ABANDONED GMC TransMode Rescue! Will it Run after 15+ Years? 

Welcome to the GMC Motorhome owners club from Miami ! I have a 1973 as well . Can go 70 mph once you repair it properly. Well worth restoring not many left …

You two were pretty brave cleaning out the inside without gloves!

This is gonna be so fun to watch!

THE most exciting rescue thus far! She has heart and stories to tell and can make more memories for you and that's cute little girl of yours! Do her justice!

Absolutely love that your Dad is fulltime with you now. The dynamics between you is awesome.

The little kid is adorable . Made me miss my daughter being that age .

25:25 - this is what it's all about. getting our kids involved, and teaching them to appreciate turning bad cars into good cars! Perfectly said.

These RV’s are so cool. I watch so many videos about them. The engineering that went into these was just amazing. The view from the front seat is unparalleled.

I don’t think it would take too much to turn this into an Oscar Meyer Weiner Mobile. Very excited. 😊

There are at least 2 of them in my neighborhood. They actually came with the Toronado engine and transmission. I'm trying to put my hands on one as well. Looking forward to the rebuild.

You’ve got something special there that deserves a long term multi episode effort.

My Grandpa had one of those and let me tell you they were the Cadillac of motorhomes back in the day, love this beauty.👍

Oh man! I love these old RVs! Its an Eleganza, reach out to Jim Bounds if you have any questions about them. He's a wealth of knowledge for them!

I love the promotional film for these. Manufactured from 1973 to 1978 by the GMC truck in coach division. There's all kinds of upgrades for them. Aftermarket upgraded suspension's etc. The whole back panel unscrewed, which allows the interior and furnishings to be put in easily.. it was even equipped with a generator manufactured by Onan.

This might cost you more than the Porsche, but the memories it will create will be worth it - especially if you find some reproduction carpet for it!😁

Those are the coolest RVs! The body is completely seamless other than in the very back I believe. That is a great design because there will be no water damage from leaky roof seams unless the fiberglass is cracked or compromised in some way.

What a cool camper. Muxh more style than the new rigs. Would love to have one my self. Please put some love in to that rig.

Super cool project. I’m in the UK and love classic motor homes particularly old American ones. These GMCs just exude 70s cool and this one looks like a great candidate. Michael this may well be your finest hour. I’m looking forward to the old gal moving under her own steam 🔥👍

What a great find. Looking forward to this one.

The Olds 455 is legendary for excellent reliability. If well maintained it will give you many more years of trouble free service. Thanks for saving it and the GMC.

You definitely have your work cut out for you!! But with you and your Dad working on it, and the technology that you both have, you'll have this rig up and running in no time! Will be following along on this journey, for sure!

grandpa max rust bucket

Even if the thing isn’t safe for trips you will have the coolest playhouse for the kids. Hope you have better luck than Sleeperdude in trying to revive a motor home.

Great find guys Cant wait to see this one come back

This one is definitely going to be fun to watch!

I am Brazilian. And I love the peculiarities of this GMC. Its shape is unique! 🤩

What a beautiful vehicle. These kind of things need to be saved from the scrap pile. What a find.

For some crazy reason I'm obsessed with these GMC Motorhomes so was super excited when I saw this on your channel! I really hope you save this and restore it so you can enjoy years of making memories with your family. (Bonus: They're also highly collectible and I think the prices are only going to go up for a good example, so definitely worth the effort.) Good luck!

If I remember from a tv show, this engine needs a special L engine hoist that only 1 garage has, so good luck if that baby ever needs to come out. Keep it up guys 👍

This is a fun one. I have always loved the unique styling of these old GMC Motorhomes. Would love to see this thing cleaned up.

Would be nice to have some pictures of the family enjoying holidays with this camper

Mr Budget Great video on the old camper. Great start on bringing it back, looking forward to wash job and more repairs. Be well

Absolutely love that you show the exhaust when you first start them up.

Wow! Would love to see this thing redone properly and actually made usable!

So cool. Glad to see you guys are gonna revive it.

25:37 how sweet & passionate can a daughter be! warms my heart.. so cool.

Michael, you have a real collector's item in the RV world. These motorhomes have a huge following. Can't wait till you have her and hooked up the shore power to see if the ac and fridge works. In a couple months I bet you all will be camping down at Myrtle Beach SC. The unit will clean up great.

These were great motorhomes in their day. I worked for a Buick GMC dealer in the late 70's the owner had one . He would race cars from stoplight to stoplight with it! IT was suprisingly fast for all the weight involved. The thermostat housings were known for splitting. Really Enjoy your videos!!

I absolutely love seeing you start vehicles step by step from checking if the engines are stuck, what kind of oil is there, then the spark and of course the fuel. Someone would start directly with the brake cleaner and turn the key, which is unacceptable in my opinion. Congratulations guys greetings from Croatia

Paint it back in its original colors. The seventies had so much character!

This was a revolutionary design at the time and they drive and handle better than any other RV. The engine and drive train were taken from the Olds Tornado so it is easier to get parts if you say Olds first, slap a Holley carb on there as well and it will run better and get good mileage.

I cannot wait for the interior cleanup on this one!

So cool! I used to work at a rv dealership and once we had one of these come into the shop for a service. There was one mechanic who was familiar with them. His joke the whole day was that he was conceived in one. Im so looking forward to this series. Its going to be a big job and would definitely be something that youll wish you had a lift for because theres no room to crawl around to fix those brake lines. It would be a true miracle if they didnt all need to replaced by the look of that master cylinder. But you will have us along for the adventure!

One of the coolest RVs ever made.

Can't wait for part II

What a sweet little girl! “We don’t buy nice cars” ❤

You Lucky Duck!! Who Wouldn't Want To Restore That Bad Boy!?! Never Knew It Was Front-Wheel Drive, Though. Thank You.

Love the enthusiasm you and your Dad have for these projects. Keep having fun and making videos. Bonus learning for the kids on the adventures you can have by bringing old stuff back to life!

I hit the like button before the play button!! Haven’t been this excited about a series since the 911! These old GMC Motorhomes are just awesome. It was ahead of its time...and they have never lost their cool factor. Especially the sofa/bunk! Source a set of Alcoa wheels to replace those steel wheels....or maybe you’ll find the hubcaps stored away!

Been waiting on this one for awhile! Saw you guys working on it in the yard, I hollered Budget Builds! Awesome to have a local RU-vid channel!

First time seeing one of your videos and I must tell you I was blown away when you discovered the original carpeting. When I bought my house in 1981, the living room and dining room were covered in that same carpeting. Wish you all the best on the restoration of the camper.

I love the GMC motorhome for style and room. Fuel economy is abysmal but when you're cruising, you may not worry about it. Looking forward too more vids on this magnificent motorhome. Your presentation is so enjoyable.

awesome build glad to see you revive this great rare motor home

I loved when your daughter said, “that’s fancy” about the toilet shower combo 😆

That thing is very cool. Hope you take it all the way. Would like a multi part series.

i want one of those gmc motor homes man your lucky to find one

I remember going to the Houston Boat and RV show as a teenager in 1973 and touring through one of these. I worked and worked on talking my Dad into getting one. He didn't, but said "if I ever got a motor home, this would be the one I get".

They were quite the thing back in its day. The best part was the fiberglass body. I think some of them had a central vacuum cleaner system in them.

Always love a good motorhome revival! The kids reaction to it was priceless as well!

Cool can't wait to see it run

Before you rebuild that carb - know that there are specific serial numbers and jetting for the gmc Motorhome. Once you lose those parts they are impossible to buy other than $$$ rebuilt exchanges. A better bet is to move to fuel injection. Been watching you since the beginning and I own two of these. One barn find and one I drove to Alabama from CA. You’re going to have a ball. Huge community of supporters.

Big change up here, this will be interesting! Congrats on the motor, heck ya!

I would be checking the electrical system and trying the AC, so you can work in comfort. When the starter went out on my Winnebago we had the AC running while we were changing it, it definitely helped. EFI, would be a good upgrade.

Many years ago I stumbled upon a gathering of these RVs at a city park. That was the first time I focused on what they were. They are really cool machines so I am glad you are rescuing this one. Make it nice and share your adventure.

Personally, I love the idea of restoring the look of the original 70's interior. Shag carpet is comfy on the toes! I always liked the look of these things, they had a futuristic look. I had no idea they were FWD.

This will be fun to see come back to life!

EM-50 urban assault vehicle. Stripes yea baby!

I love those old GM motorhomes! They were ahead of their time. I'd love to see it saved. Hopefully, you can get it renovated in time for the total eclipse coming in April!

Looking forward to seeing this one happen. Cheers from NEW ZEALAND.

Great job on bring it to live from it's grave, I bet the original owners who are no longer with us are back smiling to hear it run & being rescue, great job guys.👏👌🙌💪🏼👍💯🙏💝

Congrats and good luck with her

I enjoy the RV builds of any type!!! This is gonna be a good one!!

You're the best builder I've ever seen. From worst to best. Love From South Africa 🇿🇦

I can't wait to see this one driving thanks for bringing us along!

I have a 1983 , 37 foot, Coachman Camper, diesel pusher. Runs strong! Carpet is nasty! So the first thing I did was pull it all out and then installed rubber flooring that eventually will be “hardwood” flooring. It still needs some TLC and interior design but it’s all functional and inhabitable. I love old RVs! I intend on living in it for awhile.

Glad your the one that saved it I seen the ad removed from facebook and thought the old GMC got scrapped!!💗💗

This is my dream vehicle. I would love to have one with all the 70’s flair! Like my own overtime capsule. I was born in 1960. Wow please redo it , make this a series restoration like sleeper dude

These were WAY ahead of their time. My parents looked at a new one in 1978 in the pale green version (with gold pinstripes!) and my Mom wanted that thing bad. They ended up buying a brand new 1979 Town Car. Lol I can’t wait to see the next video! I almost want to come help get her cleaned up!

Can't wait to see what you do with that camper next!

I’ve always liked and thought the GMC campers were cool! I can’t wait to see the rest of the build of it!

dude...awesome! Can't wait to see this beast cleaned up and rolling.

Hi guys. To let you know that the trolls out there expect everyone to have newer RV. The best part of buying an older RV is you can be your own mechanic. Only wish I could find an older motorhome like this, but less than a grand a month won't buy one Great to see you rescued it. Thanks

That's definitely a great save a lot of work. Good luck, I'll be waiting to see.

Can’t wait to see what you do with this brother thank you

Cool design, and presumably much more aerodynamic than the slab-fronted Winnebagos and the like. It would be cool to see the interior fully restored to its early Seventies orange and brown shag pile glory, but first those brakes... i don't envy you based on the state of that master cylinder alone!

So happy to see that beast run!

So so interested in this driving again! I'm staying tuned!

This Old Lady was Hooting & Hollower ING all alone in my bedroom when she started!! I'm going to follow the complete work over & face-lift she's going to get! Congratulations on getting her started!😀

Very much looking forward to this one !! It's a rough penny, but you guys will make it shine !!

Man that thing deserves a full restoration, I think it could fetch a good price in today's market

This RV is my dream... Unfortunately here in Brazil there isn't any and I don't have the money to buy and import one either. This RV deserves a programmable injection system and current ignition coils. Congratulations on the project and God bless!

I hope you gave the fish a good home.

Can't wait to see it run !!!

I’m really excited about this one! I remember seeing a few of them on the road during the late eighties and I thought they were so cool looking. As a kid I thought they were spaceships with wheels.

These were the ultimate RV back in the day, and that 455 Olds is actually pretty froggy once you get the bats and bird nests out of it! A quart of Marvel Mystery oil will help with those noisy lifters, and I don't know if they're still available, but at one time, you could get a rebuilt Quadrajet for those pretty cheap, or you could just ditch it for a more reliable Edelbrock replacement. I'd also get rid of the points distributor and get one for a '74 or newer 455 that's HEI. Less issues, all electronic, and it will have a little more horsepower to boot. Gap your plugs at .045 if you switch to HEI. Looking forward to see it cleaned up and running well!!😄👍 *EDIT:* I believe that whole Olds powertrain was a direct drop in from the Toronados. They also had front wheel drive.

What a cool old camper !!

Good morning to you both. What a really Beautiful RV. She does have Potential, Character, Admiration, Great curbside appeal. She deserves a Full Restoration and then a Super Long American road trip with Yourself and Your Family. I look forward to watching the next Professional video from You my Friend. Kindest Regards from Jonathan. 😁😁👍👍

I like your careful approach to getting an old engine started. Remove and inspect plugs, get lubricant in each cylinder, change oil, disconnect old fuel line etc. I hope you can make this “blast from the past” a family fun RV! The original owner had fun with his family with this RV…now you’re going to have fun in it with your family. BTW…there’s a guy in Empire, Nevada who’s got a dozen of these rigs sitting out in the desert. You can see them on Google Earth. They are just east of the main town/gypsum board factory along Highway 447.

I can't wait to see it cleaned up

That was brilliant. I think you've got yourself a fine camper. 🇬🇧👍