3F Engine in 1975 FJ40

[Aloha Jen]

I an enclosing a picture of my dash. Given that this IS a Frankencruiser, it actually has a very sparse,probably pre-1970 dash, so I've been told. I only wished my dash looked like yours. I didn't buy from someone. We (3 friends) had two restored from scratch. Unfortunately, my in-country person did an abysmal job of making sure things were done right, and commensurate with what a US buyer would be looking for. Anyway, it's been a disaster for sue. It's analogous to thinking you can remotely manage a rental property; it doesn't work! It doesn't work because you don't have eyes-on and ability to walk around and see what's really happening. I would never allowed for a Kilometers based panel be used given the platforms were destined for the States. Language difficulties and differences in "what's important" get swept to the wayside in these remote arrangements. Anyway, I've got more money in this thing than I'll ever get out. I'm pretty happy with most of the restoration and paint, minus one glaring unforgivable aspect which I won't go into here, so I think I'll just hang on to it and tinker my way through the myriView attachment 3903181ad little issues, maybe until the market improves, and then sell it. Or, just keep it. Attached is a picture of the dash.

Yeah, I don’t even know what that is, definitely not a ‘75 dash. They probably just took the vin plate off a wrecked ‘75 and just put it on your truck since they are so easy to swap out.

 

[numby]

Well, I like the simplicity of the dash. You could install a choke pull knob/cable where the rubber plug is next to the lighter. You also have the slightly less common "red" center section on your steering wheel. That's nice.

Waiting for the market to improve is a real gamble. I personally don't think it ever will as the clientele for "just any Cruiser" seems to be getting older and more finicky. Prices may go up over time but that's just inflation. If your vehicle was correctly restored then maybe some day you'd be able to break even. Selling it as is would likely result in a loss unless you duped the next guy and disappeared.

Many here drive less-than-perfect 40s. Mine has parts off several different years and I'm happy with what it is even though it'll never impress anybody at the coffee shop or win any awards. If it were me I'd correct the few mistakes and get it running... and then drive it and enjoy!

 

[JohnnyC]

The dash is vintage 1960 fj40 (approx … educated guess)

 

[JohnnyC]

If you post lots of various pictures from all over we can decipher exactly how many different parts are on it

 

[JohnnyC]

They probably just took the vin plate off a wrecked ‘75 and just put it on your truck since they are so easy to swap out.

The engine firewall is 75’ approx… not 1960 vintage

@numby
Yes many are a mix of many years… mine is definitely a mix … some would say a cobjob even lol

 

[cruisermatt]

There's a lot of word salad here but it seems like your actual question is what choke cable would work best for you, I agree with Jen that a 75-78 would be your best bet and just drill a hole in your dash since your switch arrangement is random anyways. For what it's worth, I think your dash actually looks cool.

 

[Engineer8000]

My 3FE came out of an 88 or 89 FJ62, 3F0173249, in fact I think is an 88 because it has the same size flywheel bolts as the 2F. Sometime in 89 they got larger.

found it

Production Date October 1989

VIN JT3FJ62G*L1186060

Engine No. 3F-250226

also found - "From my 1989, built 12/88......3F 0217814"

 

[JohnnyC]

@Engineer8000 So do you think that would make his 3F most likely a 1990?

 

[talegate]

Wow, I love all this dialogue, and I actually heard a couple positives (red center section on the steering wheel, and a cool dash). I was starting to feel "Poor Me". It really is a pretty nicely done vehicle, except for one hiccup that really upsets me, and I know if you folks saw other pictures I had posted of the exterior, you could point it out in a minute. Putting that aside and getting a choke cable to fix my current dillemma, I'm feeling a lot better about just keeping this rig. Besides, I've always felt that if I ever tryed to bamboozle someone or hide information about something I was selling, that would just come back to me over time, in spades. Honesty and straighforwardness is the best policy. I went out to the garage a bit ago to see how I'm going to regain some driver seat space. I can't do anything about the fixed 60% seat, but I can modify the mounts on the 40% part to gain a couple inches. That will make it a lot easier to drive; I'd like to retain the originl wheel if I can. It sounds like my 3F is started to sound like a 1989 or 1990. I'm glad I'm getting closer on this. I'm going to take it down Monday to my mechanic and have them check all the fluids and look for any leaks. I also have to get the State (NC) inspect it to ensure there are no stolen parts they can see. If I finish those things, I'm committed to keeping it, which is what my wife wants me to do anyway. First thing first; tonite I search for a '75-78 choke cable. I really appreciate all the folks that contributed to this. And, I continue to be impressed with the responsiveness of the IH8MUID community. I've belonged to some other such clubs/sites in the past, mostly vintage German and British sportscars, but nobody responds as quickly as the IH8MUD folks.

 

[JohnnyC]

It’s not poor me… you have something a lot of people dream of having one day … it’s a good feeling to drive day in and day out

What British car did you have?

My first car was a 73’ spitfire 1500 … one of my first jobs was working on British cars at a restoration shop

Had that car for over 20 years

 

[brian]

The dash is vintage 1960 fj40 (approx … educated guess)

64 to 68 ish

 

[Living in the Past]

The latches this one has ended 9/67. Up to mid 1965 windshield had a vent at the bottom. Ribs on the dash may have lasted after that date but the latches were gone on versions with and without the padded dash.

 

[bobm]

Too much talk not enuff pics . Made my own choke cable for 50 cents . Actually free for a 3 ft. Piece of .060 stainless cable. Check me tread

 

[talegate]

JohnnyC, great looking car. 20 years, wow! I've had several: '60 MGA; 61 TR3A (had about 10 years); '66 Porche 912 Targa (I love Targas); 2003 Mini Cooper S, etc. I hope to end up with the perfect '67 Healey 3000, British racing green with black leather interior, or a late 60's Morgan +8; not sure my body can handle a wood framed Morgan anymore though. I wouldn't mind having an early 70's 911T Targa as well.

 

[JohnnyC]

Those are some fantastic fun cars … my buddy’s 914 was great until the body split in half … wish I had knew ya sooner

My uncle just sold his all original 47k mile 3000 Healey … he did get a pretty penny for it… even with a tad of rear fender damage from a wire wheel letting go

Morgan’s were my dream car as well … THAT was the best of them all… if you should ever get a chance to drive one … you’d want it in the garage lol

If you ever want to shoot the s*** about Leland crap just pm me lol

You’ll find the tlc is in its own category of fun and pleasure … best part is you do with it as you wish … modding and tinkering is part of the fun of owning one … they are a personalized enjoyment

 

[talegate]

A 47K original mile 3000 is unheard of; I'll bet he did get a pretty penny! Any Healey 3000 is worth a lot. Wire wheel debacle, huh? I can say I was always concerned about the brass hammer knock-off, knock-on process; seemed to be inherently destined for failure. Maybe not though, you don't hear of many coming off. The '67 BJ8 is the cream of the crop for me. I love the early series all the way to the end of the run in '67, but the BJ8 in BRG with that gorgeous dash and console was the one that met my fancy. Around that same time another friend had just acquired an FJ40, don't know what year, and I remember when four of us went out to lunch in it, I just just sat in the back admiring the simplicity of that vehicle, and after driving it myself, that began my life-long admiration for the 40. I started keeping an eye on them, saying "one day, I'm going to get one of these". From that point, it has been on my bucket list. There was another car around that time that I have had another life-long hankering for, and that was the turtle Porche Super 90, around 1960 was the best year, if I recall correctly. Another coworker during that period, around 1970, was restoring one to pristine condition, claiming he was going to keep it till he was an old man. I saw one recently, very much akin to his, that sold for almost $250K. He was smart if he held on to it. You're in NY, right? Great scenic roads for sport cars, or any car for that matter, in upstate NY. Stay in touch. I'm off today to pickup some 1/4" metal stock to modify my drivers seat. Oh yeah, one more observation, when I drove my buddy's 40 way back when, I was six-one, 160 pounds. Until recently, I had forgotten how the design of the front part of the drive/passenger area narrows down in the front. That feature, although it's a nice design character, sure makes fitting someone who has 100 lbs more girth on that same frame a real challenge to drive FJs comfortably, hence the need to garner some more maneuverability room in the front compartment. I hope a couple inches will make the required difference. I'd really like to retain the stock steering wheel if possible. If not, a smaller diameter is probably in my future.

 

[Aloha Jen]

I just looked and I have more photos posted on your intro thread than you do! We are fiends for photos here in Mud, it is cruel to deprive us of them. More is always better

 

[talegate]

Will try to do better with photos. I find it cumbersome to attach pictures, not becasue of IH8MUD, but because of the effort requried to get existing photos from the cloud, then save them, and then attach to IH8JUD. There's probalby a better way, and I'll pursue.

 

[CruiserInProgress]

A 47K original mile 3000 is unheard of; I'll bet he did get a pretty penny! Any Healey 3000 is worth a lot. Wire wheel debacle, huh? I can say I was always concerned about the brass hammer knock-off, knock-on process; seemed to be inherently destined for failure. Maybe not though, you don't hear of many coming off. The '67 BJ8 is the cream of the crop for me. I love the early series all the way to the end of the run in '67, but the BJ8 in BRG with that gorgeous dash and console was the one that met my fancy. Around that same time another friend had just acquired an FJ40, don't know what year, and I remember when four of us went out to lunch in it, I just just sat in the back admiring the simplicity of that vehicle, and after driving it myself, that began my life-long admiration for the 40. I started keeping an eye on them, saying "one day, I'm going to get one of these". From that point, it has been on my bucket list. There was another car around that time that I have had another life-long hankering for, and that was the turtle Porche Super 90, around 1960 was the best year, if I recall correctly. Another coworker during that period, around 1970, was restoring one to pristine condition, claiming he was going to keep it till he was an old man. I saw one recently, very much akin to his, that sold for almost $250K. He was smart if he held on to it. You're in NY, right? Great scenic roads for sport cars, or any car for that matter, in upstate NY. Stay in touch. I'm off today to pickup some 1/4" metal stock to modify my drivers seat. Oh yeah, one more observation, when I drove my buddy's 40 way back when, I was six-one, 160 pounds. Until recently, I had forgotten how the design of the front part of the drive/passenger area narrows down in the front. That feature, although it's a nice design character, sure makes fitting someone who has 100 lbs more girth on that same frame a real challenge to drive FJs comfortably, hence the need to garner some more maneuverability room in the front compartment. I hope a couple inches will make the required difference. I'd really like to retain the stock steering wheel if possible. If not, a smaller diameter is probably in my future.

Not FJ40 related, and not meant to hijack, but a quick lesson learned about those spoked wheel knockoffs talegate mentioned on old Leyland sports cars.

I learned that one should definitely not swap spoked wheel hubs from one side of the car to the other.

I did that once in the mid-70's while attempting to replace a broken front axle/spoked hub wheel assembly on an old Triumph TR4, salvaging parts from another car.

The threads on those hubs/knockoffs are left or right hand, and yes, it definitely makes a difference! Otherwise, knockoffs have tendency to spin off when traveling down the road. Been there! Still embarrassed, but still smile when I think about it. Definitely a lesson learned.

 

[talegate]

Good information. I wll be even more respectful of knockoffs going forward. I never even thought about issues of one side vs. the other. Learn something new every day.