Buying a truck that has been sitting

[paullud]

I am looking at a 1998 International Eagle with around 800k miles on it. The Detroit motor runs well with no blow by and the tranny and clutch are in good working order. There were a few issues like the air pressure stopped at 60psi which might be an issue with ice in the lines and the brake pedal was not moving in the cab although the brakes did release so I believe it might be frozen. The tires, bake pads, steering system, and exhaust are all in great condition. I believe that I will be able to buy this thing cheap enough that I could flip it or part it out for some quick cash so that isn't the concern. The thing I am questioning is whether or not I try to run this down the road. It has been off the road for roughly 3-4 years and I was just wondering what the opinion of some the more experienced members might be.

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[zorry]

I'd wait until good weather. How are the wipers ?
I'd take some basic tools, as anything can happen..
And a grease gun. Baling wire. Duct tape. WD-40
And fuel additive.
If air builds up, I'd make sure all the cams were freed up.
Grease the u joints to.

I'd be excited if I could get it to a facility that could do a complete service. Check all fluids and change oil and all filters.
Check air cleaner.
Clean battery cables. A reasonable charging system check as you wouldn't want to loose belts going home.
Carry jumper cables.
Have safety equipment.
An annual inspection may be $40 well spent.
Remember, you could get DOT'd on the way home.
Give yourself plenty of time. What if you need a fan hub to make it home ?

Don't know how far you're driving it but you may be able to get a 10 day tag from your home state.

I bobtailed my COE from Vegas to In and I think Mo popped me for fuel permit.

And talk to your insurance people. The odds of you crashing are probably higher than your regular truck.
All the liability is on you.

That's why sometimes it worth paying a professional to tow or haul an old unit.

 

[zorry]

Air up the tires to the proper PSI.
Do a pretrip like you're going cross country.

You can skip some of this if you're driving it ten miles.

Just have a plan if things go bad enroute.

Good Luck

 

[zorry]

The brake pedal probably has an aluminum hinge pin and is corroded.

DO NOT break it by beating on it.

 

[paullud]

Air up the tires to the proper PSI.
Do a pretrip like you're going cross country.

You can skip some of this if you're driving it ten miles.

Just have a plan if things go bad enroute.

Good Luck

Luckily for me we have an RGN so I would trailer it to a place I could work on it and give it a better once over. I'm just a little worried that it sat for so long and if I try to run it things will just start breaking. I guess if it looks solid it might be worth trying to run it, I wasn't sure if anyone had tried the same thing and it turned into a nightmare.

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[zorry]

People do it all the time.
Much easier now than years ago.


I remember cooper tubing. Then we moved to aeroquip. Plastic has been a godsend for these type of things.

If you trailer it, I'd do oil analysis of all fluids at Polaris labs and it'll tell you things you can't see.
Then take you time and start out close to home with it. Expect little weird things like the clogged up fuel vent lines.

All wheel seals should be expected to leak. Also any other seals need to be watched.

 

[paullud]

If you trailer it, I'd do oil analysis of all fluids at Polaris labs and it'll tell you things you can't see.
Then take you time and start out close to home with it. Expect little weird things like the clogged up fuel vent lines.

All wheel seals should be expected to leak. Also any other seals need to be watched.

I was thinking the oil sample would be money well spent. I was also thinking about just changing all the wheel seals which will tell me a lot more like the condition of the wheel bearings, S cams, brake springs, etc and whether or not this thing is still road worthy with minimal investment.

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[scottm4211]

I have no clue but would an oil sample on something sitting that long be valid?

 

[paullud]

I have no clue but would an oil sample on something sitting that long be valid?

I'm not sure if it would work for things like the base or soot reading because it has been idling but checking it for wear metals, coolant, and fuel should still work. Maybe I'll check in on Kevin Rutherford's show and see if there would be any issue with the oil sample.

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[mcavoy33]

What did you decide?

 

[paullud]

What did you decide?

I didn't buy it but I did get another truck. It's going to need some paint but mechanically it was well maintained by someone that didn't cut corners.

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