Bombardier MLVW , anyone know these beasts ?

[keet]

I got my eye on a 1982 Bombardier MLVW 6x6 . If I do get her she will be bobbed and hot rodded . This is a Canadian military vehicle and is similar to the American deuce and a half . Is anyone here familiar with this vehicle ? The info out there on them is limited . I would love to talk to someone who worked on and owned one . The guy who is selling her don't know a lot about them which sucks . Thanks gang

 

[eaw46]

Its an M35 built under licence by Bombardier in Canada. The Canadian Govt. will not let these be licensed for on road use if they are sold by Crown Assets Disposal. The truck has a lot of parts that are proprietary and hard to find. There was no bidding the contract was just given to Bombardier to appease Quebec. I would rather have an M35 built by just about anyone else. Bombardier does not have a good reputation for build quality. The Iltis is also built by them under licence and is not even close to the quality of the Austrian/German VW original. Kia also builds an M35 and it would be a better buy than a Bombardier.

 

[oboyjohn]

Greetings from Montreal! I worked almost 25 years on the MLVW`s. I have not owned one myself (came close) but would be happy to answer any questions you have about maintenance and upkeep. There are a few, very few, MLVW`s out there that were licensed for road use before the government added on the `not for road use`clause. I believe the main sticking point was the single circuit bakes system.

Cheers!

 

[sigo]

Some do have some very nice features such as the hydraulic winch, single wheels, and over cab storage rack. I’ve seen some with a crane behind the cab too. Don’t they have a decent 8.2 Detroit engine and auto trans as well? Got some pics of the truck you’re looking at?

 

[oboyjohn]

All of them had the 8.2 Detroit and the Allison MT 643 automatic transmission. Some had hydraulic winches and cranes. There was even an engineering variant that had side mounted post hole digger and a full compliment of hydraulically powered tools. There were lots of other variants ranging from machine shops, to dentist offices, to optical clean rooms.

 

[keet]

Cool . Ho w would I know what was road legal ? Would it be labeled on the machine somewhere ? Would one of these be worth the while ? Eaw46 don't seem to think they are worth a **** .lol

 

[eaw46]

They are worth money, just harder to get parts for and most have the Not legal for on road use or for Off road use only clause that could cause you a lot of trouble if you ever had an accident with one. In some ways they are superior to other trucks but its the parts supply and the off road use designation that is troublesome.

 

[Mattech]

There is no labels put on them to let you know if they are road legal, it would depend on when and where it was sold through Crown Assets, a few did get sold via CA from Quebec before they changed their minds and stop selling them.. but I would probably say that if you find an undestroyed MLVW it may have been licensed because there has not been any released for over 6 years now.

Cool . Ho w would I know what was road legal ? Would it be labeled on the machine somewhere ? Would one of these be worth the while ? Eaw46 don't seem to think they are worth a **** .lol

 

[Mattech]

The (Off Road Us Only) was because of the single line and reservoir brake system being used, and also the problems with the trunnions breaking right behind the inner bearings where the machining stops.... there was several that broke and the body dropped onto the wheels, the M35 is compatible for some of the parts for the MLVW as they were based off it....I also understand the there is a conversion system to change the brakes to a duel master cylinder and system to be able to make it highway acceptable.

 

[keet]

thanks

Thanks for the info man . Good to know

 

[keet]

Not sure what trunnions breaking you are talking about . Is this suspension related . I would bob this vehicle if I purchased it .lol. thanks

 

[Mattech]

Not sure what trunnions breaking you are talking about . Is this suspension related . I would bob this vehicle if I purchased it .lol. thanks

The trunnions are the pivot point on the spring package mount between the Differentials on this vehicle...they were breaking at the inside of the inner bearing, were the machine surface stopped, they were actually breaking off completely at this point...the Canadian Military is not letting anymore out to the public, they are scraping and dismantling the rest of the fleet for parts as they get taken off the working system..."ie..accidents, blown engines and trani's...the normal disfunctional vehicle syndrom if you know what I mean.."

 

[Mattech]

Some do have some very nice features such as the hydraulic winch, single wheels, and over cab storage rack. I’ve seen some with a crane behind the cab too. Don’t they have a decent 8.2 Detroit engine and auto trans as well? Got some pics of the truck you’re looking at?

"The 8.2 Penny Pincher Diesel" engine as we knew and called them with the Allison Trani, did have problem with throwing connecting rods through the side of the block at times.. but when they ran good--they ran good....the HIAB's were a good addition to these vehicles... I used them many times in and out of the field...

 

[DREAD KT]

Greetings from Montreal! I worked almost 25 years on the MLVW`s. I have not owned one myself (came close) but would be happy to answer any questions you have about maintenance and upkeep. There are a few, very few, MLVW`s out there that were licensed for road use before the government added on the `not for road use`clause. I believe the main sticking point was the single circuit bakes system.

Cheers!

Hello from Raleigh, NC! I am a Canadian working in the US and picked up a very nice M109A4 two years go from Philadelphia. I am converting to an expedition RV. I was a little surprised to read about the Canadian government "not for road use" clause and would like more details. The funny thing is that I have driven my Deuce to Canada twice now and nobody mentioned anything to me, either the folks at the border or the police at rest stops in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec or Ontario. In fact, one stopped me just to ask me where they could get one! If I move back, can I register my truck there? Insurance is dirt cheap here and parts are plentiful and inexpensive.

 

[oboyjohn]

One of the main sticking points was the single circuit brake system. At least they can be modded for a dual circuit setup like the American A3's. Another point was the rear suspension trunion. With our winters up here and the amount of salt that is put down in one season, there were a few failures where the trunion actually broke from micro cracks and salt corrosion forming where the machined part meets the casting that attaches to the frame. It is at a point where the spring pack pivot felt seal seats on the trunion. The only time that would be taken apart would be for suspension work and that did not happen very often, hence the micro-cracks and corrosion.

 

[BKubu]

Hello from Raleigh, NC! I am a Canadian working in the US and picked up a very nice M109A4 two years go from Philadelphia. I am converting to an expedition RV. I was a little surprised to read about the Canadian government "not for road use" clause and would like more details. The funny thing is that I have driven my Deuce to Canada twice now and nobody mentioned anything to me, either the folks at the border or the police at rest stops in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec or Ontario. In fact, one stopped me just to ask me where they could get one! If I move back, can I register my truck there? Insurance is dirt cheap here and parts are plentiful and inexpensive.

Your M109A4 should have the dual circuit brake system. Also, it has other nice safety features like 3-point seat belts and a back up light. I don't have any input on registering it in Canada, though...but I would think you should be covered with the brakes.

 

[Mattech]

Greetings from Montreal! I worked almost 25 years on the MLVW`s. I have not owned one myself (came close) but would be happy to answer any questions you have about maintenance and upkeep. There are a few, very few, MLVW`s out there that were licensed for road use before the government added on the `not for road use`clause. I believe the main sticking point was the single circuit bakes system.

Cheers!

The braking system is not the only issue for not selling them to the public, the Trunion has a habit of snapping at the bearing housing, the whole fleet was temporarily grounded when 2 incidents of this happened in a short period, all the trunions were ultra-sound inspected and the one that failed due to cracking at the machined bearing surface, were replaced...unfortunately it took all the good trunions from the national stock and they had to wait for reclaimed trunions from scraped vehicles...

 

[Mattech]

Not sure what trunnions breaking you are talking about . Is this suspension related . I would bob this vehicle if I purchased it .lol. thanks

 

[DREAD KT]

Your M109A4 should have the dual circuit brake system. Also, it has other nice safety features like 3-point seat belts and a back up light. I don't have any input on registering it in Canada, though...but I would think you should be covered with the brakes.

Thanks for the reply. I was not aware that there were so many differences between the AM General and Bombardier versions, so I started to investigate. I met one person in Canada who had registered their Deuce but he did not confirm the make. I would be interested in registering it in either Ontario or Alberta and would appreciate comments from anyone who has experience with that. I have all the safety features you mention plus I added a backup, rear view and side cameras. I recommend this for anyone with the M109.

 

[cattlerepairman]

I have my US origin M35A2 registered in Ontario. Ontario is similar to other heavy-collector-vehicle-unfriendly states in the US in that it sees your M109A4 as a vehicle that
- has never before been registered in Canada, therefore needs to be emissions tested to the current standards (no allowance for being XX years old). My way out was that it is a multifuel (which does not exist as a category; it is either Gas or Diesel). I registered as Gas so did not have to pass the Diesel particulate emissions test (which this engine has a snowball in hell's chance of passing).
- weighs over 4500kg, therefore is a commercial vehicle and the MOT will therefore push you into the commercial vehicle operator category, if you let them. They will very much want for you to become a CVOR registered operator. Annual safety, log book, the whole nine yards. It makes zero sense for a personally owned historic vehicle but the "historic" category does not exist in Ontario for vehicles over 4500 kg.

Your advantage with an M109A4 is that you can go the RV route (and most likely you should)! Register as an RV and save 90% of the stupidity.