Time for a no nonsense, come to Jesus moment, about m1009

[math1960]

Gentlemen, I must say, I have truly enjoyed this website and the spirited discussions on this board. These boards are a true testament to what the internet can be. People helping and empowering people. Thank you one and all, for your generous sharing of your time and wisdom ( Don't worry, I'm not running for office!)
So far, I have enjoyed the comradery of these boards more than I have enjoyed my m1009.
Friday, I had to tow this piece of s**t home for the third time. I think it's the starter. Last time it was the alternators, the time before that it was the fuel line.

Now it's leaking oil, fuel, wears down the front battery every other week and bad starter. God only knows what it will be after this.

Ok, here's my problem, I'm running out of patience and money, I'm returning to school this fall to study a very rigorous program. I'm 50 and this is not going to be a cake walk.
So please put aside your love for tinkering on these old trucks for one moment , and give me some advise on exactly what I should do to make this thing reliable. If I can't make it reliable and soon, it has to go.

At this point I'm thinking change out every gasket, seal, rewire, change every part under the hood and convert to 12 volt. This truck won't be going off road much, and I'm not keeping it a military collectable (I did my time in service). If anyone has any ideas, speak now please.

 

[Ken_86gt]

I don't think you should view these trucks as any different than any other 25 year old car when it come to repairs and maintenance. As with any 25 year old car that has seen hard life it will need a lot of attention. Would you be willing to own a 25 year old car and expect it to be reliable as a modern car? I think not. So really it is up to you to decide if you want a vehicle that will need frequent attention or not. There is nothing you can do now to make sure it won't need fixing later. Now as you fix things those things should be good for a while before needing repair again. I see than you have changed the alternators and are still having a problem with your front battery, either the charging system still needs attention or the battery need replacement- this kind of stuff is never ending.

I would suggest that you covert the starter to 12v as you probably need a new one, fix your charging problem, fix the fuel leaking, convert to push button glow plugs ( or add the button in parallel for when the controller fails) and then you should be able to drive it for a while. I don't think it would be cost production to just change everything.

 

[moleary]

If you need a reliable daily driver without any drama then I would get a different car. I think the fact that this great website exists is a testament to the fact that with these vehicles there is DEFINITELY going to be some drama.

I guess the question becomes: "What is my tolerance level for repair downtime and maintenance?"

must my

 

[gtsig]

Repairs

The only way to make is half reliable is to change all the parts for new ones and rebuild what you can't buy new. And then you will make your truck 80% sure that it will run fine, until it breaks down again.
They are strong and can last but you will have to fix this and that. So for an everyday car it's better to get a toyota (rice burner) they will run forever. And have the truck for when you need something that size.
My

 

[math1960]

Thanks Gentlemen, I think I have my answer. Any one want a new hobby. I'm selling it.
Oddly enough I have a 25 year old chrysler fifth Ave. I use as a daily driver with 125,000 miles on it that has never let me down. I know that there will always be a certain amount of repairs to be done on older vehicles, but not a cascading effect like this thing.
I'm going to check on the m880. Dodge won't let you down.

Thanks

 

[ryan77]

Any older car ive owned i have change all the gaskets, hoses, belts or any wearable part automatically just so i dont have oil leaking on my driveway or have a breakdown that can be avoided.

 

[dmc-4359]

If I were in your position and reliable transportation were my primary concern, I would replace the starter on this truck and then sell the truck for $2000-$2500 as a running V8 4x4 truck. I would take the money from the sale and purchase an early 90's honda accord with a 4 cylinder engine. They earned their reputation for a reason. I would avoid getting a civic because they attract the ricer crowd and you will run a higher chance to compete with all manner of bastardization.

You won't have the off road capabilities of the Blazer nor have the cargo space (plenty for school stuff though). You will have about the same performance and easily net twice the fuel economy on regular gasoline.

//Opinions and their worth, all that jazz.

Gentlemen, I must say, I have truly enjoyed this website and the spirited discussions on this board. These boards are a true testament to what the internet can be. People helping and empowering people. Thank you one and all, for your generous sharing of your time and wisdom ( Don't worry, I'm not running for office!)
So far, I have enjoyed the comradery of these boards more than I have enjoyed my m1009.
Friday, I had to tow this piece of s**t home for the third time. I think it's the starter. Last time it was the alternators, the time before that it was the fuel line.

Now it's leaking oil, fuel, wears down the front battery every other week and bad starter. God only knows what it will be after this.

Ok, here's my problem, I'm running out of patience and money, I'm returning to school this fall to study a very rigorous program. I'm 50 and this is not going to be a cake walk.
So please put aside your love for tinkering on these old trucks for one moment , and give me some advise on exactly what I should do to make this thing reliable. If I can't make it reliable and soon, it has to go.

At this point I'm thinking change out every gasket, seal, rewire, change every part under the hood and convert to 12 volt. This truck won't be going off road much, and I'm not keeping it a military collectable (I did my time in service). If anyone has any ideas, speak now please.

 

[math1960]

I understand what you're all saying. No I'm not using this truck as a daily driver. I have a very comfortable and dependable car for that. I use this thing for occasional hauling and when I can get away for some fishing. I'm from south Mississippi. I fish the southern part of my state, Louisiana and around the gulf.

Believe me, you DON'T want to be fishing on a levy in some back water bayou and have a truck that won't start. You may can get help, but I fish in some remote areas. So though I don't use trucks very often when I do they need to work. I'm going to fix it and look for a m880.

Thanks all.

 

[IdahoPlowboy]

I take it your a Dodge fan and there is nothing that a GM made truck could do to change this? 880s are a fine truck but they have problems also. You own one 1009 and that ****s the whole lot of them? Get the truck you like and trust and go from there.

 

[wreckerman893]

Here is Wreckerman's opinion on the M1009 and other "militarized" civy vehicles.

I have driven and maintained all of them at one time or another in my military career.

The Chevys were a stop gap between the M151 and the HUMVEEs.

The 800 series Dodges were bought to bail Chrysler out when it hit bottom the first time. This was the same time the "K cars" were used by GSA and the base motor pools.

They were converted from 12 to 24 volt and that brought a lot of issues to the table.

A lot of your problems may stem from how your particular vehicle was used, abused and maintained. Some of these vehicles lived an easy life in a non-tactical unit where they may have been on the road once in a blue moon. Others were in combat units where they were run hard and put up wet.

That is the main reason I will never own one.....I know them well and leave them to those who have a much higher frustration level than I. Been there, done that, got all the T-shirts.

 

[davidkroberts]

Personally I would get rid of the CUCV. Look on the board postings. Seems like more than half are problems related to the M1008, M1009 series trucks.

I think they are crap personally, sell it and get a more reliable vehicle.

and before anyone starts I LOVE chevy trucks but the 6.2 L diesel is probably the worst motor ever designed.

 

[saddamsnightmare]

April 6th, 2010.

math1960:

Good luck with the Dodge M880.... I did not like that model when they were new, and I doubt if you will find one running all that well this many years later. I've had some good GM's, some poor GM's (a 1985 S-10 that needed overhauled at 110,000 and then blew a piston at 114,000), I've had exceptional Fords (1989 F250 4X4 military experimental prototype with 1-1/2 ton axles from the factory- went 325,000 hard miles - 2 + ton loads of rock regularly.....and is still running) and a 1951 F-6 dump that limped on and on and on....
My favorite truck....? If speed is not essential but off road capability, reliability and ease of repair is the 1963 Mercedes Benz Swiss S404.114... It only has 19000 miles since new in 1963 and runs all the time every day, My second choice with only a few more ills (starter solenoid, mainly), my 1971 Kaiser Jeep M35A2.... it will be running when all the rice burners are converted to scrap (Toyota, anyone????)....
But the luck of the draw is you need to go over these trucks with a fine tooth comb when you inspect them before buying, and realize that sometimes changing a proven system can cause a cascade of ills in a vehicle that may have been marginal due to the way it was used and treated..... I absolutely hated the GSA K- cars, and they were POS from day one... My 199O YJ was a heck of a Jeep, no radio, nothing, and never had but one recall and little or no exceptional maintenance, but once Daimler got involved, the two since were too finely engineered and all of the axle bearings went out on one at 41,000 miles, no off road time...... I'm waiting for the 2006 to pull that stunt. I would go for a really top notch restored M38A1... nothing major to go wrong, it's well known and easy to fix....


Good luck in any case,

Cheers,

Kyle F. McGrogan

 

[m16ty]

My brother bought a M1008 two years ago. We got it home and he put a set of batteries and glow plugs in it and has been driving it ever since. It's his daily driver and he's a logger so it don't get "babied". He hasn't spent a dime on it other than routine maintenance so I guess there's good and bad ones in everything.

That being said, I think you've lost the love for the truck. Working on these old MVs is a labor of love and you've got to enjoy it to be happy. I know with a truck I "love" I'll spend many hours and more money than it's worth to keep it going but if I ever loose the love I can't get rid of it fast enough. Please don't take this the wrong way but if you're not happy with the truck now you can never throw enough money at it to make you like it. If I felt the way you do I'd sell the truck.

 

[ryan77]

Personally i wouldnt drive any 25 year old vehicle as a reliable daily driver, To many things can go wrong. If my car doesnt start and i miss work i dont get paid i dont get sick or personal days. So when i turn the key i want it to start every time and i know this will piss some guys off.

 

[lavarok]

Personally i wouldnt drive any 25 year old vehicle as a reliable daily driver, To many things can go wrong. If my car doesnt start and i miss work i dont get paid i dont get sick or personal days. So when i turn the key i want it to start every time and i know this will piss some guys off.

That is why you need to have more than one! Seriously though, it was said above..there are good ones and bad ones. I've been lucky. All my cucvs have given me very little hassle and I drive my cucvs daily.

 

[davidkroberts]

im officially dittoing the Unimog 404..... I loved mine all i ever did to it was change the oil and put in an electronic ignition. when i sold it (mistake) it was driven from west tennessee to eastern north carolina

 

[dmc-4359]

I think that depends on how much preventative maintenance is truly done to a vehicle versus reacting to something that has already broken and is making bad noises or simply doesn't work anymore. From what I've seen of my coworkers new cars (reaction maintenance, save for oil changes), they are not significantly more reliable than any of mine that are tagged/insured.


//Arguably their's don't leak fluids, rattle, squeak, use cryptic startup/shutdown sequences, significantly increase in value from swapping paint with other cars or fillups, that sort of thing.

Personally i wouldnt drive any 25 year old vehicle as a reliable daily driver, To many things can go wrong. If my car doesnt start and i miss work i dont get paid i dont get sick or personal days. So when i turn the key i want it to start every time and i know this will piss some guys off.

 

[Sgt Hulka]

Wow. I'm very sorry to hear of your experience and frustration. I have two that are scarily reliable. Interesting though, both came through govt agencies after the Army. The "good" one sat for 10 years in a US Forest Service lot. So after dealing with all the ills of sitting (gasket, belts, seals, fluids) and converting to 12v (blasphemy!) I would drive it anywhere. Yes, it's 25 years old and I have to be mindful of that. But I don't consider it delicate or breakable at all...

 

[Sgt Hulka]

P.S. Both mine are daily drivers, though one is local only.

 

[Bob H]

I trust my M880's and I know how to keep them going.
Haven't had a CUCV, they are more pricey than the blacksheep 880's.
I would love to have a M1009, but I have an SUV already ('01 Cherokee with over 150k on the clock.)
If you buy an M880 series that has been sitting, you will have many of the same problems that the cucv is giving you, with the exception of the gasser engine, which come with issues from sitting also.
You'll probably have a tough time selling the 1009 unless you fix it's issues, and if you fix it's issues, you might as well keep it.
I have friends with M1009's that run 50% used motor oil in the tank with pump diesel and see 20mpg.
The typical m880 gets 10 mpg.