Build $500 1992 FJ80 Rebuild

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The Land Cruiser did great, but with four people, a dog, and the back loaded to the roof, it did bump & drag the hitch in a few places. Its new muffler - which admittedly is on the large side - also sustained a sizeable dent and the spare tire has a few small scrapes. Normally we don't have that many passengers or that much stuff, so clearance hasn't been much of an issue. But it does have us considering the move to 2" lift springs & 35s sooner rather than later. I think refreshing the transfer case with the Sumo 10% UD gearset paired with Marlin Crawler's 3.12:1 "Crawler" gears and new bearings & seals will compliment that nicely. We'll probably add in a lunchbox locker to the rear at the same time.

 

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Checking in. It's been a busy summer and we've tried to enjoy the Land Cruiser between work, family, travel & hot weather. Temps this past few weeks have been in the 90-100* range with high humidity. So leaving the house is miserable without air conditioning. Getting the AC working is next on the list after we get maintenance on the daily cars completed.

We met a few friends at the end of the local Rigs & Coffee event in June.

A quick snapshot after some exploration around a new river access spot near our house.

And I jumped on the summer sale Nitro had. Snagged a set of front & rear 4.88 gears for $180 shipped. Husband found a local driveline shop that will swap gears for a deal if you bring them the third member assembly. We might take this opportunity to throw in some sort of lunchbox locker in the rear.

 

[cvenom96]

I've got an Aussie locker w/ 4:88s in mine. It works good but is noisy. Definitely get's weird looks at the grocery store.

 

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I've got an Aussie locker w/ 4:88s in mine. It works good but is noisy. Definitely get's weird looks at the grocery store.

Noise is a concern - although mild and somewhat entertaining. I think we've narrowed our choice down to the Powertrax "no-slip" version. Supposedly it's quieter. If not, our real concern is whether it works or not.

After driving some unusual vehicles over the years, we're used to getting weird looks.

 

[cvenom96]

Yeah it's usually just sharp low-speed turns. Don't often hear it turning across traffic at an intersection, etc. I hear it every now and then when on the trail but not often. It definitely works. I have that in the rear and an Eaton e-locker up front. I can do most things without locking the front.

 

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AC compressors, CV axles, and driveshafts. Oh my!

I feel like we hit our maintenance "round of threes" a few times over the past few months between the daily cars. So now that most of that has been taken care of, we're ready to get a few more projects on the Land Cruiser tackled. And with cooler weather just around the corner, we're ready for it!

This weekend included one small project: new front panhard bushings. A friend with a 12 ton press was a big help with this one. No pics unfortunately, but the old bushings came right out & new OEM bushings went in smoothly. A short drive on some bumpy paved & dirt roads proved this to be a nice improvement. The steering feel could still be better, but an alignment and eventual steering box rebuild (with 105 components) will probably fix that.

Oh, and remember that FZJ-style battery box we bought and installed earlier this year? It's about to be put to use for our dual battery setup. Husband has been waiting for the KickAss (the brand) dual sensing relay to come back in stock and was finally able to snag one last week. That and a few more wiring components that are currently in the mail will enable us to run both main & house batteries separately, but with the ability to charge both via the alternator or add in solar down the road.

 

[cvenom96]

I'm glad I went with a dual battery setup. Even though it was in my driveway it was nice to not have to pull out the jumper cables, etc. My son had left the overhead light on when I was looking and hadn't driven the truck in a few weeks. Hit the button to connect the house battery and it fired right up.

 

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Whew. September flew by with warm temps. Maybe October will be more mild.

KickAss wiring kit & controller are in. Talk about some beefy wiring! We also scored an Optima Yellowtop D31T from a friend for a pack of beer. It's a model his work gets in bulk orders for big trucks, but the batch this one came in with was deemed "dead". This battery was dead after sitting for several months, but it appears to have recovered after sitting on our trickle charger for a week and topping off with a borrowed Optima charger/conditioner. The smaller posts are an ideal size for wiring eyelets and it fits the factory battery tie down.

We had previously decided to stick with 33s and stock height for the next set of tires, but sometimes a deal pops up locally that changes things. Husband found a set of five 34" Bronco takeoffs for $900: 285/75r17 Toyo Open Country AT3s on steelies, to be exact. They have approx 5,000 miles on them and look great. Unfortunately, the steel wheels don't fit - the wheel bore is too small - so we're going to sell them after removing the tires.

The annual Hunt & Roll at the cabin is coming up at the end of the month, so we've got a few things to tackle before then: fuel pump & O2 sensors are at the top of the list.

 

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This weekend was a busy one. Got the new tires mounted and installed them with Spidertrax spacers, found an issue with our current lug nuts on the front wheels, found a leaky rear axle seal & wheel cylinder, ordered new lug nuts, 20mm spring spacers, moved an in-law, etc.

The 34" Toyos are a nice upgrade. But installing them has turned into a domino effect of finding other issues. Go figure.

Husband found a used set of FJ80-specific Spidertrax front & rear spacers for $100. So we got those and he installed them before taking it to the tire shop. On the drive back home, he noticed unusual vibrations that reminded him of the dreaded "death wobble" when going over 50mph. So we looked over it all and found that the front wheels are no longer centered on the hub nor the studs with the spacers. It looks like the Dorman lug nuts we bought last year are either too small or the wrong style to center Sequoia wheels after installing the spacers. So the wheels are now wobbling on the studs when in motion - no bueno.

Husband did some reading & was able to cross-reference the correct size lug nuts with another Dorman part number (6111671). Our local O'Reilly's had a few in stock for $7. So we bought one to test fit and then ordered the rest from Rock Auto for $2.60/ea. I checked Partsouq as well, but the price there was $4.28/ea. Once those are delivered, we should be able to reinstall the front spacers.

One of the rear axle seals has developed a rather nasty leak. We noticed fluid running down the wheel. So husband opened up the drum on that side and found everything inside coated in a mix of differential oil & brake fluid. Yuck. The wheel cylinder was also leaking, so that got replaced with a local parts store variant. Fingers crossed it holds up. Husband noted the brake shoes were pretty worn down anyway, so I ordered a set of Powerstop shoes. We'll install those once the axle seal has been replaced and everything's cleaned up.

The spring spacers were delivered late yesterday evening, so husband installed those this morning. I'm going home during lunch break to help bleed the brakes so he can take it to the shop this afternoon for the axle seal replacement. We're pretty confident on the axle side of things, but differential work is a different story. I'll follow up with the finished results & pics.

Edit: Brakes bled and it's off to the shop. Quick pic with the new tires & spring spacers.

 

[Godwin]

One of the rear axle seals has developed a rather nasty leak. We noticed fluid running down the wheel. So husband opened up the drum on that side and found everything inside coated in a mix of differential oil & brake fluid. Yuck.

Still have the semi-float rear axle? Gear oil is leaking past a worn axle seal and if not corrected will continue to contaminate brake shoes. Axle shafts have to be pulled which means the diff has to be opened up. Once you're in this deep you should replace both axle seals and rear axle bearings on both sides. If the worn seal is due to a worn bearing continuing to run it risks trashing an axle shaft.

 

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Still have the semi-float rear axle? Gear oil is leaking past a worn axle seal and if not corrected will continue to contaminate brake shoes. Axle shafts have to be pulled which means the diff has to be opened up. Once you're in this deep you should replace both axle seals and rear axle bearings on both sides. If the worn seal is due to a worn bearing continuing to run it risks trashing an axle shaft.

Yep. The shop checked the bearing and replaced the axle seal. They also installed the shoes we had for it. We've got 4.88 gears to install in the near future, so the other axle seal & bearing will be addressed at that time.

Update:

We got the Land Cruiser back today and it feels a lot better with new rear shoes & a much-needed alignment. Husband wrapped up the wiring for the second battery, relay, and USB/12v plugs in the hatch area. This little KickAss controller is pretty neat. It's wired between the main & house batteries, so it can allow both batteries to be charged individually, or use the house battery to jump the main battery if voltage gets too low. It automatically senses voltages and adjusts accordingly. Makes me wonder how long this 3FE alternator will last.

We previously replaced the rear ashtray in the third row area with a SolveFunction dual socket plate. One side has a USB-A/USB-C combo plug & the other has a standard 12v socket. So nice to have that wired up now.

Husband also rewired the winch to draw power from the house battery. We don't currently have a winch isolator, so the winch will remain disconnected until we need it.

The last thing we're waiting for now is the order for replacement lug nuts. Once we have those, the wheel spacers can be reinstalled. Then it should be time to go back to the cabin.

 

[mudgudgeon]

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View attachment 3452856

Looks good.

 

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A few pics from this past weekend. Husband went out to help with a bachelor's party & prep the cabin for the Halloween party next week.

 

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Looks good.

Thank you! It's worked well so far. And we're happy with it.

Following up on the maintenance side of things:

The new lug nuts were delivered a few weeks ago and fit perfectly with the wheel spacers. Hooray! We ended up with free time last weekend after some family plans fell through, so we decided to check out the vendors at the Rendezvous in the Ozarks event on Saturday afternoon. A lot of the attendees were out on the trails in the their rigs, but we spotted a few neat ones: in particular, the Brazilian Toyota Bandeirante that Xtrusion Overland is building.

The vendor area had a lot to offer. But I think we made out with the best deals: a color "blemish" pair of Actiontrax traction boards for $100 and three Rachet Rangler strap organizers for $20.

Fast forward to this past weekend, and husband noted some recurring issues with the Land Cruiser. After the 1.5 hour drive to the cabin, he stopped at the meeting point and shut off the car. When he tried to leave, it didn't want to start. It would turn over, but not catch. He swapped the EFI relay and checked the wiring, but that made no difference. He said both seemed fine. We've dealt with this in the past and found that waiting 10-20 min usually resolves the issue. Sure enough, after about 20 minutes it started up without issue.

After another hour of driving and right as he approached the first water crossing, it stumbled and died. He was able to get it to start, but it took a moment for the idle to smooth out. From there he made it the rest of the way in without issue. On Sunday, the Land Cruiser made it back out, but started surging and acting up on the way home. No CEL or helpful hints from the car as to the cause - lame.

So, today husband swapped out the fuel pump & strainer. The old one was of unknown make & we have no clue when it was installed. The new one is the 3FE-specific kit from CruiserTeq that we bought earlier this year. The fuel tank itself looks good. No rust or notable sediment. So good news there. Now let's see if this resolves our issue without delving further into things. Husband said it already seems to drive a lot better. We'll find out when we go back to the cabin.

Bonus cabin pic:

 

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Our Halloween weekend got rained out. Not a bad call either since it rained 4" there. In addition to whatever rainfall was upstream, it would've been difficult for some of the less built vehicles. That and it's just not as fun when it's raining the whole time.

We still got out to check out the other cabin property, which is much easier to get to. There had apparently been an earthquake mid-week, so we wanted to check the foundation & underpinnings for any shifting. Fortunately, everything looked normal. We followed up with lunch in Jasper at the new Low Gap Cafe location before heading home. The fall colors were slightly muted in the rain and fog, but looked brilliant in the sunny spots in between.

 

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On the maintenance side of things, we're getting through the old checklist. Husband has been diligently working to finish up some of the smaller maintenance items. He changed the spark plugs, O2 sensors, charcoal canister, and got started on a Big 3-style ground upgrade. The spark plugs were in for almost 3500 miles and had some buildup on them. Could be worn valve seals, piston rings, or accumulated gunk from when we first got it running. The previously failed FPR probably didn't help either. We'll see how these new Denso plugs look with a few miles on them.

The O2 sensors came out easily enough: one was missing hardware. And after seeing how the mounting studs were stripped, it's easy to see why. We'll see if our friend at the shop can help with that. That's currently causing a small exhaust leak.

The charcoal canister seems to be helping as well. Husband noticed some slight pressure buildup in the tank at gas stations this past summer. So we're hoping this helps to prevent that.

On the interior side of things, I got an email from my wishlist on Partsouq saying the driver side window switch bezel was back in stock. So I jumped on that and a new cigarette lighter assembly. Our current bezel has broken tabs and is supported with a strip of ducktape underneath - it mostly works, but is not ideal for the long run. The cigarette lighter port in the car also mostly works, but frequently cuts power while driving. Super annoying to hear the dashcam or Bose speaker chime from powering on repeatedly. Not to mention it's probably a fire hazard.

Once we get through this list, we'll start focusing on more "quality of life" interior repairs: air vents, floor mats, stereo, seats, etc.

Install new charcoal canister
Get spare tire mounted
Install passenger visor
Front brake pads & rotors
Engine & transmission mounts - may not need after all
New front & rear u-joints and hardware - lubricated & work great
Service front axle
Extend diff breathers
Install rear OME springs
Replace fuel pump
Fix power steering leak
Fix exhaust
Remove factory roof rack
Reinstall roof bars & tent
Install charcoal canister
Install spare tire level kit
Change OEM spark plugs
Change oil
Replace O2 sensors
"Big 3" style wiring upgrade
Replace DS window switch bezel
Replace cigarette lighter port
Replace brake light switch
Replace shift lock computer? - may need to test reverse lights

As for the fun side of things:

The weather this past weekend was ideal, so we went out to a friend's future homesite. He's been clearing the drive and needed to burn the debris. Good excuse to camp.

 

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We enjoyed another weekend with ideal weather: cool in the mornings & warm in the afternoon. So a few more things off the ever-changing checklist. Hubs was able to source a spare tire mount leveling kit and got it painted & installed. Much better! We both agree it should've been like this from the factory.

Install spare tire mount level kit
Change oil
"Big 3" style wiring upgrade
Replace cigarette lighter port
Replace brake light switch
Buy extended diff breathers
Buy air compressor mount
Buy headlight & aux light harnesses
Buy DEPO headlights

Our Saturday was pretty busy, so we chose to get out and chase the last of the fall colors in the Ozarks on Sunday. We met a friend in Jasper to pick up a pair of Hella 7" LED spotlights and stopped for lunch at Ozark Cafe. Then we went on to Kyle's Landing, where we came across a tasteful 80 series. The rest of our drive was scenic with more bright colors along the mountainous ridges and no shortage of nature enjoying the weather.

We spotted chipmunks, ground hogs, numerous squirrels, one white-tailed deer, a small flock of turkey hens, and a very determined little hawk on the road guarding a dead squirrel from nearby crows. It waited until the last minute to fly away and lightly bumped against the front bull bar as it flew out of the way. It's a shame our dash cam didn't catch it - another reason to replace that faulty cigarette lighter port.

 

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Husband got the spotlights wired up after we got home and wanted to test them out in the dark. To say they're bright would be an understatement: 6000 lumens in a very concentrated light pattern will turn a dark road into daylight.

And a pleasant surprise: the "D" light decided to make an appearance. We're not sure if it's from adjusting the neutral safety switch or if something got bumped while husband installed the temporary auxiliary light switch. Either way, we hope it sticks around.

 

[mudgudgeon]

Extend diff breathers

I did this in the car park of an auto store on the way to a wheeling trip that was gonna see deep water crossings. Took maybe 45 minutes. A box of 6mm fuel hose, two cheap-o plastic filters and some zip ties

 

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One more update before the holiday fun takes over.

Husband went out for a work day at the cabin this past weekend. He and some friends opted to check out a few new roads on the way in and found a few rocky washouts. Nothing too difficult for the Land Cruiser and our friend's lifted PRO-4X Xterra, but our other friend's stock 4th gen 4Runner didn't quite have the same clearance and needed some assistance via winch and traction boards over the taller parts. No pics, unfortunately.

After several uses, and especially that last trip, the winch line was in need of being re-wound. Husband also added a nice protector to the end of it.

That's all for now. Hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving!