Another New Guy Needing Your Help

[USAFZ28]

I am looking at an FJ40 and honestly have no clue what it is worth. I have a truck for sale, and this guy emailed me to see if I would be interested in a trade. I love the FJ in general, but wanted to see what this one is worth.

He says its one of the first ones made. Said its titled as a 63, but the body is stamped as a 64, and the numbers match (body to title). It has a GM Crate 427 in it, and the body appears to be in pretty good shape.

Assuming it runs and drives decent, could someone give me thier best guess on what it would be worth? Actually ANY info you can offer on this would be greatly appreciated. Here's a couple pics.

 

[FJ40_68_Nick]

Well, what kind of truck are you getting rid of? How much is that one worth? I would take a look under the diamond plate to see what kind of damage he's hiding... If you're into doing body work it might be a good purchase...

 

[USAFZ28]

Well the truck I'm selling is a 96 F350 Powerstroke 4x4 dually, I was looking to get about $5500 out of it.

I don't mind doing some body work, as long as it will be worth my investment of time and money when it's done.

Thanks again for any info you guys can offer.

 

[antFJ]

not sure if you care but just from looking at it.. it doesn't have a bezel (not that big of a deal) it won't have a factory heater if any heater at all, the hood is from a later model cruiser, the front frame has been modified with the welded on front bumper, the hinges are mismatch paint and a 427 is a HUGE motor for a 40.

it might be a fair trade but you are probably going to have to dump a lot of money into this thing when you get it.. (get the engine running well assuming it is going to be a little rough), new brakes, tune-up, fluids, body work as mentioned before, etc. you'll also have to add some signal markers on the fenders (blinkers are kind of important!)

EDIT: the wipers look broken and there looks like there is a gap between the front of the drivers door and the windshield frame.. it also looks like it might not have the rear brake lights.. hard to tell.

other than that it looks pretty good for a 45 year old truck... if you're looking for a project i'd say you found one! just don't think it will be your daily driver right away.

 

[nspctr1]

Are there any other mods such as power steering, disc brakes, tranny swap? these things will make a difference imho. It appears to be decent looking but definitely need more info. If the mods above have been done and it runs it could be well worth the investment.

 

[ocdbeetle]

Whats the best offer you've had for your truck? Could you buy a 40 in like condition as this one for the best offer you've gotten so far? It might be better to trade for this one and put a little work in as opposed to sitting on your powerstroke as the book value keeps plummeting....

 

[Poser]

EDIT: the wipers look broken

Trucks prior to 1968 had separate wiper motors...

New motor assemblies and wiper arms/blades are still available from Toyota for these units.

 

[Gooch43]

I'll trade him straight up for my 90 Ford F250 351...

 

[msapers]

I know it's tempting, but my best advice is to let it go. The best FJ40's I've ever had were the ones with a fairly stock straight six or a mild small block.

A 427 (depending on equipment and tune) can be putting out in excess of 500lb/ft of torque. Fj40's are strong, well built rigs but with that kind of power, you will destroy transmissions, transfer cases, axles, driveshafts... Not to mention the almost guaranteed problem of trying to cool a high performance big block through an FJ40 radiator.

Also, let me add this--A "really fast" FJ40 with factory drum brakes is not a good thing.

I suggest selling your truck and taking some time to look at and test drive several 40's (V8's, Sixes, 3 speeds, 4 speeds, lifted, not lifted... before you purchase one.

Just my two cents.