Posted by Don in Missouri [108.162.221.7] on Monday, May 16, 2016 at 02:50:16 :
In Reply to: Automatics are the devil posted by Opinions are like A-holes [173.245.54.91] on Sunday, May 15, 2016 at 09:18:58 :
It's less about whether an automatic is cool or not and more a question about the work involved to re-engineer this particular truck relative to functional benefit.
Anything is possible with enough creativity and machine work, but what kind of automatic transmission will even bolt up to an obsolete Hercules diesel, and how would you run the MU2? Will the Braden get ditched for an electric winch? Granted, a Harbor Freight, Chinago Electric is probably easier and safer to use than the PTO winch, but if this well-equipped WC53 is really worh $150,000 as-is, wouldn't it be more cost efficient to build the self-shifter of your dreams out of a more run-of-the-mill Carryall worth about 1/10th of that?
I should keep my mouth shut and hope to buy the castoff parts. Maybe they'll decide an LS crate motor would be the ideal powerplant for their automatic? I'd love to put an old school oil burner in my Carryall that was essentially bolt-in. I remember talking to Paul about what he affectionately called a "real diesel" in contrast to the common love afair with the Cummins 4bt. I'm not sure he was right about which is truly the superior motor, but perhaps a little of his romantic view rubbed off on me. That was around 2000 or 2001. At that time, MARS had not built a WC conversion. He had mainly done M37s but was interested in doing a Carryall. I have assumed that is how this truck came together.
I think it's a cool truck. I hope it finds a home where it will be appreciated. And anyone spending a quarter of a million dollars on a truck should have it exactly the way they want it. Me? I'm just jealous.