LUVTruck.com

Hey all! Well, I got my LUV running! Here I was afraid the little guy might need a new engine and all, and it turns out all I did was tighten down the carb which was loose on the base plate (throttle body, I'd suppose is what that piece is called), hooked up the battery and cranked it. Sure enough, it fired! Ran pretty damn rough and damn sure wouldnt idle, but it was trying! This morning I went back out to it, changed the plugs, oil, air filter, and gave it another shot and now the little LUV is purring! For a total of about $250 invested, I've got what seems to be a decent little pickup. Dont get me wrong...she could stand a re-ring job at worst, a complete overhaul at best, but the beast is ALIVE!! I couldnt be happier........

sweet!!!!!!!!!!!!!

thats awesome. i personally was tickled to death the very second it started up after the rebuild.

well have fun with the truck. treat it to a night on the town. heck maybe even get a speedin ticket. well..maybe not that...here try this.. DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!!

have a good one
anthony

Thanx guys! I cant take it out much yet...still waiting on the title and to get it registered, lisenced and insured, then she'll be ready. I dont know how many miles the little 4-banger has left in it...the plugs were pretty black and sooty and she smokes a good bit, but if I do any engine work, I think I'l ljust start with a head-job. Maybe the valve seals are just bad and thats why it's smoking. V8 Chevys are bad for that too, especially of my LUVs vintage. Thanx again though...looking forward to just driving the thing!

An update....
The LUV is still running. Sure a cold-blooded little beast though. It runs really rough for the first 8 or 10 minutes, and the damn fuel pump clatters like crazy, it wont even hold an idle without help. After it starts showing some heat on the temp guage, it settles into a nice little burbly exhaust note, revs at will and returns normally to idle speed. It quit smoking (musta just been some oil seepage in the cylinders and bad gas) too. I still dont have enough faith in it to take it very far from home, but for a $200 truck that supposedly needed a new engine, I'm freakin elated!

thats pretty cool. you plan on keeping it a 4 cylinder? keep up the good work!!

neil

_________________
"but its that gut feeling of you're drawn to what feels right for yourself and what you're passionate about..."

Thanx farmer joe. For the time being (or until it dies) I plan on keeping the 4. I'd like to do a serious 4x4 buildup of the truck in the future, at which time I'd like to swap in a GM V6 and different tranny and T-case, but for now I just plan on driving the LUV for fuel economy and fun, maybe work on the interior and body in the meantime.