Build Aussie 1978 FJ40 Buildup
- Thread starter Twisty
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Thread starter
- #143
yep, agree with the TJs, am scapping the idea of them now. Funny thing is I always thought they looked good on just about every other 40 I've seen on here that has them fiited.
Yeah, seen them, probably too $$ by the time you get them to Oz. Have been pretty keen on tube rear ones ever since seeing the pic above, and it looks like I'm getting a deal too good to pass up on some tube, so the rear flares might happen pretty soon.
Plan is now to get a 37" tyre up here and weld in some panels into the wheel arch to restore the stock wheel arch shape, but just back a little bit, cleared up to the top of the tubs (as is in the pics belows) and with enough clearance for 37s. Will then start sorting some tube style flares.
They hacked up wheel arch now.
How I will get the panels done.
- Thread starter
- #144
Got the driveshafts sorted during the week, went through Farrows Shafting Service, great price and service, had them done the same day.
Farrows Shafting Service - Balancing Equipment &/or Services in Nambour, QLD - yellow.com.au
Bolted them in this morning, then double checked all the u-bolts etc and took her out for its first drive, without any shocks for now, hoping to get those mounts sorted this week, but need to get the exhaust moved first for the rears......
Anyway, seems as though all the effort has been worth it. The ride is super smooth, soaks up big bumps nicely, am really happy with it. Only drama is the bodyroll, really leans over when cornering....Will see how much having shocks on improves it, but it might need an extra leaf all round yet to get it a little safer.
Also seems the castor has come good now, with the old springs, 2" extended shackles, and 3 degree wedges I was still at -2 degress castor. (Factory is 0 degress, but should be +2 to +5 now it has p/steer) Now with the axle more centre on the spring (and not up on the arch of the spring) and the rear fixed mounts down a little on the chassis it defineltey doesn't wander as much. Need to get out out on the highway to check for sure but, haven't been over 80km/hr yet.
Few pics.
Farrows Shafting Service - Balancing Equipment &/or Services in Nambour, QLD - yellow.com.au
Bolted them in this morning, then double checked all the u-bolts etc and took her out for its first drive, without any shocks for now, hoping to get those mounts sorted this week, but need to get the exhaust moved first for the rears......
Anyway, seems as though all the effort has been worth it. The ride is super smooth, soaks up big bumps nicely, am really happy with it. Only drama is the bodyroll, really leans over when cornering....Will see how much having shocks on improves it, but it might need an extra leaf all round yet to get it a little safer.
Also seems the castor has come good now, with the old springs, 2" extended shackles, and 3 degree wedges I was still at -2 degress castor. (Factory is 0 degress, but should be +2 to +5 now it has p/steer) Now with the axle more centre on the spring (and not up on the arch of the spring) and the rear fixed mounts down a little on the chassis it defineltey doesn't wander as much. Need to get out out on the highway to check for sure but, haven't been over 80km/hr yet.
Few pics.
- Thread starter
- #145
Finally got the shocks sorted today and got to have a decent drive. Am absolutely stoked with the ride! Soaks up bumps great, and castor it back to good now for the first time I've owned it. Can actually have 1 hand on the steering wheel at over 80km/hr now!
Front shock mount just involved flipping the std. mount 180 degrees (only needed to gain 1")
Just used some rhs to mount the rear shocks on the other side of the existing cross member. Leaned them in a extra 30mm at the top too.
Bottom mount on the high clearance u-bolt plate.
Back view now.
Front shock mount just involved flipping the std. mount 180 degrees (only needed to gain 1")
Just used some rhs to mount the rear shocks on the other side of the existing cross member. Leaned them in a extra 30mm at the top too.
Bottom mount on the high clearance u-bolt plate.
Back view now.
- Thread starter
- #146
Now the cool pics 
With my ugly mug.
With my ugly mug.
- Thread starter
- #147
Some comparo pics from the old custom springs to the new.
Old with no shocks
New with 12" travel Shocks
Old with No Shocks
New with 12" travel Shocks
Looking at that I think its gained a lot more then I thought it would....specially since it shocks fitted with the latest pics and old pics was with no shocks. Was all worth it for the ride alone but.
Old with no shocks
New with 12" travel Shocks
Old with No Shocks
New with 12" travel Shocks
Looking at that I think its gained a lot more then I thought it would....specially since it shocks fitted with the latest pics and old pics was with no shocks. Was all worth it for the ride alone but.
- Thread starter
- #148
Well a lot sooner then first planned, the 40 is getting a new EFI donk. Seen this pop up in the for sale section on Outerlimits today and decieded it was too good a value to pass up.
Ford 250 EFI Cross Flow, rebuilt approx 6000kms ago with balanced crank, flat top pistons, port and polished head, extractors etc. Also get the full conversion kit, radiator, thermo fan, two 4spd's, xfer case, and driveshafts. Will wait till I can sell my 3f, then slot this in and hopefully get lot better driveability and economy.
Ford 250 EFI Cross Flow, rebuilt approx 6000kms ago with balanced crank, flat top pistons, port and polished head, extractors etc. Also get the full conversion kit, radiator, thermo fan, two 4spd's, xfer case, and driveshafts. Will wait till I can sell my 3f, then slot this in and hopefully get lot better driveability and economy.
- Thread starter
- #149
Picked up a trailer full of bits on saturday. Huge thanks to RAY185 and Dougster for coming up and doing a compression test and then helping to load it all up. All cylinders were within 5-10 psi and around 195psi.
Not sure when I'll swap it in yet. Wanna sell the 3f currently in the 40, and the couple of 4spds and xfer that came with the new motor. Also got to sort a fair few bits I'll need before it can go in (new clutch, spark plugs, paint motor, relocate the p/steer pump, modify the new radiator to a twin pass setup so both hoses can be on top, surge tank, efi pump and lines, probably other bits I haven't thought of)
Hopefully once thats all organised get the swap done and back on the road within a week or two from pulling out the 3f.
Not sure when I'll swap it in yet. Wanna sell the 3f currently in the 40, and the couple of 4spds and xfer that came with the new motor. Also got to sort a fair few bits I'll need before it can go in (new clutch, spark plugs, paint motor, relocate the p/steer pump, modify the new radiator to a twin pass setup so both hoses can be on top, surge tank, efi pump and lines, probably other bits I haven't thought of)
Hopefully once thats all organised get the swap done and back on the road within a week or two from pulling out the 3f.
- Thread starter
- #150
Well after selling my 35" TrXus mud terrains I've finally decieded on the new rubber. Was originally planning on going TSLs or Iroks in around 36-37", but after changing my mind 1000 times I decieded to get Boof's old 35x13.5 BFG Krawlers. Anything bigger then 35 will cause too many issues gearing wise, and probably breakages. I need to be able to keep using 33s on it for around town, so re-gearing the diffs isn't possible, and xfer geares are too $$$ (why dont they make xfer gears for 40s for the price they do for hilux's 
Will also be getting some Staun internal beadlocks fitted at the same time, can't wait!
Have also cleaned up the motor, a degrease and a pressure wash brang it up sweet.
Pulled all the green bits off to get re-powdercoated....want to do it in the same style, but probably a metallic gun metal grey.
Was nice and clean inside!
Have ordered a heap of new bits for the motor to fit before installing (with help from RAY185, thanks
). Got new leads, spark plugs, water pump, thermostat, rear main, some other gaskets, all new clutch stuff, efi fuel pump and filter...and some other bits in pieces. Still not sure when I'll swap it in yet, am not driving it cause of a lack of rear flares, so might do it sooner if I can sell the 3f (probably help if I advertised it )
Will also be getting some Staun internal beadlocks fitted at the same time, can't wait!
Have also cleaned up the motor, a degrease and a pressure wash brang it up sweet.
Pulled all the green bits off to get re-powdercoated....want to do it in the same style, but probably a metallic gun metal grey.
Was nice and clean inside!
Have ordered a heap of new bits for the motor to fit before installing (with help from RAY185, thanks
). Got new leads, spark plugs, water pump, thermostat, rear main, some other gaskets, all new clutch stuff, efi fuel pump and filter...and some other bits in pieces. Still not sure when I'll swap it in yet, am not driving it cause of a lack of rear flares, so might do it sooner if I can sell the 3f (probably help if I advertised it )
I see firewall mods in your future Dave 
Engine came up well with a clean.
I'm doing the same conversion on mine as part of my rebuild, and have had to modify the fire wall to fit around the end of the fuel rail and end runner on manifold.
Couple of pics. keep in mind it's a long way from finished
good luck with your conversion and keep up the good work
Cheers Steve
- Thread starter
- #152
Jeez Steve! that looks sweet! Wanna swap my sh!ttty green parts for your shiny alloy parts! They look awesome! Did you do that yourself? or get it done?
I had been warned about the firewall...was hoping I could fix it with a big f@%king hammer, looks alittle more involved then that, so thanks for the pics!
I had been warned about the firewall...was hoping I could fix it with a big f@%king hammer, looks alittle more involved then that, so thanks for the pics!
Thanx Dave.
Did it myself. Lots of sanding using different grades of wet and dry and then used a polishing wheel on the bench grinder. took me about a week of late nights
couple more pics
with standard ford air box and tubing, AFM is part of air box lid.
The air intake is on the bottom left front corner. would be a piece of cake to hook up a snorkel
My efforts with a bfh to make it fit. Just ended up a mess
during polishing
Did it myself. Lots of sanding using different grades of wet and dry and then used a polishing wheel on the bench grinder. took me about a week of late nights
couple more pics
with standard ford air box and tubing, AFM is part of air box lid.
The air intake is on the bottom left front corner. would be a piece of cake to hook up a snorkel
My efforts with a bfh to make it fit. Just ended up a mess
during polishing
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #154
Thanks for the extra pics Steve.....looks good! Need to source the standard airbox and tubing for mine, and a new AFM actually, as the plastic casing is worn through on my AFM. Nice to know the std. setup fits neatly but.
Have you looked at the power steering bracket yet? it puts the pump way out on the guard by the looks of the 40 that mine came out of.
Have you looked at the power steering bracket yet? it puts the pump way out on the guard by the looks of the 40 that mine came out of.
Yeah had noticed that. my engine sits a bit funny due to the engine mounts it has, so the pump actually hits on the shock tower. I will be making new engine mounts to try and get it to sit properly, and then was thinking of sectioning and modifying the bracket to try and get the pump to sit in a bit closer to the engine. Failing that i was thinking of adapting a pump with separate fluid reservoir.
Was pretty stoked this week, the 40 appeared in the French offroad magazine Option 4x4. They printed it on a full 2 page spread of it climbing up a hill at Glasshouse Mountains. They sent a couple copies of the mag over, and it looks like a really nice mag, pitty I cant read any of it but!
www.option4x4.fr
Heres the pic that appeared....can anyone translate what it says in the bottom left corner?
Full size: http://www.4wdlinks.com.au/albums/FJ40/Option4x4_Twistys_FJ40.jpg
It'll also appear in the next issue (117) of Australian 4WD Action
I looked through the thread (great build btw) and didn't see any proper translation (no offense Andrew), thought I'd give it a shot.
Here goes nothing.
"Oldies but Goodies. This FJ40 is the next big thing in the australian press. And rightfully so : beautifully restored, this 1978 attends all sorts of off-road events in a country where an FJ in such good shape is extremely rare. A good throwback to its origins, this Toyota owner fixed and improved his FJ, so well it even outperforms local trucks with a handful of lockers. Even without lockers, this FJ40 is perfectly suited for the southern hemisphere. Among the upgrades, 4" Dobinson springs, Skyjacker shocks, extended shackles, front disc brake conversion, 35x12,5 Interco TrXus MT tires and a 140L gas tank. All of this while staying true to its original unique styling."
Option4x4 is actually a pretty good mag. Guys from expeditionportal.com would love it I'm sure. I read it every time I get a chance.
edit - indeed the extended thingies are the shackles. Fiex up the text.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #158
Cheers Zorro, am guessing the extended bit would be the 2" extended shackles?? And yeah, the mag looked like it had some really good articles, even if I coudln't understand any of the writing.
- Thread starter
- #159
Finally got the lasercut bits off Jackass100 the other week (thanks mate!). Kane came over today to start welding it up. Am stoked with how its turning out!
- Thread starter
- #160
Took the 40 down to Ray185s workshop on the weekend to fix a sump gasket leak on the 3f and give it a tune so its right to drive around over xmas, and all sweet to sell to fund the ford donk going in. (huge thanks to Ray for the help
).
Was the first decent highway run since the new springs have gone in, and its 100 times nicer to drive. Really soaks up the bumps nice, and now that the castor is sweet again, doesnt wander everywhere. Has some bumpsteer, but its fine once you get used to it.
Few pics of the 40 on Rays 30 degree travel ramp.
Was the first decent highway run since the new springs have gone in, and its 100 times nicer to drive. Really soaks up the bumps nice, and now that the castor is sweet again, doesnt wander everywhere. Has some bumpsteer, but its fine once you get used to it.
Few pics of the 40 on Rays 30 degree travel ramp.