Have any of my trusted blog readers purchased DND surplus vehicles and would you recommend it? (As an example).
I’m also interested in feedback from those of you who’ve driven them while in the service. Would you buy a used truck from Canadian military surplus, knowing what you know?
Responses in the comments.
8 yrs old and 30K km. Let’s see… that’s less than 4K km/yr. At that rate, it would’ve been cheaper to call Avis. But then they wouldn’t have had all the photos and input to justify someone’s existence.
Poorly built, poorly maintained, inferior vehicles each and every one. Would I buy one? In a word, NO.
“Drive it like you stole it.” the ethos of drivers in the CAF.
They were driven hard, and in many exciting and inexplicable ways.
They were usually well maintained, since we were going any where, maintiance was a good way to pass a day.
Well maintained…pfft. I wouldn’t let most of those army techs fix me a sammich.
I have no idea what I am talking about, but I would guess DND drivers would be rough on their vehicles, aiming for the potholes and bumps.
Arronmd and Scf:
Don’t know a thing…for sure. Get a life.
DND used vehicles, by and large, well maintained because lives depend on it and if a DND mechanic or driver screws up he could be placed on charges.
But remember, these are used vehicles.
At that price worth a shot.
Judging by the mileage it’s the Base Postie/Messenger van or a CE tradesman van. If you can get someone to check it out, bonus. I’ve bought a couple DND/Govt vehicles and other than usual maintenance items (tires, belts brake pads etc) I haven’t had a problem. Currently driving a 20 year old Ag Canada Chevy truck with 350k and that thing is tight and smooth.
One thing to keep in mind: the drivers of those vehicles did NOT own those vehicles.
Ownership of anything significantly increases the chances that it will be cared for because the owner paid for it himself and he therefore puts his own value into it (i.e., the labour it took to buy it).
In other words, he worked for it.
The drivers of those government vehicles did not.
I would keep that in mind and therefore consider any purchase of a government vehicle as “AS IS”.
Back in the 1980s we drove the military pattern stuff hard back in the bush. Civilian pattern stuff like this, not so much.
I just love the speculation from those… naw, never mind.
Having spent a career with the Army, I’ll say the following:
1. The vehicle was certainly subject to regular maintenance checks and servicing, probably more so than the average privately-owned van.
2. It was probably driven by a variety of drivers. Multi-user vehicles are of course subject to abuse, but ‘aiming for potholes’ is just silly. Drivers would get slapped down hard for such silliness. Further, while it might well have been driven on gravel roads, it is unlikely that it spent much time (if any) going cross-country.
3. DND is subject to Treasury Board foolishness and tends to hold onto vehicles far longer than a civilian operator would. Many civie fleets are rolled every three or four years because it’s cheaper in the long run than trying to maintain worn-out stuff. This is eight years old. On the other hand, my pickup is 11 years old and runs just fine, thank you.
Can’t see the thing in person but given a relatively low mileage, if the price suits you, it’s not a bad bet. YMMV, of course.
I have purchased 2 x snowmobiles and 2 x 4 wheeler’s from gcsurplus and they were all in great shape.
From my personnel experience, DND vehicles are very well maintained. However, some drivers may drive them aggressively (ie. flooring it). I don’t know anybody that would ever deliberately aim for the potholes. Keep in mind, the military doesn’t have insurance (they have a whole branch of lawyers) so if a driver breaks something and it’s their fault, it (the cost of the vehicle) can actually be taken out of their pay cheque. This happened to a guy I know. He was sleep deprived after an exercise, fell asleep behind the wheel and went into the ditch. The army clawed back the vehicle from his pay.
Like many other have said, the field pattern vehicles were driven hard as would be expected. Civilian pattern probably haven’t seen a lot of hard driving. Especially a cargo with low km.
Anytime you have to purchase a vehicle without benefit of a full mechanical diagnostic … it’s a crap shoot. But if you are able, there is much to be gleaned from simply turning it on and listening to the engine, and if you can drive it lots more to learn. However, I doubt you can do that with an Auction car.
My own ear is fairly well tuned to the sounds of engines, which serves as an early warning sign of trouble.
But I am really out of my depth, because I don’t fully understand the special rigors of driving a car in EXTREME cold temps. Engine block heaters and whatnot. Hopefully the crankcase hasn’t been through a few too many freeze-thaw cycles.
3 cupholders!? in a two-seater van? One for the prisoner being transported in the rear!?
Do you need A.C. in a van that you drive into the southern states ?
On the enlarged jpeg option, I don’t see anything indicating it has A.C.
Yes, it does.
Every thing Jack said, except my military carrier was short.
I bought 3 govt. surplus vehicles and had excellent service for dollar from all of them. In the process I meet a retired RCEME mechanic who made a living biding on govt. surplus vehicles and parts and providing parts and repairs to those of us who prefer tough, no frills trucks. He got such good deals and did such good work that I just left all that stuff to him from then on. I shall google him and see if he is still in business. My policy was to bid low enough that I could afford to fix it.
He seems to have retired. I don’t find any listing.
Price is right!. If same people were driving this veh. on a regular basis, i’m sure they took care of it. Aiming for potholes is stupid. It’s the drivers discomfort after all. I paid 9 for a 2003 6.6l diesel 3 years ago, 10x’s the mileage. Good luck with it Kate. I’m sure you have a mechanical ear by now with all the travelling you do.
Riding in cars with teenagers.
I agree with Jack, the SMP stuff was driven hard but generally well maintained. If you’re of a mechanical bent, probably a reasonable purchase. The civilian pattern stuff was subject to a variety of uses and if they were used in the field, probably used beyond their design specs so unless it’s very low mileage, probably a bit dicey.
The Centurion tanks were used well past their “use by” date and according to a couple of the RCEME people I spoke to, the hulls were warped. Plus they used four gallons of fuel per mile and one I happened to be in went up in flames spontaneously so probably not a good buy.
Cant say much about how it was used, but yes, as a fleet government unit, it would receive regular scheduled maintenance, and, any repairs required would have been done correctly. At 30k km, its just broken in.
These units are not terribly in demand, will be a pig on fuel, and handles like a brick. But it will haul your cargo, and newer trucks with canopies are ridiculously priced nowadays.
Wouldnt pay much more than its min. bid, but your mileage might vary!
There’s a lot of life left in that 4 wheel box, and hey! A set of tires to go with it too!
Looks like a good buy Kate. My friend has a diesel GM van and it has been a nightmare to keep running. This one has the very well sorted gas V8.
During my time in, DND had a maintenance account for each vehicle. When the account was depleted, the vehicle was sold. A relatively new vehicle sold off would likely be a lemon but one with a few years on it would likely just have spent its account on regular maintenance.
On the subject of abuse, I found out that my drivers were having a contest to see who could make it to town over logging roads the fastest. I visited the section and advised that the winner would get a $300 fine. No further problem.
Only the fear of my RSM kept me from abusing vehicles more than I thought I could get away with. I never aimed for a pot hole, that’s my butt. Any of them I ever drove, you could floor it all you wanted. No one would notice.
6.0 LS engines (called Vortec in trucks) are darn near bulletproof, unless you run them without oil.
Hot rodders love’em.
It appears to be in reasonable condition to me Kate. The Civilian Pattern vehicles I drove in the forces were generally well cared for by base maintenance staff. If a vehicle was not fit it didn’t go out till it was good again. The interior looks fairly clean so far as the upholstery goes IMO but the vehicle will be needing a good cleaning and some touch up paint. I have a bit of concern that the tire are said to be worn at only 30K. It may be though that the original tires have been changed over to another vehicle that had worn tires. I’d definitly inspect the thing if at all possible.
chebbies, ain’t those Obamamama mobiles:-))))
The maintenance on the DND vehicles is generally 100% up to date. If it’s due for an oil change or other regular maintenance it’s taken out of service til the work is done.
Just remember gc surplus is a sealed tender, not an auction (because that would make more sense) .. One shot, high bid takes the product.
I would feel confident buying that van.
Only drawback – it’s bare bones in the cargo section, which generally means quite noisy. And cold in winter. But you could insulate and upholster it.
As a former Army Transport Officer, I would think it is a good risk to take. Drivers of DND vehicles are required to do a daily ‘1st parade’ on any vehicle they are taking out, to ensure fluids are topped up, tires, wipers and many other assorted items are in good and safe condition. That’s more care than most people take of their own vehicles. As one person said, with the low mileage, it was likely an on-base messenger vehicle, with occasional romps into Brandon or Winnipeg (notes say it is at CFB Shilo). Base transport is likely in a hanger (don’t know for sure, haven’t been to Shilo since 2002), in which case, if it was a messenger vehicle, it would have been parked indoors during the winter months when not in use.
Dinah’s advice:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUnaqMjSF2A
Having checked what past units have actually sold for in auction, I’d likely have to bid upwards of 12K — not nearly the deal the minimum bids suggest, given you must take it as is. Thanks all for your input, I’ll keep watch on these.
I think it’s probably a good bet, keeping in mind that any used work-type vehicle is a gamble. At least fleet vehicles get their oil changes and usually get checked over and repaired before a ball joint lets go and tears a front wheel off, unlike your average contractor/plumber/courier/taxi vehicle.
That Aston listed is going to OWN whoever’s dumb enough to bid on it…
https://www.gcsurplus.ca/mn-eng.cfm?snc=wfsav&sc=enc-bid&scn=335996&lcn=483827&lct=L&srchtype=&lci=&str=11<nf=1&frmsr=1&sf=ferm-clos
Crimeny! Drug dealers don’t take very good care of their rides.
Been buying (well) used cars, maintaining and driving them for going on 47 years. So long as you are willing to do the work yourself, these can be really good deals, especially if the truck is clean and does not show signs of major accident/repairs.
Having driven US Navy trucks in the 1970’s, can assure you that the maintenance is kept up, not good for ones mental state if the truck dies while shuttling around any officer above LT rank. The enlistees also want to arrive at destination without issue.
From those photos I would take a plunge at the right price point.
I have purchased, over the years, a Chev 2 wheel drive Health Canada pickup driven by nurses, An RCMP Duelly 4X4 crew cab pickup, and a Parks Canada 4X4 pickup. all were low mileage for their years, all were very mechanically sound, and had no problem whatsoever on any of them apart from self created ones. All were used, by me, in bush jobs and had a harder time in their new life than prior. If you are considering a Govt Surplus vehicle you should follow the government surplus sites and pick out one with relatively low mileage and if it looks good in the pictures call the contact number and see if you can get a bit of history on the vehicle. For instance that van may have just been used for some specific low impact purpose where ever it was.