Build Bridger - the family 62 build

[cliffrdavis]

The drivers side was more difficult.

On the 62 there are two exhaust/CC brackets that are exactly where the TT sliders are supposed to install. After wondering if I was crazy I called Jason and he reassured me I was sane and the brackets need trimming.

I’ll see if I can find the video he sent me - it suggesting leaving the front bracket off - but I decided to go my own route to keep both brackets.

Here are pics to show it. First pic shows a body mount and CC bracket and small space between them. The slider installation needs to sit about 1/2 under the CC bracket.

2nd/3rd pic - rear mount is directly over an exhaust bracket on the inside of frame. On the outside of frame there was a body mount. The two slider rear mounts sit on the sides of a body mount so there is very little play - the rear mount sits exactly in the middle of the exhaust bracket which is on the inside of frame.

 

[cliffrdavis]

I took the brackets off and pics and cut some sections out with a grinding wheel. Took 5 mins. Wire brushed both of them and painted them with frame paint.

Here are the pics of the solution.

Pic 1 - For the front bracket I cut the the red part out of the bracket - compare to pics above. It still supported the CC and had two strong attachments to frame.

Pic 2/3 rear mount - Second pic is what the ubolt around the frame looked like with exhaust bracket off - note location of bolt holes in frame. . 3rd pic is the same view with the altered exhaust bracket installed - note the cutout for the ubolt.

Of note - this small section of the frame is unpainted as it sits where my lift points were and I wanted to paint this section when off the lift. Another job to add on the list.

 

[cruisermatt]

What spring part numbers do you have?
Personally I would recommend you stick with the original Aisan’s vs Warn. A lot stronger.

 

[cliffrdavis]

What spring part numbers do you have?
Personally I would recommend you stick with the original Aisan’s vs Warn. A lot stronger.

CSO17RA - OME Dakar.

I considered the parabolic Terrain Tamer but they were fairly new to US market last year from what I saw.

I didn’t give it much thought at the time. Guess I’ll see how the feel in a few months. What’s unusual to me is the fronts are sitting perfect and rear standing up- it was stock weight before the bumper.

Driven it with weight in the back and it’s sitting much better after a few weeks.

 

[NYNick]

Every time I read this awesome build thread I can't help but remember it's going to a 16 year old when it's done.
Great idea!
He'll never get a speeding ticket or get injured in an accident.

 

[cliffrdavis]

What spring part numbers do you have?
Personally I would recommend you stick with the original Aisan’s vs Warn. A lot stronger.

@cruisermatt are you referring to the suspension springs or the locking hubs? I checked and actually put Aisan heavy duty hubs on. They looked similar to the Warn ones I put on my 40 and I just mixed it up.

 

[cliffrdavis]

After we got it rolling next job was the front bumper. We picked the @TRAIL TAILOR basic version for this build.

Installation on the 62 is a PIA as there are fixed rivets holding the bumper mounts on. Those needed to come off. I did a combination of grinding them flat and then drilled with a large carbide bit to get them to let loose. Repainted any exposed metal with frame paint.

Used some Grade 8 hardware to bolt it up.

 

[cliffrdavis]

We now had a legal vehicle and got it registered. Got chewed out by the local sheriff deputy for driving it to the DMV without a plate.

At this point I felt a needed to make it a little more road worthy. Luckily, they don’t have inspection in FL cause one of the brake lights and headlights were out. All the side markers were out. Wipers and arms looked 15 years old. Interior dome light was out and rear accessory light cover broken

If I got stuck in a Florida thunderstorm I would be screwed.

After some research I decided on complete LED replacement on the exterior and dome lights. Odd Iron made an exterior and dome kit and was our pick. Their kit came with a new flasher and the rear light housings looked salvageable.

60 Series Exterior LED Bulb Kit — ODD IRON OFF ROAD: 70 SERIES LAND CRUISERS

Basic 60 series LED Bulb Kit. Includes bulbs for; Front turn Signal, Front Park lights, Rear Turn Signals, Reverse lights, Brake/ Tail lights, Tag lights, Front and rear side marker lights and Multi-Fit electronic Fasher for LED bulbs. This is a Basic kit, it covers most variants of 60 series. Some

www.oddiron.com

 

[cliffrdavis]

Every time I read this awesome build thread I can't help but remember it's going to a 16 year old when it's done.
Great idea!
He'll never get a speeding ticket or get injured in an accident.

Thanks Nick - I keep trying to convince myself that it will have some monetary value on top of the intrinsic value if and when he goes to college (or his younger brothers could drive at that point). If I’m lucky I’ll get the chance to build another with his younger brothers for the same bonding (although one of my sons favors jeeps!). I’ve had some friends suggesting I do an LS swap which I would LOVE to do - but not sure a 16 yo needs that much power without modern safety equipment and brakes!

 

[cliffrdavis]

Turns out the front side markers were not wired and had rotted seals - got some new OEM replacements from Toyota.

The LEDs exterior from ODD IRON are great. Below is pic comparing. I would say 2-3x brighter. Right side is new lights and left is original. They are so bright the turn signals are a little whiter through the colored lens.

Kit comes it flasher compatible with LEDS I had a little difficulty getting the male connectors into the old flasher socket but eventually got it to work. Check the labels and instructions and make sure they are firmly installed before giving up (I thought new flasher was dead).

 

[cliffrdavis]

Dome lights turned out to be a little more difficult - turns out my current dome light wasn’t burned out - there was a bad contact in the switch. Took some electrical diagnostics as we were getting 12v on the light switches but not at the bulb terminals. Got an OEM replacement light box from EBay and installed the LED. Rear accessory dome light was quick bulb change. This was huge - as I’ve reached 50 years old my eyes aren’t great in the dark and these interior lights are BRIGHT. Like a modern vehicle.

 

[cliffrdavis]

Last upgrade for lights was the headlights. After some research I went with Torfab versions as they were in stock and offered option to wire them different ways (4low/4high beam or 2low/2high beam) and has included resistor with matched wiring plug.

Torfab FJ62 LED Headlight Kit

FJ62 LED Headlight Upgrade Kit The factory headlights on the FJ62 are one of the most common complaints among owners. Dim output, aging housings, and outdated technology can make nighttime driving frustrating and fatiguing. In search of a better solution, Tor tested numerous LED headlight...

shop.torfab.com

Decided to do the light bezels at the same time. Got them at Legion parts - same manufacturer as all of them from Taiwan by Tong Wang.

Toyota Land Cruiser Fj62 Light Case Bezel Headlight - Legion Part Store

Upgrade your Toyota Land Cruiser FJ62 with our compatible with Toyota parts. Enhance its style with this case ring bezel headlight, designed to provide a premium look.

legionpartstore.com

I didn’t include a pic with headlights on as it couldn’t do it justice - the LED lights allow you to actually see 100 ft in front of the cruiser - like a modern car. And they have the typical low beam cutoff around 3 feet from ground to avoid blinding other drivers. If you aren’t trying to keep a vehicle original these should be mandatory. I felt so much safer on the road with them.

Let my 13 yo son get another lap around the property with our lab in the back seat. Windows not working great and no A/C - so short rides. More on that repair later.

 

[cliffrdavis]

Last part of the road safety upgrades was the wipers.

Followed MUD recommendations for rear window with FJ80 wiper arm for modern wipers options and 13” standard J wiper. eBay and local parts store for those.

For the front - two late 80’s left sided 4 runner arms, replacement nuts and caps. CityRacer kit was out of stock so I sourced directly.

 

[cliffrdavis]

Pics of the new wiper arms/blades - the windshield is delaminated and will need replacement. Planning on doing that with eventual paint job.

Apparently I didn’t take pics of the rear wiper after replacement.

 

[huminajumina]

Great looking rig man, love the work!! Definitely going to follow.

I loaded the cargo space with the original wheels/tires and a couple heavy spare parts. Drove it a few more laps and to gas station - unfortunately fuel gauge not working. I thought it was fine because it was at 1/4 tank but didn’t move after filling. Another project later. Regardless it drove much better and was starting to settle.

Good thing about this is, if you find out it's the sending unit, there is an access cover from the cargo area under the carpet... My fuel pump went out; unfortunately for me, there is no access cover for that, and I had to drop the tank.

Now that you're driving, does the steering box feel like it has play, or does it just read the road and it's all over the place on the road at 30+mph?? Might need caster shims. After the lift install, you can check the caster angle; you may need to add shims. I just had to do that to mine after the back was sitting a lot higher than the front and needed to go from 4° to 6° on mine, but gave my buddy the 4° for his 60. Or maybe with all the work youve done its doing a lot better than before!

 

[cliffrdavis]

Great looking rig man, love the work!! Definitely going to follow.


Good thing about this is, if you find out it's the sending unit, there is an access cover from the cargo area under the carpet... My fuel pump went out; unfortunately for me, there is no access cover for that, and I had to drop the tank.

Now that you're driving, does the steering box feel like it has play, or does it just read the road and it's all over the place on the road at 30+mph?? Might need caster shims. After the lift install, you can check the caster angle; you may need to add shims. I just had to do that to mine after the back was sitting a lot higher than the front and needed to go from 4° to 6° on mine, but gave my buddy the 4° for his 60. Or maybe with all the work youve done it’s doing a lot better than before!

Steering does feel a little loose - not dangerous but not tight - I’m going to tighten the adjustment next time I drive it. I did install 4 degree shims with the 2-3 inch lift. It’s not wondering or tracking now - so that’s a good thing.

The castor on their measurement was a 2.2 - 2.6. What’s your thoughts on that?

I have heard some recommend up to 4 degree castor?

 

[huminajumina]

Sounds like you might have the caster pretty good and it might just be some play in the box. With the caster it will feel a little more tight the more positive you go...increased steering effort and more stable..... the more negative you go the lighter, looser feeling and more it will track any rut in the road.
I've seen it on here somewhere that people recommend the caster to be 2° - 4° degrees. (overall measurement, not the amount of shim needed to correct to this)

The FSM says:

Which says 1° + or - 50 minutes or .83° ....So .17° -1.83° is the range. But with bigger tires more positive is going to help stability; that's where it seems the majority of people like to end up somewhere around 2-4° positive.
And yes I think the common fix is using the 4° shims with that amount of lift so you should be good. Mine ended up with a little more rake than I'd like once the front end lightened up, thats why I had to add more caster angle, but probably a rare case.
I was trying to find a steering box adjustment post on here but couldn't find it, I have had mine apart a few times and it seemed to be fine but haven't had to adjust it too much. I think the FSM describes it

 

[NYNick]

Thanks Nick - I keep trying to convince myself that it will have some monetary value on top of the intrinsic value if and when he goes to college (or his younger brothers could drive at that point). If I’m lucky I’ll get the chance to build another with his younger brothers for the same bonding (although one of my sons favors jeeps!). I’ve had some friends suggesting I do an LS swap which I would LOVE to do - but not sure a 16 yo needs that much power without modern safety equipment and brakes!

I purchased our 1988 LC new for $18,500 while my wife was pregnant with our second son. We added a daughter in '91. It was my wife's car as there weren't such things as SUV's back then and we needed something that was 4WD and could carry the family. The choices were limited...Wagoneer (not a Jeep fan), Range Rover (can you say "unreliably expensive"?) and Suburban (too big). She drove the Toyota for 10 years, absolutely loved it (she felt invincible and safe) and put 105K miles on it, despite the fact that it isn't easy to get in/out of in a skirt! We used it as a utility vehicle until the kids could drive and then let them take it to HS. It was always a big hit in the school parking lots and I felt reassured they would win in any unforeseen accidents. Plus, it was/is slow!

It then sat around and was used as THE truck for snow, Depot runs and various heavy duty assignments. In 2011 I tackled the sympathetic restoration on it to bring it back and address the various age related issues. By this time it had about 145K, oil changes every 3-5K miles it's entire life.

It is now my Spring/Summer/Fall DD along with some other toys. We get waves, thumbs up and notes left on the windshield. My wife literally got waved down on the road just last week. I purchased a double wide grave plot just to be buried with it...just kidding.

The kids are grown now with their own children and our grandchildren. By now it's an all original family heirloom and will hopefully be with us for them to enjoy for a long, long time. I'm sure there will be serious discussion about who gets it when I'm gone...LOL.

Your project with your son will be with him forever. Great memories. Congratulations!

Nick

 

[cliffrdavis]

I purchased our 1988 LC new for $18,500 while my wife was pregnant with our second son. We added a daughter in '91. It was my wife's car as there weren't such things as SUV's back then and we needed something that was 4WD and could carry the family. The choices were limited...Wagoneer (not a Jeep fan), Range Rover (can you say "unreliably expensive"?) and Suburban (too big). She drove the Toyota for 10 years, absolutely loved it (she felt invincible and safe) and put 105K miles on it, despite the fact that it isn't easy to get in/out of in a skirt! We used it as a utility vehicle until the kids could drive and then let them take it to HS. It was always a big hit in the school parking lots and I felt reassured they would win in any unforeseen accidents. Plus, it was/is slow!

It then sat around and was used as THE truck for snow, Depot runs and various heavy duty assignments. In 2011 I tackled the sympathetic restoration on it to bring it back and address the various age related issues. By this time it had about 145K, oil changes every 3-5K miles it's entire life.

It is now my Spring/Summer/Fall DD along with some other toys. We get waves, thumbs up and notes left on the windshield. My wife literally got waved down on the road just last week. I purchased a double wide grave plot just to be buried with it...just kidding.

The kids are grown now with their own children and our grandchildren. By now it's an all original family heirloom and will hopefully be with us for them to enjoy for a long, long time. I'm sure there will be serious discussion about who gets it when I'm gone...LOL.

Your project with your son will be with him forever. Great memories. Congratulations!

Nick

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Awesome story. Thanks for sharing! She is a beauty alright. I was talking to my dad tonight and we realized that the 1965 barracuda we resorted in 1992 was actually only 27 years old at the time - and this fj62 is 36 years old! LC sure are tough!

 

[cliffrdavis]

Back to the build! So I’m catching up to where we are currently - like the original post said we started around Dec 2025 and have taken a little break from working to drive it before some much needed engine maintenance.

I decided to tackle a few more issues before the break.

1. Drivers side window intermittently getting stuck down.
2. Slow windows at all the other doors.
3. Fuel gauge/sender
4. A/C diagnostics.

For the drivers window - the day I got it in 2025 the window got stuck down. Grrr- not good in Florida’s with all the Tstorms. In a rush, I didn’t check MUD and just ordered a switch off CityRacer. And to nobodies surprise it didn’t change anything!! So then I did the MUD search and found the issue of the relay in the door. Sure enough - when relay was lightly tapped the window would go up - if it sat for a day it would get stuck down. I tested the motor and hotwired it to confirm. No surprise - relay issue.

Found @Spook50 did PCB refreshes of these with a two week turnaround. He replaces all the relays and capacitors and sends them back to you. Pretty awesome. Of course I could figure it out myself- but it’s great to reward MUD members that specialize in a niche area!

I sent it out a couple weeks ago and it should be here soon. More on that install later.