m151a1 troubleshooting questions

I am acquiring an m151a1 this weekend, heck of a deal $200. The guy I am buying it from says that it does not start when you press the ignition button on the floor but it will start if you push start it. Also he said when it runs it smokes, not sure what color the smoke is so I do not know if it burning water, oil or gas. I am writing this to see if anyone could give me some troubleshooting tips to check this mutt out, I am just trying to figure out if these problems can be fixed in a couple of weekends or if this is a major repair situation.

Thanks for the help

Not much info to go on here but a basic multimeter and some diagnostic time, jumping the starter to test it, testing the batteries, etc., should answer the starting problem. As far as the smoke, need to know more. For 200 bucks, you have a long way to go before anything is major!!

that is what I thought, another question how hard is it to change out the generator for an alternator and what part number do I look for, is it listed in the parts manual?

Another question, where can I get canvas front seat cushions, back and bottom, and a complete rear seat, frame and both cushions. I have located a couple of places but the seat cushions alone will cost about $400, is there another place that is cheaper, I am willing to get the seat covers and put my own foam in.

As to specifics on your jeep I can't really help 'cause I don't have one. There are plenty of fellas here that know lots about them though. Also, I suggest you pick up a copy of Military Vehicles Magazine. There are enough Jeep parts vendor ads in there to keep you calling for several days!
Good luck,
BC

Found a place that will make me a set of seat cushions, odcloth.com, very nice people. Also I found a guy that sold me a complete wiring harness for an a1, he is humerkiller over at g503.com. I have the complete manual set from pedros.cz, thank you for the listing, except for the tm 9-2320-218-34, he only has the 34-1 listed.

As for the jeep itself, the guy that is selling it finally brought me pictures of it. Ok, let's see, the thing is painted disco lime green, wrong front bumper, some cobbled together thing, and he replaced the ignition switch with a key switch, 12v of course, and the 3 lever light switch with a toggle switch. All this to say looks like I will have some work ahead of me, but it should be fun. Oh, and as for the engine smoking, I talked to my brother a military trained mechanic, he said to try replacing all the seals on the engine, which I have found a kit priced $40 so will try this first and see if it fixes the problem.

One question if anyone has an electronic copy of the TM 9-2320-218-34 (1972 version) please let me know, I am trying to say my pennies to buy parts for the jeep and the price I have seen quoted for manuals is $45 or so, more than I want to spend.

I have a new -10 operator's manual for $10 if ya want it.. ACE

Teds Trucks has a bunch of MUTT stuff

That -10 that Ace has for $10 is a good buy.

Here are some places to check for M151 parts:

http://www.tnjmurray.com/m151.htm

http://www.flmv.net/m151.htm

http://www.rapcoparts.com/

http://www.saturnsurplus.com/

G503 is the place to check if you are a MUTT owner
http://g503.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=14&sid=c0e8645478ad3c78f1a0dcd4b76ed065

This is where the BIG BOYs hang out.

Didn't see an asnwer to your altinator question, but the eaisest way to change from one to the other is to put in an A2 wire harness. But, you will have to make a change on it for your oil pressure switch. They are different on an A1 and A2. Or if you want the army made a kit to change from gen to alt on duces and it could be made to work on a M151....Just a couple suggestion.

Sounds like for the money you've got a good buy even if it needs some TLC. Heck for another $200 you could probably get a take out engine and replace the one in it. Good luck with your new project.

If Iam reading everything right no one has mentioned the condition of the body, rust out was the major problem for the 151 series, but for 200 bucks its a great buy!

200 bucks is a great buy. I paid 400 for mine and the transmission was apart in a bucket. It was rusted out bad underneath. I did not know about the repair kits to reinforce it at the time so I hung it from my hoist in the shop by the front bumper and spent two days welding two inch flat bar to all the bad spots. Its been five years and still doing great.

Id like it if still for sale

After 7 1/2 years it is probably long gone. And the original poster hasn't visited the site since Dec 2007.