Help me pick my first 1st Gen truck!

[LJinLA]

Thanks, I'm holding out, waiting for right deal to come along. .

 

[HHhuntitall]

Dual wheel topic: The aluminum Hummer wheel like what's on the H2, won't fit the rear of your truck. The center bore is too small, and the lug holes are too small. Both can be fixed with machining, but that costs. The steel HMVEE wheels will fit fine, and run a long time. There's a set on a truck in my yard. One problem there is fitting it to the dually axle. It will stick outside of the fender @ 6" further than a factory wheel on a 3/4 ton. It should be fine on a dually. Front clearance is going to be an issue. The front fenders will have to be trimmed if you use the surplus tires.



As for your gas rig, the price is right if it can be fixed easy. Salvage title doesn't really hurt any since the value is already so low. The problem is how much you will put into it. If it takes more than $2-300 you may never get if back out of it... . Of course, later, if you can get the truck you want, it would make for good parts for your other truck... . But you don't have a place to keep it parted out, so again you run into some problems... . tough call with the timeline you've got. And not necessarily easy on a small budget.



You're really thinking on it too hard, man. Either stick to your goal and be happy until it works out, or jump on a deal and be happy with what you get... ... .

 

[Simplysmn]

Dual wheel topic: The aluminum Hummer wheel like what's on the H2, won't fit the rear of your truck. The center bore is too small, and the lug holes are too small. Both can be fixed with machining, but that costs. The steel HMVEE wheels will fit fine, and run a long time. There's a set on a truck in my yard. One problem there is fitting it to the dually wheel. It will stick outside of the fender @ 6" further than a factory wheel on a 3/4 ton. It should be fine on a dually. Front clearance is going to be an issue. The front fenders will have to be trimmed if you use the surplus tires.



As for your gas rig, the price is right if it can be fixed easy. Salvage title doesn't really hurt any since the value is already so low. The problem is how much you will put into it. If it takes more than $2-300 you may never get if back out of it... . Of course, later, if you can get the truck you want, it would make for good parts for your other truck... . But you don't have a place to keep it parted out, so again you run into some problems... . tough call with the timeline you've got. And not necessarily easy on a small budget.



You're really thinking on it too hard, man. Either stick to your goal and be happy until it works out, or jump on a deal and be happy with what you get... ... .

I would Never run Humvee wheel's on a street truck YUK besides there a Pain to work with trust me I have done well more then my share of them they should be Left for the Military Only

 

[JMDancoe]

LJINLA: Your idea of buying the used gas motor truck is doable, however as others have said, get ready to spend a lot of bucks. Also get ready to put in a lot of time and hard work. Make sure you have or have access to a good shop and plenty of tools. Prepare to spend a good deal of time on here asking for help, as you will need it. Fortunately, you will be in with the best bunch of Dodge Diesel heads you can hope for. They are always willing to help. I started with a 1986 D250 (2WD) auto trans and now have a 1986 Dodge D250 auto trans, with all 1992 inter-cooled diesel running gear. I, however was blessed to have one of the finest brothers in this world. He not only gave me the truck and the Cummins "we" put in it, he also has all the tools we needed (45 years as a mechanic) and a great, well equipped shop to do it in. We still spent one whole summer (4 1/2 to 5 months) doing the swap and changing his 2WD 92 D250 over to 4WD. I spent 5 days just mating the 1986 under dash wiring to the 92 under hood wiring. Do I believe it was worth it? Would I do again? No doubt about it! Every summer I go out to my brother's home in Colorado and we spend some time continuing to improve and upgrade both of our trucks. They are and always will be "works in progress". The base truck was an Arizona truck and was so clean underneath that the assembly line build paint pen numbers were still there and readable. Best advice I can give you is: think it through seriously before you jump.

 

[LJinLA]

Thanks for all the feedback, guys, it is much appreciated. I'm again revolving to stick to orig plan and wait for right deal cummins 4x4 manual to come along... .

Thinking of which... ...

What do you guys think of this deal? I'm posting it because, though initially very appealing and quite local to me, I don't think I'm gonna take advantage of it... . maybe someone here wants it... ... . but I'd be very interested to know what you guys think of it.

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/cto/3815054915.html

it's 92 Dodge W250 4WD Cummins, manual transmission (the Holy Grail!) with a bunch of stuff added and improvements made for only $5,000. Was ready to jump on it, then talked to owner, now not so sure... Main negative is that truck has 300K miles, or more precisely, odo stopped working at 300K miles. There are a few electrical problems, right door hinge needs to be fixed, AC leaks and needs fixing.

Price seems to be very firm at $5K.

Let me know what you think...

 

[HHhuntitall]

Yeah, if that went on Craigslist around here, it'd be gone in 24 hours, most likely. The mileage is the biggest bummer, but many would buy it anyway, just for the extended cab... . I bet that one goes pretty quick.

 

[RWherley]

From what i can see it looks to be a nice clean truck mileage is some thing to think about but if it was well taken care of i wouldnt be affarid of, the door hinge is not a big deal, the ac might not be bad to fix depending what it is. But it dose seem to be missing a wheel stud in that photo.

 

[LJinLA]

Tried contacting that guy again, left voice messages and email, but he never got back to me... probably sold.

 

[LJinLA]

Would you buy a truck with a shot odometer?

How do you guys feel about buying a truck with a shot odometer?
I'm coming across several of those and I usually pass them... . I was told by my insurance company that they will not insure a vehicle with a shot odometer because they price their policies based on the annual miles traveled and need to keep track of that.
Yet, a few sellers I've spoken to say that's no problem at all, that they have insured their trucks with shot odometers for years...
Besides the insurance issue, how does one go about regular maintenance with a shot odometer?
Is this something you would shy from or something you would go for?

 

[Simplysmn]

the speedo's go out easy on theses truck's what I would go off of is how clean the truck look's and how well maintained it is . doesn't matter if the speedo work's most people can tell when they have driven 5000 miles as for insurance just tell them it's working when you buy it then fix it after ward's

 

[RWherley]

My speedo works but it reads slow from a rear gear change i did last year, so i cheated and just use a gps for speed and mileage tracking, its not perfect but it works.

 

[HHhuntitall]

I've bought most of mine with a busted speedo. Usually something else that's busted,too... ... That's how I end up with it!!



I've never had a question on my insurance. Due to the age, the speedometer reading is usually exempt on the title, as the mileage could easily exeed the speedometer's mechanical limits. Only about half the time does the title transfer in Texas, Ok, NM, or AZ with the mileage on a truck that old. And they're getting to the point, some of them are close to being collector items in age, which exempts them further. I wouldn't worry about the mileage. And I usually look at a truck for what it is. I've seen 300k engines smoke less than 120k mile engines, usually due to lack of maintenance and poor air filter quality. That has more to do with the truck's condition than anything else.

 

[LJinLA]

As far as the insurance issue... .

I spoke yesterday to AAA (which insures all my vehicles) about it and was told they will not insure a vehicle with a non-working odometer.
Why not? They said that their price schedule is based, among other things, on annual miles (they have brackets under 2. 5K miles, 5K, 7. 5K, 10K, 15K, etc. ). Yearly, they have you sign a form stating the actual miles on your vehicle's odometer at that time. If it hasn't reasonably increased from the last reading, they will question it and ask to inspect the odometer and, if found not working, they will refuse to insure the vehicle until fixed. Furthermore, say you have an accident and file a claim... . they will want an odometer reading to make sure you haven't exceeded the bracket max you've paid for, and if that is exceeded or if the odometer is found stuck at the initial reading, it will invalidate the insurance policy as per their contract and you are left on your own, they won't pay.

Don't all insurance companies have similar rules? If this seems strange to you, what insurance company do you use for your truck?
Perhaps the agent I spoke to was an incompetent one and did not know about the odometer reading exemption for these trucks as pointed out by HHhuntitall.


By the way, I was quoted $430 for an AAA 12-month policy premium (liability only) on a '93 W250. How does that sound to you, or can I do better elsewhere?

 

[Simplysmn]

All you have to do is give them the Miles showing on speedo then get the thing fixed your over stressing about thing's relax thing's will fall into place .

 

[RWherley]

I have never heard of of a insurance company do some thing like that, mine you just pay for the coverage you want and they dont care about the mileage, but like Simplysmn said just fix it afterm you get it.

 

[HHhuntitall]

Well, yeah, it needs to be fixed anyway for proper maintenance schedules, so there you go.



One thing I didn't think to consider, is all of mine but two are registered as farm trucks. Most of which are on commercial policies for flatbeds. Regardless, I've never had a single question from State Farm on anything mileage related, except my KW and Frieghtshaker, and that was only on how many miles I average a year.



My policy on my '93 W250 w/steel bed is $50 every 6 months, and the 91 D250 is $78. My '03 is the highest truck at $114 every 6 months, and the wife's Durango is $246 every 6 months for full coverage..... The 91 and 2011 Durango are the only two not registered as Farm Trucks. I think you need to shop around, some. I know population density for where you live affects your insurance, but $430 sounds higher than Willie Nelson in an elevator.....

 

[LJinLA]

All you have to do is give them the Miles showing on speedo then get the thing fixed your over stressing about thing's relax thing's will fall into place .

Not overstressing at all, I don't know why you'd think that..... I'm just coming across situations pertinent to my search that I was never before exposed to and am posting them here to know what others think of them and how they have dealt with such issues... . it's very pleasant to hear from the knowledgeable members on this forum and I am very stress-free in doing so

 

[LJinLA]

Well, yeah, it needs to be fixed anyway for proper maintenance schedules, so there you go.

One thing I didn't think to consider, is all of mine but two are registered as farm trucks. Most of which are on commercial policies for flatbeds. Regardless, I've never had a single question from State Farm on anything mileage related, except my KW and Frieghtshaker, and that was only on how many miles I average a year.

My policy on my '93 W250 w/steel bed is $50 every 6 months, and the 91 D250 is $78. My '03 is the highest truck at $114 every 6 months, and the wife's Durango is $246 every 6 months for full coverage..... The 91 and 2011 Durango are the only two not registered as Farm Trucks. I think you need to shop around, some. I know population density for where you live affects your insurance, but $430 sounds higher than Willie Nelson in an elevator.....

Thanks for taking the time to write your detailed answer!

 

[Simplysmn]

You will run across alot of different thing's but just ask as many question's as you can I'm sure someone will beable to help you Paul I didn't mean to say anything hurtful in what I said if it came off that way I'm sorry but don't let the insurance company turn you off on buying a truck you find . reg is very simple to get done .

Val

 

[LJinLA]

You will run across alot of different thing's but just ask as many question's as you can I'm sure someone will beable to help you Paul I didn't mean to say anything hurtful in what I said if it came off that way I'm sorry but don't let the insurance company turn you off on buying a truck you find . reg is very simple to get done .

Val

No problem, Val... . and thank you for your valuable input throughout this thread!