"1969" cruiser (1 Viewer)

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Sep 21, 2003
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I have a '65fj40 with a chevyv8 auto trans. While cruising the backroads today I saw a fj40 sitting behind a house. I turned around for a closer look, and it is a 1969 fj40, weeds growin all around it that the bushhog missed. I knocked on the door of the closest house and found the owner. He immediately started inspecting my cruiser and said he couldn't believe it was a '65. Anyway he said his '69fj40 was all there down to the 3spd. in the tree, and the winch on front driven by the pto. It has the original 2f engine that ran when he parked it, fifteen years ago. Parked it because his wife divorced him, and he lost his buisness. It has 120K miles on it, with a hard top hard doors, and plenty of rust. He said $1,000 would buy it. My question is will the diffs, transmission, and transfer case still be alright, and how much trouble would it be to get the engine running? All the wheels are still on, but the tires are all flat and dryrotted. Maybe I should offer him $500 cash???????Thanks KYH
 
i bought my 76 fj40 for $900 cdn. it had sat for 5 years. the tub fenders and all the doors where rotten but it ran. the thing with parked trucks is things sieze up(things like wipers, brakes, assorted cables, carb) seals harden and crack and so on.but i have been happy with the truck and it has never let me down.
 
If its just been sitting there for 15 years in the open without the mechanicals being turned all the rubber seals in the engine/transmission will have gone hard and brittle at the ends not immersed in oil.It wont be too hard to get it running but the oil will be flowing out of every seal .I find it hard to believe he just parked it there because his life went downhill.Offer him the $500
 
It was an F, not a 2F if it was an original '69. That's a long time for it to sit ouside, so I would really wonder what shape the engine, etc, is in. I can't understand why a divorce would cause him to quit driving it, so, what's the rest of the story? On the other hand, many parts are likely salvagable. You could probably get 1000 bucks from selling parts, easily. I'd give ya $100 for the PTO and winch sight unseen ;)
 
I picked up a 76 2f that sat in a vehicle for 10 years out side. I rebuilt the carb and changed fluids, and the thing fired up on the third turn over. Oil pressure was up to the third mark and compression was 155psi on every cylinder. The front main seal started to leak after a few hours, but thats not to bad of a fix. I am still driving it today with no problems. And i even got the engine for free:)
Jesse
 
I think I will offer him the $500 and see what happens. If he says no then I'll have to jack it up and have a "look see" underneath the vehicle and try turning a few shafts and gears to see just what is locked up and what isn't. Thanks for the input it will help in making my decision. KyH
 
Once pulled a '50 Packard (straight eight) out of a junkyard wherein it had sat for ~20 years. Dead mice and such throughout the upholstery :D They had to pull it out with a forklift and put it on a flatbed. With all the plugs out, and fresh battery, it wouldn't turn over..... locked up good.

On advice from an "old fart" shade-tree mechanic, we poured a liberal dolop (hell, we inundated it) of Marvel Mystery Oil in each cylinder and left it for the weekend. Came back.... put a piece of pipe (persuader) on a 3/4" drive ratchet and turned it over about 360 degrees and repeated the MMO treatment. Two days later, the battery spun it with gusto. Blew the MMO out and put in fresh gas and plugs and it cranked right up. The cloud of smoke which ensued for a few minutes would have caused Samuel Clemmons to put pen to paper. ( Anyone ever read "The Lightning Rod Salesman" ? )

After a minor tune-up, it purred around town with only a bare minimum of smoke, and no troubles, for two years, until sold at a dandy profit.

John Sherwood '79 FJ-40
Charlotte, NC TLCA Upstate Cruisers.
 
my brother picked up his 75 in a simlilar fashion. Paid $100 to the wife of the divorsee who somehow ended up with his cruiser in her barn. After cleaning out all the rat dung, he had to redo most of everything. But he got a good tub with no rust - since it was inside a barn for 20 yrs. He's dumped some money into it, but its a sweet looking machine up close. He's done a good job.

Here it is:
http://store1.yimg.com/I/coolfj40_1760_12647922

P.S. IDave's right. Even if you end up parting it out, you might make a little profit on it. The first 6 months after buying my 79, I sold about $500 worth of stuff I didn't want on it, which helped pay for some upgrades I did want.
 
I think I'll go ahead and purchase the said vehicle, there seems to be more positive feedback than negative. Will most of the drive line, front and back, fit on my '65 by just bolting up? I'll keep ya all advised of how it turns out. Thanks for the optimistic views. KyH
 
Even though you said your going to buy it i figured id throw my story to you also. My '79 fj40 sat for 17 years with the tranny out, the gas cap off and the door open. The truck needed a lot of work but i put some penitrating oil in each cylinder let it sit for a couple days, along with a dist. cap, plug wires, batttery and disconnected the fuel lines, and i cranked first shot with some gas in the carb and runs like a champ. Doesnt burn nor leak a drop of oil, knock on wood, and by the time it was legal to drive i had two grand in it. I only traded beer for it to begin with but anyway what im saying is mine was pretty bad you can do it. What i can suggest is try to find a local club or landcruiser shop, i couldnt have done mine without them. :cheers:
 
Jake, Good another optimistic story. I will have to have plenty of help and advise from this forum since I thought I had the only cruiser in the county. I've seen one in Bowling Green but, haven't talked to him yet. The nearest landcruiser club that I know of is in Nashville Tn." Southeastern Landcruisers" I think. About 90 miles away. I run with mostly the jeep and blazer crowd around here. See ya..KyH Oh yeah I need to send the webmaster of this incredible forum some mulah and maybe get a hat and a sticker for my cruiser.
 
Sure you happened across it, but I think the fact that he saw your cruiser may have set him more stubborn. Send a friend over in an old pick-up (after you turn down the $1000 deal) and have your buddy tell him he's lookin' for a project and he might get it for a couple hundred bucks. Tell him you just wanted to stop by and check it out, that's all, but that it's not really worth anything anymore...blah blah blah. Then it's yours, cheap.

Hell, if you were in my area, I'd do it for you.
 
TJDIV:) Now that is a good idea! One I hadn't thought of, but will use. Everything about this keeps getting better and better. I 've got just the con artist in mind. Thanks KyH
 

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