- Location
- United States
Selling this for a friend who's moving in a few weeks. Back in 2012 a friend of mine's mother bought this truck. She always had wanted one and she used to see my 79 at her son's place all the time when I stopped by. So she saw this one with a for sale sign in it and chased down the owner and bought it on the spot. The guy she bought it from said his son bought it on the west coast and had it shipped back east so he could restore it. Then lost interest and it just sat in the garage. Unfortunately nobody took any pictures of it at that point. When I first saw it I was amazed at how solid it was but the body was a little rough. My friend took the roof and nose off, removed everything from the interior, and shipped it off to his paint guy for bodywork and paint. He had it painted FJ cruiser dune beige which actually looks really good on an FJ40. He had all the latches, hinges, and the bezel powdercoated silver. But then he got busy. So they asked me if I wanted a little part time work and it showed up at my place for reassembly and sorting. Since finishing up my part of this project last spring The owner has driven it maybe 50 miles. I think I've put more than that on it in the last few weeks. She loves it but doesn't see herself using it much. So she asked me to sell it for her.
The good - Really solid frame/body and it's an FST. Howell TBI kit, GM HEI distributor and a remote filter setup plumbed with hard lines for a GM oil filter. Runs good, shifts good, vacuum 4WD converted to floor shift, floor shifter for the 3 speed, Practically brand new 31's on 15x8 steel wheels, 4WD works, new exhaust from the header-back, goes down the road really nice, all new front parking lights, turn signals, wiper arms, Factory toyota fenders, new 1/4's, new rockers, new brake master, clutch master, clutch slave, new tie rod kit, all new spring bushings, and a brand new bestop with 2 piece soft doors. All the lights work, wipers work, horn works, blower motor works. It's currently registered and inspected in NH. I've been taking it out for short cruises around town. Runs/drives great but it is a 68 with stock steering and brakes. Steering is a little wayward going down the road and it stops fine but it's non-power so pedal effort is a bit higher than a modern vehicle.
The bad - At some point someone cut off the right rear forward spring hanger. No idea why the frame is mint otherwise. It was just bolted on (and crooked) when I started working on it. I welded it on. When the truck was painted they didn't fix a rather good sized dent in the hood on the passenger side. With this color it honestly doesn't show too badly but it's there. Rear lights are trailer lights in homemade brackets. But the 71-73 lights and brackets are still available and I bet they'll fit. Also has a generic reverse light. And the floor shifter is a really early one with no reverse light switch. So it's on a toggle. The horn button doesn't work so there's a push button on the steering column. There is no heater valve. I was looking at my 89 pickup yesterday and I think one of those could work with a little fabbing. The original I think is NLA. The fuel gauge doesn't work. Sender seems to work and the internals of the gauge move with voltage but the needle is broken off. All the other factory gauges but the speedo are dead. But the mechanical gauges work. The only emblem on the truck is the grill emblem. But all the others are still available. And all the dash pads/windshield knobs are missing. As are the pads/latches for the windshield frame on the hood. And it has non-original seats and a center console in it.
Although this truck appears to be an FST it did come with a hardtop. Unfortunately it wasn't painted to match the truck. All the steel pieces are really nice with no rust. But the fiberglass top is a bit rough. It has a 70's pop-up vent cut into the back of it too. But it's fiberglass so it could be fixed.
All in all this is a good solid truck that can be driven and enjoyed as-is but there's plenty left to tinker with over time if you choose. Asking $12,000. It's in my garage and I have the paperwork to sell it. NH does not title vehicles over 15 years old so it's sold with a bill of sale and a current registration. Usually that's all that is needed to title it in another state.
[URL=http://s223.photobucket.com/user/85GT-79FJ40/media/DSC_1030_zpsdc3afd45.jpg.html]
[/URL]
The good - Really solid frame/body and it's an FST. Howell TBI kit, GM HEI distributor and a remote filter setup plumbed with hard lines for a GM oil filter. Runs good, shifts good, vacuum 4WD converted to floor shift, floor shifter for the 3 speed, Practically brand new 31's on 15x8 steel wheels, 4WD works, new exhaust from the header-back, goes down the road really nice, all new front parking lights, turn signals, wiper arms, Factory toyota fenders, new 1/4's, new rockers, new brake master, clutch master, clutch slave, new tie rod kit, all new spring bushings, and a brand new bestop with 2 piece soft doors. All the lights work, wipers work, horn works, blower motor works. It's currently registered and inspected in NH. I've been taking it out for short cruises around town. Runs/drives great but it is a 68 with stock steering and brakes. Steering is a little wayward going down the road and it stops fine but it's non-power so pedal effort is a bit higher than a modern vehicle.
The bad - At some point someone cut off the right rear forward spring hanger. No idea why the frame is mint otherwise. It was just bolted on (and crooked) when I started working on it. I welded it on. When the truck was painted they didn't fix a rather good sized dent in the hood on the passenger side. With this color it honestly doesn't show too badly but it's there. Rear lights are trailer lights in homemade brackets. But the 71-73 lights and brackets are still available and I bet they'll fit. Also has a generic reverse light. And the floor shifter is a really early one with no reverse light switch. So it's on a toggle. The horn button doesn't work so there's a push button on the steering column. There is no heater valve. I was looking at my 89 pickup yesterday and I think one of those could work with a little fabbing. The original I think is NLA. The fuel gauge doesn't work. Sender seems to work and the internals of the gauge move with voltage but the needle is broken off. All the other factory gauges but the speedo are dead. But the mechanical gauges work. The only emblem on the truck is the grill emblem. But all the others are still available. And all the dash pads/windshield knobs are missing. As are the pads/latches for the windshield frame on the hood. And it has non-original seats and a center console in it.
Although this truck appears to be an FST it did come with a hardtop. Unfortunately it wasn't painted to match the truck. All the steel pieces are really nice with no rust. But the fiberglass top is a bit rough. It has a 70's pop-up vent cut into the back of it too. But it's fiberglass so it could be fixed.
All in all this is a good solid truck that can be driven and enjoyed as-is but there's plenty left to tinker with over time if you choose. Asking $12,000. It's in my garage and I have the paperwork to sell it. NH does not title vehicles over 15 years old so it's sold with a bill of sale and a current registration. Usually that's all that is needed to title it in another state.
[URL=http://s223.photobucket.com/user/85GT-79FJ40/media/DSC_1030_zpsdc3afd45.jpg.html]