1981 Hilux daily/capable camper

[tim753]

G'day guys I'm in Australia and this is my '81 hilux or long bed pickup as you guys in the states call em. Pretty stock at the moment. In Australia they came out with the 18R 2 litre motor and L40 4 speed. No pwr steer, no aircon. I love it and its my daily replacing my 75 series land cruiser troop carrier that I recently wrote off :/

I've fitted 32x11.5 R15 bfg muddies I got off a mate for nothing and last weekend bought a canopy for the tub for camping trips. At the moment plans are build it up as a capable camping/weekend toy/daily driver.

Ideally I'd love to chuck in an 18RG but they're as rare as hens teeth. 22r and 5 speed might be on the cards or weber 32/36 and extractors in the meantime.

Ill post any mods as they happen and ask plenty of questions. You guys are lucky we didn't see the 22r until '88 in the third gen hiluxes.

 

[TRoss]

Nice rig, looks solid! Wow, didn't know the 22r came out so late for you guys .. bummer .. I can't imagine having something smaller than the 22r in my truck!!

 

[tim753]

So the Weber 32/36 DGV went on today. Makes a huge difference. Throttle response is up, acceleration is up, the engine revs harder in every gear. Very happy, sounds and looks awesome too.

 

[tim753]

So spent my day off working on my truck. Fitted a catch can for the rocker cover breather. Then fitted a second hand canopy I picked up for $150. A few dozen pop rivets and there you have it.

 

[roma042987]

Nice camper you have there. What's next?

 

[elephantsCBR]

Looks sweet. One question though. Y'all don't have back bumpers. That's kinda weird. Well not weird but different. Like the shell though.

Thanks Cody Sent from my iPhone using IH8MUD

 

[modernbeat]

Looks like a 2WD bed with a fender lip. The beds we got in the US were the same bed with the lower fender opening trimmed and a larger flare that matched the front fender bolted on.

 

[tim753]

Yeah it originally had a big aluminium tray. I was lucky enough to have a friend with a 2wd and he had a tray made into a trailer that I got for nothing. You'll never find an original style side tray in salvageable condition these days.

 

[tim753]

This is the tray it came with

 

[tim753]

Next on the list is line the tub with marine carpet or similar. Wire in sum 12 volt lighting and a fridge. Maybe drawers so stuff can be stored under the bedding. The height of the canopy is really convenient.

 

[modernbeat]

Tim, are the OEM flares on the beds over there? If not, we might be able to scare up a pair of them here and send them to you.

 

[tim753]

Yes they are but no one keeps the original beds here and if they do the flares are pretty smashed. I'd be thrilled to buy some original flares off you guys.

 

[Sam Stewart]

Looks sweet. One question though. Y'all don't have back bumpers. That's kinda weird. Well not weird but different. Like the shell though.

Thanks Cody Sent from my iPhone using IH8MUD

The US minis didn't come with bumpers either. Up until 2005 (yes, 2005) the rear bumpers were all a TMS accessory. Also, the minis did not all come with beds. The had what they called a CBU (complete built unit) which had a bed, and then the others were used for other applications like motorhomes, flat beds, etc. A lot of the trucks came with no beds and the beds were installed when they got to the US.

Screen shot from the catalog:

Sorry for the mini hijack.

 

[jynx]

The US minis didn't come with bumpers either. Up until 2005 (yes, 2005) the rear bumpers were all a TMS accessory. Also, the minis did not all come with beds. The had what they called a CBU (complete built unit) which had a bed, and then the others were used for other applications like motorhomes, flat beds, etc. A lot of the trucks came with no beds and the beds were installed when they got to the US.

Screen shot from the catalog:

Sorry for the mini hijack.

That I find very interesting, you say 2005, so does that include Tacomas that were built here or just 4Runners and such that were "J" code imports?

 

[tim753]

The hilux as we call them in SR5 trim had a chrome rear bumper step thingy from 98 I think. Prior to that you could buy them aftermarket from ARB, TJM and most tow bar mobs. Ill dig up some pictures of my mates factory step.

 

[tim753]

This is my sisters 92 model SR5 with aftermarket rear step tow bar thingy.

 

[tim753]

You can kinda see the chrome rear bumper in this pic haha. That's a 99 model or about 4th generation 4x4 hilux. LN167. 5L motor which is a 3 litre version of the 3L that was 2.8, 2L was 2.4 and L was 2.2. In about 2000 or so they went to an Electronic fuel pump 5LE to meet emissions regulations. The L motors are slugs haha

 

[Sam Stewart]

That I find very interesting, you say 2005, so does that include Tacomas that were built here or just 4Runners and such that were "J" code imports?

Yep Tacomas included. The Tundra bumpers are factory. The pickups and Tacomas are accessory part numbers (PT228-xxxxx). In 05 they started being a factory part on the Tacos.

 

[Sam Stewart]

This is my sisters 92 model SR5 with aftermarket rear step tow bar thingy.

That one is cool! It's always neat to see how they look on the other side of the world.

 

[tim753]

http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/TOYOTA-HILUX-11084553

Just found this for sale on the interwebs here in aus. Looks pretty unique. 10k is a massive asking price.