Rust starting in front of wheel-wells and both sides of the bed (between where the top and bottom panels of the bed meet), and surface rust spots on the front of the hood and tailgate. Surface rust mostly from previous dings/scratches in the paint.
When I bought it, both ignition coils were bad, and battery was charged backwards, but that was easily fixed.
Leaks oil from the rear main seal - something I'll be fixing in the next year or so.
Blows blue smoke on rare occasions.
In cold weather the doors wouldn't close properly - fixed with WD-40 on the mechanism.
Also in cold weather, the parking brake cable sticks, won't release properly. I just reach under the truck and pull on it :-).
It idles wierd, racing sometimes then slowing down.
The low and medium fan settings stopped working - fixed by pulling out the old resistor by the fan, and re-soldering the "fuse" connection. Also replaced the fan when it started making terrible squealing noises.
Timing was off when I bought the truck. Mostly fixed by changing spark plugs and replacing the cap and rotor, then adjusting the distributor cap again.
Doesn't get as good of gas mileage as it should: somewhere around 19-20 in the city, 24-26 on the freeway. I think there's a vacuum or gas/air mixture issue.
Rubber floors are starting to wear through to the metal. Thinking about buying/making carpeted flooring.
During one of the coldest days of the year the handle for the tailgate busted off. I'm still trying to fix it so I don't have to find a new one.
Toppers to fit this truck without drilling holes in the bed are HARD/impossible to find.
Struts, tie rods and various joints on front end are weak. Wind or turning sharply will rock the truck from side to side easily.
Occasional starting issues in extremely hot weather. Also, running out of gas is bad. Requires pouring gas directly down the carburetor to get gas back into the lines again.
The heat is great in the winter time, and the original A/C actually WORKS, and it's COLD!
With regular maintenance, this truck never stops running. It'll make it to 300,000 miles easy.
Pretty comfortable ride, though it's a little noisy on the highway. Very little sound-proofing in these old trucks.
Installing a new radio was a bit of a pain - standard DIN radios are a tad too deep, even with an adapter, so I had to custom install mine in the glove-box. It works great, and makes for good thief-deterrent. Speakers on the walls below the dash were an odd size, and I had to custom-build a sub box for behind the seat, but the sound is good. Makes up for the extra road noise.
Despite the many quirks of this truck, It's been one of the most reliable cars I've ever owned. More than a year now, including several loooong trips (1000 miles or more), and I've had to do very little to it.
The rust is going to be an issue in Minnesota, more than in Washington where I got it from.
It's a little truck that wants to be big. It's light (I use 4 or 5 sandbags for driving in snow), but it'll carry/pull a lot for its size. I've towed several large cars/vans, as well as pulled a boat.
Thank you for your information. It was very useful.
This is way too funny. I just bought the same truck and everything that you said, mine did. I was like this is too weird.
The problem I am having right now though is that my alternator won't stop breaking, but all in all I agree it's a wicked truck.
I have had the same year truck in a 2WD, and I love it. I had to replace the 5 speed at 270,000 miles, the front bearing seized. Every now and then when the engine is cold it emits a cloud of blue smoke. The truck is very reliable, but the best in town mileage I've ever has is 18 mpg, and 22 on the highway. It's a great little truck, and I wish the truck makers had not gone to the extra big trucks they have now. I do plan to restore mine, and would like it pristine again.
Man that is a great review I just bought me one and all I have to say is this is a wicked little hate tank it is as you said a little truck that wants to be big.
These little trucks are pretty insane, going places you'd think you wouldn't be able to =) Finding a rear window for this truck was a long, hard to find process, but I finally got one! For a excellent price too.
It does have a idle problem which it will rev up one moment and then be close to dying the next.
I enjoy driving this truck, its like a little race truck =)
Alright on gas mileage, could be better though =(
Its been in my family for a loooong time and its still running and doing what a car does, which is get you from a to b.
I have a 1982 4wd and love it. I replaced the original engine with a Jasper rebuilt at 314,000 miles. The tailgate handle broke a few weeks ago and I'm having a hard time finding one. But everything else is running great.
Note: A Comments RSS Feed 
is available. New comments appear in the Members Area before the main site