Builds A Troopy Finds Its Owner

[AndrewHadji]

it might have been these, double check the connector version, they make a bunch
Headlight Load Resistor Kit - H4 LED Headlight Bulbs | Super Bright LEDs

@Gun Runner 5 yea you guys have been having bad luck with them. I think Sam blew a few as well. I dont know if they were this model, but ive had decent luck (1.5 yrs)

 

[Gun Runner 5]

Hello AndrewHadj and Gunrun5,

Sounds good, thank you. I did have a bit of a yap with Odd Iron Rob, confirming exactly what you say, GunRun. Andrew, i look forward to your info. I admit it doesn't seriously bother me to not have the dashboard indicator not come on, i just have to remember to pay attention to what i'm doing.
Thanks ya'll!

When the oncoming vehicle runs off of the road you can assume your news lights are on bright.

 

[61Mk+]

When the oncoming vehicle runs off of the road you can assume your news lights are on bright.

It could be that when the oncoming vehicle's occupants fire weaponry at you the same assumption could be made.

 

[Honger]

Just worked my way through your thread... amazing Troopy man. Sorry to hear of your travails with the builder. It's good to see it hasn't gotten you down nor inhibited you from traveling. Looking forward to more of your work and travels.

Joel

 

[61Mk+]

Just worked my way through your thread... amazing Troopy man. Sorry to hear of your travails with the builder. It's good to see it hasn't gotten you down nor inhibited you from traveling. Looking forward to more of your work and travels.

Joel

Hello Honger,

Thank you for the kind words. You have me thinking of something rather on the personal side:
i don't like the throw-away side of things, and that is one of the reasons i am in love with my Cruiser. Engineer, design, and build it right, and i don't have to replace the car every few years. I've just put 11 or 12 thousand kilometres on my car in maybe six weeks, and there are no issues. It just does its job. Plus i get to be entertained when i want to go off-road. Lose on the efficiency side, gain on the lack of need to replace the big-ticket items; that's my argument to the tree-huggers.
I get enormous satisfaction out of well-designed products; Toyota's LandCruisers are a prime example.

 

[Honger]

Hello Honger,

Thank you for the kind words. You have me thinking of something rather on the personal side:
i don't like the throw-away side of things, and that is one of the reasons i am in love with my Cruiser. Engineer, design, and build it right, and i don't have to replace the car every few years. I've just put 11 or 12 thousand kilometres on my car in maybe six weeks, and there are no issues. It just does its job. Plus i get to be entertained when i want to go off-road. Lose on the efficiency side, gain on the lack of need to replace the big-ticket item; that's my argument to the tree-huggers.
I get enormous satisfaction out of well-designed products; Toyota's LandCruisers are a prime example.

Wow, some good thoughts there. I'm with you, I don't like the throw-away nature of things these days. I'm an engineer, so I'm a big believer in efficiency, sustainability, conservation, re-usability, and design for long-term extensibility. You may be losing on the fuel efficiency side of things... but your decision to give an older vehicle a new life is inherently conservative. And the 70-series platform is very extensible.

I'm with you further on well-designed products, especially of the mechanical persuasion. The 20+ year design life of Toyota Land Cruisers make them a remarkable example. I also love the way form follows function... but in such a way that the form is actually beautiful because of that philosophy (there's a Japanese word for this that I can't remember).

I was driving my 70-series the other day and just kind taking it all in. It's remarkable to see the progression of design ethos from the FJ40 to the FJ75 to my FZJ80... the 70-series seems to be in the sweet spot of not having too much plastic and maintaining a utilitarian aspect. The FJ40 is nearly all metal... nearly everything rebuildable. A bit less so on the 70. A lot less so on the 80. Maintaining the plastic bits on the 80 that keep cracking or breaking is starting to exhaust me. The 70-series is helped by the fact that the plastic doodads are mostly still manufactured... whereas they are drying up for the 80.

The 70-series isn't meant to be thrown away... it's well designed for utility and longevity... and Toyota is generally keeping it that way. A beautiful thing.

You provoked my thinking on this. =)

 

[61Mk+]

Wow, some good thoughts there. I'm with you, I don't like the throw-away nature of things these days. I'm an engineer, so I'm a big believer in efficiency, sustainability, conservation, re-usability, and design for long-term extensibility. You may be losing on the fuel efficiency side of things... but your decision to give an older vehicle a new life is inherently conservative. And the 70-series platform is very extensible.

I'm with you further on well-designed products, especially of the mechanical persuasion. The 20+ year design life of Toyota Land Cruisers make them a remarkable example. I also love the way form follows function... but in such a way that the form is actually beautiful because of that philosophy (there's a Japanese word for this that I can't remember).

I was driving my 70-series the other day and just kind taking it all in. It's remarkable to see the progression of design ethos from the FJ40 to the FJ75 to my FZJ80... the 70-series seems to be in the sweet spot of not having too much plastic and maintaining a utilitarian aspect. The FJ40 is nearly all metal... nearly everything rebuildable. A bit less so on the 70. A lot less so on the 80. Maintaining the plastic bits on the 80 that keep cracking or breaking is starting to exhaust me. The 70-series is helped by the fact that the plastic doodads are mostly still manufactured... whereas they are drying up for the 80.

The 70-series isn't meant to be thrown away... it's well designed for utility and longevity... and Toyota is generally keeping it that way. A beautiful thing.

You provoked my thinking on this. =)

Right on Honger! (love that handle, by the way).

 

[61Mk+]

Hello Mudders,

Looking for a bit of help, please: the hinges of the left rear door on my car are as stiff as a damned brick. Spraying lube at them helps, but only temporarily.
I am wondering before i give it a go, if anyone knows, whether the pins inside the hinges can be hammered out. If so, i would then be able clean them properly, drill and tap for grease nipples, etc.
Thanks in advance.

 

[cruiserdan]

The hinges are not intended to be disassembled. It may be possible to remove the pins but they are not serviced.

 

[DamoPeru]

Hello Mudders,

Looking for a bit of help, please: the hinges of the left rear door on my car are as stiff as a damned brick. Spraying lube at them helps, but only temporarily.
I am wondering before i give it a go, if anyone knows, whether the pins inside the hinges can be hammered out. If so, i would then be able clean them properly, drill and tap for grease nipples, etc.
Thanks in advance.

Sounds like a trip to a parts website

 

[61Mk+]

Thank you, gentlemen. Looks like parts indeed.

 

[61Mk+]

Finally did something mechanical on my own: replaced the timing belt and tensioner (yes, i have put 100,000km on my car). I won't say much about it as there is a thread on this forum (Matt something is the thread's handle) that describes it; i did download a few pages from somebody else's thread's link to a 1HZ manual, plus i have a copy of the manual myself. I will nonetheless volunteer the fact that the worst bit is putting the tensioner's spring back on.
I forgot if there is a separate thread just for parts numbers, if someone can remind me of that thread's name i'll put these same pictures there too.
As per my mechanic, who knows Cruisers very well, i did not replace the crankshaft seal, as they only need to be replaced every second timing belt. Hopefully i'll remember i have that seal it 100,000km from now.

 

[61Mk+]

Hello Mudders,

Have had the parking brake cable replaced; the number in the top picture looks like a Toyota parts number, however the package came with no manufacturer's name at all.
Since the water reservoir was made such that access, both for filling and getting water out, was idiotically awkward and difficult, it was pretty well useless; it is now removed. A bit of a shame, as it seems quite well-made, of stainless, but too bad. It is a heavy bastard, my guess is 70-80 lbs. In the second picture is the tube, for lack of a better term, through which the parking brake cable used to pass through; part of the idiocy.

 

[Blueberries]

Hello Honger,

Thank you for the kind words. You have me thinking of something rather on the personal side:
i don't like the throw-away side of things, and that is one of the reasons i am in love with my Cruiser. Engineer, design, and build it right, and i don't have to replace the car every few years. I've just put 11 or 12 thousand kilometres on my car in maybe six weeks, and there are no issues. It just does its job. Plus i get to be entertained when i want to go off-road. Lose on the efficiency side, gain on the lack of need to replace the big-ticket items; that's my argument to the tree-huggers.
I get enormous satisfaction out of well-designed products; Toyota's LandCruisers are a prime example.

Wow, some good thoughts there. I'm with you, I don't like the throw-away nature of things these days. I'm an engineer, so I'm a big believer in efficiency, sustainability, conservation, re-usability, and design for long-term extensibility. You may be losing on the fuel efficiency side of things... but your decision to give an older vehicle a new life is inherently conservative. And the 70-series platform is very extensible.

I'm with you further on well-designed products, especially of the mechanical persuasion. The 20+ year design life of Toyota Land Cruisers make them a remarkable example. I also love the way form follows function... but in such a way that the form is actually beautiful because of that philosophy (there's a Japanese word for this that I can't remember).

I was driving my 70-series the other day and just kind taking it all in. It's remarkable to see the progression of design ethos from the FJ40 to the FJ75 to my FZJ80... the 70-series seems to be in the sweet spot of not having too much plastic and maintaining a utilitarian aspect. The FJ40 is nearly all metal... nearly everything rebuildable. A bit less so on the 70. A lot less so on the 80. Maintaining the plastic bits on the 80 that keep cracking or breaking is starting to exhaust me. The 70-series is helped by the fact that the plastic doodads are mostly still manufactured... whereas they are drying up for the 80.

The 70-series isn't meant to be thrown away... it's well designed for utility and longevity... and Toyota is generally keeping it that way. A beautiful thing.

You provoked my thinking on this. =)

Hi guys.

I saw his thread and just had to post that I have the very same philosophy regarding the engineering of throw away products and why I love the longevity of my HJ61 so much. I believe that we should be moving towards a one life; one vehicle world instead of the current state of turnover that is common among manufacturers. With the solid frame and engineering quality of this vehicle, there is no reason that it couldn't be made to last a life time with parts support.

Btw, I am one of those tree huggers that you mentioned. Always meant to run my diesel on veg oil but never had the resources to do it. Maybe some day after I rebuild her! AT just over 400k she's just getting started! If only the body had the same youthfull feelings (I live in a tough, road salt ridden part of the world).

I also know Wayne so we have that in common as well. I was angry at him for some time but have come to think that his intent is not malicious. I think that he's a good guy at heart but that maybe he's not that detail oriented/ forgetful maybe? I don't think he means it and it's too bad that your experience with him was so negative and has led to him hovering on this site instead of being active. I know you had a bad experience with him but was he ever given a chance to make it right? Or, was there some miscommunications beween you?
I have to say that in reading your descriptions I am very impressed at how respectful your've been. Many others would have been much less so after what you experienced.

I'm glad that you've continued to enjoy that troopy! Never been in one myself but, sure would love to some day!

Here's to cuisers and cruising!

Tim

 

[61Mk+]

Hello Blueberries Tim,

I have not been on Mud for quite a while, and have caught up a bit. Yes i am stuck in unemployment due to the coronavirus. No matter, i have only just now seen your post from January.
I'm sorry it took so long to reply. I am unable to disagree with you, Wayne is not malicious, my opinion, so yes i may have reacted too strongly; that he may be absent-minded/forgetful/ignorant/whatever the case may be, fine. However, my issue is that he oversells his capabilities. If one is able to do such-and-such, great, but don't sell or advertise more than you can provide; that's my issue with him. He remains a damned fine sort, but if he had me pay him so much for such a paltry return, good-bye Wayne.
I may be stuck in southern Ontario soon and, if you're keen, i'd be glad for a get-together and endless Cruiser yapping, driving, whatever.

 

[AndrewHadji]

Hello Blueberries Tim,

I have not been on Mud for quite a while, and have caught up a bit. Yes i am stuck in unemployment due to the coronavirus. No matter, i have only just now seen your post from January.
I'm sorry it took so long to reply. I am unable to disagree with you, Wayne is not malicious, my opinion, so yes i may have reacted too strongly; that he may be absent-minded/forgetful/ignorant/whatever the case may be, fine. However, my issue is that he oversells his capabilities. If one is able to do such-and-such, great, but don't sell or advertise more than you can provide; that's my issue with him. He remains a damned fine sort, but if he had me pay him so much for such a paltry return, good-bye Wayne.
I may be stuck in southern Ontario soon and, if you're keen, i'd be glad for a get-together and endless Cruiser yapping, driving, whatever.

Good to hear from you, was getting worried! You need to stop buy again so we can compare turbos!

 

[61Mk+]

Would love to, Andrew, however there are a few restrictions to easy movement these days.