1979 just purchased - distributor help needed (1 Viewer)

[Brockott]

Hello all,

I just purchased a 1979 fj. PO said it ran when he parked it about 8 years ago. So far I've drained and cleaned the fuel tank/lines, changed out all fluids and filters, cleaned the carb and checked that the engine spins freely.

At this point I'm close to starting it up but the distributor is a rusty mess. From doing some research the 79 has an all electronic distributor and seems to be hard to get. Can I rebuild it? Do I need to by a HEI/DUI? get a fj60 one? Or is there a place to buy an OEM replacement that I haven't found?

Any help is appreciated, thanks again.

 

[ColoradoFJ40]

Looks like a nice find. Search points on the forum and see if you can't just replace the rusted points. They are like 20 bucks new.

 

[Curt]

The 78+ has an electronic ignition, so there aren't points. It uses a signal generator. An fj60 dizzy will work as would a trollhole or hei unit.

Dizzy FAQ

 

[1911]

If the vacuum advance mechanism is rusty, it will run hot on the highway (ask me how I know). Parts for those are hard to find.

The FJ60 "big cap" distributor is a bolt-in replacement and an upgrade, but rebuild parts for those are getting harder to find too. Jim C. (@FJ40Jim ) here on the forum can still rebuild them if you can find a decent used one. I found mine here in the Classifieds sub-forum.

Congratulations on your new 40.

 

[73fj40lc]

Welcome to the mud forum and especially the 40 section. Congrats on your purchase. You seem to have been around Cruisers or you have been doing some research on them. Welcome to the addiction and let me be the first to give you the official mud salute.

 

[Brockott]

Thanks, this place was the go to for research before I bought it. I'm new to crusiers and to non fuel injected motors so trying to figure it all out as I go.

I'll probably have to find a fj60 dizzy, the vacuum advance on mine is toast

 

[1911]

I'll probably have to find a fj60 dizzy, the vacuum advance on mine is toast

A good way to go, IMO. Remember that you'll also need the engine side (pushrod gallery) cover from an FJ60 for the distributor to fit - it has a much larger diameter than your '79 distributor, and the 60 side cover is dished to fit it. Other than that, it is plug 'n play for your '79.

 

[N919HJ]

A good way to go, IMO. Remember that you'll also need the engine side (pushrod gallery) cover from an FJ60 for the distributor to fit - it has a much larger diameter than your '79 distributor, and the 60 side cover is dished to fit it. Other than that, it is plug 'n play for your '79.

I went this route. Never looked looked back. After you found one send it to Jim C., he'll make it look and smell good, and of course recurve it. I think one was for sale a couple of weeks back in the classified section.

 

[greenbeast]

I went this route. Never looked looked back. After you found one send it to Jim C., he'll make it look and smell good, and of course recurve it. I think one was for sale a couple of weeks back in the classified section.

I believe that one went pretty quick.

 

[Racer65]

The one caveat to a FJ60 distributor is that the vacuum advance is no longer available and most are already fried.

 

[DougAustinTx]

I would disassemble that dizzy and clean and lube it. Why replace it just because it looks crusty? There are all sorts of parts on a 40 that will look worse than that but still be perfectly serviceable.

 

[Spike Strip]

Toyota (and Racer65) still sell new vacuum-advance distributors for the F-series engines. They're points, but easily converted to Pertronix, if you desire.

Any FJ60 dissy you buy will be 30 years old in varying condition, and as stated, there's the issue of vac advancer functionality.

One issue - don't know if that year Carburetor has a ported vacuum or not for a vacuum advance dissy. Even if it doesn't, my guess is it's badly in need of a carb rebuild and ported vacuum can be added as part of the rebuild.

@65swb45 ?

 

[Brockott]

The PO changed the carb to a Holly unit. Don't know much about it but I know it's not factory and it's in really good shape. I'll try and look up the model when I get back from work.

 

[1911]

One issue - don't know if that year Carburetor has a ported vacuum or not for a vacuum advance dissy.

A stock '79 carb will have ported vacuum; the stock dizzy is vacuum advance.

 

[Jeff Elliott]

Mine was at least as bad as yours and it works fine after a little clean up... don't give up on your stock dizzy yet.

Check this thread for info: Dizzy questions

 

[FJ40Jim]

The OP's dissy is missing the cap o-ring, which may have let moisture in. But it also looks like it has suffered from ozone corrosion, which indicates the ventilation system was inop. Test the VCVs for cap ventilation and canister purge, replace as necessary.
The ozone also attacks rubber, which means the vac advancer may be dead. Test with a mityvac, see if it holds vac. If yes, then it is rebuildable.

On second thought, since the engine has been (badly) desmogged, there's a good chance the ventilation system was inadvertently disabled, leading to poor driveability & dissy destruction.

 

[Downey]

Brockott, I'd lean towards rebuilding the dizzy you have. I like to sell those dizzys with my TBI conversions (when ever I can get them), but the first thing I always do when I get one is have the electronics tested (getting 6 full bleeps per shaft revolution). If the electronics work, then the rest is just clean-up.

Regarding your Holley, take a gander at ebay #252568209402. This will make your Holley very good/trouble-free in off road terrain.

 

[Brockott]

The vacuum hose was off the vacuum advance port off the distributor when I picked it up. that may have led to some of the moisture issues. I need to go through all the vacuum lines and replace with new rubber and check everything to see what the PO did and did not remove. I'll take a bunch of pics of the engine bay when I work on it tomorrow.

 

[Kleatus]

Welcome and congrats! That was a score! I was seriously hoping that truck might be still available when I first saw a picture of it... then was hoping you'd pop up here! best of luck getting it sorted! Looks like you now know what to do with the dist!

 

[DSB345]

Call Mark @65swb45
Marks Off Road Home Page
He can get you what you need if you don't want to clean it.