Build: 40th Anniversary Restoration

[Charles4x4]

Finally, it was time for tires and wheels. Unfortunately, my Dobinson‘s 3 inch lift yielded more like 4 inches of lift. I ended up putting 30mm coil spacers from Slee on the front because the rear set much higher and I really want this truck to be level.

When I spec out the suspension with Dobinson’s, they assured me it would sit level and be perfect for 35s. They were wrong! So in reality, this truck, at least for now, has a 4” lift.

My 96 80 series had a Slee 4 inch lift on it and I initially put 35” KO2s on it. They looked super small, so I upgraded to 37 inch STT pros.

Learning from my past mistake, and now with a 4 inch lift instead of the 3 inch lift I wanted, I decided to go straight to a smaller 37 inch KM3 that measures right at 36.5 inches in diameter this time around.

Because nobody makes a great 37 inch tire for 16 inch wheels, I had to upgrade the wheels as well. Trying to stick with the OEM theme, I went with TRD pro 17 inch wheels in polished silver/gray. In order to fit everything, I installed a set of 1.5 inch spider tracks wheel spacers. I have run them for years on my 100 series with no issues.

I am of course keeping the 40th anniversary wheels. These are an amazing shape, so I’ll probably swap them over to the Green 40th anniversary and maybe sell the green Land cruiser set of 40th anniversary wheels that aren’t quite as pristine.

Hear pictures of it during wheel and tire install, right afterward, and in its natural habitat getting gassed up at Costco.

 

[Charles4x4]

And here’s the final result as of yesterday:

 

[Charles4x4]

More:

 

[Charles4x4]

Before this truck went to the paint shop, I had recharge the AC system and had it working great. Unfortunately, I think the compressor went out on it while driving to the tire place yesterday, so add that to the list. Luckily the Katzkin Degreez cooled seats work really well, so I turned mine on high and rolled down the windows and was fairly comfortable even with it being 95° outside.

So other than swapping in a new AC compressor and fixing the passenger seat forward and backward issue, this 40th anniversary, 3x Locked, Antique Sage Pearl Land Cruiser Land Cruiser restoration is now complete.

The kids named it Koala. So, welcome to the family Koala!

 

[G-Cat]

Beautiful

 

[Charles4x4]

New AC Compressor installed and r-134a recharged! Got a few more small things, but it’s really close to being100% done.

 

[Charles4x4]

The reflective coating on the reflector part of my OEM headlights was flaking off (yellowing), so I spent a couple weeks trying to find a replacement set. The more I searched, the more I felt I was just going to spend hundreds of $ on a set that will also just flake off over time.

So, I gave in and bought Depo’s instead. I still like the OEM look best, but it that’s no longer a smart option, the Depo’s seem to be the next best thing you can replace them with. Done!

Before:

During:

After: