- Year
- 1990
- Vehicle Model
- 60 Series
- Location
- Boulder, Colorado United States
- Mileage
- 340700
- Color
- White
I’m selling my 5 speed swapped 1990 FJ62. I’ve tried to write a very thorough and honest description of this special Cruiser. Please read it entirely and then let me know if you have any questions.
It has some interesting provenance:
Records: I have every maintenance record since new. I have compiled everything into a spreadsheet I can share with serious buyers. Accounting for inflation, I have $65k+ of service records. I also have the original window sticker, original sale documents, and factory inspection sheet (in Japanese).
Engine: under the previous owner, the engine ran out of oil on I-70. Perhaps because of the oil galley plug issue, but I am not sure. They had a Jasper remanufactured 3FE installed at 271k miles. So the engine has 70k miles. The radiator was replaced at the same time. All emissions equipment is present and it passes in Colorado.
Transmission: The transfer case gear oil was leaking into the A440F automatic transmission. Knowing this automatic transmission was a weak link of the FJ62, rather than bandaid with a new seal, I had the whole thing swapped with a new H55F manual by Classic Cruisers at 321k. The transfer case was rebuilt at the time, along with rebuilt new length driveshafts.
It starts, accelerates, drives, and stops great. I can cruise at 75 on the highway or drive steep mountain canyons. The gearing with the H55F and the 33s is perfect. I've taken it on several long highway trips and I use it often as a daily driver.
It has never been in an accident, but from the previous owner: In 1990, a metal sawhorse was blown by wind into the right fender, which was replaced. In 2003, the left front fender was dented by a bollard. The dents were removed and the fender was repainted.
Mods: I’ve tried to keep this very original with only a few changes mostly to improve daily driving:
Interior: 9/10 condition. I reupholstered the front seats with the Cruiser Corps covers and SOR foam in the driver seat. However I still have the original seat covers. There is a rip in the usual side spot on the original driver’s cover that could be repaired if the buyer wanted to restore it to all original. Otherwise the interior is extremely clean and I’ll add pictures for the issues I know about. I also have the original floor mats in great condition.
Exterior: There is no significant rust on the frame or chassis, some spots of surface rust. The body has some rust in usual spots: back right wheel well, back right bottom edge, and some at the bottom of the doors to varying extents, and some rust on the drip gutter by the windshied. It has quite a few paint chips on the front from tons of highway driving, but for me it’s part of the patina and they aren’t leading to any rust. The hatch has some more paint chips. There are some coin sized dents here and there.
Mileage: It has about 340,700 miles. With a much newer engine, transmission, plus a veritable tome service records for every system on the truck, the high mileage is a feature, not a bug. I get lots of comments on this Cruiser and people are incredulous to hear the mileage. It’s in better condition with a better history than the vast majority of old Cruisers out there. Drive this thing. Put miles on it. That’s the point.
Known Issues:
Here’s the major maintenance since 300k. Oil changes are performed every 3000 miles outside of this.
Price: $25k
It has some interesting provenance:
- 1990s seem to be fairly rare since they only sold for a short time before the 1991 FJ80 started.
- I asked Toyota USA, this one in particular left the factory on 12/31/1989. According to IH8MUD lore, this is the last day of FJ62 production. I can only find a few VINs on Toyota’s lookup tool that are higher than this one, making it one of the very last USDM FJ62s produced.
- It was purchased in Georgia in 1990 and then driven to Boulder a few months later, where it has remained ever since.
- The previous owner used it with her husband to go on road trips and a lot of commuting to Golden. They never wheeled it.
- They followed the routine maintenance schedule precisely and kept extremely good records.
- I am the second owner and I bought it in November 2019.
- I live on a dirt road so it gets dirty, but I’ve never wheeled it, I have other Cruisers for that. The 4WD actuator, locking hubs, and transfer case selector all work perfectly.
Records: I have every maintenance record since new. I have compiled everything into a spreadsheet I can share with serious buyers. Accounting for inflation, I have $65k+ of service records. I also have the original window sticker, original sale documents, and factory inspection sheet (in Japanese).
Engine: under the previous owner, the engine ran out of oil on I-70. Perhaps because of the oil galley plug issue, but I am not sure. They had a Jasper remanufactured 3FE installed at 271k miles. So the engine has 70k miles. The radiator was replaced at the same time. All emissions equipment is present and it passes in Colorado.
Transmission: The transfer case gear oil was leaking into the A440F automatic transmission. Knowing this automatic transmission was a weak link of the FJ62, rather than bandaid with a new seal, I had the whole thing swapped with a new H55F manual by Classic Cruisers at 321k. The transfer case was rebuilt at the time, along with rebuilt new length driveshafts.
It starts, accelerates, drives, and stops great. I can cruise at 75 on the highway or drive steep mountain canyons. The gearing with the H55F and the 33s is perfect. I've taken it on several long highway trips and I use it often as a daily driver.
It has never been in an accident, but from the previous owner: In 1990, a metal sawhorse was blown by wind into the right fender, which was replaced. In 2003, the left front fender was dented by a bollard. The dents were removed and the fender was repainted.
Mods: I’ve tried to keep this very original with only a few changes mostly to improve daily driving:
- 33x10.5 KO2s: perfect for the H55F gearing and the proportions look quite nice and modern
- OME light lift with a leaf removed which leaves it very close to the stock height.
- Torfab FJ62 LED kit so you can actually see at night. The dash bright indicator faintly works, but a resistor on the wiring would help that.
- 4Runner wiper arms: stronger springs for using larger wiper blades
- 80 series steering box with 105 series sector shaft: the original steering box was leaking and it’s much easier to find an 80 series box, plus it’s stronger. All steering linkage was replaced at the same time. The steering is tight and feels solid.
- Swapped to R134a refrigerant a few years ago. The A/C blows cold.
- 72% VLT IR blocking tint so it’s less of a moving greenhouse in the sun.
Interior: 9/10 condition. I reupholstered the front seats with the Cruiser Corps covers and SOR foam in the driver seat. However I still have the original seat covers. There is a rip in the usual side spot on the original driver’s cover that could be repaired if the buyer wanted to restore it to all original. Otherwise the interior is extremely clean and I’ll add pictures for the issues I know about. I also have the original floor mats in great condition.
Exterior: There is no significant rust on the frame or chassis, some spots of surface rust. The body has some rust in usual spots: back right wheel well, back right bottom edge, and some at the bottom of the doors to varying extents, and some rust on the drip gutter by the windshied. It has quite a few paint chips on the front from tons of highway driving, but for me it’s part of the patina and they aren’t leading to any rust. The hatch has some more paint chips. There are some coin sized dents here and there.
Mileage: It has about 340,700 miles. With a much newer engine, transmission, plus a veritable tome service records for every system on the truck, the high mileage is a feature, not a bug. I get lots of comments on this Cruiser and people are incredulous to hear the mileage. It’s in better condition with a better history than the vast majority of old Cruisers out there. Drive this thing. Put miles on it. That’s the point.
Known Issues:
- The reverse lights were never wired up after the transmission swap. There is documentation on IH8MUD for how to do this but I never prioritized it.
- The license plate lights don’t work. Besides new bulbs I haven’t tried to fix this.
- The backlight on the radio LCD display doesn’t work (radio is original)
- The cassette player doesn’t work
- There is a seep from either the rear main seal or the rear of the oil pan.
- The rear door unlock is kind of weak. Doesn’t usually work on the first try. Locking always works.
Here’s the major maintenance since 300k. Oil changes are performed every 3000 miles outside of this.
| 332,400 | Torfab LED headlights |
| 331,911 | All new steering linkage |
| 331,847 | New steering box (80 series box w/ 105 sector shaft) |
| 323,233 | New tires 5x 33x10.5 BFG KO2s |
| 322,400 | OME lift kit (w/ leaf removed) from Cruiser Outfitters |
| 321,050 | H55F Transmission Swap and t-case rebuild |
| 319,990 | Rear brakes drums and pads and brake flush |
| 319,429 | New O2 Sensors |
| 318,600 | New rear heater hoses, radiator flush |
| 318,550 | New front door speakers |
| 316,373 | A/C belt, PS belt, alt belt |
| 312,990 | Front axle rebuild and front brakes |
| 310,140 | Starter replacement |
Price: $25k
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