Builds 1960 FJ28L - Project Lara (1 Viewer)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

finally got the new leaf springs, this has been holding up the chassis work. Took us about 6 weeks to get these made but look to be worth the wait. I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited about leafs before! The chassis should start coming together now over the next few months, this I believe was the only material we were waiting on. The only other tough part will be the trans, hoping we have everything we need to piece that all together.

Still waiting in line for my turn with the new body shop. Was hoping they’d start by late February but they only do one job at a time, and the current job he’s doing is taking a bit longer than they’d expected.

DCB7E44E-43A8-4F0E-86CD-0CA4F445A4E7.jpeg
 
finally got the new leaf springs, this has been holding up the chassis work. Took us about 6 weeks to get these made but look to be worth the wait. I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited about leafs before! The chassis should start coming together now over the next few months, this I believe was the only material we were waiting on. The only other tough part will be the trans, hoping we have everything we need to piece that all together.

Still waiting in line for my turn with the new body shop. Was hoping they’d start by late February but they only do one job at a time, and the current job he’s doing is taking a bit longer than they’d expected.

View attachment 2611699
They look great! I am looking forward to seeing our projects come together.
 
They look great! I am looking forward to seeing our projects come together.
Me too! I think it’s really cool that there are several 20 series projects going on right now. I had hoped to salvage the existing leafs but close inspection found that they were maybe only 50% original anyway at best. And the rest was in pretty rough shape with lots of repairs. All things considered, though it was an expense I hadn’t planned on I’m happy with how it turned out.
 
finally got the new leaf springs, this has been holding up the chassis work. Took us about 6 weeks to get these made but look to be worth the wait. I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited about leafs before! The chassis should start coming together now over the next few months, this I believe was the only material we were waiting on. The only other tough part will be the trans, hoping we have everything we need to piece that all together.

Still waiting in line for my turn with the new body shop. Was hoping they’d start by late February but they only do one job at a time, and the current job he’s doing is taking a bit longer than they’d expected.

View attachment 2611699

Those look nice, where did you get those made? Alcan?
 
Those look nice, where did you get those made? Alcan?
There’s a local shop in Phoenix that’s been around a long time, Valley Spring. We just had them use the existing ones as templates since I didn’t believe any other cruisers had the same wheelbase.
 
First of all, I want to congratulate you on this purchase and labor of love. As a lifelong Cruiserhead and native of Venezuela, I can't tell you how amazing it is to me that this vehicle survived six decades of abuse, even in this state. I NEVER saw a 45 series wagon or 25/28 series *anything* while living there and even 55s were rare by the mid-90s when I emigrated. Land Cruisers are fundamentally work trucks in Central/South America and almost all of them were HAMMERED beyond anything that American Cruiserheads can conceive, which makes the survival of this incredible wagon so unique.
I spent many years dabbling in the history of the Toyota Land Cruiser and even failed at a book attempt to document it. 20+ years later, I've forgotten 1/2 of what I once knew, but it is incredibly cool to see so many of you pitching in to help with this project, whether it's with information or old manuals and brochures or parts numbers or sourcing bits or even just encouragement. Seeing the names of legendary Cruiserheads on this thread reminds me that this is one of the coolest communities out there.

A couple of years ago I visited the Land Cruiser Heritage Museum in SLC and for the first time in a long time, I felt overwhelmed. I didn't know where to start, I couldn't believe the extent of the Miller collection and I couldn't believe that FJ28 wagon from Venezuela or that slant-sided SWB pickup (also from Venezuela), neither one of which I ever saw in the country of my birth. Stumbling across this thread reminded me of that experience, it's the thrill of discovery, of admiration for Toyota's early (and often bumbling) attempts at the Land Cruiser line. Wow! Just WOW!

I just finished reading this entire thread (how the heck did I miss this??) and will search through my old archives to see if I have any additional pictures that haven't surfaced yet. I will also check my old brochure collection to see if there's anything that hasn't been shared here already. Probably not, given the caliber of contributors you have, but there might be an obscure image or two in the chaos that is my 25 year compulsion of saving Land Cruiser pictures.

Again, I'm thrilled to see you saving this vehicle, and thank you for making your journey of restoration public and sharing it will all of us. Land Cruisers are an inherent part of who many of us are at our core, and seeing a unique vehicle like this is like a dream come true.

Finally, we need some stickers of that badass "Gifu Body" badge, you could sell those to raise additional funds for this project and create additional awareness! :)

Cheers!!!!
 
Last edited:
Also, one question that popped in my mind as I was reading this was "what was the tool kit situation with these early wagons"? I'm going to assume that the kit was the more comprehensive one of the early Land Cruisers (hammer, multiple wooden-handled screwdrivers, grease gun), but did it reside in a canvas roll like on some of the FJ45LV wagons, or did they come in the much rarer steel tool box with the embossed TEQ logo? I know you're still far away from the finishing details but I am curious to hear what other folks think??
 
First of all, I want to congratulate you on this purchase and labor of love. As a lifelong Cruiserhead and native of Venezuela, I can't tell you how amazing it is to me that this vehicle survived six decades of abuse, even in this state. I NEVER saw a 45 series wagon or 25/28 series *anything* while living there and even 55s were rare by the mid-90s when I emigrated. Land Cruisers are fundamentally work trucks in Central/South America and almost all of them were HAMMERED beyond anything that American Cruiserheads can conceive, which makes the survival of this incredible wagon so unique.
I spent many years dabbling in the history of the Toyota Land Cruiser and even failed at a book attempt to document it. 20+ years later, I've forgotten 1/2 of what I once knew, but it is incredibly cool to see so many of you pitching in to help with this project, whether it's with information or old manuals and brochures or parts numbers or sourcing bits or even just encouragement. Seeing the names of legendary Cruiserheads on this thread reminds me that this is one of the coolest communities out there.

A couple of years ago I visited the Land Cruiser Heritage Museum in SLC and for the first time in a long time, I felt overwhelmed. I didn't know where to start, I couldn't believe the extent of the Miller collection and I couldn't believe that FJ28 wagon from Venezuela or that slant-sided SWB pickup (also from Venezuela), neither one of which I ever saw in the country of my birth. Stumbling across this thread reminded me of that experience, it's the thrill of discovery, of admiration for Toyota's early (and often bumbling) attempts at the Land Cruiser line. Wow! Just WOW!

I just finished reading this entire thread (how the heck did I miss this??) and will search through my old archives to see if I have any additional pictures that haven't surfaced yet. I will also check my old brochure collection to see if there's anything that hasn't been shared here already. Probably not, given the caliber of contributors you have, but there might be an obscure image or two in the chaos that is my 25 year compulsion of saving Land Cruiser pictures.

Again, I'm thrilled to see you saving this vehicle, and thank you for making your journey of restoration public and sharing it will all of us. Land Cruisers are an inherent part of who many of us are at our core, and seeing a unique vehicle like this is like a dream come true.

Finally, we need some stickers of that badass "Gifu Body" badge, you could sell those to raise additional funds for this project and create additional awareness! :)

Cheers!!!!
Thank you for the kind words. It’s been an adventure already! I agree the mere fact that this truck still exists is a minor miracle, and it’s abuse over the years is obvious within pretty much every Inch of the truck. I hope to have things moving along on it soon, but sadly the body work is something I’m at the mercy of the new body guy’s schedule. I know he’s itching to work on it and excited to do it too but he’s committed to finishing his current job first. Once it’s my turn I’m sure I’ll appreciate his singular focus. I’m with the kids on spring break right now but should start making some progress on the chassis soon. I’m a LOT more realistic now about what I’ve gotten myself into, I’m anxious to finish it but know it’s going to take some time. Thankful for the community that’s gotten behind this build.

Any early literature you have that we haven’t seen is certainly appreciated! And my wife could probably make “Gifu Body” decals if anybody wanted some - she’s pretty crafty and has a decal maker :)
Also, one question that popped in my mind as I was reading this was "what was the tool kit situation with these early wagons"? I'm going to assume that the kit was the more comprehensive one of the early Land Cruisers (hammer, multiple wooden-handled screwdrivers, grease gun), but did it reside in a canvas roll like on some of the FJ45LV wagons, or did they come in the much rarer steel tool box with the embossed TEQ logo? I know you're still far away from the finishing details but I am curious to hear what other folks think??
I asked this same question in one of the tool threads but didn’t get a clear response. My assumption is that it was a tool roll as well like in the 45LV, it doesn’t show any signs that it had an under seat tool box like the 25s had though so for now the plan is to provide some strap-down areas under the front bench like the 45LV had. I’m not sure about locating the bottle jack, if it had the “dish” the 45LV had or some other mounting spot. Closer inspection of the front seats that came in it lead me to believe that it was the original front bench, based on the mounting points on the floor and the fact that it had a pivot to allow access to the chassis-mounted battery tray below. But the rear is harder to tell. If I had to guess I would say the rear was not original.

As for the roll itself, I am also assuming it will be the same as a 1960 FJ25 would have had.
 
I’ll work on it when I get home in a week or two. The hard part is creating a digital file to be printed. But i think there are some apps that may help with that. Stay tuned!

also, thanks to @Tancruiser this 28 will get the interior door handles it deserves, same as the 45LV! Still need to figure out the window cranks. I don’t think I’ll find any 45LV window cranks - anybody have any ideas?

70BFBEED-3960-4299-849E-8F6C808B008C.jpeg
 
Nathan, I'll remove the original knob from my extra window crank tomorrow and send it to you with the spare tire mount. You can have repops made from it. I've got several boxes of LV parts to get ready to send out this week.
 
Nathan, I'll remove the original knob from my extra window crank tomorrow and send it to you with the spare tire mount. You can have repops made from it. I've got several boxes of LV parts to get ready to send out this week.
You’re the man! Not sure how difficult that crank will be to repop but it’s worth a shot.
 
Got word from the new body guy that his current project is leaving on Thursday, and I'm in line to start the following week! Awesome news!

Also, I found this body guy in Venezuela on instagram a few weeks ago (for those that are on there, search "sergiosgror") that's working on the other FJ28L that House of Cruisers have. Have been messaging with him asking for photos. This one is a 2 door. I think they had another 4 door as well. Here are some photos of their truck. Sounds like this will be going into a private collection so I hope we can all see the finished product before it disappears.
1616266854560.png
1616266870171.png

1616266901845.png

1616267418004.jpeg
 
Last edited:
Another 28. Saweet! Really looking forward to seeing your 28 get some real attention. Every time I look at these things I see Toyota history.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom