Advice on buying Comanche

[centralnc]

I would appreciate some advice from the forum. I owned a 1990 Comanche for about 7 years and hated to part with it. Now I am preparing to buy another 1990 for use around the house.

 

I live in NC, but I found a Comanche that was driven down from WI by the owner when he moved South. It is a 1990 Eliminator (4x4, 5 sp manual) with 91k miles on it. The glass is all good, engine seems strong and transmission shifts easily. It has a bedliner, factory aluminum wheels and a truckbox. He is asking $2200 for it.

 

My only hesitation is rust. It has some rust on the bottom of the fenders and along the rocker panels. It has a bit of spot rust on the bed, but isn't all the way through. The rocker panels are the worst area. I am not certain about the floor underneath the carpet.

 

I lived in MN for several years so I know what salt can do to a vehicle. This is a nice Comanche. 20+ years old with 91k miles means it wasn't driven a lot. This is the 3rd owner and he has taken care of it.

 

Question:

How much should I worry about the rust? Is it something that I can work on now and stop or should I buy the truck and prepare myself mentally to put new fenders, new bed and prepare to cut/patch most of the cab?

 

Should I buy the truck or wait for another to hit the market? I am thinking that with all the knowledge on this forum would help me handle any problems that might pop up. Thoughts???

 

I really like these old Comanches. They are simple and bulletproof, plus they are "cool" in a way that Toyota, Chevy and Ford small trucks can't touch. I would appreciate any advice!!

[Eagle]

Fenders are easy to replace, and in the overall scheme of the universe not that expensive. Rocker panels are a bit more work, but also readily available. The floor is the big issue, and since the floors seem to usually rust out from the inside due to undetected leaks even a nice southern truck is no guarantee that you won't be replacing the floors. Comanches are NOT growing on trees, and the ones that are out there are not getting any better as they age, so if you find one that's of interest, my advice would be, "Buy it."

 

Check the frame immediately behind the cab. I know of two or three that have broken there. I wouldn't let some rust there kill a sale, but I would use it to negotiate price, and I would derust and reinforce that area immediately upon purchase if there's any deterioration.

[Pete M]

I'd look for a solid southern truck. I've lived in Michigan my whole life and have seen what salt will do to the underside of an MJ. :( Crawl underneath and look up into the interior of the bedsides. Our trucks rot from the inside out, so anything you can see on the outside is likely 10 times worse on the inside.

 

Whatever truck you buy, make sure you pull up the carpet to check for moisture before handing over money. All MJs are susceptible to floor rot.

[comanche09]

:agree: With Eagle and Pete

 

Can you post pics?

 

When I bought my '88 the exterior was in terrible shape. Everything was there but there was surface rust throughout (defective factory paint). The original owner put indoor/outdoor latex paint on the roof and hood, but I think it did more harm than good.The roof was so bad that I thought that I was going to grind through it in some places. I'm still kickin myself for not having a camera at the time to take before pics.

 

However, it was always a southern truck, and the underside is pristine. The point is, if it isn't rusted through, it can be fixed, and the parts that are too far gone can be replaced. Do you have welding/fab skills? If the uniframe is in good shape, I would say go for it.

 

I would try to talk him down to anything under $2000 (though I would be tempted to pay what he was asking :yes: ). That truck already has the AX-15 and 4x4.

[-600JeepMJ]

:agree: If you can go with cash in hand and try to talk him down a much as you can after you note all the stuff you can find wrong that was pointed out to look for.

 

:smart: Trolling around here is encouraged bunch because there is a lot to learn and see about what you can do with a MJ

 

:typing: If you do not get it there will be others out there. we are a very friendly group and repost info about other MJ we find for sale. I got my 90 MJ for $600, but it had a lot of problems that I was able to fix by finding the info here :clapping:

[centralnc]

I appreciate all the advice and comments. I will really look underneath the fenders, bed and cab before buying. My brother is a welder/pipe fitter by trade. It is amazing what he can do with metal. The rust and potential for big problems later are the 2 things that are keeping me from pulling the trigger right now. I wish I had some pictures to post, but the next time I see the truck (Monday or Tuesday) I will need to give the owner a yes/no.

 

My other option is an '88 Comanche 4x4 (5 sp with long bed). 110k miles with a single owner. It was purchased in NC and spent its whole life there. No rust at all. The problem is that it doesn't run right now and hasn't been cranked in 2 years. The owner is asking $1900 for it as is. I would have to drive almost 3.5 hrs and haul it home on my trailer. It is a bigger hassle, older, non-running Comanche....but it has no rust at all. If I could buy it cheaper I could afford to work on the engine and get it painted for the same price as the WI Comanche.

 

The 1990 is an Eliminator so it has bucket seats. The 1988 has a bench seat and the interior isn't as nice.

 

Which would you guys choose? thanks again for the advice!!

[ComancheKid45]

Easly go for the 90, although either would be a good platform to start with

[xjrev10]

Personally I would go for the eliminator. :yes:

[-600JeepMJ]

What are your plans for the MJ?

 

If you are going to restore it go for the nicer one.

 

If you are going to turn it in to a high stepping off road trail stomping, go for the cheaper one and Mod the heck out of it

[dasbulliwagen]

Having moved from michigan to North Carolina.... I too know the rust thing, and if it was my choice I go for the rust free one and fix it...probably just needs clean gas and a crank sensor. You can swap buckets into the 88 and make it how you want it for sooooo much less hassle of rust repair, and then waiting for it to come back through on spliced panels.... and good luck finding a bed, and cab corners. Youll be much happier starting with a clean truck!

[Pete M]

the hard things to change are engine type (2.5, 2.8 or 4.0), trans type (auto or manual), adding AC, and rust. everything else is bolt-in, including seats and 4wd.

 

 

personally, I'd go for the 88 and argue the price down a bit. but then I've got no problem fixing the shortcomings of the earlier years.

[centralnc]

thanks again for all of the advice. I am going to look at the 1990 Eliminator tomorrow morning. The price is now $1900. I have a few photos now that I can share, but I am not sure how to post them.

 

I found a wrecked (bumper and grill) mid-80s 2wd Comanche in Raleigh for $350 on Craigslist. Maybe the parts off the 2wd could fix any rust?

 

I want a truck that I can drive for the next 2-4 years that will be reliable and fun. I like working on cars and I thought the Comanche might be a fun project to work on with my sons in a few years. I will let you guys know what I work out tomorrow. thank you.

[Automan2164]

There is a link on how to post pics in the forum problems and ideas section.

 

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=11077

 

Rob L.

[jimoshel]

I would rather swap, fix, parts anytime over messing with rust.

[Automan2164]

Buy 'em both, put the '90 stuff in the '88, and the '88 stuff in the '90. Done deal.

 

One looker/runner, one trail beating warrior rig.

 

So I don't quite understand the problem. :dunno:

Rob L. :D

[jimoshel]

:agree: 100%

[centralnc]

Well the definition of "a little" rust to someone who grew up in MI is very different than someone who lives in NC. You guys were right about choosing mechanical repair vs. fighting rust!!! The rocker panels, fenders and bed were pretty shot and the frame was heavily coated as well. We had a lot of rain here last night and the front floor board carpet was wet.....so, I decided to pass on the 1990 Eliminator. Thanks to everyone for all of the advice.

 

I will move on to the other Comanches on the list. I hope to have one soon.

 

Thanks again to all. :cheers:

[Squeegy410]

on the subject of the 88(?) with a bench. there s a guy on here from franklin tennessee (not too far from nc) that is trying to trade his buckets for a bench due to his baby he needs to haul around. and if the engine is shot you said there was one for sale for 450 wrecked? if the engines match i would try to get them both. also welcome to the club :cheers: let me know if you need anything I'm always on here :thumbsup:

[dasbulliwagen]

thanks again for all of the advice. I am going to look at the 1990 Eliminator tomorrow morning. The price is now $1900. I have a few photos now that I can share, but I am not sure how to post them.

 

I found a wrecked (bumper and grill) mid-80s 2wd Comanche in Raleigh for $350 on Craigslist. Maybe the parts off the 2wd could fix any rust?

 

I want a truck that I can drive for the next 2-4 years that will be reliable and fun. I like working on cars and I thought the Comanche might be a fun project to work on with my sons in a few years. I will let you guys know what I work out tomorrow. thank you.

 

If you need help hauling the one from Raliegh, just PM me and we will see if we can set something up for me to help out... I live right off of 64 on the way over. Welcome to the club!

[centralnc]

I found an '88 4.0 4x4 5 sp long bed. It has had one owner its entire life. Very little rust and was red at one time, but is now a nice shade of dark pink. Does anyone think that 280,000 miles is too many miles for a 4.0? The owner used it as a daily drive for about 20 years. It isn't perfect, but it is available. $1100.

 

Thoughts?

[Pete M]

most parts in a 4.0 can easily survive 300k if properly cared for. But with that many miles, certain things like the timing chain, oil pump, and distributor gear can become regular maintenance items.

[centralnc]

Those all sound like things I could do myself, expect for maybe the oil pump. I think I am going to buy this one. The owner says it just started missing a little bit a few months ago so he quit driving it. He said that an o-ring on one of the injectors was cracked and that was probably causing the slight miss. I am going to test drive it tomorrow and hopefully bring it home.

[Pete M]

the oil pump is actually pretty straight forward. :thumbsup:

[Eagle]

I have a very strong bias -- see my signature. As someone else noted, a lot depends on what you plan to do with the truck. If you plan to restore it and use it as a basically stock daily driver, buying the rust-free truck makes a lot of sense. If you intend to modify it, chop the heck out of it to fit big tires, and beat the crap out of it off-road ... why destroy one of the few remaining straight, solid MJs when you could buy a candidate for modification a lot cheaper?

[centralnc]

I really don't see myself modifying the Comanche for off-road use. We bought about 15 acres of land out on the country and I have been clearing it myself to prepare to build a house. It would be nice to have a good 4x4 to carry the chainsaws and get back into the woods. I would want to keep it nice enough to take to Lowes and maybe camping with my boys. I would like to find a rust-free version that I can keep for many years. I sold my 1990 Comanche several years ago and have regretted it ever since.

 

thanks for the advice.