BOBWhite

Mack 12 speed with that engine and Mack rear ends is arguably the best combination in any truck by any manufacture at least I think so. Send in some pics if you have time. and let me know if you want to sell it!

That shifting rod can get out of adjustment and make it so you can't shift into any gear. Check and see if its loose or try and put it in gear from down at the transmission. 

You're Going to kick yourself for getting rid of it, I know I did. That truck and that motor is worth the trouble trust me, once your hauling and you realize that you can out run any truck on the road you'll know what I mean. And Picture's too. I want to see it!

I love that motor they're just not economical anymore. The parts are painted gold for a reason and more importantly there's no one who knows how to work on them. Especially with the over head cam valve adjustment.  And the fuel milage is something terrible too, like 3 or 4. 

Loadstar's hauled a lot of grain in this country back in their day. Farmers did't have semi's so army's of 500 bushel grain trucks ruled the road. 

1 hour ago, mowerman said:

I’m sure it’s right at the top instead of the side that’s the way all the newer shit is you could probably just change the shifter ball that’s probably the least of your troubles ha ha good luck nice clean interior by the way .Bob

Yeah Im sure there's going to be something else but looking at both transmissions side by side they look like they have the same 11 bolt pattern. And there's probably nothing wrong with my 9 speed the shift linkage probably just needs adjusted. Oh and I wish this was my interior! I ripped this straight out of the catalog

12 minutes ago, Onyx610 said:

What does one of those 500hp E9’s cost on average? 

Easily $10,000 or more for a good running motor, and even a parts engine's worth a good bit especially if it has the inline 8 pump on it

Another question I had: What did the shifter look like in the 18 speed Mh cabovers? More specifically where did the Hi-Lo selector move too? Thanks

This is what ours looked like and I don't see a good place to put the splitter if I swap an 18 speed In it.

Video: 

The lash on those jakes is crucial. But I'm not Sure what they were using in 2003. I thought it was the power leash but they could have still been using dynatard. Someone around here will know!

15 hours ago, John3406 said:

Its got the worst suspension ever made on it

What made mack suspension worse than any other brands? And also at the time of posting it's already at $9,300. Not much hope of it staying under $15,000. 

My favorite part about the western models in the interior, specifically the bulldog with the cowboy hat might just be the coolest symbol on any truck!  Also after reading some of the literature on these I have to ask why the early E9 have twin turbos? A buddy north of me has a superliner with the E9 (which I envy) and it only has one turbo. When did they switch?  thanks

If it were any other engine it would be $10,000 or less in the condition its in. A good investment for trucks sake.

Any updates on this? Im planing on doing the same to a 1985 Mack Mh with the e6 motor and was thinking of swapping in a 2180. Im a fan of an all Mack driveline myself but I learned to drive on an Eaton 13 speed and I can confirm that they just won't break. 

https://www.bigiron.com/Lots/1983MackSuperlinerRWS700LSTTADayCabTruckTractor

what do you think it will bring? I like that 350 motor but it's too far away for me. 

Thanks. you'd think it would surge at idle but it doesn't, it was the best starting diesel I remember. its only when it doesn't have a load on it that it surges.

3 hours ago, JoeH said:

What one man might define as "jerky" another might describe as a lull in the idle. Low speed governor springs could be worn out. But I've never messed with a fuel pump other than adjusting timing or idle speed.  If your heel isn't planted on the floor while you're driving around it'll be a jerky ride...

Yeah that was my first guess was a governor issue. But the jerkiness is like a random misfire, I wouldn't think it would be a fuel supply issue because it goes away when you have a heavy load on it. Also do all Mack transmissions use the same bolt pattern? Because I think it had a mack t2090 and it's ok but it shifts kinda rough and top gear was always hard to get into. I want to put a t-2180 into it instead of putting money into that 9 speed. 

1. We sold it for $1000 so buying it back might not be the issue (unless my uncles have gotten real attached to it). The money is really going to go into parts.

2. I never remember the speedometer working so I'd guess maybe a half a million? I never looked down at it 

3&4. It's a farm truck but I might do some 100+ mile grain trips with it.

I don't think the jerkiness is from sticky linkages because It doesn't happen under load, Air rated fuel maybe?? and I can get the brake petal off no problem but it's the actuator that you can push down put it won't pop back up. Ive worked on It for days with no luck before. 

1 hour ago, mowerman said:

If The engine is not smoking or making weird noises and you have a good oil pressure I wouldn’t worry about a rebuild unless you’ve got high mileage you could drop the pan and put a set of rods and main bearings in it sometimes are you have to do is adjust the valves and that will make a big difference if it’s running rough .. bob

It ran and pulled pretty good when we had it besides the the no load jerkiness. The pump might need to be looked at but it's just a Bosh pump that was in everything in the 80s right? And what's the best way to get parts for these old Macks? since I don't think Volvo's still supplying parts. 

Here's the first picture I found. Another thing I remember about it was that it had a bad leak in one of the rear bags with the air ride. Are these bag's specific to Mack or are they a common part? We've replaced some on a sprayer a couple of times, not that big of a deal once you have it jacked up right. 

We sold our 1985 Mack Mh to some cousins a couple years ago, didn't think I'd miss it but look where Im at now. Anyways I was thinking of trying to get it back from them someday and fix it up a bit. But it's got some problems that I hope I can learn how to remedy here, here are some I remember: 

1. I was jerky when it was unloaded and it almost seemed like it was starving for fuel but once you got a load on it it was fine. Governor maybe??

2. Leaky rear wheel seals.

3. Motor (e6) might need to be rebuilt.

4. Stop engine light sometimes came on even If all the gauges were fine.

5. foot brake wouldn't pop back up

and probably more but I can't think of them right now. I just thought Id compile some info before putting any money into this project. Any literature would help too! Im not in any big hurry I just really like talking and learning about these old Macks. ill try and find some photos of it and post em here whenever I can. Thanks

I have used this sight to find info on Mack trucks for awhile now and I finally decided to make an account. We had a Mh on the farm when I was little and I loved it, It sat for a couple years before we sold it to some cousins and now we kinda regret it. Anyways it needs some things and I was hoping to learn about it here. Thanks