Simon, your VIN plate attached to the firewall should have the build date on it. Mine shows 10/84 build date. My understanding is that the LX was only made between 82 - 84. As for the originality of the LX some others here might be able to assist further but my understanding is that the LX had the following features.
1. Triple wipers;
2. Zebra cloth seat covering;
3. 5 Speed;
4. Power Steering;
5. Disc Brakes on the front;
6. 6 Seating capacity;
7. Plastic Trim in the rear;
8. Sliding Rear Windows;
9. Possibly Air Con (It was an optional extra)
10. Taco;
11. And the LX badges on the side panels above the mud guards.
I think there might have been a couple of more things but at 2am when I just finished work thats about all I got.
Whats the paint code on it and have you got any pics.
Hope this helps.
Pretty good list Ken!!!
I just got my hands on a 1983 Aussi-market 40-series sales brochure and it gives some info that we can use to "tweak" your list.
It shows that
ANY short-wheel-base 40-series (and not just the LX) of the same production period automatically got the 5-speed box and front discs. So if we're being pedantic (which many of us like to be
) these things shouldn't really be listed as "characteristics of an LX" but of course you're 100% right in that an original LX must have them.
Something you haven't mentioned (that's also in my brochure) is that the LX got steel-belted radial tyres with wide chrome rims "for improved handling and road-holding" (but of course they neglect to add "for lower ground clearance" because brochures concentrate only on positives LOL) when the non-LX got 7.50 x 16 6-ply tyres (which were great tyres in my opinion except they wore out completely in about 15000kms and were rather noisy on the tarmac)..
The brochure doesn't mention A/C at all so I'd say that wasn't automatically part of the LX package (and was just an option as it was for any 40-series model in the brochure).
Triple wipers aren't mentioned in the text but they are shown in the photo of a "SWB LX" so that backs up what you said about those being a characteristic peculiar to the LX.
Hmm. No mention of the tacho in the wording either. However it is shown in a photo said to be "of the diesel model" with no mention of this photo being restricted to an LX version. So that implies
any 40-series diesel got the tacho (including non-LX and long-wheelbase diesels) for this very-late 40-series production period.. Which makes sense because I see them on many HJ47 models belonging to MUD members. (So again - an LX must have a tacho .. but having one doesn't help prove a SWB 40-series is a genuine LX.)
The brochiure does say you got a quartz clock across the whole model range (and that range is FJ40RV-MCQ, BJ42RV-MCQ, FJ45RV-KCQ, FJ45RP-KQ, FJ43RP-KQ3, HJ47RV-KCQ, HJ47RP-KQ and last but not least HJ47RP-KQ3 .. for this very-late period of 40-series Aussi-market production represented in this brochure). So again ... An original LX must have a quartz clock .. but having one doesn't help prove a SWB 40-series is a genuine LX.
Apparently only the SWB versions of the 40-series (and even then only the BJ42 and FJ40 models) were ever given LX (luxury status/badging
) if I'm not mistaken.. (But someone from some obscure country where they actually got a BJ40LX or an HJ47LX is sure to prove me wrong here....)
