>>> RALLYE ROADSIDE BREAKDOWNS <<<

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

After reading several accounts of roadside repairs, breakdowns, and crippling back home stories, it would make one shy away from contemplating buying one of these trucks.

I could have it all wrong, but it seems like many of you only occasionally drive your "hobby" trucks and they only really get a test when the rallye comes along.

A truck is just like a horse; "you gotta ride 'em evah day".


If one uses his long distance truck also as his daily-driver, then he can find all of those lurking quirks and conquer them as they forewarn impending complications; and, if anything does happen to go amiss, usually it will occur within a few miles of the house = much more convenient than way out in nowhere.


Another issue I have noted is that many begin last-minute major transitions and finish them up five minutes before heading out; this will almost always bite you later.


Another pit-fall awaiting the occasionally driven truck is OLD TIRES.

They may have like-new tread and only five thousand miles on them, but an old tire is an old tire, especially if that tire is a steel-belted radial tire; steel-belted radials have a "safe" (if you can call a radial tire safe) life of FIVE YEARS and that fifth year is running on borrowed time.

Radial tires cannot abide sitting un-used for weeks at a time.

The tread takes a "set" and flat-spots where it is in contact with the ground/floor and this causes the adhesive to lose it's grip on the steel cord, thus setting things up for a separation; it may not happen right then, but is sure to happen as things have already been set in motion.


Of course, catastrophic failures can happen un-announced and at any time; but, all the little things can be addressed close to home and long before any long trips.


Carry on.

 

[Dsl_Dog_Treat]

So what are you implying?
Don't do preventative maintenance, drive a restored truck daily tearing up the hard worked 350 hours to restore it, chipping up the paint on gravel roads, drive them in the winter forcing them to rust out faster or push off other jobs to take care of you trucks issues for which some is a livelihood?

I agree fully with those, but are not always feasible.
Yup I'm one of the last minute guys as to whom you refer and as you may not know, my fuel roadside breakdown issues were spawned from preventative maintenance. Yes I replaced the lift pump as a preventative measure and caused more issues in the long run. Yes it set me alongside the road for awhile changing pumps over but was able to get back rolling. Do I have the choice to drive it daily to shake every bug out? Yes, but you don't know where I live and driving my truck every day on the unmaintained roads tears it up and one can almost watch it happen so it is my choice to not drive it every day! I have a truck for daily driving and winter use and my dually for special occasions.

Will I continue to own the trucks? Absolutely!

Sorry this post just struck a nerve with me.
Rant off.

 

[GRU]

hmmm... the spare tire i carry with me is close to 20 years old! lets hope i never have to use that! i guess im fortunate my junk hasnt stranded me yet. bad thing is, i know its a "when, not if" type situation. ive owned fords before... the only time mine gets run is on longer trips in the summer only. it just is what it is i guess. some trucks seem way more prone to problems than others. im definately thinking about carrying more spare parts but im not changing parts "preventatively" until they give out. either way, i know rons really testy right now. hes got wayyyy more patience than i do that for sure. just need to get away from it for several days/weeks and come back to it with a fresh attitude. if that possible!

 

[MUDKICKR]

i thnik you guys are taking what he is saying the wrong way. i believe what he is saying is dont let the truck sit for a month, then jump in it and drive it 1000 miles. also i think what he is trying to say is if your going to take it on a trip, drive it around for a few days, ck everything out, and then if you notice anything that it needs, fix it then, dont wait til your 250 miles from home to fix it on the side of the road. everyone should do a pretrip on there rigs before they leave there house on a trip, which in the long run saves you time, money, and heartache. most roadside repairs can be avoided if some drivers took an 1/2 hour to ck the whole truck out. but i dont know who broke down or where and why.

 

[gsfloor]

these are great trucks I bought my new in 86 and it has never let me down I took it off the road for years after it rotted out and restored it after having new duramaxes and 6.0 fords breaking down left and right with 10,000 miles on them leaving me stranded all over the country that is why I put the money into the 86 they are so simple as long as you keep up on the maintenance but like anything else parts can go here and there with telling when but normally they go at the wrong place and time but they are simple to fix!

 

[Darrin Tosh]

What were there, 26 or so trucks at the Rally, and maybe 4 breakdowns, one was an F150?

Just going by memory but that is not bad percentage for all of the miles traveled.

 

[160k87F250]

I drive mine at least once every week or two, sometimes I'll drive it for a week at a time. Just to keep things moving and lubed up. That being said, I know that ANY vehicle can break down at any given time. All you can do is keep up on the maintenance hope for the best.

John

 

[itsacrazyasian]

these are great trucks I bought my new in 86 and it has never let me down I took it off the road for years after it rotted out and restored it after having new duramaxes and 6.0 fords breaking down left and right with 10,000 miles on them leaving me stranded all over the country that is why I put the money into the 86 they are so simple as long as you keep up on the maintenance but like anything else parts can go here and there with telling when but normally they go at the wrong place and time but they are simple to fix!

After FIXING Duramaxs and 6.uhoh's and so many electrical issues (pcm, bcm, communication) with the cummins trucks if my truck leaves me on the side of the road, i can usually get her back up and running fairly quickly.

I can change an IP on the side of the road, or a lift pump. If the clutch goes out thats another story.

How many people can change injectors in a newer HEUI or common rail truck on the side of the road nearly as fast as we can? Not even a 6.2 or 6.5 is as easily serviced as ours are.

Mine has left me on the side of the road, failed electric pumps and a POS mechanical pump. I keep spare filters, a spare lift pump, some hose if i need to jump the fsv. I have plugged filters that i've changed in the parking lot. Keep a few quarts of atf in the truck to top the filters off and i can usually spin the truck over and keep my foot in it to purge the air out and away i go.

My 1984 Mercedes 500 SEL AMG has a whopping 55K on her. She sits in my garage on stands to keep the tires off the ground and my garage is air conditioned so the wood doesn't expand and contract and crack. Not everybody can do that... As for my truck? I wouldn't hesitate to jump in my truck and drive to alaska even with my crunchy throw out bearing. same thing with my mercedes and even my old crown victoria which just sits in my driveway.

 

[bghnkinf350]

I bought mine, from a tow yard, where it was sitting for months. Before that it was sitting for years. Its history is unknown. I changed the oil, made sure it was safe, then jumped in and took it for a 250+ mile round trip. I was scared, but these older Diesels are reliable as they come! They are like the old hot rods of the diesel world, where all you needf are minimal tools and some ingenuity and it should never leave you stranded!

 

['94IDITurbo7.3]

i thnik you guys are taking what he is saying the wrong way. i believe what he is saying is dont let the truck sit for a month, then jump in it and drive it 1000 miles. also i think what he is trying to say is if your going to take it on a trip, drive it around for a few days, ck everything out, and then if you notice anything that it needs, fix it then, dont wait til your 250 miles from home to fix it on the side of the road. everyone should do a pretrip on there rigs before they leave there house on a trip, which in the long run saves you time, money, and heartache. most roadside repairs can be avoided if some drivers took an 1/2 hour to ck the whole truck out. but i dont know who broke down or where and why.

This is how i tooke the original post as well.

Not trying to stirr the pot but man u guys are ornery today.
I can see both sides here. i don't think the OP was not meant to say "serves you guys right that ur truck breaks down b/c u don't drive ur truck on a daily basis and then expect it to make it a couple thousand miles with no problems".

I think the OP is his opinion and everyman is entitled to his opinion and the ability to express it. So get off his back for pete's sake!

 

[Michael Fowler]

Or you can use the "icanfixall" approach and carry every conceivable spare in the space behind the seat. Maybe we need a photo tour of what can be carried on that space.

 

[icanfixall]

I posted this same thought earlier this month. I asked why we seem to wait till the last minute to "get ready for the rally"... Then it was explained in a very positive manner. We and many others live in a climate where you can work on your rig all year long. Sometimes not so confortable a setting because its hot or cold outside but... Its nothing like 30 below. Snow on the ground 4 feet high and no heated garage to work in. I had no idea nor did I think of this issue with a comfortable place to work on these rigs. Out here on the west coast we are spoiled about good weather compared to the rest of the country.
Now about tires. Its very true about radials throwing good thread because of age. Its happened to me in my 79 C30 chevy. I was in a freeway high speed transition when the right front let go while turning left. So the extra weight of the turning truck was on that tire... I was about 60 feet up and all over the one lane bridge trying to control things. My spare is what came on the truck oem so its 26 years old at that time of the happening. Its a 10 ply non radial and runs fine without air in it. Talk about heavy... Wow. So there is a truth in the bias tires compared to radial tires. BTW my tires looked fine with plenty of tread on them when this happened. I did feel a balance issue while driving. I later on put my hands on the thread on all the other tires... I found several seperations in the belts so I got a set of new tires on the next day. Even when the tries were on the shop floor off the rims they still had bubbles under the belts. A breakdown will happen most anytime no mater how much maintance we do on these rigs. Its not the age of the trucks its the condition of said part that lets go. We have a member here that when its around 100,000 miles on the clock will change the injectors and pump because thats what he feels will keep his rig trustworthy. Is that excassive... Maybe to some but not for him. I'm known for stashing plenty of spares behind my rear seat. Is that going to prevent anything... Nope but hopefully I will habe what breaks down. Do I want to do a roadside repair to impress the wifey and be on our way during a trip... Nope... Thats not my ego. I'm just more comfortable having some spares for any unknown circumstances that may come up along the way. We drive these rigs because they are simple to repair most anywhere. I recall someone twisting off a driveshaft at a rally. And there was another issue of shearing off all the flywheel bolts. These are not the norm but they do happen. We have a member at this time that has just sheared off all the crank bolts. I was asked why this would happen. My best guess from this coast not being able to know how they were installed was a wild ass guess with a bit if scinece thrown in. Both the crank flange must be flat and free of rust or burrs. Using a honing stone and some oil will show any problems when the stone drags on the burr. Thats an oil machinst trick when you place two machined surfaces back to back. They need to be clean and burr free. Could the torqu required on those bolts have been too low or high.. Maybe.. even a torque wrench can be way off on what you set it for. When I rebuilt my first engine and reset the tps it was way off because my digital voltmeter was off. I wasted my E4OD on that one because my voltage was .62 volts. And it did not take but 200 miles or so to ruin the trans. So now when I use the voltemeter I test it on a known sourse. like my batteries. Even our testing devices can be out of calibration. As some of you know I have way too many kent moore j3300 and snapon timing meters. Are they all claibrated the same... Nope but they are close enough to be the same. I even have the newest J33300-A meter and it works the same as the other older units.. Trip maintance.... Its easy to monday morning quaterback it. So when it happens it just happens. Sometimes we listen but don't hear what the rigs are telling us... On the other site I came from there was a member there that would say run it till it developes. then fix it. there is some truth to that tale right there. I know non of us actually start trips thinking"oh goody, what am I going to get to touch on this road trip". I know how difficult it is to replace a good looking tire with plenty of thread on it. Its just a difficult to replace both batteries because one is bad...... No rant here to turn off either. So Ron, did your last post mean you got home and the family is safe or ar you resting along the way home from yesterday... either way I'm gld you are able to take a break... Been in your shoes a few times. The last time was in 94 in july in vegas at my sisters home removing the heads on my 454 in the 79 C30 chevy... Talk about hot and sunburns thru every hole on my shirt..... Plus my cheapass sister didn't have a pool either... BTW all this work was done with a 3/8 drive socket set...

 

[94f450sd]

How many people can change injectors in a newer HEUI or common rail truck on the side of the road nearly as fast as we can? Not even a 6.2 or 6.5 is as easily serviced as ours are.

.

i can do a 7.3 psd in a little less than 2 hours.

 

[Dsl_Dog_Treat]

Gary, I'm at a family reunion that's still 150 miles from home. What really chaps my ass about the whole deal is the fact that I burn a veggie mix in Goldie and at last years rally a few return lines succumbed to the veggie. After having that thought in my mind I chose to change the lift pump in the comforts of my shop with a cold motor instead of along side the road.
Boy that backfired!!
All of my fuel issued had been caused by changing a part for piece of mind to not leave me and my kids setting alongside the road.
Thank goodness I had the parts on hand to make the repairs yesterday tho.
As far as last minute projects done on the truck I guess the added running lights fit that category that still work fine but other than the lift pump a new set of battery cable ends replaced, that was it.
I can't argue the tires, they are old and the one that blew looked physically better than the remaining 6. It just takes money.
The truck had been pulled back onto the road a few weeks before once the clutch was replaced to chase down any bugs or gremlins so Murphys law really reamed me a new one.
I've driven as far in years past with little to no problems so this must just he my time.

 

[GRU]

i wasnt meaning to come off as ornery towards the OP. thats the problem with discussing things on here. all we see are words, cant hear how theyre meant to be said. i dont think midnight rider meant to be an ass about it at all. he does have very valid points. it just kinda sucks after youve had a crappy week at an event youve waited an entire year for, finally made it home with lots of issues and waiting for you is a post saying you shoulda done this and shoulda done that. i can see exactly why dog catcher kinda got his feathers ruffled. it ok tho, just a little misunderstanding and bad timing with good intentions. no harm, no foul.