1970 FJ55 new owner

[fflood]

Hello Everyone,

I just purchased my first FJ55.

I have been working on restoring an 1975 FJ40 and just as I'm ready to finish things up on the 40, this 55 comes along. I was looking at a FJ55 in Georgia and then this one came up for sale a couple days ago and was in North Carolina where I live.

I'm completely new to the FJ55, but hoping to learn some things here so I can do the necessary repairs on it. I drove it up the mountain to my home (it was located an hour and half away from my home). It pulled really strong, but a few times I found myself wishing it was a four speed rather than the three (going down hill). Regardless it ran strong.

I just need to bleed the brakes and look at the carb. It stumbles a bit when I let off the throttle and then step on the gas right away. Also, I noticed heavy gas fumes when going up hill, so I believe I need to look at the fuel tank venting (I will look around here though to seek answers). The body will need some attention (obviously to be expected since it's an iron pig), but its way better than my FJ40 was so I'm hopeful.

Anyway just wanted to share and connect to you all here.

 

[scrapdaddy]

Hey, looks just like Delancy's wagon. Nice! Looks to be in good shape, too. That three on the tree is fun, but you're right about it looking for a fourth gear.

Good luck with it!

 

[Hank Tank]

 

[bobm]

Welcome, got a good start

 

[Pigeaten]

Looks like a pretty solid pig, love the orange. Anyone know if that was an original color?

 

[bobm]

Not that particular Orange. But Orange was.

 

[fflood]

This orange is "poppy red". I discovered this slip of paper in the glovebox when I was cleaning things. The original color is peeking through in the area where my "4wd" emblem would be on the back.

 

[fflood]

 

[fflood]

 

[fflood]

 

[fflood]

I plan on just making this my daily driver for a while, so there is no plan to do anything major to the sheetmetal at this time. Although I might fix some minor floorboard holes and do some preventative rust work in the drip rail area. I've started to make a list of various parts that I need to fix or find:

FJ55 Parts Needed:
DS Door Handle (the original seems to have been smashed by something heavy at some point)
rear reflectors: Napa replacement maybe? PART # LIT 47TD rear reflector napa
rear 4WD badge
floor matts (front and rear)
DS turn signal
land cruiser side badges
radio
license plate light housing: Toyota Corona RT4#/5# & Landcruiser FJ55 81270-29035 License Plate Lamp Assembly
headliner
door panels


Parts to Fix:
bleed brake system
side marker: I have an extra one from my FJ40; I'll just need to find the insulator block that is for the FJ55
drivers side mirror (I have the original but it's torn. I'm not sure what I'll do here. I could probably silver solder and have rechromed and the glass re-set
straighten front bumper
miter ends of rear bumper
fix DS front fender (sheetmetal)
dome light switch 9repair switch handle

clean all electrical contacts
clean up wiring

I know there is more to do than this, but this is just the initial list. I'm lucky as mechanically things are sound. I think I got lucky that someone did an earlier restoration/update and so this FJ55 as weathered time a bit better than some that I have looked at.

 

[fflood]

 

[fflood]

I also need to find weatherstipping for the rear cargo windows and many of the other windows. I know th erear cargo window weatherstripping is expensive through from my initial research. Hopefully I can find a way to do this on a budget.

I may try to do a repair job on the dash pad as I've seen some decent repairs here and over on a Datsun 240Z site.

As I know from my FJ40 resto, there will be many more things that pop up that will need repaired or replaced, but I'm just glad this FJ55 is already way better than the FJ40 when I first got it.

 

[bobm]

So Original was tan?

 

[fflood]

So Original was tan?

I believe so, Bob. I know it's tan/beige colored. I don't know my original Toyota FJ55 colors though so any insight is appreciated. The paint underneath seems to be in good condition in most areas. I've seen VW split window bus owners strip outer paint with oven cleaner to get down to original paint, but that's not something I want to do right now. I am curious about the original color code though.

 

[PabloCruise]

That is really nice!!!

'72?

 

[PabloCruise]

Looks like a pretty solid pig, love the orange. Anyone know if that was an original color?

Not that particular Orange. But Orange was.

Pumpkin Orange - makes for a beautiful Pig! My first Pig was that color...

 

[bobm]

My 73 is pumpkin orange. The paint color is brushed on inside the inner front fenders,doors and tailgate. I posted in my thread. It may help.

 

[fflood]

My 73 is pumpkin orange. The paint color is brushed on inside the inner front fenders,doors and tailgate. I posted in my thread. It may help.

Do you have a link to your thread, Bob?

 

[bobm]

Not that smart. It's a sticky up above. It's posted in there