Isn't it nice having dreams? Most of the time, they're completely unrealistic. And they're great until you actually give 'em a try. Like buying a bitchin' old truck for a sweet deal, only to realize later the price you'll pay--and oh, you'll pay. For example, Fred, Dave, Rick, and I had a plan. We were all gonna buy and build super-cheap 4x4s for under $1,500. Then we were gonna have a mini competition between the four of us, perhaps making a tour around much of California. But this is a Cheap Truck Challenge, and that just ain't gonna happen...at least not this time around.
 The next morning I was up...  The next morning I was up early with a phone call to the soon-to-be ex-owner getting directions. "So, uh... How are you gonna pick this up?" I paused for a second. "Well, I was thinking I'd just call AAA." "Do they pick up nonregistered vehicles?" "Well, not technically, but if you're cool with the driver, and hook him up with a good tip...." So, 45 minutes later, our 4x4 ambulance (as I found out when we got there--good thing I liked it) was getting winched onto a flatbed. The driver later told me it was by far the heaviest vehicle he'd ever felt on the back of his truck. And that was without the engine or tranny in it! |  The axles were both there,...  The axles were both there, but the rear third member had been removed, probably due to a necessary rebuild. Both axles are offset to the passenger side, making them and the divorce-mount NP200 transfer case sort of unique. This was actually pretty cool, since now we could just use a 2WD tranny to get 'er moving. The C-section frame was about as stout as any I've ever seen, and it even had skidrails and attachment points for hooks in the middle of the framerails. As cool as it was, my brain was starting to give me a reality check, and the cost of parts--much less the cost of my time and labor to get this M43 running--was starting to become apparent. |  This vehicle was a project...  This vehicle was a project in the truest form of the word. The rust wasn't too bad, except at the top of the rear box, but pretty much everything had been taken off in preparation for total restoration by the previous owner. For me, though, much of this has got to go. They were just useless (perhaps valuable) parts that would not be resurrected on this ride. |
It's hard building a super-cheap truck that'll be a good wheeler, a street driver, and not a money pit or deathtrap. If you've scored a "great" deal before, then you know what we mean. C'mon, admit it. You've totally fudged it when boasting about your killer deal. If you're claiming $500, then you probably spent at least an extra $100 on fluids, fuses, belts, and so on. But we'll just call that "the gray budget area."
So of the four of us, I am the last to give this Cheap Truck Challenge a try. Dave truly did get a good deal on an old man Bronco with heinous maroon interior (page 83). The total cost of his buildup was kept below the $1,500 cap. He spent a long time cleaning under the hood though, and the interior wouldn't look any worse if you puked on it.
 How cool are these? I actually...  How cool are these? I actually had no idea what the hell they were when I found them, as my military vehicle familiarity was poor, but I knew they were valuable. Autolites...hmm. Kennedy later enlightened me to the fact these were military convoy lights, better known as blackout lights. These were used during night maneuvers so that airplanes could not see them on the ground, but they were bright enough for the driver in back of you to keep his bumper out of your tailgate when in the convoy. When I lifted the lids to the storage bins below the fold-up rear cots, I found the last owner had left even more cool stuff buried for someone else's resurrection one day. The original gauge cluster, intact with glass in the gauges, was lying next to three headlights and the steering-column dash valence. These are just more parts that made the option of cutting it all up even harder. A restoration was looking like the right thing to do, but, unfortunately, what I need to build for this Cheap Truck Challenge was a 'wheeler, not a hauler. |  The rust on the top of the...  The rust on the top of the rear ambulance box was an obstacle in our build ideas. I could go three ways with this M43: semi-restore it and make one sweet hauler, cut off the roof and much of the body and just make it an extreme barely-legal wheeler, or push it to the back of the lot and put off the project for another five years, only to one day most likely sell it to the next unsuspecting, overzealous victim. If we went the way of the hard-core wheeler, then the rust and all body parts were of little concern. But if we wanted a sweet hauler rig, then massive amounts of time were going to be involved. Hell, massive amounts of time were going to be involved no matter what. |  On the inside, I found all...  On the inside, I found all sorts of good stuff held within this old ambulance. Lying within the rabble of rusty parts in back were almost all the pieces to complete the interior of this vehicle including the pedals, shifters, and even the mirrors (without glass, of course). I was getting a little more excited. Unfortunately, all of these were in the pile of parts instead of mounted on the vehicle--just something else to give me a headache. |
Fred got what was thought to be a great deal on a little 'Zuki with a rebuilt motor and a bad ECM. After getting a new ECM, putting on some other mods, and seriously closing the gap between the cap and Fred's remaining budget, we took it out for a spin and found the 'rebuilt' motor had a few bugs--like a blown head gasket which essentially wasted the motor. So much for his Cheap Truck Challenge.
Rick--well, Rick has like 10 different vehicles he could qualify for this competition. He hasn't even bothered mentioning which one he'll think about using since he, being Pw, could have any one of them running within 24 hours. That's the problem with having this type of competition with a guy like him.
And then there was my purchase. It struck me from my PC screen late Friday night in the office, "1954 Dodge M43, no motor, no tranny, $100." Must be a misprint. I decided to call just to make sure. Sure enough, the previous owner was trying to unload his son's ex-project from his driveway. "I'll be there in the morning." I had no idea exactly what I had claimed I would purchase, but I knew I was excited. Just swap in a motor, a tranny, and go, right? Right...
 Also to come with my treasured...  Also to come with my treasured buy was a mix and match of various bolts and nuts--about a tenth of what you'd need to actually complete this vehicle. And when they're all rusty and ready to break like most of these, you might as well just start over with new bolts. My headache was getting a little bigger. But with all the cool storage pockets--like this one originally meant for stretchers with an access door to it on either side of the vehicle--I still wanted to take this project on. |  Here is where we would probably...  Here is where we would probably dump a minimum of $3,000 just getting an engine and tranny together, then wiring it, then adding brakes, and all other necessary underhood items. Did I mention I don't even have a title for it? |  OK, what the hell was I thinking?...  OK, what the hell was I thinking? There was no way on God's green earth that I would get this to be a safe, street-legal, bitchin' 4x4 for under $1,500. Maybe for $15,000, but definitely a failure as a Cheap Truck Challenge entry. |
Think About This!
As sweet a deal as this was, it's no bargain truck. Buying a vehicle with no engine or tranny will almost always get you the best deal on the initial vehicle price, but what are your plans for a 4x4? If you were gonna scrap the drivetrain anyway, then you definitely scored, and not only saved yourself money, but also time, since the motor and tranny are out of the way. But if you can live with the motor that your budget dream comes with from the factory, an already-running truck is almost always the better and cheapest choice.
Think about where you're going with your buildup project, how long you have, and how you're going to finish it. Even if you are planning on scrapping most or all of the drivetrain, having it mobile during the buildup is very good, in case you need to transport it.
Maybe you have a choice between two similar vehicles, and one has body damage or rust, and while the other doesn't, it's $600 more. Well, again, what are your plans? If the bed and doors are rusty, but you're gonna wheel the piss out of it and probably one day pull the doors and bed anyway, then don't waste your money getting the cleaner rig. But if you do plan to keep the body, the cost of new doors and bodywork will overshadow the measly $600 you could save on the dirtier truck.
All of us get overexcited and caught up in the process of acquiring something new, but remember that life is almost never all roses and gumdrops, and the work you spend on a truck trying to undo years of neglect or a previous owner's boneheaded idea, can become very costly.
So This Is What We We're Thinking...
All right, after some careful deliberation and actual thought, obviously this M43 is out of the question as a running and competing vehicle for under the $1,500 price cap of the Cheap Truck Challenge. So, what do we do now? At first, I got it and immediately thought, "Perfect magazine tow vehicle." All we'd have to do is fix the rust, do a little (OK, a lot) of interior work, put in a fridge, and use the fold-down cots to sleep in and the storage underneath for tools and tow gear. Throw in a sweet diesel and a five- or six-speed, put on some 36-inch E-rated tires, and bring some tunes for a long haul. Then I started thinking--dare I say it?--maybe some 46-inch Baja Claws or 49-inch Iroks, some Rockwell or Unimog axles (if Kennedy doesn't notice they're missing), and maybe a Cummins diesel to move all that weight. The top is rusty and visibility is poor, so maybe we hack it to convertible truck status and lose a ton of rusty weight. All that mixed with front and rear 15,000-pound winches on iron so old that it seniors even our trusty boss Pw.
What Should We Do? You Tell Us!
Well, what do you want us to do? We're sort of stumped. No matter what we do, this is in no way going to be a cheap buildup. Maybe I should just scrap this project, sell it for a couple bucks, and think about getting something easy like a 1/2-ton Chevy. So, should we keep this as a project buildup or sell it and start our search over? What would we have to go through?
Would it be cheaper to buy a running truck? What about going serious with this thing? We were thinking along the lines of Biggest Buggy Ever. Should we? Or maybe it would be a cool tow vehicle? Or (even more maybes) you have a better idea. Let us know! E-mail your suggestions to jerrod.jones@primedia.com. I'll take a look at what everyone has to say, and make a decision based on the most popular plan of attack. Maybe it will be a logical one, and maybe you readers are just sadistic and wanna see us try to heave axles that weigh more than some cars under our Dodge M43. Let us know...I'm waiting.