The Mother Road Coffee Bus
Have you ever been on a road trip out in the great open spaces when you just wish you could find a hot or cold treat to make the trip better? There is such a place! Well, not a place but a BUS. Yes, a bus. We are talking about a unique concept known as The Mother Road Coffee Bus.
It is an actual bus, converted into a mobile coffee house. We caught up with John and Christine Hammond, owners of the Mother Road Coffee bus as they were out on Historic Route 66 on the way to Oatman, AZ serving up the goodies to those traveling the Mother Road, as well as the locals who inhabit the area. They told us their unique story.
It all started while watching episodes of Monster Garage with Ed and Stephen Sweezey in 2009. We were talking about how cool it would be to serve coffee at car shows out of an old school bus. My girlfriend at the time, now my wife and I found this bus in a field in Redding, CA. And so it began.
We rented a local metal building in Napa, CA, since we lived in a neighborhood with a single car garage. Had the bus brought to Napa via flatbed truck. We then went on a search for a donor truck. We located a 1988 Chevy 1 ton dually that fit the bill. Over the course of the next 4 months, Ed and his son Stephen helped me in the evenings and weekends (around our full-time jobs) to accomplish the following:
Removed body from the bus chassis body from the bus chassis.
Shortened the body 37" directly behind the front windows to fit on the Chevy 1 ton dually chassis, retaining the stock 454 big block chevy engine and turbo 400auto transmission.
We used as many parts from the donor truck as we could including the wheels, steering column, and seats. We converted it from fuel injection to carburetor, installed a new intake manifold, wiring harness, and ignition system.
After many late nights with dinner delivered, long weekends and moral support we considered ourselves a bit crazy for such an incredible undertaking. The bus was finally transformed into a drivable vehicle.
We entered the bus into the Skip Long Memorial car show in Napa shortly after construction before trailering it to Golden Valley, AZ, where we moved in 2012 to be closer to John's parents. The bus remained untouched and garaged for the next 10 years. In, 2022, we started discussing the possibility of completing the bus project and converting it into a hotrod mobile coffee bus. The Mother Road Coffee Bus was born.
We decided on the name to pay homage to the area we live in. We developed a business plan along with building plans and brought them into Mohave County where they we were extremely helpful and expressed interest in our project. The build was on! The past 2 years have been quite busy. In addition to our daily jobs (a carpenter and a registered nurse), we have taken on this project with a passion. Working on it in our home garage, with minimal professional equipment, we have transformed it from its original shell into The Mother Road Coffee Bus you see today.
The construction of the bus included: Air ride suspension - Raised center section of roof 6” - Add a rear door - Built a 1 piece tilt front end - Installed a 10,000 watt generator Installed a complete water system - Installed a complete electrical system - Built entire interior finish - Completed interior of front cab - Built window frames with new plexiglass - Painted body of the bus - Hand drew and painted flames - Hand painted name on both sides, and many other finishing touches.
Visit The Mother Road Coffee Bus online: https://themotherroadcoffeebus.com/