Questions from someone with no clue

[makefast]

Okay, my wife and I have toyed with the idea of getting a Diesel Scout for a while now. One has popped up on Craigslist that seems pretty clean from pictures. 1980 (so SD33T) and the big kicker for us, living in GA, factory AC.

Caveats: I know little to nothing about diesel engines, but am willing to get my hands dirty and learn. I have owned two VW camper-vans (1973 & 1986) and got pretty good at following internet/repair manual directions when working on those. But, I know nothing of axle ratios, lift kits, etc. and am desperately trying to catch up on all the lingo (like, what the crap is a Dana?).

The owner admits that the engine has issues, though. He said: "After having the head was forge welded to repair some cracks between valves - the head gasket "seems" to be leaking some compression into the cooling system." He claims no rust (we will see), but the truck looks to be in great shape with 2-tone blue paint (white top) and the blue tartan interior. He is asking $5500, which I think is pretty high. He lives about 2-3 hours from us, so I am trying to get more details before driving up there.

So on to my questions. Some of these are more general, some diesel specific. I have read a bunch of threads on this site (there went about 4 hours last night), but like everyone - I would love to ask about my specific situation, because I'm a special flower

First, is there anything I can ask before making the trip to help determine what may be wrong with the engine? I haven't replaced a head gasket before, but may be able to steal a mechanic friend to help with it and it is (reportedly) pretty easy on these engines. I am worried that it may be something more and would like to figure that out before making an offer. I'm not buying a blown engine for asking price no matter how clean the body is.

Are there any diesel-specific issues I should be asking about? I read the FAQ, about the starting procedure, etc. - just looking for something else that might be important to look for/look at.

Places to look for rust - I assume the standard places for rust for older vehicles (wheel wells, corners, tail/lift gates, etc.) apply, but any other place to keep an eye on?

And a couple of practical questions. We aren't planning on doing any off-roading beyond forest service roads and won't be doing a 'build' with that in mind. This will hopefully be a daily driver for one of us and we would hope to keep the SD33T in it for a while. I have read threads that say "SD33T is great for a DD" and threads that say "SD33T was terrible as a DD" - is there a general consensus on this? It is an older diesel and we aren't in a hurry to get anywhere, but some folks make it out to be awful to deal with.

Eventually we would probably want to tow a light (fiberglass shell) camper with it, but it sounds like that would require an engine swap - and that is more than I want to think about/plan on right now.

[Ellocomotive]

I don't have nearly half the experience most of the guys on the planet do, as the SD33T is new to me as well.

What I will tell you is that I bought a pretty much rust free and running Traveler for much cheaper than 5500. That's pretty steep, unless it's in immaculate condition-mine also has many of the upgrades I had planned anyway. For example, it has the 33 gallon tank, no EGR, and the straight exhaust.

I hope others here can offer their input.

[2nd Scout]

SD33Ts can be very expensive to fix. They seem to have issues with cracked pistons and heads. I bought mine sight unseen, and got pretty lucky in hindsight. It has more blow-by and uses more oil than I like, but I have put 30k on it with relatively few problems. I now appear to have a head gasket leaking. I am hoping it is just the gasket. I would not be surprised to find a few light piston cracks when I get in there as well, though it runs well and has good compression.

I would not buy another SD33T without very carefully looking it over. They are great when they are running properly, and can be a very good DD if setup properly. I get 25mpg consistently, but it is flat here and I installed 3.07 gears. I got 22.5 with 3.73's, but the rpms were really high at highway speed.

I would advise against towing a camper of any sort with it. They have very little power, even with 3.73 gears.

I can't comment on the price without seeing it. If the Scout you found is truly rust-free, and has nice interior and exterior, it has some value. However, most have rust (check floor boards and sheet metal before and behind the doors down low). Also, with compression getting into the coolant, I would plan for a new head, not knowing for sure. Other things to look for that might indicate major issues (cracked pistons) are excessive white smoke from the draft tube (a little bit is okay), and excessive white smoke from the tail pipe. A little black is normal, as is a lot of blue/white smoke on a cold start or after idling a little while. This is not an exhaustive list. There are folks on here that know a lot more than me, so hopefully they will chime in.

As for A/C, I installed a Vintage Air unit and it will freeze you out. It was about $1400 in parts if I remember correctly. You can add that to any Scout. You can see what I did in my sig below.

Not sure if this helps, but good luck to you.

[makefast]

Originally Posted by 2nd Scout

SD33Ts can be very expensive to fix. They seem to have issues with cracked pistons and heads.

Yeah, that is what I am worried about and hoping to have some more questions to ask before trying to find a diesel mechanic up there that would come check it out with me.

Originally Posted by 2nd Scout

and can be a very good DD if setup properly.

Good to hear! We have looked at a bunch of older-ish trucks (Land Rovers, Land Cruisers, Jeeps, Blazers, Broncos) and want a diesel, so that cut out a bunch of options. Both of us have longed for a Scout for years now and it seems to meet all our requirements.

Originally Posted by 2nd Scout

I would advise against towing a camper of any sort with it. They have very little power, even with 3.73 gears.

That is something we would only do years from now, with a different engine (I think).

Originally Posted by Ellocomotive

5500. That's pretty steep

That is my feeling as well.

Thanks for the input - everything you guys have posted has been informative.

[watermunky]

First off welcome to Binder Planet.

First, is there anything I can ask before making the trip to help determine what may be wrong with the engine? I haven't replaced a head gasket before, but may be able to steal a mechanic friend to help with it and it is (reportedly) pretty easy on these engines. I am worried that it may be something more and would like to figure that out before making an offer. I'm not buying a blown engine for asking price no matter how clean the body is.

Ask if he has turned up the turbo or any other modifications to the engine, and how many miles he drives. It also doesn't hurt to find out how he drives it. Unfortunately there are not many ways to tell if the motor is blown as our diesels tend to run even on 6 cracked pistons. A compression test will give you an idea of what you are working with though.

Are there any diesel-specific issues I should be asking about? I read the FAQ, about the starting procedure, etc. - just looking for something else that might be important to look for/look at.

Ask him what his service schedule is and when he last serviced the injectors, lifters etc...

Are there any diesel-specific issues I should be asking about? I read the FAQ, about the starting procedure, etc. - just looking for something else that might be important to look for/look at.

When the truck is running look at the drivers side right in front of the starter and watch the road draft tube. This can give you a good idea of if the truck has blowby or cracks in the pistons.
The rust spots that I find the easiest to find are the front floor supports where the body mounts attach to the frame and underneath the door sills. If you don't want to crawl under the truck you can just curl your fingers around the back of the sills and feel how rusted it is.

[makefast]

Thanks for the tips watermunky. I sent him an email with some general questions (axle ratio, transmission, etc.) and included some of the stuff you mentioned.

We shall see.

[Ellocomotive]

Makefast, you should also see if there are cracks in the frame where the shackles are mounted. Seems to be common. I've read that cracks in the frame where the steering box are possible, but less common.

[makefast]

I have received a bunch more photos and information. T428 Transmission 4 speed/3.73 gears.

There is 91k on the truck and he has put on 20k in the 9 years he has owned it. Relatively new brakes and tires, he has rebuilt injectors and alternator, lined the fuel tank, put in a new sending unit in the fuel tank, and the head welded and gasket replaced. Nothing done on lifters.

He claims no 'cancer' - the photos show an extremely clean interior (no real wear on the seats, no tears, and upholstery in great shape). Needs new vinyl in the driver door and the floor.

The photos look better than most any 'starting' photos I have come across on the site (granted I haven't poked and prodded for rust), but I am doubting the engine simply needing a head gasket. In my experience head gaskets last a long time (maybe this isn't true for the SD33?) and he just had it replaced. Which means that it is probably one of the more serious problems with the engine - from everything I have read there is no way to know until you pull the head off (well, you can gain some info from the draft tube), is that true?

Thanks for the help guys.

[watermunky]

my experience is the road draft tube shows a sign of many possible problems, as simple as stuck rings all the way to 6 cracked pistons...
a compression test is the true measure of the condition of the engine. With that said a number of people continue to drive the engine after 2 or more pistons are cracked with few problems.
I would also ask if he knows how many psi he is pushing with the turbo or if he knows EGTs.
The head gasket is meant to be a sacrificial piece they all let go at some time. If it is original the age alone would cause it to weaken.
Anything else you need let us know and feel free to post pics of the truck and we can give you a better idea.

[makefast]

The draft tube sounds like simple diagnostic magic, then.

Here is a link to the ad and he has emailed several other pictures that I uploaded in an album here.

We are on vacation (yeah, I've spent a lot of my vacation researching Scouts), so we can't make it up there for a while anyway.