Is the M880 gearbound

[wreckerman893]

I was only in one unit that had the Dodge M880 trucks.....I was not an assigned driver on one since they belonged to the Maint Platoon.

Are they full time 4WD and if so how can that be remedied?

Do they have built in grimlins like the CUCV series?

What is the sweet spot for milage as far as highway cruising is concerned?

There is one sitting in a field near me that looks to be in decent shape and I need a heavier pickup than the Dakota.

I know they have the 318 Dodge engine and I am familiar with it since I had a 70 Duster that had that engine in it......lots of after market goodies for them.

Can anybody help a brother out?

 

[gringeltaube]

Excellent workhorse and YES, full time 4WD! And working very well since it has that (manually lockable) third differential, inside the heavy duty NP203 T-case. No need to remedy anything drivetrain-related, IMHO. Just keep the front wheel bearings well greased if you want them to last.

Steering is manual but can easily be upgraded to PS.

Don't know about mileage, with the original engine. (Mine has a 6.2 L diesel/ TH400)

G.

 

[maddawg308]

I can speak from a little experience, but not a lot. I owned an M890 a while back, the 2WD version of the M880.

Full time 4WD. The transfer case is the NP203, a bulletproof unit.

They do have Gremlins. The Gremlins are rust-related, and in late-70s USA built vehicles, the gremlins were everywhere. Particularly in the cab corners, the rockers, and underneath the seat frame mounts.

The sweet spot is 55mph. It can go faster but it sounds like a raped banshee.

The stock engine is hard to kill (I have killed one, but you gotta work at it). The 318 Dodge engine is good for power, for being from the late 70s, again, mileage is going to suck big time, around 8 mpg. Tranny is the Torqueflite 727, also a great unit.

Dodge M880s are good trucks, but they are a product of one of the crappier periods of Detroit engineering, so you have to take it with a grain of salt. They are getting old, and unlike the M37s and M715s which are of a more tactical nature, and have a more dedicated following, M880s just never took off with collectors, even if you find a nice restored example, they rarely top $4,500 in value. They do have a following in the 4x4 community, but even then, they like modifying them to be more trail-friendly. Cummins engine swaps are not uncommon. The stock axles, Dana 60 in rear is good, but the front Dana 44 is a little light for being in a 5/4-ton truck. Recommend upgrading to a front Dana 60 if you plan on heavy loads or bigger tires.

Hope this helps.

 

[m38inmaine]

The charging system goes through the ammeter, a weak spot on these. There are plans to remedy this which I did on mine. They also use 16.5 rims, I just converted mine to use much easier to find 16" tires simply by changing the wheels. The only other problems I've had were the wiper arm bushings and heater switch but the parts are common. I have a power steering kit for mine but have not installed it yet, it uses a reverse steering box. The neutral safety switch connector on the side of the transmission popped off once on mine and it drove me crazy for a while trying to figure out why all of a sudden it had no starter spin until I saw in dangling down. Look forward to seeing it.

 

[4x4 Forever]

Only thing I remember was that the steering shaft has a tendency to wear out. other than that, good to go! Looking forward to pics as well WM.

 

[Recovry4x4]

All it really needs is an upgrade to PS and rust control. Hearty little trucks. I've owned an M887 and may own another one later today.

 

[Bob H]

They're junk, no one would want one of those.
3 or 4 maybe but not one. LOL
Seriously, though.
mileage is an issue 10-12 MPG or if it helps 30-36 MP3G
I have 285/75-16's on my M884 work/plow truck
and 36/12.50-16.5's on the M880
a wheel from a M101A2 will not fit on the truck (rear axle) but the M880 wheels can be used on a M101A2
Biggest issue is electrical grounds losing contact.

 

[Ferroequinologist]

The dodge D600 I collect WVO in has a 318- it was sitting for 7 years and now with very little work (new belts, hoses, etc) she is out running for 5-7 hours straight, lots of starts and stops with loads and without. Hauls 800 gallons around and gets 10mpg doing it. Love the motor.

I had a m880, and what everyone says is true- that poor truck was a rustbucket.

 

[Flyingvan911]

Carry a spare distributor cap and ballast resistor. Also carry an air filer. My dad said his '74 was prone to cracking distributors and frying ballast resistors. He also said that a dirty air filter will cause the engine to not start even though the filter doesn't look dirty. He had a 3/4 ton club cab body on a one ton chassis. It was a great truck. It cost six thousand dollars new and you had to buy your own bumpers.

 

[m880 unimog]

great trucks-as above=rust-electrical but nothing to worry about for a 30 some year old truck-i am lucky to own a few trucks of different nationalities but would never be without my mopar hauler-318 in one cummins 6bta going into another

 

[wreckerman893]

Thanks for all the support.

The one down the road is FUBAR...got a close look this morning and the rust issue was hidden by a couple of layers of brushed on paint. It was also missing most of the interior.

I had developed a craving by then so I bid on the contact version at Benning but someone wanted it more than I did.

Oh well.......I need a M915 more anyway.

 

[Recovry4x4]

I figured that was you Richard.

 

[pad_cdr]

in 1977 or 78, our batallion in Germany was issued brand new M887 contact trucks. We took a bus up to Heilbron and picked them up. They were definitely overloaded, with all the tools and the generator/welder, but we drove them home on the autobahn averaging 85mph. Steering was very squirrely, but we were mostly 19 year olds, and didn't care.

 

[wreckerman893]

I figured that was you Richard.

Soooooo......did one of us get it?

 

[Recovry4x4]

I refuse to go check. If I get the email in the AM I'll know.

 

[papabear]

If I had to choose between an M880 and a CUCV, I think I would choose a sharp stick in the eye!

 

[maddawg308]

Go buy it for cheap and part it out. Some guys here do have them and can use the parts. Like I said, they suffer from rust, if we don't save parts when we can, they will all dissolve into the ground!

 

[Recovry4x4]

Any idea what the M887 closed at? I'd go check my bid history but somebody beat me to the minimum bid so I gave up before I even placed a bid.

 

[wreckerman893]

It was a hair over $2250.00......that's where I bailed at. There was only one other bidder besides me.....if I had know for sure the tools were in it I would have hung in there for at least 3K.

 

[Recovry4x4]

Yikes! I've seen M1031s sell at that price. I shouda sold mine instead of chopping it up.