Menu Top Line
Engines in the engine  Compartment,

Does this bus have the Newer 6V92 -335 HP  or the Older 8V71-  275 HP Detroit Engine ?

When you walk up to the back of the bus, look at the rear doors and back wall.
Look for oil spray, this means you have an oil leak on that engine,
Also look at the alternator, power steering pump, air compressor. Now look on the left side and you will want to look
at your air filter and the filler tube for your automatic transmission make sure that everything is in good shape. To check your transmission fluid its has to be in idle and warm. 
Look at the MCI Operators manual for images of this area .  or Image for this area alone

                                                             
8V71 Detroit Engine,                                                                                      Back to Menu Top Line


Note this Detroit 8V71 V8 has no Turbo or Black computer box

This is a V8 engine with 71 cubic inches per cylinder this is a 2 stroke scavenger intake engine this design requires a super charger or blower to be mounted in the intake manifold. This is the same supercharger  hot Rodders in the 50's were mounting on top of their hot rods. This standard Detroit engine configuration with this V8 produces approximately 275-318 horse power.

However, with bigger injectors, radiators, and a large turbo you can get up to 550 horse power but this is rare .
Mainly used in marine racing                                            

This standard MCI 9 engine is a DDEC II 6V92TA                                Back to Menu Top Line
(Note: The DDEC black box on top of engine)

 
Note, This Engine is the Detroit DDEC 6V92TA, it is a  V6...  6 cylinder with a Turbo on top.
This means this is a Detroit Diesel Electronic Control version 2 it is a V6 with 92 cubic inches per cylinder, Turbo Aspirated. Its a 2 stroke scavenger intake design meaning it must have an air compressor or super charger for it to run. This model engine was installed in the MCI 9's from approximately 1980 on to the mid 90's this engine starts at 285-375 horse power. Average HP is 335                                  

With larger injectors, larger radiators, and twin turbo's, this unit can be hopped up to almost 500 horse power ( Marine Racing Only ,...Sorry ) . However the standards are  DDEC II 6V92A with  335 to 355 horse power .
This is what you will see in all MCI 9-12's from 1987 on. The advantage to this newer model is they have computerized injections and timing to create a more efficient engine with DDEC l,ll,lll,lV,V etc. 
The DDEC l  and ll cannot be modified after market, however the DDEC lll & IV and.on can  be reprogrammed.

The rear suspension is called an air box frame design.                        Back to Menu Top Line

     Back to Menu Top Line
This means the air bags push air into a large square steel box this box is attached to the top of your air bags. look at this steel box see if that under coat is still in good shape.
it should look black or dark grey if you see rust or rust marks there should not be much rust anywhere.

                                                    

Radius rod  bushings,                                                                                      Back to Menu Top Line
A radius rod is a heavy 2 inch steel rod that holds the suspension in place so it wont float around . There are

 several of these 2 inch rods and they have radius rod bushings. If these bushings wear down the rear end will move around and not track squarely with the bus.

Normally you want to buy a dry climate bus                                       Back to Menu Top Line
meaning the bus did not live in a icy salt spray condition this salt spray has a tendency to rust and corrode bus chassis

Air bag plating, This where the air bags are capped off                 Back to Menu Top Line
and cant allow air to travel in the box frame suspension. From the 1950' up until the late 1980's Air Box frame  suspension  allowed air to move  up into the Box frame in the chassis. This did offer a very smooth ride the MCI's were famous for but with time they were found to leak. The newer models have been plated from factory.  However plating from the factory also means they have replaced the original air bags too ..
These older bags must be replaced too ..If you don't the Bus will ride like a dump truck . The older bags needed the air box to share the pressure .. so they are a lot harder. The newer air bags are soft and now handle the complete loads without the air box frames..... 

  

Structural repair to an older MCI 8 before stainless steel                  Back to Menu Top Line  

Replacing Hinges and replacing  twin doors with a single Salon door      Back to Menu Top Line

Door Seals  coming soon

Turn signal lenses                                                                                               Back to Menu Top Line
Front                                Rear 

These lenses can leak with time however you can still buy parts with no problems.

Back to Menu Top Line

Links to MCI Spec pages below  

MCI MC-8  1973 - 1978
MCI MC-9  1979 - 1984
MCI 96A3  1985 - 1990
MCI 102A3 1985 - 1991
MCI 102C3 1988 -1993
MCI D Series  1992 - Present
MCI E Series  1997 - Present
MCI F3500     1985 - 1990  
MCI G4500     2000 - 2005

These links will take you to MCI web pages

MCI Specifications Sheets  reprinted from MCI Website

MCI® MC8 COACH

MCI® MC9 - MC12     COACH                                                                                                     Back to Menu Top Line

MCI 9  1979 - 1987  
MCI 12   1990 - 2005  plus more......
 

MCI® 96A3 COACH                                                                                         Back to Menu Top Line

MCI 96A3  1985 - 1990