Anyone running a 12v cummins?

[LVTradesman]

Hey all. I've got a former F550 shuttle bus I'm thinking of doing a conversion on. Its a 2008 so its got the 6.4 powerstroke that's notoriously problematic. I've got a solid 12v 5.9 cummins sitting here waiting to go into something.

I'm curious if anyone has run this engine in an application like this and if so how much weight your going down the road with.

I'm confident in the engine itself, just doing some further research before I jump all in.

I've got a front axle for the truck to I can convert it to 4wd. The cummins I have also has a non electronic overdrive trans with the transfer case. I am also thinking of using the 5r110 thats factory in the bus with some conversion stuff from DCS.

Axle ratios I'm at are 4:88 currently.

I'm also not opposed to using a manual trans and a divorced transfer case if that makes the most sense.

I'm only looking to haul my jeep behind this thing, however the weight of the bus itself is exceptional to it will all add up quick.

In the end most of it's life will be spent over the road getting us from Michigan to the Arizona area a few times a year. I'm most concerned with exceptional highway drivability even if it's at the expense of a little slower acceleration to get there.

Image is attached of it sitting in the barn for reference.

[LargeMarge]

We have two:
* 1997 Ford CF8000 ExpeditionVehicle with stock 505ci 250/800
* 1996 Dodge 2500 4x4 stock 359ci

Our ExpeditionVehicle is 14,000# across the scale.
It tugs a toy-hauler I built on a commercial chassis, about 14,000#.
We are in the slow-lane at 52mph.
We rarely get better than 14mpg.

The Dodge gets around 32mpg at 76-80mph across Idaho and Montana.
Plodding at 55mph, it drops to 20mpg.
Probably around 7,000#.

[luvcamp]

Weight is always the main worry. I suggest forgetting transfer case & fwd
axle as this will save weight. Would be nice to have, but do you really need
it? Also towing any heavy loads could have the tail wagging the dog. ""Youtube"
has many instances of this happening so take a care if doing so.