87 IDI, alright deal?

[carknocker]

http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/cto/2489557190.html

Have it on hold for myself, checked it out last night. needs an ignition switch, and starter swap (has a napa lifetime warranty one). Fired right up after sitting on the battery charger for 5min(has been sitting 6months), with a bit of smoke but not too much. Body is beat up, but seems to be a good deal for $750?

 

[rhkcommander]

go check it out, make sure its cold. see how well it starts. turn it off when good and warm. see how well it starts. If rough either times then:

when warm = bad IP
cold = batts/ starter or wiring betwixt them, bad glow plugs/relay/controller, or bad compression.
both: bad fuel delivery or compression.

Ask how the coolant was handled

Those are most of the major problems, otherwise 750 is ok. if it isn't as good looking IRL then offer less - 500 maybe. These trucks are easy as snot to fix up but the parts are a little heavy sometimes

 

[papastruck]

Depends on what you're going to do with it. For either the use described in the ad or a fun project (with a flatbed!), maybe it's a good deal. From the info in the ad and your post, it could mean throw a flatbed on it and have a nice truck, or it could mean a $5k slough of repairs before you have something remotely usable. If you can't drive it to see if the 4x4, clutch, trans, steering works reasonably well, it's a crapshoot worth $500 IMO.

 

[Diesel JD]

It depends on what you want, if you want a project, a parts mule, a beater truck etc then this is probably a great deal. The scrap metal and parts alone are worth $750 or more if you just got tired of the thing. You may find that it doesn't really need all that much to be a reasonably decent truck either. I'd buy something like that with low expectations though.

 

[carknocker]

Ya, it would be my project/gotta haul something rig. Did well at warm idle, a puff of grey smoke when starting, not a cloud. Doesn't seem like too much smoke... Any of you guys in the Portland area have issues with IDI's passing DEQ; or are they exempt?