>>> RALLYE ROADSIDE BREAKDOWNS <<<

['94IDITurbo7.3]

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.

i totaly understand what u are saying. i would have a short leash also if i just had a crappy week at an event i had waited for.

 

[Michael Fowler]

i totaly understand what u are saying. i would have a short leash also if i just had a crappy week at an event i had waited for.

I like the name of your town!

 

['94IDITurbo7.3]

I like the name of your town!

Thanks man.

It is a nice little town about 45 min. east of Lansing.
Not too big not too small.

 

[GOOSE]

Persistence will win out. You can't make me believe there is another class of 20+ year old trucks that have a better shot of firing up and going down the road. If Ron is able to let Goldie sit for the better part of winter and preserve the hard work that has gone into her, I can only be jealous. If it was a '70 Mach 1 Mustang everyone would think different about that strategy and see it as being fit. It was said, 25 trucks, a few breakdowns? Not too bad at all.

On the up side, Ron knows his truck inside and out, and has the troubleshooting tenacity to see these things through so kudos to him for handling a bad situation with relative ease, most non-wrenchers would have been on the phone to a hook and a big repair bill

 

[icanfixall]

Those of us on this forum that have hung around for some time can count on one hand the "trouble makers" that come and go. We're not a group that likes to see someone on hard times out on the road. Any suggestion made here as to what should have been done is history. It can only be looked at as something for the future. I would not think that midnite rider would send any kind of a nasty gram. I understand how difficult it is sometimes to see the folley in a posting. Generally the smiley faces help tell us whats written between the lines. The members like jasnap and some others come and go al the time. The best part about them leaving or being banned is they take their sorry ass attitude with them. Guys.. Its only words and sometimes we allow posted words to hurt but thats something we allow to happen. I can agree with another posters reasons for a feeling but sometimes I like to talk about why they feel the way they do about something. We learn more about these engines by talking and listening to oppinions. I have been doing some research on 7.3 heads on a 6.9. All that I see needs to be modified is to remove two passage plugs in the lower corners of the 7.3 heads. Then the coolant will flow thru those just like it was a true 6.9 head. Also why do you think we can't buy any new 6.9 heads.... I understand why a 6.9 head wont bolt directly to a 7.3 block. I have compared the differances between the 6.9 and 7.3 head gaskets. All the demensions are the same but they 6.9 heads have coolant passages in the lower corners. Mel even commented once that a 7.3 usually has more heating issues than a 6.9 does. Might be because of emmisions requirements needing the exhaust side of the heads running hotter so the ports were closed off on the 7.3 heads and block with about 3/4 inch size freeze plugs. I know I will be using 6.9 head gaskets on my next build and open up the cooling ports...

 

[Compu Doc]

I bought my truck for 5K 10 years ago and I have put 106K miles on it since I have had it. My truck is driven daily all year round as it is the only vehicle I have.

One time the starter went out on it and I put a rebuild in. A week later that starter went bad so how can you change a part for preventive maintenance? The new part can fail as well. The most major thing that went on my truck was the transmission and I honestly believe that the cause was the heater core going bad causing the computer to go bad. On the E series vans the transmission computer is near the heater core. But heck even with the trans bad I was still able to drive the truck and it was still getting me from point A to point B. Now if the engine had a computer and that happened I would not even be able to start the truck let alone continue to drive it.

Sure I could have bought a new truck but then what would I get?. I already know what I have so I would rather spend the money on that.

I'd rather have a non computerized engine than a computerized one because our trucks are easier to diagnose and cheaper to repair. You also have to look at the fact that these trucks are 1994 and older and that right there tells you how reliable they are. Some are pushing 300K miles and still going.

We also have other people that are willing to help others out. Can you say that about people with Power Strokes or Duramax trucks?. Heck they probably would not even know where to look if their trucks died at the side of the road. The first thing they would do is call for a tow truck and take it to the nearest stealership and big bucks later be back on the road and that could take days or weeks.

So how is a few breakdowns scaring people away from buying these trucks. Look at the 6.0, how many people had complete engine failures and requiring rebuilds which to remove the motor you have to remove the entire cab of the truck. That would scare me away more than buying a 20 year old truck.

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

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!

I for certain didn't mean for anyone to think that I was singling them out and I for sure wasn't "implying" anything.


And I for sure did not have any intentions to offend anyone.


I apoligize to anyone that took my meaning the wrong way, but that certainly was not my intentions; and, if anyone would read my post, they will have to agree that everything stated is just simple facts with no ill intent pointed in any direction.



And, if anyone actually knows me, they would know that I would be the first to come the farthest and stay the longest to fish them out of a situation and be the last to gripe about it.



Carry on.

 

[Dieselcrawler]

i drove back and forth to the rally 3 times in reality. since i went wheeling yesterday. thats a 2 hr ride one way for me. and almost every time i had a truck on the trailer behind me. never once had any issues with my rig. and the only thing i did to look it over before leaving was brake check and light check.


btw, ron noticed my tires were made in 2004. you can bet your donkey next paycheck i am getting new ones.

 

[Diesel JD]

Yeah, I drive my truck daily. For me it's either the IDI, or bum rides, or walk. Does that make it more or less road worthy for a long trip than a garage queen like the Moose Truck? I'm really not sure. I also agree that I'm sure Damen had no ill intent. He was just addressing a hot topic here since it seemed (through the computer screen anyway) that we had an abnormally high number of IDI failures this year (from memory, Dsl_Dog_Catcher with the fuel problems, Hesutton with a blown headgasket in his CC and a bad wheel bearing in the black truck) I can't remember anything else. Also, if someone asks for help in my area, and it's within my power to do something, I will help without complaint and without judgement.

 

[burtcheca]

I have two 86's. The farm truck has taken a lot of abuse, still alive and kicking. The van takes the family to church, to town to get stuff or deliver our produce and long trips every two or three months on our short vacations to see our family. I know my farm truck tires are old, they may surprise me anytime now when hauling manure from the dairy farm to my place (it's heavy if wet) or from the rock mine loaded with crushed limestone (also very heavy). I put about 3000 pounds every trip and it takes about 1/2 hour to get there and then back to my place.

In all my years with my two "antiques" I remember only one time I had to go with my truck to pull my van home, it quit about 20 miles from my place. Later I found it was a clogged fuel filter and took me 15 minutes to have it back running.

These are very reliable engines, even an old farmer like me, with not much knowledge and experience as a mechanic, can do a lot of fixing in our trucks.

I understand the point MIDNIGHT RYDER tried to bring, I wish I could give all the maintenance my trucks are supposed to get, the money is not enough right now to have new tires every five years and some other stuff. I'm happy if I'm able to chance the oil, oil filter and air filter every 3000 miles (about $50 dollars in total), that's how tight my budget is getting lately.

I would love to carry with me also a lot of spares, I just carry some basic stuff and hand tools for an emergency but maybe next year I'll be able to do better. Once I'm done with the remodeling in my home and the new greenhouse my next project is to put some money and time in my trucks.

Thanks MIDNIGHT RYDER for your advices, thanks Gary for sharing your knowledge and experience I always learn something new when reading both of you guys posts.

Burt.

 

[icanfixall]

I'm a person that is guilty of driving on maypops... Thats a tire that may pop at any time... They look fine but they are old tires. I do check every tires sidewall for looks. I also run my hands over all the thread I can reach without moving the truck so the amall patch is felt too. I'm feeling for thread speeration bubles. I know what I'm driving on it not going to be something I can tell you will get me there or not. But so far they are doing there job faithfully. Triple A in always in my wallet but thats not going to maintain the control if thread throws. Believe me on this. Just as soon as I feel a thread bulge I drive directly to the tire shop for tires no matter what the tires have for thread.

 

[6.9poweredscout]

i skimmed through this, i'm not big on reading 4 paragragh thread posts... but just from the title i'm glad to say not only did i have the oldest truck there (1971/40 years old),it was ALL IH, and i made it flawlessly there and back without a single issue. silly ferds breaking down! ;p

 

[towtruckdave]

Since I think we are talking old tires, I wanna throw my 2 cents in.

I agree, old tires are risky, however, that risk can be somewhat mitigated by inspecting your tire for dry rot, busted belts and bubbles. And just as important, when a radial tire starts to make a small "thump" at speed on smooth pavement, get it off there and put a slice in the sidewall before you recycle it, so no one else will be tempted to try running it.

 

[towtruckdave]

i skimmed through this, i'm not big on reading 4 paragragh thread posts... but just from the title i'm glad to say not only did i have the oldest truck there (1971/40 years old),it was ALL IH, and i made it flawlessly there and back without a single issue. silly ferds breaking down! ;p

 

[MIDNIGHT RIDER]

Since I think we are talking old tires, I wanna throw my 2 cents in.

I agree, old tires are risky, however, that risk can be somewhat mitigated by inspecting your tire for dry rot, busted belts and bubbles. And just as important, when a radial tire starts to make a small "thump" at speed on smooth pavement, get it off there and put a slice in the sidewall before you recycle it, so no one else will be tempted to try running it.

And when you feel a lurching/wobbling motion at slow speed, less than 30-MPH, that is a sure sign of a badly broken belt.