I stumbled upon this site yesterday after making somewhat of an impulse buy, a 1979 LUV Mikado long bed, 3 speed auto!
http://www.biddergy.com/Listing/Details/88651120I actually bid on this truck sight unseen and ended up winning the auction for $596! Truck was from Indiana and obviously has some rust, but appears to have been maintained by the previous owner evidenced by a new Jasper engine installed at 89k (according to sticker under the dash), and appears to have had a recent tuneup and new rubber hoses in engine. All fluids were at appropriate levels and looked go, and the AC still blows cold! Truck appears to have been sitting for some time as the brakes intermittently stick, and the exterior/interior showed signs of not being driven. Odometer shows 55k, so I'm assuming it has 155k on it.
Overall I'm impressed with this little truck! It's no speed demon, but I drove a Mercedes 240D for 5 years so I'm used to having people honk at me when merging onto the highway. I have no plans for a complete restoration, but hope to keep this as a reliable little work truck. I work in architectural salvage/antiques so it will primarily be used to haul building materials locally.
As a new owner, I'm basically looking for some advice on trouble spots and preventative maintenance I should take care of soon. The most pressing issues I need to address are the brakes, and have the rear bumper bracket welded (currently held in place by strap on the passenger side. I'm also planning on changing all the fluids as I don't know when it was previously done. Any recommendations on what to check right away? Thanks in advance.