This article is part of a series of articles focusing on making surplus army trucks street-legal everywhere! Check out the whole series!
There is an adage about the population density of the United States. It is estimated that 80 percent of the population lives in 20 percent of the land area. That leaves basically 80 percent of the land in deeply rural settings. While not all of this is available for public use, a whole lot of it is, especially once you start heading out west.
Example of the views you might find on BLM land.
The Bureau of Land Management manages around 248 million surface acres of land, and the total land managed by the federal government is around 2.3 billion acres. That’s a lot of wide open space for recreating, and if your vehicle is outfitted correctly, you could even call that land your home.
The struggle is having access to the necessities like power and water. For example, once you are on public land out in Utah or Nevada, you could be 30 or 40 miles away from water, and obviously, there is no power. What do you do, then?
Buy an LMTV and make it off-grid; that’s what you do.
Why Would You Want an Off-Grid LMTV?
Image by Moises Jimenez from Pixabay. Not an LMTV, but definitely a contender for a bug-out build.
The cool thing about making a military Light Medium Tactical Vehicle (LMTV) off-grid is that it will take you farther than you might even want to go. Look, tactical vehicles in the army (or any foreign army, for that matter) are designed from the ground up to take troops, supplies, cannons, missiles, food, fuel, and mail to the farthest ends of the earth. They’ll certainly take you to the remote areas of Southwestern Colorado because you aren’t a fan of corporate RV parks.
But, whether or not you’re an influencer living the #vanlife out in the wilderness, you will need some way to power your Starlink and your iPhone, plus you might need water and food to survive.
The LMTV is a natural platform for making off-grid, especially the M1079 van body. By van, the army is not referring to a windowless ice cream van. They are talking about a large box which is generally used for command and control (C2) functions like mobile command post, missile control, radar control, and so on.
These trucks are already ideally suited for an off-grid setup. Most of them already have power banks installed for laptops and other gear used by army admin staff, although they rely heavily on mobile generators. If you want to be off-grid, you must set up a solar array. Thankfully, there is plenty of room on top of the van box for panels, and the 2 ½-ton chassis is beefy enough for all the batteries you need to install. Also, it is sturdy enough for as much clean water as you want. This is extremely important because you’re going to get back there and realize you use a lot more than you think you will. More is always better.
Where Do You Find LMTVs for Sale?
It’s much easier to find a surplus LMTV than you probably think.
When the army decides it doesn’t want stuff, they are surprisingly efficient at getting rid of it. The DoD partners with private auction houses to handle their unwanted stuff. From surplus camo pants to spare parts for copy machines to surplus army trucks, they get rid of it all.
The current auction house is GovPlanet, a division of the popular IronPlanet company.
Now, there are no guarantees that they will have exactly what you want or need, but they probably have something that will work. Also, once you are an approved member (which is free and easy, so just sign up), you can view the ‘Sold’ tab, so check it out to see what has sold and for how much. For instance, an M1079 van-body LMTV was sold in February 2022 for only $13,100. This truck only had 8,693 miles on the odometer, which is totally wild.
Another M1079 van body sold in September 2022 for $18,100; it only had 1,852 miles on it! These trucks will probably serve you for the rest of your life if you buy one; take it to a professional diesel shop for a thorough tune-up (they use the common Caterpillar C7 engine, so all diesel shops will be familiar and can easily get parts), and enjoy.
You can also find these on Marketplace or Craigslist, along with lots of other types and styles of surplus army trucks. Of course, if you buy from a private seller, you will want to check out their title and registration first. If they have used it as an OHV, you should check out whether or not they have an SF-97. If they don’t, it’s not a total deal breaker; just make sure to get a signed bill of sale, although I always recommend the SF-97 and any other paperwork you can get on the truck and its history. This is the same proof of ownership GovPlanet gives you.
The Army Drives Them. Aren’t LMTVs Street-Legal?
You know you want to be here.
The army views any of the M-series trucks, along with Humvees, as tactical vehicles. Tactical vehicles are not intended to be used on paved, public roads, even though they travel on them. Tactical vehicles are made to be used in austere environments; the DoD has special partnerships and SOPs with the DOT and local agencies that allow convoy operations on public roads.
But, to the point, army tactical vehicles are not street-legal in the sense of any other commercial or privately-owned vehicle. If you plan to use it as a street machine and not an OHV, you have to title and tag it, and only some states will help you out. Most are okay with it, but not all.
Are There Any States That Won’t Tag an LMTV?
To the point mentioned above, some states will not tag an LMTV, or any other surplus tactical vehicle for that matter.
California
Cali is notoriously anti-fun, to begin with, starting with their red-sticker policy on dirt bikes.
They are also great if you like high sales taxes and smog checks.
It shouldn’t be too surprising that Cali is also tough on surplus army trucks. In fact, they are so tough that they will not allow you to register them at all. Yes, it is CARB, the same agency that makes it impossible to enjoy dirt biking. Crazy since California is bigger than most countries, with some of the most rugged terrains in the world, and most of the state is empty. But I digress. If you are still a hostage living in the Golden State who likes badass army trucks, you’ll need to tag it out of state.
Colorado
Colorado, or as I like to call it, ‘Square California,’ is the first place we came across that flat-out refuses to title and register surplus army trucks. The irony is that members of Colorado’s own state house of representatives stated that it was going to make people tag them out of state, and Colorado would lose money. That is very true, sirs. Very true.
What Makes It ‘Off-Grid’ Anyway?
As the name implies, an off-grid is a vehicle that is not reliant on external resources, namely electrical power. Eventually, you’re going to need to either hook up to water or go refill your tanks, but solar power is pretty sustainable, especially on this small scale and in the sunny deserts where many Overlanders travel.
Is the LMTV the Only Army Truck You Can Make Off-Grid?
Not by a long shot! For one, the similar-looking MTV, which is the 6x6 version of the LMVT, and is also rated at a 5-ton capacity. M1087FMTV is one of the best follows you can make if you’re interested in this lifestyle. They have been all over the Southwest in their off-grid FMTV.
Other Models
The M35 series of trucks were the mainstay of army tactical logistics for nearly five decades. Since the M35 has been retired and largely phased out of service, there are thousands of them floating around. There is a box-van version like the M1079 LMTV and the M1087 FMTV, and it is a 6x6 truck.
Foreign Army Trucks
Image by petterijokela from Pixabay. Foreign trucks are fine options, although parts are probably going to be harder to come by.
Every army in the world uses trucks for battlefield logistics, and many of them find their way into the U.S. We wrote about this a few months ago. If it’s a foreign truck you want, they can be found, and we can help you get it titled and tagged once you have it.
What Does It Take To Make an Army Truck Street-Legal?
Well, the good news for you is not very much. At least not through our program. See, we work with states with no state inspection or smog requirements. All you have to do is fill out the required paperwork and send it in. Once we have it, we’ll take care of the rest.
The Dirt Legal Advantage
Not only will you get your surplus army truck, LMTV, or FMTV registered, but you also can save a boatload on sales tax. Our Montana LLC program for military vehicles takes it down to zero sales tax, while Utah is only seven percent (subject to change, of course). And, like we said, it allows you to get out of those oppressive state inspections and smog checks. In fact, you don’t even need to leave the living room or put on pants (that’s totally up to you).
Dirt Legal works with states that are friendly and inviting to street-legal military vehicles like LMTVs. An out-of-state registration is perfect for those of you looking to live the off-grid lifestyle and take full advantage of all the public spaces on offer in the more rural areas of the USA. By registering your tactical vehicle to an LLC that you own (and which we create for you), that vehicle can stay registered out-of-state for as long as you want it to. We make the process of forming an LLC quick and easy, so don’t worry about that.
Whether you get a Montana or Utah plate will depend on what proof of ownership you have – we can get you on the road with just a bill of sale, but we can also work with an SF97 or an existing title. Also, if you already have a Montana LLC, your military truck can be added to the existing LLC.
Check out our Street Legal Military Vehicle Service to learn more, and make sure to get your UTVs and dirt bikes registered while you’re at it so you can enjoy all the wilderness has to offer!
John McCoy is a lifelong car and truck enthusiast and has a strong mechanical background off the road. He spent over 13 years in the U.S. Air Force as a crew chief, assigned to the B-1B Lancer, affectionately known as the Bone to those in the community, and the KC-135R Stratotanker. He resides on a small farm in Eastern Kansas where he (sometimes) enjoys fixing ancient farm equipment.