CUCV head gasket / head/ or change engine survey

I was digging around in my parts cabinet today and came across some paperwork that came with my 1984 M1009/The Mule when I bought it. It is the U.S. Army Equipment Record Folder. And in the folder is the original DD form issue release/receipt document for the M1009 Mule. It shows the delivery date as 2/1984 and the price as $17018.00. I know we had talked about some time ago and someone had said they were an atrocious amount more then that and they had some DOD form that showed that. I remember they were more money then a loaded Silverado Blazer of the same time period. I found all the documents that went with this vehicle and the reason it was turned in in 1997. You guys would love to find one in this condition at this point in time. The turn in paperwork shows Code H. Paperwork shows the vehicle as being unrepairable for the following reasons.Truck UTL 3/4 T NSN 2320-01-123=2665 17,265 miles
1. Batteries dead/battery terminals corroded
2. Left Headlamp dead or missing
3. Right side wiper blade missing
4. Rear window crank handle missing
5. Left muffler split at seam
6. Rear engine main seal leak class III
7. Paint peeling and needs complete paint job
8. NATO slave cover missing
9. Under carriage needs steam cleaned.
It was deemed unrepairable and sent to Mechanicsburg. DRMO.
Wouldn't it be nice to find one that you could fix this easily today or next week?
I bought it shortly there after at Mechanicsburg DRMO and have been driving it ever since. It has 97,k miles on it now. I have never replaced anything major mechanical on it. It is still going. Today I took a set of heads to a machine shop to get redone so I can change the head gasket on the mule. It has been over pressurizing my cooling system for the past 6 years. Anyway the machine shop said $500-600 to redo the take off heads. I have a dilemma. I want to fix the Mule but not spend that amount to get the heads redone. I can remove the current heads and risk getting the same money into them. I have all the parts and gaskets to go over this engine completely. Or I can switch the entire engine with a crate 6.2 that I have. I hate to waste a perfect running 6.2 for the sake of a cracked head or a bad head gasket. But I also would hate to un-crate one of my new motors just to replace an engine with a bad head gasket or a cracked head. It must be fixed now. The pressure is building in the crankcase and the engine is burning antifreeze from the left side. No water in oil or oil in water. I just pull the antifreeze from the over flow bottle and put it back it the radiator. It holds the pressure in the cooling system for days after I run it. So I don't think a cracked head. Decisions decisions. Survey says? If you can not make a civil comment or helpful advise. No reply needed. Thank you. CUCVRUS.

It all depends on what the wife says. At least in my case it does.

If I were in your position I would drop crate in and rebuild the takeout at your leisure.

Wife has no say in my vehicle affairs. So that is not an issue. I just hate to unseal a new engine for a bad head or head gasket. But I have them and they will be safe and sound for years to come. That is the tough part. I have 2 new heads in the wooden crates that I have been storing for years. I hate waste. Let us ponder some more. I still have to tear it down. That will be the deciding factor. It would be easier to change the engine. But since I have all the parts and gaskets paid for I am still pondering. 6.2 new parts are getting hard to come by. The survey continues. Be nice or don't participate. Whats the point? This is all in FUN. FUN HOBBY. Those 2 go together well when properly applied.

I would drop in a brand new motor into the old girl. She hasn't failed you in 18 years, she deserves a new motor. She has earned it don't you think?
Take your time rebuilding her old one for the next troop who needs a new heart.

The part that makes me indecisive is the fact that when it is cold out the transmission is slow to go into gear. So if I pull the engine I almost feel obligated to get the transmission gone over. That is more money. I am trying to wait for catastrophic failure from either of them and save some cash at the same time. I will continue to ponder this. I don't feel the super structure of the Mule warrants a new motor at this point. But I will still entertain the thought. Thank you for your input. That is how hobbyist are supposed to positively interact with each other. Thank you again for your input. I will consider it.

OK now for an update on my project. I have decided to repair the engine that is currently in my Mule to keep the same engine and transmission together till the very end. I pulled a pair of heads from an engine that I had in a truck with 13K on it. The heads were wet with condensation under the valve covers. I had salvaged the oil pan from that engine about 2 years ago for a repair I was doing. Well little did I know it turned that engine into a green house and the entire engine is junk now. Unless it is rebuilt. I dropped the heads off at the machine shop and they called and said they were going to be about $500+ to have redone. The valves seats were rusty and somewhat pitted and they were not trusting to redo them with out going over the entire valves guides and seats. I picked them up and went home to another engine that I had in the back of my barn for 20 years. It was a low mileage engine but I had removed all kind of parts from it over the years. My son pulled the heads on it. They looked like new. The inside was still the cast iron color and no gunk or oil-staining. I took them to the machine shop and they called today and said the were done and the price was $155. for the pair. It was $27. per head for cleaning and $27. per head for magna fluxing them. And one of them needed resurfaced. Wow was I happy. We are going to pull the engine and get it on the engine stand. It runs perfect but has this issue with over pressurizing the cooling system. I will replace the heads and head gaskets the rear main seal and all other gaskets. I may replace the water pump while I have it out. It is the original one and the radiator is still the original one. Sometime you don't know where to quit. I am not looking to restore this Mule just make it reliable and not have to transfer the coolant back into the radiator everyday. It is not my daily driver so I can take my time. But the topless weather is coming quickly so I want to get it done so I can go topless all summer. I am not going to change the injection pump it works fine. I will repair only what needs to be done to the engine. The OEM GM water-pump is probably better then any replacement I can buy at this point. That is where I am at this point. Tomorrow is the day we will ready the operating room for the extraction. I will post pictures tomorrow. This is how hobbyist are supposed to communicate with each other. if you have any good ideas or advise please post them for me. I will consider them. If you have nothing good to say. Well. You know what to say. .

Are you going to paint the motor while it is out?

Sure I am. Wash, wax and repaint the whole 9 yards.(6.2 Liters) I don't want to get to fancy. It won't match the rest of the vehicle.

Well the barn bay did not stay empty for long. Just long enough to sweep the floor and clean up the trash. In with the M1009 Mule. It is going to get the engine pulled and a new set of heads injection pump and a rear main seal will be installed on the engine and then the engine will be put back in. I also have some rust issues to attend to while it is inside the shop. This M1009 still has everything original on it. The same injection pump and radiator. I am going to change both of them while I have it apart. I would like to spray it 686 Desert tan when the engine is back in. Just a quick paint job nothing fancy. Yea I can do that. I will try really hard to just do the sanding and painting after I spot fix the rust. I will post pictures daily with my progress. Enjoy. thank you for looking.

I was just looking at my pictures. One of my favorites is the picture of the speedometer with the rust on the face of the gauge. That and the fuel gauge have that slight rust. It adds character and it fits the age of the vehicle. I am not the type of guy that drives a trailer queen. I want the rust and patina of a 30+ year old combat vehicle.

I am back to report. If you care to look? After a very successful day of motorcycle riding , grass moving , CUCV wrenching and smoking meat on the patio I am here to report my progress. I did not get the 6.2 engine out of the Mule but it is just setting under the hood by its shear weight.I checked everything out. The engine is all original. I seen when I bought it that a GI had sprayed the valve covers Mopar blue. It was on duty during the Dodge M880's service time. Anyway the water pump has slight very slight weeping going on at the bottom weep hole. And the harmonic balancer is tight and has no issues. I have got to stop somewhere. If it ain't broke I am not going to replace it. I will replace the water pump and I am going to add a block heater in the center freeze plug on the drivers side. I have a new GM one to install. I am here to repair and make functional and reliable for more hard use. Not restore and spend an unlimited budget on the vehicle. Everything came apart with ease. And the project is moving along on schedule. Considering 24 hours ago I was just driving it in the garage. I am happy with the progress. I hope I can get it completed by the end of May 2015. That will include some rust repair and a complete repaint. Thank you for looking. I will keep posting as long as I can keep making progress.

Man, after doing all that how are you able to form complete sentences in a post? Those are all prime "rehydrating" activities, with the exception of the motorcycling of course�� Just kidding around, Your truck is progressing nicely Rick.
BTW, my transmission has been flawless for two weeks. Thanks again buddy!
MG

Tonight was a very productive night. I have the engine out and the the left head removed and the problem diagnosed and verified. I suspected a left head gasket issue and sure enough it was the compression ring on the head gasket at the rear cylinder. It lasted 4 + years with the pressure problem and only in the last month it get to the point where I could actually smell antifreeze and see it steaming out the tailpipe.I am a bit confused. I had this vehicle for a long time. I thought all 1984 models had the rocker arms with out the plastic keepers in the rocker arm rod / shaft. Anyone know that answer? Check out that new Snap-On 3/8" ratchet it is as long as the block. I bought that for the tight bolts on the exhaust manifolds. I like to do the work without power tools on occasion. I find it more relaxing and get to see and feel things better. Less broken bolts and studs that way. At times I use the cordless Snap-On impacts. This was not the time for that. I had a helper and we could talk and work at a decent pace. No bolts and parts flying everywhere at one time. Thank you for looking. Stop by tomorrow. I am going to send the transmission out for overhauling. It has been hesitant in the winter to go in gear and now is as good a time as any to have it rebuilt. I hate to spend the CASH but some time you gotta do what you gotta do. Have a good day.

I made a little progress tonight and cleaned up all the tools and put them away. I hope someone can use my experiences and input to help them with some of their repairs and problems. Here are a few things I found.
1.) Not all fuel nozzles had copper washers on them. ??? It ran fine and never leaked any fuel at the nozzles
2.) I thought all 1984 engines had the old style rocker arm shafts. Not the ones with the white nylon keepers. ?????
3.) I had it for a long time so if it was torn apart it was before I owned it.
4.) Is the VIN on the engine somewhere? Or a coded serial number that I can see if this is a 1984 engine. I remember the VINs were on the axles and the transmission, engine assembly somewhere. Or am I mistaken?The head gasket on the right head was good. And why do the head bolts smell so bad? I never figured that one out. They smell like sewage. Thank you for looking. Good Luck and have a nice day.

Well I have it done. The Mule is completely stripped out. That was the easy part. Stripping the drive line and engine is the easy part. Anyone can strip a vehicle. From this point on it is clean , paint, and reassemble. I removed it with surgical precision and now I must reinstall it with surgical accuracy and precision. The transmission is on the way to the transmission shop along with the transfer case. A quick refresh and reseal and back in the Mule it goes. I am on schedule with this project. Now I must try hard to keep it on schedule. Thank you for looking. Have a nice day.
Good Luck with your projects. I have a Brewfest to attend today.

cucvrus said:

...........
4.) Is the VIN on the engine somewhere?....

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Yes, look in this area, stamped on the block...



G.

I noticed that you said you sent the transfer case with the transmission, are you having it rebuilt also? It would be a good time to rebuild the very overlooked piece.

gringeltaube said:

Yes, look in this area, stamped on the block...



G.

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WOW what is that 6.2 installed in? It looks similar to a mixed parts engine from a CUCV and a HMMWV. Is it in running condition in the picture?

Csm Davis said:

I noticed that you said you sent the transfer case with the transmission, are you having it rebuilt also? It would be a good time to rebuild the very overlooked piece.

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I am having it checked out also. The magnet is clean in the drain plug area. I just want it resealed and looked over.