YELLOW FEVER

A RAT-ROD'41 CHEVY SCHOOL BUS WITH A P-PUMPED 12-VALVE

- Mike Mcglothlin

Between running a construction company, operating a bar, owning a carwash, and managing several rental properties, life can get pretty hectic for central Illinois entrepreneur, Jason Bliesner. Meet his escape vehicle: a chopped and lowered, Cummins-swapped ’41 Chevy school bus. Thanks to Jason’s rat-rod approach to his people-hauler, the bus retains its original look while also packing a wellfueled, 12-valve 5.9L, compound turbos, and a full air-ride suspension. An updated interior also allows him to bring a dozen friends along for the ride on his much-needed weekend excursions. You won’t always find Jason cruising in the fast lane, but let’s just say his magic school bus gets 15-mpg at 80-mph.

THE HUNT

On a mission to quench his thirst to build a school bus-based rat-rod, Jason and his father found themselves at an auction 700 miles from home, hoping to be the highest bidders on an old Ford bus. However, when the Blue Oval went for $9,000 they set their sights on following a lead on a Chevy. For a cool $2,700, Jason brought the ’41 back home and then took off for Iowa to pick up the 5.9L Cummins he’d purchased for it. He knew right from the start that he wanted to go diesel with the project. “I like anything weird,” he admitted. “I wanted to do a rat-rod project but do it differently.”