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Recently Purchase M923a1 problem...Big Problem

DeeMan6996

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Sioux Center Iowa
Well I just bought my first 1987 M923a1 with the NHC-250 From Saint Louis (575 Miles away) from Government Liquidation. (Was a pleasant experience besides all the bad I have heard about them) The auction said Will not start.

#1.jpg


It didn't Say missing batteries or anything like that (If it did I would not have bought it) because the truck didn't come with batteries. Bit the bullet and headed down with tools and fluids on Monday 9/15. Got to the base and realized the truck had no batteries. Thats when I realized this could be bad...really bad. So I drove to the nearest Napa and bought two new batteries. I only bought two batteries because I won't be using the jumping port on the passenger side of the truck. So dropped the batteries in and turned the key. The truck started right up which was suprising but then I heard a noise....About 2ish gallons of water came shooting out of the exhaust pipe. I yelled as many curse words as a I could and turned the truck off as soon as i saw the water. I checked the dip stick and it was white as snow.. I couldn't believe it. I bit the bullet and I knew I lost. I checked the fuel and it was a full tank, and it didn't smell right So i took an old gatorade bottle and drained a little out of the tank. There was some black crap on the bottom of the bottle and maybe a little water but I couldn't tell.


The truck had to get off the lot 40 minutes after I first started it so I knew I had to drive this truck off the base as fast as I could so I don't spin a bearing or hurt anything else. She started right up again (Good ol Trusty NHC-250) and spit out some more water. Only one tires was a little low but I didn't have time to air it up. I got around a couple of corners and started to drive up a slight incline. She started loosing fuel pressure and it died. Luckily I had enough air pressure to set the parking brake. Now I'm reallying yelling and shouting some holy words. Took the fuel canister off quick and realized the tank wasn't supplying the fuel filter/canister. So I took the main fuel line off from the tank to the canister and blew as hard as I could. No fuel or air came out so I knew that there was a clog in there somewhere. With 10 minutes left the Government Liquidation rep and the Master sergeant (Both Ladies) came and asked why my truck was sitting in the middle of their road. I told them because you sold me a truck that you lied about and now I can't get it off the lot. They almost made me put it in neutral and roll it back down the hill and park it. The Government lady told me she couldn't come back tomorrow and I couldn't afford to take off another day of work. They had three pay-loaders, two M916's, 3 m35a3's, and 20ish m923's that they had sitting there so I asked them if those could pull this out. We had 500ish feet til the main gate. They almost told me no but after some convincing they got a pay-loader and two chains and pulled me out. I ran out of air pressure and almost rear ended the pay-loader 3 times :D.



They got me outside the gate and pretty much told me to go screw myself and I did the same. At that point I was so mad it wasn't even funny. Drained the oil. There were 13 gallons of the milky crap that came out and it only holds 7 gallons..Filled it back up with 7 gallons. Changed the Oil filter (Cleaned the Block as best as I could) and Fuel Filter. Dumped Fresh Diesel in the canister and closed it back up. Checked oil and was a little white but not bad so I dared to start it and again it started right up, let it run for about a minute and lost fuel pressure and it died. Checked the canister and there was nothing in it. After all this I got a repair service to come down and give me a second opinion on what I should do. We decided that the truck had been sitting for around 3-4 years. The Fuel tank was full and I couldn't drain it. I was listening to the government liquidation lady and the master sergant talk and she said only two other trucks sold. There were 20 trucks for sale on GL website and only 3 sold!? She was the one that "Bid" on all the others!? I was so pissed off. So I worked on the truck with my dad who came down with me for around 14ish hours and had nothing to show for it. We had to head home with no truck and its still sitting there but hopfully this weekend My uncle and I are heading down with a semi and lowboy to get this thing home so I can work on it at school. I am going to school for Truck and Diesel so I can work on it during school instead of my free time after work. It just sucks this was my first time ever trying this and I hope it isn't my last but this really brang me down. I wished this could have worked out 10x's better



So after all this what damage could be done too the engine? Like I said when I dropped the batteries in and started it, it started right, and I mean right up. But then yeah 2ish gallons of water came out. I Know the head gaskets need to be replaced but what else could be broken? When I drove the truck it was only like a 700 feet and it sounded like a healthy 250, it had that special "ring" in the engine like other 250's that I have heard. I'm praying that everything turns out ok and that most of the internals are ok but I can't say for sure. Thanks for all your help and I hope this boring story was worth your time!
 
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wreckerman893

Possum Connoisseur
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Akenback acres near Gadsden, AL
:tigger:

Ok.......I'm going to take a deep breath and try to post before you really get flamed.
I'm going to speak to you like you are one of my Soldiers.
First and foremost you did not preview the truck. Strike one against you.
Two....you bid on a truck that you have little or no knowledge of a long way from home.
Three.....you didn't have a "plan B" in case you couldn't drive it home. You will prob spend as much on recovering it as it would have cost to have it shipped.
Four.....If you have been on this site for any time you would have read the horror stories about buying blind from GL...and yes I have had my share of the big weenie from GL. It is the nature of the game. They make the rules and we suck it up.
Five....going in there and railing against the GL and National Guard guys only makes it more difficult for the next guy that comes in behind you. They get paid to classify the trucks and to get them on and off the lots. They are not obligated to fix your lack of prior planning.
Six...from reading your post I assume you are a younger guy. Take this a lesson from the School of Hard Knocks. It probably ain't your first and it won't be you last if you live long.
Seven.....we are here to help you if you are willing to help yourself.
Welcome to the Green Iron Laughing Academy.:cookoo:
 

DeeMan6996

New member
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Sioux Center Iowa
Yeah I know it was my fault and I should have thought this through better. I couldn't just drive 600 miles to preview this truck (Though I really wish I did) and I really didn't have a plan B, besides borowing my uncles truck and Low-Boy to head back down which is what I should have done right away. I just kept telling myself that maybe there is air in the fuel lines, or it just needs batteries. I really wasn't disrespectful the the GL lady or the Master Sergant. The Master Sergant tried to chew me out because I asked her nicely if we could use one of the other trucks. A friendly Technician at the base said yeah we can do that and hoped in the Pay-Loader. Then when we got outside the base and the Master Sergant gave me even more attitude and started being disrespectful to me and my dad who didn't deserve any of it. I thanked the Technician for the help and didn't say anything the Master Sergant. The GL lady was nice enough and very professional. I some-what thanked her for what she did. (Stand there and make me sign papers) I thanked the Security Guards for letting me keep the truck outside the base on a gravel lot (Very Nice guys). I didn't do anything to piss the Master Sergant off, I gave her respect and she treated my dad and I like Crap. Thanks for the help Wreckerman hopefully If I buy from GL again I will take your advice. Glad to find a friendly fourm like this one. Have a good one.
 

74M35A2

Well-known member
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Livonia, MI
You don't know it needs head gaskets. I'm banking that everything filled with water from sitting outside, and that the fuel tank dip tube is plugged shut with uglies.

Good job on oil change and batteries, you should be 2/3 of the way there. Find out the connection type for the fuel inlet line at the pump. Make a stand alone small fuel can/tank, 24V pump from NAPA, and hose with proper fitting to connect to the Cummins injection pump. Get good clean fuel pressure into the injection pump and it should start and run if it did already. Fix the fuel system and go through the entire truck once home. Drain air tanks and test brakes well before driving on public road.

Consider what you paid for it before you blame. GL description is a minimum of 50% risk level.
 
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DeeMan6996

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Sioux Center Iowa
Yeah thats true I hope that its just rain and the gaskets are good!

I plan digging into the motor a bit and make sure that everything is in good working order. I'm gonna have to drain that full tank of fuel and get new fuel lines. Steam Wash the inside and outside of that tank and make sure the sock on the end of the fuel pick up line is clean.

I do like the idea of using a stand alone fuel can and pump. I'm gonna have to try that after I go through everything. Thanks for the Tips Sir!
 

74M35A2

Well-known member
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Livonia, MI
You're lucky the truck started at all, let alone drove 1 foot. 4 batteries are for cold starting, has nothing to do with usage of the slave port. Typically don't assess engine health via disassembly, rather use quantitative methods. Good luck.
 

DeeMan6996

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Sioux Center Iowa
Yeah you are right. I'll get it to my shop and after I go through the fuel lines and tank and do another oil change to hopefully get all that water out. I'll get that pump and fuel line and see how it runs after that. The air brakes seemed like they worked well I mean I only had to hit them a couple of times but them seems firm but not like they were locked. Since the fuel lines were plugged do you think it just ran of that fuel that was in the canister because when I took that off for the first time there wasn't much if at all in there. Thanks again!
 

swiss

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I wont lecture you as you will get enough of that soon enough. Things happen in life for a reason. This truck was put in your possession to provide you valuable lessons and experience that will help you in your studies and future life.

The fact that you have been able to troubleshoot some items and not afraid to get your hands dirty shows that some of your studies have paid off. Take this situation in a positive light or you will get frustrated to the maximum and not enjoy this learning potential.

Others have already stated a few good points but be careful diagnosing the problem before you have studied the patient. Get the vehicle home, start in a methodical manner and ask lots of questions on this site.

Welcome and we hope you stay awhile.

Life is all about Attitude.
 

wheelspinner

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North Carolina - FINALLY !
Luckily I had enough air pressure to set the parking brake.
Wreckerman has already given you some VERY sage advice, as well as others. My little piece of advice is that by this comment, it doesn't appear you have a good working knowledge of the air brake system operation. I could be wrong, but it look like you really need to spend some time understanding the COMPLETE air system, not just parts of it.

Good luck with the truck, could very well be very simple.
 

machinist75

Member
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Location
Murphy, TEXAS
My truck was full of coolant also. Started right up and didn't have coolant out the pipe. Took the oil pan off and the bottom of the #5 cylinder sleeve had came apart allowing coolant to pour in. Life sucks sometimes!
 

K9Vic

Active member
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Location
Fort Worth, TX
I have been in the car auction buying/selling business for 20 years at least and I do not even trust the auctioneer at a live auction. You HAVE to inspect them and if you cannot find someone locally to help by posted here in the correct SS forum. The current 5 Ton I have I helped inspected as I did not originally by it from GL, but the person that did from them. There were issues, and it was towed back to fix them. It is good driver now, but two of the air brake canister are leaking and need to be replaced. So nothing at GL is perfect, well maybe those rare recent refurbished M939 series trucks that I have only see a few of.

If a truck has been sitting for a long time with military grade diesel it should be fine. I had a M1009 that was sitting for maybe 6 years and no problems getting the truck started. I also had a M1009 from a city auction that sat for maybe 10 years and no problems starting. Diesel will hold allot longer over gas, but if you can drain it one should to be safe.
 

spartan_185

Member
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Location
Kiowa,Oklahoma
I hate to hear that you ran into the troubles that you did. You might have some bad O-rings around your oil cooler which would cause water to get onto your oil. I bid on nearly all of those trucks at St. Louis. I kept my bids low and I came out empty handed. My feelings weren't hurt after I saw what prices the trucks there brought.There were some dead giveaways that indicated those trucks had been sitting for a while. Some of those trucks had 1/2" cracks in the sidewalls of the flat tires. Plus most of the wood in the troop seats was heavily weathered and rotted. I have a feeling that there was a reason these trucks were auctioned off at St. Louis, instead of Jefferson City, which is where most of the Missouri NG turns in there equipment. I figure the NG couldnt get the trucks road worthy very easily for the drive up there, or they didnt want to pay hauling costs. Id bet you will not be the only one with a broken down truck that supposedly ran when lotted. Good luck
 

DeeMan6996

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Sioux Center Iowa
Sorry you couldn't get one man. I saw some of those trucks and they were pretty shot. When I got to the base I did look around at the other trucks that were there for sale and almost every truck had some type of flaw.

When I bid on my truck I couldn't find one on the outside. The inside looked some what clean so I went for it, Turns out it didn't work. I hope you get another m923 soon man!
 

spartan_185

Member
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1
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Location
Kiowa,Oklahoma
Sorry you couldn't get one man. I saw some of those trucks and they were pretty shot. When I got to the base I did look around at the other trucks that were there for sale and almost every truck had some type of flaw.

When I bid on my truck I couldn't find one on the outside. The inside looked some what clean so I went for it, Turns out it didn't work. I hope you get another m923 soon man!
Heck, I dont "need" any more of them ever again, but I do have several regular customers that hit me up for trucks every now and then. I like to bid closer to home anyways. It makes transportation and preview a lot more easier .
 

DeeMan6996

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Sioux Center Iowa
Haha I know what ya mean I've always wanted an M923 since I was little so I decided to pull the trigger. Look Like I should have bid on the ones in Sparta Wisonson instead. Atleast then I could of previewed. But they went for a little out of budget so I counldn't
 

K9Vic

Active member
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Trucks from Sparta (Ft McCoy) are usually pretty good and why they went high. However truck prices across the board are high in general, but that should hopefully calm down in the next few months.
 

DeeMan6996

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Sioux Center Iowa
Hopefully! I plan on buying a couple more and hopefully one from Sparta. Ever Truck I've seen (Through GL's Website) looked really good and well taken care of. Maybe some day I can own a couple but for now I need to get the one I have running smoothly and make sure nothing is hurting on the inside. Thanks for all the responses and the advice people have given. Appreciate it!
 

Trailboss

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Norwood LA
You said the diesel didn't smell right. Be advised that every truck I've bought from GL had JP8 in the tanks, which looks and smells different than diesel. There may be trash and water in the bottom of the tank, but the fuel should still be ok.
 

goldneagle

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Slidell, LA
You said the diesel didn't smell right. Be advised that every truck I've bought from GL had JP8 in the tanks, which looks and smells different than diesel. There may be trash and water in the bottom of the tank, but the fuel should still be ok.
I agree. I would drain the fuel. Then let it sit for a few days or week. Then siphon only the gas off the top and run it through a filter sock. It would be a shame to get rid of 80 gallons of fuel!
 
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