diff --git a/util/build-gnu.sh b/util/build-gnu.sh
index 8a45e0a8d..8ade25e88 100755
--- a/util/build-gnu.sh
+++ b/util/build-gnu.sh
@@ -102,14 +102,12 @@ for binary in $(./build-aux/gen-lists-of-programs.sh --list-progs); do
 done
 
 if test -f gnu-built; then
-    # Change the PATH in the Makefile to test the uutils coreutils instead of the GNU coreutils
-    sed -i "s/^[[:blank:]]*PATH=.*/  PATH='${UU_BUILD_DIR//\//\\/}\$(PATH_SEPARATOR)'\"\$\$PATH\" \\\/" Makefile
     echo "GNU build already found. Skip"
     echo "'rm -f $(pwd)/gnu-built' to force the build"
     echo "Note: the customization of the tests will still happen"
 else
     ./bootstrap --skip-po
-    ./configure --quiet --disable-gcc-warnings
+    ./configure --quiet --disable-gcc-warnings --disable-nls --disable-dependency-tracking --disable-bold-man-page-references
     #Add timeout to to protect against hangs
     sed -i 's|^"\$@|'"${SYSTEM_TIMEOUT}"' 600 "\$@|' build-aux/test-driver
     # Change the PATH in the Makefile to test the uutils coreutils instead of the GNU coreutils