What to look for when buying cucv m1008

[Kea]

I know its a Newbie question, but hay I am a newbie.
What do you look for when you buy a cucv?
I have been lurking the forum for a while but can't seem to find any helpful information on this topic.
I have my eye on a couple around town but want to make sure I know what to look at before I approach them.
Never owned a diesel before.
Any help would be apprecitated.

 

[azblazor]

Do you want a running truck, or are you going to bid at an auction? If its a private sale for a running truck, you want a low mileage well maintained vehicle, talking to owner about what maintenance he did and how often will give you clues. What you want to hear are oil changes every 3k miles or so, and fuel filter changes every other or every third oil change. Drive it, does it feel tight or is it sloppy and all over the road, noises, how does it stop, how does the trany shift - the transfer case? Wear and tear, have the little things been fixed, broken knobs, missing parts, etc.

 

[Kea]

Ya, I have been looking for a running truck. Anythink special I should look for besides the usuall. I know the frame can crack by the steering box with big tires. I thought I read somewhere to shift it down from 3rd to 2nd while driving to see if there was any smoke. I realize mileage is a plus but like I said anything special when looking at one of these. I have heard that for mercedes diesels if you plug the pcv return pipe it should stall with in a few seconds. If it takes longer the say the engine may be a little worn. Any ticks like that or wisdom from previous buyers would be appreciated. Thanks