I'm the main wrench-turner at an intentional community, looking to replace our monster gas-guzzler Ford, and other vehicles unworthy of mention, with what seems a flippin' sweet little truck. It's an 83 Power Ram 50 Sport, 5-speed, 4x4, single cab, turbodiesel. We're all but set on pulling the trigger and buying it (for about $1800), but I'm hoping to solicit some last-minute advice on these rigs.
1. It runs and drives just fine, but burns oil. Not at idle or under load, but after pulling in a gear and letting off the gas-- er, throttle-- er
it's a diesel; it doesn't have either of these things... anyway, after letting off the happy pedal, it lets out a sizable puff of blue smoke and oil smell. One mechanic, more familiar with diesels than I, said it probably wasn't rings, but valve guides. Does that sound right? I sure hope it's not the rings, since I can't find them anywhere. Where do yall source engine internals for the 4D55?2. What's the deal with running biodiesel on the 4D55? I do mean bio-derived DIESEL, not veggie oil (interested in that too, as a separate matter). Are we looking at blowing seals on an injectorpump that is no longer available? Is it a DIY-able job to replace all the plastics and rubbers with BD-compatible parts? Where do we get the parts?
3. 6-volt glowplug system doesn't work; apparently, the transformer is fried. I hear the NGK 7880 (Y710J), used in some 80's Isuzus, is a 12V plug of the same physical size. Any reason to repair and keep the 6-volt factory system?
4. I hear conflicting reports about the reliability of this engine. Some people say they eat headgaskets, can't be turned up (not that we plan on souping up what's going to be an errands/farm truck), alu heads warp, there's some cam sprocket pin that likes to come out, turbos don't last more than 50k... others call them indestructible, apparently the rockers are designed to break before valves and pistons, in the event of timing belt failure, they seem to last 200k+...? Thoughts?
5. We've got another day or two to inspect and poke at it. Anything specific to watch out for?
