Be honest, do you like the FJ Cruiser.......

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Fj

I have had my FJ sine early 07. I live in colorado and use it pretty hard. The only problem I have with is that it does not have enough clearence on the front end without modification. It has never really been a problem but 3 more inches would be better. It does not have enought clearence for tire chains on the A arm clearence. I use chains on mine sever times in the winter and in hunting season and if you dont have your chains on the inside real tight then hit the a arm.
 
I like it,
wife hates it,
kids hate it,
2 of the 3 people who had FJ's that helped talk me into buying it no longer have FJ's, the 3rd hasn't even been on the lawn, real high mileage but 0 offroad.
toyota hates me,
2 (3 if you count toyota) for and 7 against if its a democracy the FJ loses.

would I buy it again, no most likely not. 4 door taco or Rubicon
Its my 3rd FJ first two were 40's.
 
Me thinks this question was aimed at those of us who actually own and drive an FJ Cruiser on a daily basis.

I see some though who are posting that do not own one or may have never even driven one.
 
I love my FJC. About the blind spots. As long as you put bubble mirrors on the properly adjusted side mirrors, a Fresnel lens in the back window, a Fresnel lens strip on the top of the windshield (too see traffic lights while stopped), have a neck that lets your head rotate and train yourself to look around the a-pillars, then you can see everything you need to (for street driving, not necessarily rock-crawling).

I don't have a family so the occasional niece or nephew, with or without car seat, getting in and out of the back seat is fine for me. I could see it getting old on a daily basis. But I went from a 89 Bronco II and 97 Mustang Cobra so it's actually easier than either of those.

The only negative I haven't been able to fix, and it's a small one, the rear view mirror doesn't have the double swivel joint like every other vehicle I have owned has. I'm 6' 5" and like my rear view mirror to be as high as possible so I can see at a slight downward angle out the back and so I can see out the middle of the windshield better. I hate when I see people driving with stuff hanging from the rear view mirror. But keep in mind this comes from a guy that drives with all the displays shown previous pictures, so to each there own.

Overall, I think it's very well built. A lot more off-road capable than I will ever need. I can live with 20 mpg for the kind of vehicle it is. No need to use the high octane gas like Toyota recomends.
 
holmanm said:
No need to use the high octane gas like Toyota recomends.
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The wife sees about 40 miles more per tank on mid grade than on regular.

When she puts regular in it she spends about $2 a tank more than when she puts mid-grade in.

The motor's not going to be hurt by putting regular in, but it doesn't make any sense to. Penny wise, pound foolish.
 
Gumby said:
The wife sees about 40 miles more per tank on mid grade than on regular.

When she puts regular in it she spends about $2 a tank more than when she puts mid-grade in.

The motor's not going to be hurt by putting regular in, but it doesn't make any sense to. Penny wise, pound foolish.
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I am definitely not doubting you or your wife's findings because I know every person and every vehicle is different but in my case, there is a gas station in town that charges the same price for 87 and 89 octane gas and even when I run several tanks in a row of 89 I still get 21 mpg highway and 18 mpg city (actually town, 2000 pop.) I use a program on my PPC phone that tracks my mileage on every fill up.

Maybe I should ask them why it's the same price. Maybe it's not really 89 octane. They moved to a new location about 1/2 a year ago and started doing this, I figured it was just a promotional thing and they would stop after a couple months.

I don't understand how it costs $2 a tank more for regular. Around here regular is usually $.10 less than mid-grade so it should cost $1.50 less per 15 gallons. A tank is x number of gallons no matter how much your mileage is. She should be spending about $2 a tank less for regular but having to fill up 40 miles sooner. Which means she is saving a little over $1 per 300 miles using mid-grade. Of course if your "gas price to grade difference" is more than 1.61/.10 she would save more.
 
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21? I wish id get 15, I dont think i ever got more than 18 ever. lift tires and roof rack are killing my mileage
 
holmanm said:
I don't understand how it costs $2 a tank more for regular. Around here regular is usually $.10 less than mid-grade so it should cost $1.50 less per 15 gallons. A tank is x number of gallons no matter how much your mileage is. She should be spending about $2 a tank less for regular but having to fill up 40 miles sooner. Which means she is saving a little over $1 per 300 miles using mid-grade. Of course if your "gas price to grade difference" is more than 1.61/.10 she would save more.
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If she buys regular gas she pays ten cents less per gallon and saves $1.50 for a tank. She gets 40 miles more per tank. Two gallons of gas she saves by putting better gas in it costs $2.01 a gallon in Chicago. She pays 1.50 more and saves $4.00 worth of gas.

Feel free to argue the numbers. I wouldn't doubt if you calculated it all out you could find how it doesn't exactly work out that way, but why bother?

Even if you skew the number so it comes out even, why would you put cheaper gas in? I'm no proponent of putting better gas in then you car can use. My Tundra is formulated for regular. It does not compensate for lesser octane gas by retarding ignition timing and reducing performance. The FJ does.

Even at the high mileage my wife drives and the high cost of gas in Chicago, that extra .10 is not one of the many problems I have with the FJ.
 
Actually, I do, but I have a Corvair, an old F150,......

...a 60, an 80 and a Mustang and I think it fits in fine.
Unique styling inside and out.
TRD Edition has all the stuff I need, plus the all black motif looks great and I don't see it alot around town.
Dash mounted Garmin is convienant and invisible when not in use.
Lots of room in the front where I spend my time, adequate room in backseat where my 5 year old watches his videos in his roof mtd DVD player.
Nice way back storage area.
Nice fuel economy,18-21 on Regular 87 Auto,driven reasonably.
58K and no serious issues, BFG's still at 9/32's
Fun quotient is high, 8 of 10.
I like it but I like Corvairs,old F150's,60's and 80's and Mustangs...........gm
 
i've owned my FJC for just about a year. Over all i love it. hasn't failed me yet. does everything i want it to and more.... couple things that kinda bug me though..

1) the side mirrors... for whatever reason toyota decided to put them further back on the door instead of the corner of each window like every other car on the road has. i think this would help improve the "blind spots" people complain about. personally.. i went to pep boys and bought a pair of the domed round mirrors and put in the lower corners of each mirror. made a world of difference for seeing the "blind spots".

2) i love the way the rear doors open but it's a pain in the butt when you have a car load full of people and u pull into a parking space. you have to do a dance around the doors in order for the person in the back seat to get out. not sure how many actually pack people in the back but im a road trip kinda guy with my friends so it's a little bit of a hassle when ever we get to where we're goin.

besides those 2 things... i really can't think of anything else that i don't like about it..
 
73slinger said:
2) i love the way the rear doors open but it's a pain in the butt when you have a car load full of people and u pull into a parking space. you have to do a dance around the doors in order for the person in the back seat to get out. not sure how many actually pack people in the back but im a road trip kinda guy with my friends so it's a little bit of a hassle when ever we get to where we're goin.

besides those 2 things... i really can't think of anything else that i don't like about it..
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I let them out and then park ;)

John Galt said:
No way, I've got a diesel 70 series, a REAL Landcruiser.
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don't we all wish we could get these in the USA
 
BoondockSaint03 said:
I loved my FJ it was more comfortable than a heep and pretty capable off road but with a baby on the way the wife wanted something more accessable. We ended up trading it in on an 08 AWD Highlander. Obviously the Highlander was not purchased for off-road capablility but comfort and 3 rows of seating. Now in retrospect i wish that i would have known that i could've gotten a really nice used FJ80 for 5-9K and used what was left over from selling the FJ to mod the hell out of an FJ80 :D
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That's interesting, kind of where my thought process has led to. I've been contemplating picking up an FJC, the people I know that have them are happy with them and I think that I could put up with the consequences of the retro styling (lousy visibility etc.). I've currently got an "in good shape" fj60 and a hj60 with a rotten body and frame, I was going to transplant the 2h (which needs a rebuild) with the h55f into the fj60, but with a baby on the way and a '72 fj40 resto project in my shop I could do with one less project right now. Besides, I think I'd rather spend more time out wheelin' than fixin', I'm missing the enjoyment of actually being out boony bashing.

My problem with the FJC has less to do with the retro configuration and more to do with the IFS front end. Other than that they seem to be a good "out of the box" machine. The trouble is that in most of the pictures that I see of them actually off road, in reasonably rough terrain (more challenging than just gravel roads), one of the front wheels is usually a foot off the ground!

Performing a straight axle conversion on a new FJC seems a little nutty to me, that would be okay for a cheaper IFS machine like a 90's 4runner for example. So I'm not sure what the solution would be... Anyone know what the axle travel gain is, in say installing a 2" total chaos kit over the stock front end? Long travel IFS works best on high speed desert terrain but would this help keep the rubber on the ground during slower driving conditions such as rougher rocky terrain?

I think that putting up with a slightly longer wheelbase in the fj80 might be the right trade off for me in the end. A comfortable cruiser with four true doors, a solid front axle, and available lockers front and rear. Throw in a lift kit and you're ready to go...
 
I love my 2008 Sandstorm. My FJ Cruiser gets me to the outback and home without a complaint and in considerable comfort. Sliding into the driver's seat never fails to put a smile on my face. It has proven itself well offroad and will be my offroader of choice for many years to come. The FJ 40 would never pass current safety and emissions standards so I would never be able to buy a new one today. My '76 FJ was a great fourwheeler, but to do the 2700 mile trip I made to the Summit via Moab last summer would not have been as comfortable and a lot more stops for gas. FJ Cruiser is a great choice and I wouldn't change it for anything.
 
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