He has Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a form of Muscular Dystrophy. But don’t think that’s stopped him from doing stuff he loves—Pulley goes water skiing, snow skiing, scuba diving, and drives the wheels off his handicap-modified 2010 Dodge Challenger SRT. And he wants other people with disabilities to realize they can do things like that, too.
To that end, Pulley built this 1957 Ford B500 bus as a rolling billboard for Beyond D.A. Bus, a nonprofit devoted to engaging people with any disability in activities they may have never imagined themselves doing.
Two years in the making, the D.A. Bus will be on display in the TAMCO Paint booth at the 2019 SEMA Show, November 4-8 at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV.
The D.A. Bus is a group effort by several Texas-based shops. Nfamus Metal Fab in Cleburne, TX handled the metal fabrication and suspension work. Diesel Dynamics in Dallas, TX rebuilt the 7.3L Power Stroke diesel and 4R100 four-speed automatic transmission pirated from a 2003 Ford E450 school bus. And Forgotten Rides Garage in Houston, TX is currently working on the paint, wiring and audio, and interior trimming.
The bus has a full complement of accommodations for Pulley
and his passengers:
Adaptive Driving Access (ADA) hand controls and a six-way transfer seat base to allow the driver to easily move from a wheelchair onto the seat.
A BraunAbility RA300 Transit Ramp for wheelchair access through the modified rear door.
A track system in the floor to safely lock wheelchair passengers in place.
Stuff like the Dakota Digital gauge cluster, TMI seats, steering column and linkage, brake upgrades, and other items came from Summit Racing.
While the D.A. Bus is designed to inspire people with disabilities to take a chance and do things they’ve always wanted to do—like building a hot rod—it’s also a most excellent piece of car (bus?) crafting in its own right. Check out these photos to see how the bus was built and whether you agree.
Editor, author, PR man—Alan Rebescher has done it all in a 37 year career in the high performance industry. He has written and photographed many feature stories and tech articles for Summit Racing and various magazines including Hot Rod, Car Craft, and Popular Hot Rodding, and edited Summit Racing’s Street & Strip magazine in the 1990s. His garage is currently occupied by a a 1996 Mustang GT ragtop.
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