• Steel Soldiers now has a few new forums, read more about it at: New Munitions Forums!

  • Microsoft MSN, Live, Hotmail, Outlook email users may not be receiving emails. We are working to resolve this issue. Please add support@steelsoldiers.com to your trusted contacts.

GovPlanet Humvee Arrival and Inspection

jake20

jake20

Well-known member
433
846
93
Location
Illinois
Greetings!

After only about 3 weeks from auction date to delivery (absurdly fast, I know), I got the chance to start playing with it yesterday. I'll use this post a both something informative for others buying off GovPlanet, and also ask some questions that I haven't gotten around to googling yet if anyone is feeling helpful. Pictures will be attached, maybe more tomorrow or Friday when I get to work on it again.

Pretext: My purchase is an M1043A2 slantback, it was a non-runner as described in the auction. I'm not a mechanic but am mechanically inclined enough to feel like dealing with the wonderful surprises I'll be sure to discover.

Truck arrives, we get it offloaded from the trailer. I start by checking most of the fluids essential to getting it running:

1: Engine oil - at least 6 or more quarts low
2: Transmission fluid - I added 4 quarts of fluid and I'm still low, although what was on the dipstick looked very clear red and clean
3: Front differential - level was good and fluid was very clear yellow
4: Rear differential - bone dry, added enough 80w-90 to roll it around for now
5: Coolant - reservoir empty - system was at least 3/4 full though after adding water
6: Transfer case - Couldn't get to it as I didn't have the right socket for the fill plug, anyone know what size it is off their head?
7: Power steering - haven't checked it yet, although it groans when turning the wheel when not moving, so it's probably low
8: Geared hubs - haven't checked yet, placed an order for the much safer bluehummer spindle lock nuts, so I'll deal with those when they arrive
9: Brake fluid - haven't checked yet, planned for tomorrow


Then I check electrical/mechanical:

1: No batteries - expected per the pictures seen on govplanet
2: Glow plugs harness / cables - entire right side is chewed up and unusable, seems a rat or squirrel had fun
3: Throttle - gets hard to push at about 40% and then gets stuck afterwards - I wd40'd the mechanism with the spring on top of the engine, but it's still stiff - any ideas?
4: Brake - feels stiff and how I'd expect it probably
5: Transmission shifter - positive clicks and easy shifting
6: Transfer case shifter - very loose or very tight to shift sometimes, not very clear/evident clicks as I move it near the "H" position, any ideas?
7: Steering - wheel doesn't seem loose or have issues - more info on after I get it started
8: Serpentine belt - old and cracked, need a new one (do humvees with an AC compressor use a different length belt than the standard 114" one on truck serials above 196901?)
9: Radiator - bent fins but within acceptable limits I'd say
10: Radiator fan - it's stiff and doesn't move when the vehicle is shut off. I think the fan clutch is a bit crusty?
11: AC Condenser and unit - haven't checked yet, the fans turn at least
12: Seats - high back and perfect condition


So let's get this thing running. I add all the fluids per my checks, cleaned up some of the electrical to make sure no angry pixies start sparking, and connect the batteries.

I was skeptical at this point, so I wasn't sure what I'd really get here. I flip the ignition to "run", wait the several seconds for my single working half of glow plugs warm up. I flip it to start, and immediately it roars to life. I glue my eyes to the oil pressure gauge -- 60PSI after 2 seconds or so - Great!

I then pull the oil cap off to check for blowby - visible but I won't complain. It runs so it's already more than I expected that I bargained for when bidding.

Meanwhile I'm doing all that, coolant is leaking everywhere from both sides of the engine bay, not completely unexpected as all the hoses look dried and done for. It leaks badly when you start it up, and then the leak gets very slow and small once it runs for a minute. Bizarre, and I haven't identified the leak locations yet.

So I play around with it, it drives, I go maybe 5 MPH almost idling just to experience my newly found freedom (maybe?). I drove with the doghouse off to watch for any surprises, I noticed that the cab smelled heavily of exhaust when moving, and very light smoke coming from that area. I look further, and I notice the oil vent hose is just pointing directly at the cab, and I'm just smelling the blowby. The CDR valve was removed during the de-mil process, so I need a new one. Any recommendations or are they all the same?

That's all I have for now, check everything on your trucks when you get them from GovPlanet!!

Will add some more posts once I have a more detailed inspection after not being exhausted :p

If anyone has any questions about my discoveries or something they've seen on their truck, I'm more than happy to compare.
 

Attachments

D

diesel_dave

Well-known member
212
285
63
Location
Utah
Fan clutch should be very tight when the engine is off so that sounds about right. I cannot move mine by hand either but it turns on and off normally as the engine temp varies.
 
jake20

jake20

Well-known member
433
846
93
Location
Illinois
nairb said:
Your throttle issue sounds exactly like mine. The bottom of the injection pump sat in water and rusted while it sat in Georgia. Here’s my thread detailing the issue: https://www.steelsoldiers.com/threads/face-cam-causing-throttle-to-stick.209280/

Im currently halfway through pulling my pump so I can try to replace those parts or have it rebuilt.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the more detailed thread! Do you have a source for these parts? New pumps are around a grand it seems.
 
jake20

jake20

Well-known member
433
846
93
Location
Illinois
juanprado said:
Trans fluid should be checked running and hot.
Adding 4 qts cold not running might have overfilled it.
Click to expand...
So I'm pretty sure that I'm actually still low. I did read the dipstick pretty carefully and mine is still below full after driving it around a few miles, albeit slow. I added some yesterday and it's close to the full line after driving around. I will be doing a complete drain and fill along with the transmission filter swap in a few weeks, this just gets it moving under its own power for now. Thanks!
 
jake20

jake20

Well-known member
433
846
93
Location
Illinois
Alright hello all!

Thank you everyone for your comments so far, I have some more status updates thus far:

It's clean now! actually looks somewhat presentable.

Call me dumb but it turns out that I'm actually leaking fuel, not coolant. Coolant level has stayed completely perfect, so I was very confused as to how it could be leaking after not seeing it drain a bit.

In any case, I start looking deeper and closer (these engine bays are super tightly packed I've noticed), it turns out that 1-2 of my injectors are spewing fuel from the exterior. Anyone know what would cause this? I attached a photo as best as I could take from the leaky one, it was off in the photo though as it's too shaky to see when running. I'll see if anything is loose today, as I'll have to remove the intake to check it.

The other odd thing, my transfer case likes to slip out of H and into neutral when driving around. It's a very loose shifter and the detents are hard to feel. Not sure what would cause this, the linkages themselves underneath the truck seem rather solid.

It looks like the only wires that have been cut so far are:

1: Glow plug harness chewed up
2: Radio harness near dog house is cut
3: 2 cables that I haven't identified on the right side of the engine in the attached pictures. Anyone know what those are? One looks like a sending unit connection of sorts, the other runs up and down the bay and is chewed up.

Thanks everyone, it's an interesting adventure thus far.
 

Attachments

Mullaney

Mullaney

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
Supporting Vendor
7,716
19,766
113
Location
Charlotte NC
jake20 said:
Alright hello all!

Thank you everyone for your comments so far, I have some more status updates thus far:

It's clean now! actually looks somewhat presentable.

Call me dumb but it turns out that I'm actually leaking fuel, not coolant. Coolant level has stayed completely perfect, so I was very confused as to how it could be leaking after not seeing it drain a bit.

In any case, I start looking deeper and closer (these engine bays are super tightly packed I've noticed), it turns out that 1-2 of my injectors are spewing fuel from the exterior. Anyone know what would cause this? I attached a photo as best as I could take from the leaky one, it was off in the photo though as it's too shaky to see when running. I'll see if anything is loose today, as I'll have to remove the intake to check it.

The other odd thing, my transfer case likes to slip out of H and into neutral when driving around. It's a very loose shifter and the detents are hard to feel. Not sure what would cause this, the linkages themselves underneath the truck seem rather solid.

It looks like the only wires that have been cut so far are:

1: Glow plug harness chewed up
2: Radio harness near dog house is cut
3: 2 cables that I haven't identified on the right side of the engine in the attached pictures. Anyone know what those are? One looks like a sending unit connection of sorts, the other runs up and down the bay and is chewed up.

Thanks everyone, it's an interesting adventure thus far.
Click to expand...
.
Chances are that following the cut cables may be easier than it seems. Often times on these trucks, part of the DeMil process is just cutting cables that ran radios. Radios are gone. They don't spend a lot of effort to neatly clip and remove the excess wire. I suggest following the cut and/or chewed wires and figure out if they are junk or need repair. It is also possible that some sort of critter climbed up in the engine compartment...

Glow Plug harness that is chewed up almost has to be a critter problem. It is a repair or replace thing... Wish I had a better answer.

The leaking fuel. Several threads here on those cloth covered hoses getting "tired". Replacing ALL the rubber hoses with the proper replacements will make your life easier.
 
Milcommoguy

Milcommoguy

Well-known member
Supporting Vendor
1,710
2,265
113
Location
Rosamond, CA
jake20 said:
Alright hello all!

Thank you everyone for your comments so far, I have some more status updates thus far:

It's clean now! actually looks somewhat presentable.

Call me dumb but it turns out that I'm actually leaking fuel, not coolant. Coolant level has stayed completely perfect, so I was very confused as to how it could be leaking after not seeing it drain a bit.

In any case, I start looking deeper and closer (these engine bays are super tightly packed I've noticed), it turns out that 1-2 of my injectors are spewing fuel from the exterior. Anyone know what would cause this? I attached a photo as best as I could take from the leaky one, it was off in the photo though as it's too shaky to see when running. I'll see if anything is loose today, as I'll have to remove the intake to check it.

The other odd thing, my transfer case likes to slip out of H and into neutral when driving around. It's a very loose shifter and the detents are hard to feel. Not sure what would cause this, the linkages themselves underneath the truck seem rather solid.

It looks like the only wires that have been cut so far are:

1: Glow plug harness chewed up
2: Radio harness near dog house is cut
3: 2 cables that I haven't identified on the right side of the engine in the attached pictures. Anyone know what those are? One looks like a sending unit connection of sorts, the other runs up and down the bay and is chewed up.

Thanks everyone, it's an interesting adventure thus far.
Click to expand...
See my thread on the flakey return line hose. Thought I saw some there. Maybe a better picture of the injectors.
Looks to me some RATS are at play... or cheap ass cutters, CAMO


 
Last edited:
jake20

jake20

Well-known member
433
846
93
Location
Illinois
Mullaney said:
.
Chances are that following the cut cables may be easier than it seems. Often times on these trucks, part of the DeMil process is just cutting cables that ran radios. Radios are gone. They don't spend a lot of effort to neatly clip and remove the excess wire. I suggest following the cut and/or chewed wires and figure out if they are junk or need repair. It is also possible that some sort of critter climbed up in the engine compartment...

Glow Plug harness that is chewed up almost has to be a critter problem. It is a repair or replace thing... Wish I had a better answer.

The leaking fuel. Several threads here on those cloth covered hoses getting "tired". Replacing ALL the rubber hoses with the proper replacements will make your life easier.
Click to expand...
Yep! it was the hoses. Went to Napa and bought some temporary fuel line to replace it with, leaks are gone, woohoo.
 
jake20

jake20

Well-known member
433
846
93
Location
Illinois
Based on my findings, the glow plug harness on the 6.5L engines is part of an entire "engine harness" type thing, rather than a separate harness that I'm seeing for sale on the internet that's for the 6.2L M998, and is only for the glow plugs. Likely going to have to just fix my existing wires for now.

I've got mostly everything traced that needs to be repaired, the one thing I haven't found is what the cable/sensor is in the attached picture.
 

Attachments

Milcommoguy

Milcommoguy

Well-known member
Supporting Vendor
1,710
2,265
113
Location
Rosamond, CA
jake20 said:
Based on my findings, the glow plug harness on the 6.5L engines is part of an entire "engine harness" type thing, rather than a separate harness that I'm seeing for sale on the internet that's for the 6.2L M998, and is only for the glow plugs. Likely going to have to just fix my existing wires for now.

I've got mostly everything traced that needs to be repaired, the one thing I haven't found is what the cable/sensor is in the attached picture.
Click to expand...
Sensor Cold Advance. Google everywhere. Couple of Packard connectors, water proof butt connectors and done.

Rust, Rats and Repairs, CAMO
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
110,879members
165,312threads
2,326,206posts
1,893online users
Top