The Full Story of #340
On Eastshore
Partners at Eastshore Split
Partners at Eastshore Split
Bill Biling and Warren Miller were partners in Eastshore Bus Lines of San Francisco. They arranged with GM to purchase the very last highway bus and this happened in April of 1980. they threw a party, big cake and all, made up with all the GM employees. The bus was delivered.
Partners at Eastshore Split
Partners at Eastshore Split
Partners at Eastshore Split
Bill and Warren decided to split up and Warren created his own bus operation...also in San Francisco. Several of Eastshore's 4905s were taken by Warren but 340 stayed at Eastshore
Out with the Old
Partners at Eastshore Split
Out with the Old
Then bill decided to sell 340 in favor of MCI coaches. Needless to say, I was furious about this, and we disagreed on the move, but the bus got sold to an operator in Seattle. Then 340 came back to San Francisco on a charter and blew its
Added to the Fun Fleet
Out with the Old
engine on the bay bridge. Ted Campbell, Eastshore's famous mechanic, replaced the engine and sent the bus back to Seattle. Keep in mind that under Eastshore ownership, they never had a problem with it.
And Then What?
Added to the Fun Fleet
Added to the Fun Fleet
Later, 340 was sold to ABC Bus Sales in Los Angeles. It had many engine and transmission problems and was continually repaired. It was eventually sold to Gamblers Express out of Riverside, California. They too had problems with the bus going through transmissions.
Added to the Fun Fleet
Added to the Fun Fleet
Added to the Fun Fleet
One day 340 came into my bus yard. The owner had many problems, including several transmission failures. I made the aforementioned deal to do his maintenance on the bus; at the time he ran 340 between Riverside and Las Vegas. first thing I found was that the U-joints were severely worn. I completely removed the driveshaft and literally threw it at the owner. I told him, "didn't anyone check this over all these years?" When U-joints, particularly ones on highway buses, get so bad they create a vibration, they literally crack the transmission in half. I put another complete driveshaft into the bus, complete with new joints and told him to lube them on a regular basis. Funny what when he turned the bus over to me, I looked at the drive line. He had lubed it almost every day and the entire real area at the bulkhead was covered in grease. That took a while to clean.
When and Where Did it Go?
After I repaired that, along with other various things, the bus ran fine for me for over 20 years. Fun Fleet Bus #340 was sold in early 2025.
