New Member Intro - Ya'all have been great so far!

[Mojowomyn]

Hi there,

New member here trying to glean all I can from the amazing brain trust that is Steel Soldiers. I am in the process of purchasing a M1010 and I have been using the information here to weigh the pros and cons of ownership.

I am building a camping rig and the M1010 checks my boxes - 4WD, Diesel, decent towing capacity, giant friggen box on the back. While I do go to some camping spots that are off road, I am certainly not looking for any butt puckering adventures. I am looking for a closet on wheels that can get to the places I go. I currently camp a few times a year, but hoping to increase that to once or twice a month.

My big concern is the reliability. I am a lady and I travel alone a lot. I am mechanically inclined, but I have not worked on vehicles much. (Clearly I am a sucker for a good project that teaches me things though!) My plan is to put hundreds of local miles on it before I take it camping to work the Gremlins out. So far I have found some great resources in Phoenix, and I bet I will find more!

I do a camping event called Wasteland Weekend, so the other box this checks off is "Looks Bad Ass, Is Bad Ass". You should check it out - its basically Burning Man has a baby with Mad Max.

That's about it for me - Feel free to bombard me with advice! Thank you

 

[90Jimmy]

Welcome from Southern Illinois. I have 2 M1009 that have been serviced into reliable....TM is your friend, get or download a Lube Order and change all the fluids and lube that thing. This will be a great way to spend some time really checking the truck out....then start cleaning any electrical connection you can see. Thats my advice. Good luck, and enjoy the nice people who contribute to this site. Make the search bar your friend....there are some very knowledgeable folks here who have made it possible for me to enjoy my MV hobby.

 

[cucvmule]

Welcome from Missouri! Great Idea to first get to know, get familiar with truck before going on a trip into unknown territory. Maintenance goes a long way, simple things can strand you easy. Good wheeling, camping.

 

[PETE BALLARD]

Welcome to Steel Soldiers Forum, congrats on your new vehicle- be sure to familiarize yourself with the little things that make your vehicle work properly- all the information is here all in one spot along with a great support staff- enjoy the experience and the ride!

 

[Scar59]

Welcome from Kentucky,
Take your time to find the right truck, a lot of nice ones are still out there.
My father lives in Scottsdale, I love the desert. Lots of SS members in AZ.
Have fun, be safe.

 

[mkcoen]

Welcome! If you're set on a M1010 the biggest mechanical issue is the Duvac system. It's easy to get rid of and should be the 1st consideration when prepping the vehicle for remote camping.

 

[NDT]

In my opinion, the key to reliability in these trucks is to replace the 1984 engine/transmission with a early 2000's HMMWV takeout GEP 6.5 engine with 4L80E overdrive transmission. This is a drop in swap with the only tricky part being the transmission controller.

 

[Mojowomyn]

Actually, this is a good segway to the truck itself! Its low mileage 12k, so its sat a lot of its life. (That is about to change) I know its made a couple hunting trips in the last year towing a boat behind it. It looks like its been in the Southwest its entire life. No rust that I could find.

The one I am looking at has no performance modifications - Its totally stock except for new leaf springs. So no lift (I think), 6.2, TH400, Dana 60, 14 bolt rear with 4:56 gears and a Detroit locker, NP 208. It does, however, have many of the reliability modifications. Doghead, total 12v conversion, DUVAC removal, fresher glow plugs and card. I'm sure I am missing some. It's been mechanic or fleet owned its whole life, so its downgrading to me...except that now she gets to eat durt and sun a LOT more!

I will not be trying to push this baby to the limit. I drive like a Grandmother. The only thing that I would like to do that may push it is towing a rat rod behind her.

My plan is to follow the advice on this board and start going thru all the seals, rubber, and lube one by one. Ill do what I can do, but Ill be ready to hire out what I cannot - which is a lot! Long term, I would like to learn everything I can about the repairs that can be made while on the road.

 

[porkysplace]

Actually, this is a good segway to the truck itself! Its low mileage 12k, so its sat a lot of its life. (That is about to change) I know its made a couple hunting trips in the last year towing a boat behind it. It looks like its been in the Southwest its entire life. No rust that I could find.

The one I am looking at has no performance modifications - Its totally stock except for new leaf springs. So no lift (I think), 6.2, TH400, Dana 60, 14 bolt rear with 4:56 gears and a Detroit locker, NP 208. It does, however, have many of the reliability modifications. Doghead, total 12v conversion, DUVAC removal, fresher glow plugs and card. I'm sure I am missing some. It's been mechanic or fleet owned its whole life, so its downgrading to me...except that now she gets to eat durt and sun a LOT more!

I will not be trying to push this baby to the limit. I drive like a Grandmother. The only thing that I would like to do that may push it is towing a rat rod behind her.

My plan is to follow the advice on this board and start going thru all the seals, rubber, and lube one by one. Ill do what I can do, but Ill be ready to hire out what I cannot - which is a lot! Long term, I would like to learn everything I can about the repairs that can be made while on the road.

Welcome to SS , the 12v conversion can be a nightmare by itself , myself I would take a second look at 12v converted truck .

 

[PETE BALLARD]

Don't get in a hurry with this girl, she's a slow but steady 50-55 mph- tops if you don't want to create some real bad damage. It's made for two lane exploration!

 

[dadahlberg3]

Welcome from the frozen north, from another new member! I used to live in PHX, wish I would have known about/made it to Wasteland Weekend. I used to say "there's no such things as 'too Mad Max.'"

 

[Mojowomyn]

Don't get in a hurry with this girl, she's a slow but steady 50-55 mph- tops if you don't want to create some real bad damage. It's made for two lane exploration!

Thanks for the heads up! Fortunately this is not an issue for me. Not only do I enjoy the journey there, all my spots can be (mostly) accessed via non-highway roads. My big annual trip is out to Cali, and I will likely be towing something so 55 on the highway is the law. We usually convoy the backroads anyhow to avoid the highway...especially once we get closer to LA County.

And this lady has no issue with putting a big fat sticker on there that says "55 Max, pass my fat ass truck on the left"

 

[rnd-motorsports]

Welcome from central Michigan!

 

[Recovry4x4]

I think you will enjoy the 1010. I've used mine plenty for road trips and camping. It's mostly sat the last few years. Hoping someone else assumes it. As mentioned, that duvac is the biggest Achilles Heel and it sounds like yours is fixed. Enjoy your travels.
Couple of pics of mine.

 

[Guyfang]

Mojo,

The only dumb question, is the question not asked. So when you need to ask, ask. Dosnt mean to ask every little thing. You can save mucho time, effort and money, by reading the operators TM, at the very least, the first few chapters. There are more gems of information in that book then you or I will ever know. Page through the parts TM (-24P) at least one time. That way, if you ever need to find something, you will have at least gone through it without being under pressure. Read the first few chapters of it, so you have a bit of understanding about the fact that there are several different models of truck depicted in the book. It confusing, at first. I tell new folks to read the -34 TM only if they suffer for insomnia, or you NEED to fix something. To many folks are over awed by that huge book. But if you take it a bit at a time, it's no big deal. As mentioned before, get the LO and service the truck. Do it yourself. When you are done, your knowage of your truck will be indeed, great. Download the TM's from the forum here. It's your best friend.

Good luck, and enjoy!

 

[m109a2]

Welcome from Lake Charles la.

 

[SCM35A2]

Welcome to the site!

 

[Tracer]

Welcome aboard from Nevada. Good Luck with your new truck!