1988 FJ62 SOA 5.3L Vortec $12.5K OBO

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1988 FJ62 SOA 5.3L Vortec SOLD!!

Sold!!

I won't go into the details, I'll just say that it has to go and it has nothing to do with the cruiser. There are ZERO issues with this cruiser. It drives great on the road, off the road, it doesn't overheat, AC works, everything works (except rear heater is disconnected)...... It absolutely kills me to do this:frown:

FYI - I don't have a lot of time to sell it, so I went ahead and put it on ebay. I'll gladly end the auction if anyone here is interested.

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Here's a quick summary:
  • 2000 5.3L Vortec and 4L60E from Suburban. 2,000 miles on them at time of install. 10,000 miles since conversion was done (conversion done in 2001). All smog equipment present.
  • Electric fan controlled by engine computer (ZERO cooling problems, with or without AC on!).
  • NO RUST on body or frame.
  • 40 gallon fuel tank (average ~14 MPG during daily driving).
  • Lokar Shifter.
  • CB.
  • Flip face CD player.
  • A/C system works; it is charged with R134a.
  • Autometer gauges for oil pressure, water temperature, & transmission temperature. The lights in the gauges are hooked up to the dash dimmer circuit and work well.
  • All stock guages connected except for engine temperature.
  • Spring over axle conversion (SOA) by Over-the-Hill Off Road in Portland, OR. Axles cut and turned. Rancho 9000s.
  • Fresh 35X12.50s (Courser MTs) on Eagle Alloy wheels.
  • ARB air lockers front and rear w/ ARB compressor.
  • Alarm w/ remote start.
  • Stock 4.11 gearing (great for all around use, but I would consider 4.56s or 4.88s if you plan on more serious off-road use).
  • Front knuckles rebuilt at the time of the conversion.
  • Custom front and rear bumpers from 3/16" steel with Warn 9500lb winch and rear tire swing-out w/ high-lift jack mounted.
  • Long jumper cables custom made to plug into winch power source without opening hood.
  • Manual windows.
  • Power locks with remote entry.
  • Aussie PVC flooring throughout.
  • Locking center console (Quadratech Ultimate).
  • New seats from '01 Toyota Camry with driver's side power (currently have new seat covers, but the seats are very clean).
  • Trailer wiring (also setup for electric trailer brake controller).
  • Older Gateway laptop with tuning software and black box for tweaking PCM. used to: turn off GM anti-theft, adjust tire size/gear ratio, set on/off temperatures for electric fan, set shift points, etc.
  • AutoTap software & black box (reads GM OBDII).
  • Helm Factory manuals for 2000 suburban.
  • DBA front rotors / metal master pads.
  • Passenger side grab handle to A-pillar.
  • Spare t-case shift solenoid valve.
  • Speedo correction gear-box (FYI, if you were going to go with 35s and 4.88s, you'll match the stock speedo gearing and can pull this correction box).
  • Have spare fuel pump.
  • "Coarse" fuel filter between tank and pump.
  • Factory GM high pressure filter after pump.
  • Fuel shut off between tank and pump.
  • Power steering cooler & filter.
  • K&N filter/intake tube.
  • External trans cooler + radiator tank cooler.
  • Stainless steel battery tray.
  • A few dings and dents, oxidized hood, original paint, very clean overall.
  • Rockers are straight, even without rock sliders (says a lot about how little this has been off road).
  • Exhaust is a single outlet (all 4-O2 sensors and catalytic converter still used) through a Flowmaster 50 series. It is VERY quiet. Much quieter than I expected through a 50 series.... - One of the photos still shows the exhaust when it was a dual outlet on each side. I changed to a single outlet so the frame rails were clear to install rock sliders.
My only plans were to add rock sliders and a traction/anti-wrap bar. That's why I just changed the exhaust setup. I haven't had issues with spring wrap, but it seems like cheap insurance.

To make it California legal, all you need to do is put the second catalytic converter back in so it matches the stock suburban setup (I still have the second cat). It meets all the other criteria (same class vehicle, tranny matches motor, all smog equip present) It will pass any sniff test as is.

Here are a few photos:
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back.jpg


back2.jpg


winch.jpg


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Click to expand...
Gas mileage on the highway? Cruising manners on highway at 75mph?
Acceleration compared to stock, like a rocket?

What color is it; grey?

The hood looks a bit askew; is it straight?

Last, did you do this yourself?

G
 
gray said:
Gas mileage on the highway? Cruising manners on highway at 75mph?
Acceleration compared to stock, like a rocket?

What color is it; grey?

The hood looks a bit askew; is it straight?

Last, did you do this yourself?

G
Click to expand...

Mileage: With a 40 gallon tank, its a little hard to tell mileage for a specific type of driving, but I've been averaging 14mpg w/ approximately 50/50 city/highway.

Handling: It handles great on the road (for a spring over). At 75, I've got my thumb and 2nd finger on the wheel, and that's all. You're not going to be racing a street bike through S curves, but it is very comfortable on the highway. When there are deep grooves in the asphalt from truck traffic, it will tend to follow them a bit. Not more than any other rig with 35s

Acceleration. Well, it's 285 HP vs. 155 HP stock. Even with 35s, there is still no comparison to stock.

I didn't do the swap. A mechanical engineer from SW Washington did the conversion. I was shocked when I saw it. I did a 350/th350 in an FJ40 years ago, and I thought i did a decent job, but this guy did a fantastic job. He didn't skip on any details. Tach and speedo are calibrated, electric fan is controlled by the ECU and responds to AC, rear swingout is rock solid, ECU doesn't set any codes, etc. The hood: He pointed out the hood to me when I bought it from him. He said that he had the front end apart to do the install, and he could never get everything re-aligned quite right. That being said, it looks to me like there was also damage at some point to the front left quarter. If you get up close, you can see some sanding marks under the paint. They did a very good job matching the paint, and you can only tell when you're very close.

Yes, it is the factory charcoal/gray/grey color.

Thanks,
Jeff
 
Wish it wasn't so far from me (over 2000 miles);
I have been wanting to do this, or have it done, to my 1988 FJ62 ever since I got it (not enough go power).

The problem is finding someone who will do a by-the-book job;
like the engineer apparently did with yours.

I should just buy yours, and sell mine; Hmmm

Wondering; do you still have any contact info the the guy who built it??

ie: to share the build details?
G
 
I've gone through most of my old paperwork, but no luck so far. I know that he had these guys http://www.overthehill4x4.com/ do some of the work. I know he did a lot of it himself; especially all the electrical. He was pretty proud of that, and used all sorts of beefy industrial connectors that I'd never seen before. Definitely no crimp connections here. :cool: I'm pretty familiar with how everything was done, and I'll be happy to answer any questions that you've got.

If you'll cover gas and the flight home, I'd be happy to drive it out....;);) I love a good road trip. I'm sure it would be cheaper to ship, but I wouldn't think twice about driving it that far.

It sucks to take a $5,000 rig, pay $10K for a conversion, add another $7K in lockers, suspension, wheels and tires, bumpers and winch, etc.; and in the end you have a rig worth $10K..... :confused:That's the joy of owning a cruiser! I know I had at least $25K in my last FJ40 that I sold for $8K. At least I didn't build this one..
 
I've put more than a few bucks into it since I bought it; seats, console, finished the interior, rebuilt exhaust system, replaced 02 sensors, etc. And like I said, I set the reserve at $10K. I think he had it under priced for what a great job he did on it.

I think we're all aware of how people work on this board. It's no different than any other forum out there. If you want to get $5K for something, you don't start there. How about this, I'll spell it out. I need $10K for it. I would have paid more than that when it was in the condition I bought it in.

There you go, Gray. Looks like Dirtgypsy knows the guy. Maybe he'll put you in touch with him.

Sorry blupaddler. I wouldn't be selling it if I didn't need the money right now.

Cheers
:beer:
 
Damn I wish I had the money for this...
Id love a vortec 60 series for a DD!

Bump!

Chicago
 
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