Hi All,
I am new to the Land Cruiser world as I recently purchased a 1982 FJ40. It is in good shape and looks pretty classic. I am considering getting a snorkel for the benefit of getting the clean air rammed into the engine, and I like the looks of a snorkel. I am not sure if I will ever be up to my spleen in water driving the truck. My question is the following: will installing a snorkel decrease the resale value of it, and if so, how significantly? Since a hole needs to be cut into the body, I suspect that is very hard to reverse. Since the vehicle is in very good shape, I suspect it is worth at least a few bucks and I don't want to make some idiotic rookie mistake. I don't intend to sell it anytime soon, but one never knows what the future will bring.
Just for background (and because I am excited about my recent find), it is an FJ40 from Indonesia, so the steering wheel is on the right. It has been converted to diesel with a 13BT engine and a 5 speed transmission. It has a soft top (I believe it has a factory original Toyota soft top, but I am still trying to confirm) and a factory PTO winch (pretty cool, hadn't seen one of those before). It is in really good condition and runs very well. The previous owner is a passionate collector (he owns 10 classic Land Cruisers and is always restoring one. I was lucky to get him to sell this to me) and restored it and took excellent care of it. I am currently in Indonesia and will be returning to Virginia this summer and bringing this bad boy back with me. I am probably going to get a hard top for it also since parts and labor are really inexpensive here (there are a bunch of these running around here and there are some real expert mechanics that do nothing but work on and restore FJs/BJs).
Welcome your comments on the balance between adding a snorkel and keeping the value. Thanks.
I am new to the Land Cruiser world as I recently purchased a 1982 FJ40. It is in good shape and looks pretty classic. I am considering getting a snorkel for the benefit of getting the clean air rammed into the engine, and I like the looks of a snorkel. I am not sure if I will ever be up to my spleen in water driving the truck. My question is the following: will installing a snorkel decrease the resale value of it, and if so, how significantly? Since a hole needs to be cut into the body, I suspect that is very hard to reverse. Since the vehicle is in very good shape, I suspect it is worth at least a few bucks and I don't want to make some idiotic rookie mistake. I don't intend to sell it anytime soon, but one never knows what the future will bring.
Just for background (and because I am excited about my recent find), it is an FJ40 from Indonesia, so the steering wheel is on the right. It has been converted to diesel with a 13BT engine and a 5 speed transmission. It has a soft top (I believe it has a factory original Toyota soft top, but I am still trying to confirm) and a factory PTO winch (pretty cool, hadn't seen one of those before). It is in really good condition and runs very well. The previous owner is a passionate collector (he owns 10 classic Land Cruisers and is always restoring one. I was lucky to get him to sell this to me) and restored it and took excellent care of it. I am currently in Indonesia and will be returning to Virginia this summer and bringing this bad boy back with me. I am probably going to get a hard top for it also since parts and labor are really inexpensive here (there are a bunch of these running around here and there are some real expert mechanics that do nothing but work on and restore FJs/BJs).
Welcome your comments on the balance between adding a snorkel and keeping the value. Thanks.