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

[Cucvnut]

i drive a 62 buick all the time and my 25 year old M1008 like people said it depends on who did what to your CUCV in the time it was in the service.

 

[emr]

it seems reliable is in the eye of the beholder, these are old blazers that had a poor attempt at a diesel and they failed in the public market, i have seen guys here say, all the things they have replaced then say other than that its reliable, of course there will be some that run, but most of these need alot of attention, and to be honest they are dogs, with all that said i would get one because of what it is, and that is the key here, it is not what u want from what I can see ....sorry ...Randy

 

[Mudstone]

no matter how much it costs to maintain... it'll never be equal or more than a car payment. mine needed a bunch of work. sunk about 3g into it to date. however, it is coming to the plateau where it's just routine stuff and getting cheaper by the day. If you don't want a 25 year old beat to **** military truck... don't have one. These trucks will NEVER make a positive return imo. It's going to suck money but if you jump on it hard and keep up with or one step ahead of it it gets cheaper over time. I love my M1009 on some days and hate it on others. Mine doesn't leak as of yet and it seems to run solid. I just had to have brake work done and its running me about 500$. I don't complain i just deal because the truck is OLD and was neglected for a looooong time. Sell your truck to someone willing to enjoy it. Buy a nissan sentra. They are cheap and reliable. **** i'll sell you ours lol. I hate that thing.

 

[ryan77]

I love the look of the m1009 looks tough, and there's nothing like the shake of a diesel....

 

[Sgt Hulka]

Actually, reliability is not that subjective. It's not about the "eye of the beholder" it's about Mean Time Between Failures. That's a quantifiable metric...

 

[Sgt Hulka]

Also, what's the beef with the Detroit Diesel 6.2? I've done a lot of research on this engine and they are overwhelmingly considered solid, reliable, if underpowered units. They have a better rep than the 6.5 that succeeded them...

 

[Mudstone]

the bad rep comes from lack of maintenance by the time they get into civi hands.

 

[Nico]

sometimes u win / sometimes u loose
M1009
daly driver!
10 jears, 80000 miles, from the baltic to the northsea from the atlantic to the mediterranean and it runs and runs....
i had a friend with a dodge 880. he sold the dodge because of all the repairs and the unacceptable low mpg rate.
so what?
dodgechevy

greetz
nico

 

[emr]

All true, but they are not known as high mile motors in civy hands and were not good sellers for that reason, BUT as for hobby vehicles in my opinion they are awesome, I jest about them alot, ok, alot but as true as it is, they are still cool vehicles...I just feel bad for people who think they are a inexpensive vehicle to use daily , they are old, they need alot of tlc, they were probably run hard for the low miles they have, all said and done this post is about is it worth it to depend on, the answer is no, not for the way it is asked here, But I would still like one for what it really is a piece of history fun to use and alot more manageable than the big trucks....

 

[5ton4ever]

Whatever you get, just paint it od green! Problem solved.

 

[Sgt Hulka]

EMR... I'd love to see the data on how the J code 6.2s were not "high mile motors" in civilian life. I'm not saying you're not right. I'm just saying that my research indicates the exact opposite. Also my experience may not be representative, but I have two M1009s, both of which have proven to be inexpensive daily drivers for two years, despite the abuse they may have received previously.

 

[robesetz]

Cucv

As stated before you are occasionally going to have issues with these trucks. However, I would recommend going through the -10, -20 and -34 and doing a by the book(s) service. start at the before operator level checks in the -10 and go step by step through to the bi-annnual service. Not only will you avoid small problems becoming big problems, you will also learn alot about your truck and save a ton of money. Even good mechanics can miss steps while doing PM. Use the TM's! Good luck.
Rob

 

[dskchevy]

I hope you don't get one of the M880's from my old motor pool .........
We beat the dog poop out of them . Running them down tank trails just as fast as they would go....... When you are 17 and bullit proof and just out of basic you think the trucks are too............

 

[math1960]

If nothing else, you guys make the best debating team I have every heard! I'll hang on to it a while longer. fix it a bit at a time.

I'll start with the starter and I will do the roscommon 12volt conversion. No Debate.

Question, can a bad starter wear down the front battery.

 

[math1960]

What I mean is, wear down the battery in a very short period of time. Like two weeks of light driving?

Thanks

 

[Bob H]

as the starter is 24v it draws on both batteries, so no that is not the issue.
The charging system is the issue here.

 

[Sgt Hulka]

You'll be very happy with the Roscommon conversion. And you'll find it easy to convert back to 24v should you desire.

 

[Sgt Hulka]

P.S. Get the Wellman 050 glow plugs for the conversion. I've had a great experience with them.

 

[HardCorps79]

I, too, along with many on here, have a love-hate relationship with my CUCV. The love for me is from having a big green military Chevrolet that is relatively easy to work on. The hate is from having a Chevy that is underpowered, old and prone to unexpected failure. Add in the obsolete and unavailable parts, 24v weirdness and it can be a pain.

But for someone starting with almost no mechanical experience to speak of, this has been an ideal truck to learn on . The parts are cheap when they're available, and there's a ton of resources for K5 owners and vintage Chevy afficionados.

Financially, it can make sense if you look at it a certain way:
-It's paid for. I'll never have a credit collector call me or a repo-man threaten to take away my transportation due to a family hardship. You get to take home a titled vehicle for the price of a down-payment on a new truck.

-If I put a cheap car payment's worth of cash into parts and maintenance each month, I'm really not having too many reliability issues. Think about it: how sweet a ride could you make your CUCV if you spent $200-300 a month. But most don't. They just want to drive the pi$$ out of a 25-year old truck without taking time for upkeep.

-In addition to the money, this truck requires a time investment. It's old. For me that's part of the fun; it's a hobby just like mountain biking, hiking, and motorcycling. Owning this truck is also an exercise in character development. I consistently am tested in my patience as I encounter sometimes very frustrating situations with the beast. That's how we grow.

-There is a pride and sense of accomplishment when you've taken the personal time and financial investment to buy something old and beaten down and make it "new" again. To know that you took something discarded, then you've sweat, bled, and cursed, but ultimately ended up with something that you really enjoy, and that others envy.

There are better 4x4 diesels to be sure. But for someone who's thrifty and resourceful, enjoys a challenge, enjoys working on vehicles and loves the military despite it's obstinate trend toward sadism in all it does, these are really hard to beat.

 

[math1960]

Sage wisdom HardCorps79. Hadn't thought of it that way. Well reasoned. I've decided to keep the truck , fix and replace a little at a time. I haven't fooled with it for a couple of months now and my anger has subsided. My main problem is I am busy as **** and juggling a ton of things and trying to get ready for school this fall. I'll be fifty in august and been away from college a loooong time.
Any way thanks to all for the advice and maybe before the years out I can post pictures of my big green monster.