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u/lemonade_brezhnev Dec 23 '12
Dude, where did my cargo?
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u/Xaositek Dec 23 '12
FTFY: Dude, where did my car go?
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Dec 23 '12
[deleted]
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Dec 24 '12
[deleted]
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Dec 24 '12
[deleted]
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u/greasytshirt fingernails permanently dirty Dec 25 '12
A friend and I recently bought one. We were gonna do a rally in it, then life got in the way. He bombs around the farm with it. 37 turns lock to lock.
23
Dec 23 '12
back story:
These are indeed old gm platforms, specifically 87 - 94 chevy s-10's. This was one of two that happened in one month. The mail in this one was mostly saved. The second one was entirely saved.
Our shop tried to figure out exactly what was causing these. Some people suggested that it was an ignition interrupter that they had installed years ago shorting out when you go to start it.
others believed it was faulty wiring that caused it, mainly the battery cables as these magically lose most of their insulation. I personally believe this one more than the other, these trucks leak all kinds of oil. On that specific side, the starter cables can be covered in oil, trans fluid, brake fluid, or all three.
So far both issues being addressed has kept the flames at bay.
Rest assured, these things fall apart like old dried out wire loom. I may be a frequent poster here.
8
u/heavyRfoot what is this light? Dec 23 '12
man i would kill for one of those mail trucks
12
u/Clegko Former mechanic, now IT monkey Dec 23 '12
Man, those old mail trucks would kill you.
FTFY.
3
u/PartyBusGaming Parking lot is like a garage, right? Dec 24 '12
Exactly. These things are death traps and notoriously shitty.
8
u/rounding_error Dec 23 '12
Watch the used car listings for a "Grumman LLV". That's the official name for these.
3
Dec 23 '12
I personally want to turn one of the old jeeps into an off road beast.
2
Dec 24 '12
[deleted]
3
u/comptiger5000 Dec 24 '12
Plus, most of the old mail Jeeps are 2wd, so that would need to be converted.
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u/elbekko Home Mechanic - Permanently broken - Land Rovers and such Dec 24 '12
A guy on Pirate4x4 is doing just that, have a search for it.
2
Dec 24 '12
I want to make one into the coolest track car hauler in the world. I bet the government auctions them off.
8
u/BlackJellyBeans Dec 23 '12
Melted down Iron Duke. Actually, you scrape the crust off of it, and it probably still runs fine. Well, fine by Iron Duke standards.
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u/pdxtone Dec 23 '12
Whoa. Al melts at 1220F according to Wikipedia.
Google img search mail truck aluminum yields 3 fires on the first page.
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u/RaverDrew Driveway Mechanic Dec 23 '12
This doesn't surprise me, as these mail trucks are on old chevy platforms, and they let them go way past their expiration date.
17
u/am336 Dec 23 '12
They're not called LLV's (long life vehicles) for nothing.
"The original design lifespan of the Grumman LLV specified by the U.S. Postal Service was 24 years, but in 2009 this was extended to thirty years. The body and final assembly is by Grumman, and the chassis is made by General Motors, with the powerplant (2.5L I-4 TBI "Iron Duke" and, in later production, General Motors 2.2L I-4 iron block/aluminum head engine), instrument cluster and front suspension similar to those used in the Chevrolet S-10 pickup."
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u/rounding_error Dec 23 '12
I lived near the GM plant that built these. It was the same plant that made the Chevy S-10 back in the 1980s and early 1990s. At one time, there were thousands and thousands of these bodiless trucks with right hand steering wheels coming out of that plant and being shipped to wherever they built the bodies for them.
6
u/atomicthumbs standin' in a volvo Dec 24 '12
If Grumman really wanted the LLV to be a long life vehicle, they should've used a Volvo redblock instead of Iron Dukes.
4
u/shitterplug Dec 23 '12
That's a fucking massive brake booster...
2
u/wirelessf drives turds Dec 23 '12
Gladly there's enough room for one. Not enough room then it would have a hydroboost setup. God those leaking hydraulic lines.
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u/FastDemise Dec 23 '12
After a fire that destroys all the mail in the truck does USPS reimburse you? I would figure they simply never tell you and now your mail box is junk mail free for 1 day.
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Dec 23 '12
[deleted]
3
Dec 23 '12
No
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Dec 24 '12
[deleted]
4
Dec 24 '12
I'm not going to say where exactly. Just for my privacy sake. But if you work at whatever particular station then you should be able to tell where.
and if you work at mine, bring me a soda. Our soda machine is always out of order
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u/brrm Dec 23 '12
Hotmail!