Updates on the 1951 White Super Power school bus in SE Ore

[dburt]

I went out to my friend Brian's place who owns the old 1951 White Super power school bus and took some more pictures, and found out that he would like to ask $2,500 for the bus and might??? leave the front bumper on it for the right deal? And- if the right person came along with the right old truck or tractor to trade, he might even consider a part trade. So give him a call at 208-741-0548 if you are interested in it. DB

[Sharkey]

I was out looking around for the displacement of the White Mustang engine for TMAX when I came across a description of the White company on a web page:

Late in the Thirties, White pioneered "Super Power"--leading the trend toward high performance truck engines, featuring sodium-cooled valves, six port intake manifold and duplex carburetion. Today (1959), White's Mustang engine, with its extremely high power output per weight, is the logical result.

http://www.lib.uwo.ca/programs/companyi ... emotor.htm

Also found some photos of a White semi tractor:



http://www.roadtransport.com/blogs/big- ... oment.html

Never did find out the displacement of the engine, but I be guessing it's at least 700 cubic inches.

[dburt]

That front end, fenders, headlights and grill on the White trucks and buses was so classic! It embodied the golden age of truck styling it seems. I imagine that the big gas truck engines did not do well for fuel mileage but when fuel was only 15-20 cents per gallon, it was almost a moot point. When I was a kid in about 1958 or so, I recall traveling with my parents in thier 1949 Ford and my dad stopping at a small service station on old highway 10 between Kansas City and Lawrence, Kansas. Regular gas was only 14 cents per gallon on sale because of a local "gas price war" and my dad, who loved to find the cheapest gas he could, swerved into the station for a fill-up. That is the lowest price of gas I can remember ever seeing. I'm sure diesel was cheaper also. And oh, the sweet old pop dispensing machines. You put in a dime, and then slid a glass bottle of that icy cold orange Shasta pop thru the slots over to the gate and pulled up on the bottle to free it for your thirsty pleasure. Only one problem- I had two brothers and my dad was a cheap-skate. So he would only spring for one bottle to be shared with my younger and older brother and me. My older brother always got to have the first shot, and he drank down to his line or often passing it "by accident", and always leaving some backwash- I swear! Then I drank down to my line, but since my younger brother could not fight back effectivley, I probably cheated also on the exact line once or twice. But I left no backwash! So- then my younger brother got the leftovers, and it is still a tender subject with him almost 50 years later. The joys of travel in summer in the mid-west so long ago, hot and humid, no A/C and fighting with your siblings over who's turn it was to sit by the open window.

[Sharkey]

More digging on the 'net has revealed that the Mustang was rated at 170 horsepower. I was only able to find one photo, which illustrates some custom headers that were fabricated to replace a damaged exhaust manifold:



It's not very clear how the intake manifold is configured.

Oh, I was an only child, so I had to fight with my great grandmother about who got to sit next to the open window on trips.

[Mark R. Obtinario]

I may be mistaken but I think the bus body was built by Carpenter Body Works. Carpenter used that particular light green/blue color on the interior of their bus bodies next to forever.

It definitely is not a Blue Bird, Thomas, Wayne, or Superior.