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Purchasing M-1078 or M-1079 thru GovPlanet

rockDAWG

Member
86
26
18
Location
Delaware
Wannabe here. Just try to learn more about FMTV before bidding on an M-1078 or 79. I have a few urgent questions and hope to get some guidance from you folks.

1. Does Govplanet give you the needed document when you pick up your vehicle to get a temporary license plate to drive back to your home state assuming that the vehicle is safe to drive?

2. Can you obtain EUC before bidding or each winning bid must have its EUC?

3. What is the going rate for transporting an M-1078 from the auction site to the home state? Will $2 to $3 per mile be reasonable? I am thinking my max bidding distance will be 1500 miles from home. If anyone has a lead on transportation, please let me know.

4. I understand this type of vehicle is old (15 to 25 yo), after replacing seals, hoses and repairing what is needed, will it provide a reliable platform for traveling throughout North and South Americas? I have been following many YouTubers for this purpose.

A little bit of myself:
Will be retiring in a year or so.
Very low EGO emission person
Avid blue-water sailor and Jeeper (Rock Crawler). I buy things for their intended purpose. I don't buy or build it for going to the mall or show. That is nothing wrong with that, but it is not me.
Handy with my hands with all auto mechanic tools except the lift, built my TJ, M416 trailer, and rebuilt BMW
No experience with a Turbodiesel engine, but have working knowledge of small marine diesel engine (Yanmar)
Getting older, but healthy. I need to consider my ability to fix a big truck on my own especially in the middle of nowhere
My safe fall back is a 2020 Transit cargo van high roof and extended cab. But it is so "NOT ME". LOL

Show me the light, Thanks, Guys.
 

coachgeo

Well-known member
5,147
3,462
113
Location
North of Cincy OH
...
No experience with a Turbodiesel engine, but have working knowledge of small marine diesel engine (Yanmar)
...
welcome to us crazy people. Was a Jeeper too LONG ago (reporter for Rockcrawler.com ... now defunct... had a TJ-ish crawler/daily driver back then) Anyway.... when your troubleshooting on engine after you get her...... forget gasser troubleshooting experience... it's almost opposite of what you intuitively think when your mind jumps to gasser thoughts. (mostly; not counting starter or alternator electronics though)
 
Last edited:

Ronmar

Well-known member
3,845
7,474
113
Location
Port angeles wa
1. You will have every piece of paper GP is going to give you before you can schedule a pickup. You can either specify a bill of sale or a state title for extra $ as long as you have proof of ownership, you should be able to get a temp tag for transport. But unless you are familliar with these vehicles, I would not drive it. Some have done it, but these things went to DRMO and auction for a reason.

2. EUC after bid/win.

3. Not sure, depends on where you are and who you know...

4. Also depends on your skillsets. IMO the A0 would probably be the more reliable(mechanical injection) of course the A1’s are newer, run cleaner and make a little more HP... but sometimes they just stop and you need a tech and a reader to even see what is the problem, let alone source the part and repair. Just my .02...

good luck.
 

rockDAWG

Member
86
26
18
Location
Delaware
welcome to us crazy people. Was a Jeeper too LONG ago (reporter for Rockcrawler.com ... now defunct... had a TJ-ish crawler/daily driver back then) Anyway.... when your troubleshooting on engine after you get her...... forget gasser troubleshooting experience... it's almost opposite of what you intuitively think when your mind jumps to gasser thoughts. (mostly; not counting starter or alternator electronics though)
Hahaaaa. It seems that are plenty Jeepers here on Steelsoldier. Are we all wanting a bigger toy? :D
 

MGKMartin

Member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
182
23
18
Location
Portland, OR
EUC, Bill of Sale, and SF-97 wait times are WAY up. If the truck is Demil A then you will only have the release paperwork. If it is Q be prepared to wait multiple months (sometimes up to 6 months) for the EUC. The good news is that you will have the SF-97 or Bill of Sale by then.

We strongly advise against driving these trucks home. There is a reason they are surplussed. The government rarely sells a $100k+ truck for pennies on the dollar because they got tired of storing it. It happens, but it isn't common. The trucks were abused by the government, were abused further by DLA, and finally abused by Gov Planet. There WILL be things wrong with it. I have seen multiple people grenade an engine trying to drive a truck home that is "running" from the auction.

We have some of the things we have seen on our website at http://fmtvsales.com/why-not-buy-at-auction

With full maintenance these are extremely reliable trucks. They have a commercial Cat engine, commercial Allision transmission, commercial Meritor gears, Haldex air system, etc. There are some mil specific parts, but most of the truck is commercial over-the-road parts. We have multiple customers that have driven them across the country without any issues.

If you want to get into a truck that is ready to go that you can fly in and drive home, is fully serviced and mechanically works the way it is supposed to and comes with a 6 month warranty, we have around 30 in stock. We have M1078's, M1079 A0 A1 and A1R, M1083A1's, M1084A1's, a M1085A1, M1088 A0 and A1, and a M1089A1.

Martin@FMTVSales.com
 

MGKMartin

Member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
182
23
18
Location
Portland, OR
We currently have 3 M1079's. We have a 1998 A0 and a 2006 A1R in stock and a 2002 A1 waiting to be picked up as soon as we can get access to the base after quarantine is over. The A0 is $25k, A1 $30k, and A1R is $35k. All will be fully serviced, mechanically sound, and come with our standard 6 month warranty.
 

Awesomeness

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,813
1,518
113
Location
Orlando, FL
Wannabe here. Just try to learn more about FMTV before bidding on an M-1078 or 79. I have a few urgent questions and hope to get some guidance from you folks.

1. Does Govplanet give you the needed document when you pick up your vehicle to get a temporary license plate to drive back to your home state assuming that the vehicle is safe to drive?

2. Can you obtain EUC before bidding or each winning bid must have its EUC?

3. What is the going rate for transporting an M-1078 from the auction site to the home state? Will $2 to $3 per mile be reasonable? I am thinking my max bidding distance will be 1500 miles from home. If anyone has a lead on transportation, please let me know.

4. I understand this type of vehicle is old (15 to 25 yo), after replacing seals, hoses and repairing what is needed, will it provide a reliable platform for traveling throughout North and South Americas? I have been following many YouTubers for this purpose.

A little bit of myself:
Will be retiring in a year or so.
Very low EGO emission person
Avid blue-water sailor and Jeeper (Rock Crawler). I buy things for their intended purpose. I don't buy or build it for going to the mall or show. That is nothing wrong with that, but it is not me.
Handy with my hands with all auto mechanic tools except the lift, built my TJ, M416 trailer, and rebuilt BMW
No experience with a Turbodiesel engine, but have working knowledge of small marine diesel engine (Yanmar)
Getting older, but healthy. I need to consider my ability to fix a big truck on my own especially in the middle of nowhere
My safe fall back is a 2020 Transit cargo van high roof and extended cab. But it is so "NOT ME". LOL

Show me the light, Thanks, Guys.
Welcome!
  1. Unless you have a lot of money for emergency repairs on the road, which will quickly eclipse the cost of shipping it, I recommend against trying to drive it home. Unlike older model trucks that they get rid of because they were replaced by new vehicle designs, these are still "current" - so the ones they are getting rid of are generally the worst misfit-truck they have.
  2. I paid like $3/mi for mine, like 5 years ago. If you have connections or know the business, you can probably do a little better, but I would plan for $3+.
  3. "Replacing seals, hoses, and repairing what is needed" is usually not a small task - perhaps not complicated, but unless you drop $20k on all brand new hoses/seals/plugs/etc., you're going to find some new leak or issue every few months. The more you work on it, the more you use it, and the better you know the truck, the more reliable it becomes. There are numerous people driving them all around.
 
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