Buying a HZJ78R (troopie) - advice needed

[Aboldi]

Hi all,

The missus and I are buying our first 4WD (which we're planning to kit out and do a trip around South America and America). The mighty troopie looks like our perfect car, as it's big enough in the back to allow us to sleep inside comfortably year-round.

A few questions we'd love some expert advice on (with a budget of $25-35K AUD):

1) How many KM's is too many? If we go for a higher-km 2nd-hand (i.e. 200,000km on the clock), are we likely to run into a lot of issues on the road? We know they go forever, but how much of a difference in maintenance would there be between a 200,000km troopie and a 50,000km troopie?

2) Is it worth stretching for the V8 turbo, or is the V6 enough for it to crawl around with (not massively concerned with speed, etc).

3) Are the newer models (2010+) worth stretching for? Or are they similar enough to the older models that it doesn't matter too much?

4) Is it worth stretching the budget to go to our 'high end' of $35k? Or could we get a decent, reliable troopie for our mid-low range (25-30k)?

Thanks heaps all, any insight you have into the above would be awesomely helpful in helping us make up our minds! Been obsessively checking around, and it's finally time to start pulling the trigger.

Thanks,
Scott and Jess

 

[cody c]

Will this be RHD or LHD?

I think someone said they couldnt drive a RHD vehicle through one of the south american countries in the expo section, but maybe someone else will pipe up.

1. a 50K truck should require almost no maintenance, a 200K truck will require a fair bit of pre trip work done but can still be reliable, the costs will be reflected tot hat mileage at purchase time.

2. Never driven either, but I suspect you will see a significant price difference to the diesel, though its probably worth it.

3. dont know

4. In Canada we don't have a large new/used troopie market, or actually any market here selling them, it's hard to comment on pricing for them here, where are you from and where do you plan on purchasing said troopie? Do you have some links of a few you've been looking at for us to comment on?

 

[PhrogsPhorever]

The 1HZ is a great motor, and as long as they are maintained, they will run for a while. The troopie chassis is great and is a good platform to build an expo/camping rig out of.

50K versus 200K? Depends on how the truck was maintained. For a 200K truck that hasn't been beat and an unknown maintenance record, be prepared for seals, fluids, bearings, hoses, injector servicing, timing belt and tensioners, brakes, etc. My HZJ-75 has almost 200K KM and I have had very few issues. The 1-wire diesel with manual everything is great, and you can add a turbo to the 1HZ to give it a little pep.

Remember, even a 50K truck may need some money put into it if it hasn't been maintained well by the PO

Sent from my interwebz doo-dad

 

[61Mk+]

Hello Aboldi,

It is useful to know how long you want your car for. A troopie is not an inexpensive proposition, so if you want it for, say, four months in South America, you might be better off with, for example, an old Volkswagen van. I want to never buy a car again, so i went overboard for my troopie (see 'Troopie Build' in this same forum), hopefully the last car i'll ever buy unless i trip into a pile of money.
There are a number of reasons i chose a troopie: possibly the most difficult place to get parts and servicing for it is right on my home turf, North America. However Australia, Africa, South America, Central America, and hopefully others, have Toyota Land Cruisers and diesels all over the place; so parts availability should be good, as well as knowledgable mechanics.
In terms of reliability, they are hard to beat, assuming some minimum of maintenance. Long-wheelbase Land Rovers can be excellent, but are not possessed of some of the Land Cruisers' good points. As well, their numbers have been decreased by, among other things, the reliability of Land Cruisers.
I could yap on for ages, but do consider how long you want it for; while it is an excellent car, it may not suit your situation and/or budget. A cheaper alternative might do the job for you, and one that you do not mind ridding yourself of after your trip, leaving you with more funds with which to enhance your travels, may be a good decision. Yes Land Cruisers are, in my opinion, the best there is, but that doesn't mean they are the best choice for your purposes.
You ask valid questions, however you leave a lot of information out if you want proper answers. And remember that an individual will reply with her or his bias, as i have done: what little experience i have with Cruisers and troopies has me convinced they are the choice for me. Look at, if you aren't already doing so, other forums, for example Overland Portal, people who have done this sort of thing. And ask us more questions.

Best wishes 'n' all that, 61Mk+

 

[Hulsty]

IMO a HDJ78 would be a better option. Stronger driveline than the HZJ78 and still very reliable, goes heaps better.

 

[crocodile red]

1. "Too many" is about 400 000 kms 100 000 is almost new car. 250 000 -- used. This is a Land Cruiser

2. V8 turbo is has greater speed than V6. But 1HZ IMHO is much stronger and has low requirements for fuel quality.

3. Newer models are like older but have a differend modern but useless interior panel

 

[Aboldi]

All,

Thanks for the respones - everything you've given so far has been really useful. We are currently based in Australia, so it will be RHD.

We have since decided we'll likely splurge a little and drop the extra money to 'upgrade' to a VZJ78R - one of the turbo diesel vehicles.

To answer a few of the questions, we plan on this being our life-car (keeping it forever-ever). The size of this beast is a big draw, as is the durability and capability that these machines are renowned for. Getting it up-to-shape BEFORE the big trip isn't a big concern, we expect to do this, but we're just worried it will be falling apart on the road during the trip if we get one with too many KMs on the clock.

Basically put, we want a car that won't cause us stress while we're on the road as we plan to be so for several years.

We've got a couple we're currently considering, all with their various ups and downs and it'd be awesome to have a more experienced eye than us look them over if anyone fancies being extra-helpful!

2008, 97,000km - http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Toyota-Landcruiser-2008/AGC-AD-14937281/?Cr=6&sdmvc=1

2010, 101,000km (but has been used previously as a mine-site vehicle, which, from everything I heard, is a bit of a dealbreaker) - http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Toyota-Landcruiser-2010/AGC-AD-13987375/?Cr=5&sdmvc=1

Again, thanks everyone for the helpful answers!

 

[Aboldi]

1. "Too many" is about 400 000 kms 100 000 is almost new car. 250 000 -- used. This is a Land Cruiser

2. V8 turbo is has greater speed than V6. But 1HZ IMHO is much stronger and has low requirements for fuel quality.

3. Newer models are like older but have a differend modern but useless interior panel

Can you elaborate on the interior? Why do you think they're useless?

The new interior is the main reason we're considering the late-2009 + models, so this'd be great to know!

 

[roscoFJ73]

All,

Thanks for the respones - everything you've given so far has been really useful. We are currently based in Australia, so it will be RHD.

We have since decided we'll likely splurge a little and drop the extra money to 'upgrade' to a VZJ78R - one of the turbo diesel vehicles.

To answer a few of the questions, we plan on this being our life-car (keeping it forever-ever). The size of this beast is a big draw, as is the durability and capability that these machines are renowned for. Getting it up-to-shape BEFORE the big trip isn't a big concern, we expect to do this, but we're just worried it will be falling apart on the road during the trip if we get one with too many KMs on the clock.

Basically put, we want a car that won't cause us stress while we're on the road as we plan to be so for several years.

We've got a couple we're currently considering, all with their various ups and downs and it'd be awesome to have a more experienced eye than us look them over if anyone fancies being extra-helpful!

2008, 97,000km - http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Toyota-Landcruiser-2008/AGC-AD-14937281/?Cr=6&sdmvc=1

2010, 101,000km (but has been used previously as a mine-site vehicle, which, from everything I heard, is a bit of a dealbreaker) - http://www.carsales.com.au/dealer/details/Toyota-Landcruiser-2010/AGC-AD-13987375/?Cr=5&sdmvc=1

Again, thanks everyone for the helpful answers!

I think buying the V8 would or could be tragic mistake.Its a good vehicle in oz where it has a plentiful parts back up and people who know how to fix them.Not that they are unreliable,but who can fix them or supply parts in South America? (or are they selling them there now?)
Ive had 3 1HZ engines ,2 of them were purchased with close to 200000 klms and they are/were both utterly reliable.
It would be my only choice for remote or 3rd world conditions.
I would not take ANY diesel with common rail injection on a trip like yours.

As far as interior goes,ARB make some great seats that are especially made for the 75/78/79 series at about $1600 each.

I picked up a well looked after,privately owned HZJ75 troopie for $11K. It goes rather well and has about $8000 worth of upgrades from ARB already installed..
These models are the most easily rebuilt 4wds on the market ,so even if they are a little rough,refurbishing them can bring them up like new.
Anything without rust would be the one I would consider above all.Mechanicals are easily dealt with.

 

[Aboldi]

I think buying the V8 would or could be tragic mistake.Its a good vehicle in oz where it has a plentiful parts back up and people who know how to fix them.Not that they are unreliable,but who can fix them or supply parts in South America? (or are they selling them there now?)
Ive had 3 1HZ engines ,2 of them were purchased with close to 200000 klms and they are/were both utterly reliable.
It would be my only choice for remote or 3rd world conditions.
I would not take ANY diesel with common rail injection on a trip like yours.

As far as interior goes,ARB make some great seats that are especially made for the 75/78/79 series at about $1600 each.

I picked up a well looked after,privately owned HZJ75 troopie for $11K. It goes rather well and has about $8000 worth of upgrades from ARB already installed..
These models are the most easily rebuilt 4wds on the market ,so even if they are a little rough,refurbishing them can bring them up like new.
Anything without rust would be the one I would consider above all.Mechanicals are easily dealt with.

Incredibly useful advice, thanks heaps!

We'll have a look around in South America and check out what their availability is like.

 

[Aboldi]

I think buying the V8 would or could be tragic mistake.Its a good vehicle in oz where it has a plentiful parts back up and people who know how to fix them.Not that they are unreliable,but who can fix them or supply parts in South America? (or are they selling them there now?)
Ive had 3 1HZ engines ,2 of them were purchased with close to 200000 klms and they are/were both utterly reliable.
It would be my only choice for remote or 3rd world conditions.
I would not take ANY diesel with common rail injection on a trip like yours.

As far as interior goes,ARB make some great seats that are especially made for the 75/78/79 series at about $1600 each.

I picked up a well looked after,privately owned HZJ75 troopie for $11K. It goes rather well and has about $8000 worth of upgrades from ARB already installed..
These models are the most easily rebuilt 4wds on the market ,so even if they are a little rough,refurbishing them can bring them up like new.
Anything without rust would be the one I would consider above all.Mechanicals are easily dealt with.

Another question (coming from a position of pure ignorance)...

It doesn't appear that either the V6 or the V8 variants are produced in South America. The Hilux seems to be the main produced SUV/offroader.

Would the parts for the V6 parts be more readily available as those models have been around for years? Or are they more interchangeable with other SUVs/Toyota models?

 

[Locked79]

Another question (coming from a position of pure ignorance)...

It doesn't appear that either the V6 or the V8 variants are produced in South America. The Hilux seems to be the main produced SUV/offroader.

Would the parts for the V6 parts be more readily available as those models have been around for years? Or are they more interchangeable with other SUVs/Toyota models?

Toyota never made a v6 variant for the Australian market. Choice of engines are
1. 1hz straight 6 naturally aspirated diesel. Very reliable. Vehicle code hzj78r or hzj75rv
2. 1hdfte straight 6 turbo diesel. Also very reliable. Vehicle code hdj78r
3. 1vdftv. V8 turbo diesel. Reliable but doesn't like poor quality fuel. Vehicle code vdj78r
4. 1fzfe. Straight 6 na petrol. Also very reliable. Vehicle code fzj78r

 

[Locked79]

Finding parts for newer landcruisers anywhere in America will be very difficult if not impossible.

 

[PhrogsPhorever]

Finding parts for newer landcruisers anywhere in America will be very difficult if not impossible.

Don't know about SA, but I haven't run into too many problems with my 1HZ powered truck in NA, many of the mechanical parts can be had either through the CDans or Benos in the dealership works, or the various vendors on Mud. You can use Toyodiy to research part numbers for dealerships. The harder stuff to get that I have found are interior parts, trim and some electrical stuff. Akella and a few others are great sources to get parts from across the pond

Sent from my interwebz doo-dad

 

[61Mk+]

Hello Aboldi,

I completely agree with RoscoeFJ73. If i understand correctly, the 4.5l turbo diesel V8 is not available in South America; the post 2007 front end is there to fit it in, however the 1HD engine is what they get.
That says a few things, which admittedly aren't necessarily relevant for you. It could be that the newer engine isn't marketable in lower income countries; it could also mean Toyota wants to squeeze more income from the old engine design; i am guessing, but whatever the reason may be, it tells me that the old engine design is a solid one. More practically for you, the 1HD and perhaps the 1HZ have an availability of parts and familiar mechanics that, currently, likely do not exist for the new engine in some parts of the world.
This is not necessarily an issue: one can order anything to be delivered anywhere on the planet, shop manuals are available, etc. But that route can be hilarious: i once spent an entire day at the airport in Nairobi arguing with one apathetic customs bozo after another for imported parts, for a truck i was driving. The truck was registered in England and was used for overlands, in other words the parts were not being 'imported' into Kenya, since it was in constant movement from one country to the next, with a carnet no less. I still ended up paying a stupid amount for customs, and one customs agent made up the fee amount on the spot, admittedly after five or ten seconds of (evidently) profound consideration.
Do take the time to do your homework and plan; no matter how much of a pain in the rear it may be, that is an effort you will never regret once you hit the road.

Plug Away With Patience, 61Mk+

 

[61Mk+]

Hey Aboldi,

Phrogg4ever knows of which he speaks: i say that North America is possibly the most difficult place in which to get Cruiser parts (just because the diesels came into Canada in such small numbers, and Toyota brought no diesels to the US, plus in both countries they were not sales successes, i think because they weren't cheap to buy when new) however, i have been driving a JDM 61 in Canada for nearly 9 years now, and parts availability was never a big issue. Ih8mud is a resource that will help; as well i have found my resources (Pro-Active Automotive in Calgary, Crushers and Akella in Ontario,...), so do use this forum.
And ih8mud has members in all continents, if not all countries.

Catchya, 61Mk+

 

[roscoFJ73]

Another question (coming from a position of pure ignorance)...

It doesn't appear that either the V6 or the V8 variants are produced in South America. The Hilux seems to be the main produced SUV/offroader.

Would the parts for the V6 parts be more readily available as those models have been around for years? Or are they more interchangeable with other SUVs/Toyota models?

The V6 is a petrol only engine AFAIK. It shares the engine with the Prado ,Hilux and FJ Cruiser.
Again ,AFAIK ,the V6 petrol landcruiser 70 series is only available in the ME and maybe some parts of Africa.

If you have the budget , a 1HD T engine from an 80 series is an ideal engine swap for the 75 series.
Not sure about a 78 series as the 78 is newer than the 1HD T engine which is a no no in some countries.
The 1HD T is a turbo-ed version of the 1HZ and does have parts availability in countries like Panama (I think) and it also shares quite a few major/minor parts with the 1HZ
This engine is probably the best combination of simplicity,power and parts availability for the continent you are visiting(or anywhere).
Canadians have a budding industry repairing and supplying parts for them which gets better all the time.They get theirs from Japanese imports.

The downside is they are getting hard to get although some aussie companies will build you one from a 1HZ with all new parts for about $10K AUD

 

[crocodile red]

Can you elaborate on the interior? Why do you think they're useless?

The new interior is the main reason we're considering the late-2009 + models, so this'd be great to know!

It is heavy to upgrade this kind in panel. In old style you can do anything, but this new one is realy bad for making some changes.

IMHO =)

 

[Qldelsie]

Hi all,

The missus and I are buying our first 4WD (which we're planning to kit out and do a trip around South America and America). The mighty troopie looks like our perfect car, as it's big enough in the back to allow us to sleep inside comfortably year-round.

A few questions we'd love some expert advice on (with a budget of $25-35K AUD):

1) How many KM's is too many? If we go for a higher-km 2nd-hand (i.e. 200,000km on the clock), are we likely to run into a lot of issues on the road? We know they go forever, but how much of a difference in maintenance would there be between a 200,000km troopie and a 50,000km troopie?

2) Is it worth stretching for the V8 turbo, or is the V6 enough for it to crawl around with (not massively concerned with speed, etc).

3) Are the newer models (2010+) worth stretching for? Or are they similar enough to the older models that it doesn't matter too much?

4) Is it worth stretching the budget to go to our 'high end' of $35k? Or could we get a decent, reliable troopie for our mid-low range (25-30k)?

Thanks heaps all, any insight you have into the above would be awesomely helpful in helping us make up our minds! Been obsessively checking around, and it's finally time to start pulling the trigger.

Thanks,
Scott and Jess

Hi all,

The missus and I are buying our first 4WD (which we're planning to kit out and do a trip around South America and America). The mighty troopie looks like our perfect car, as it's big enough in the back to allow us to sleep inside comfortably year-round.

A few questions we'd love some expert advice on (with a budget of $25-35K AUD):

1) How many KM's is too many? If we go for a higher-km 2nd-hand (i.e. 200,000km on the clock), are we likely to run into a lot of issues on the road? We know they go forever, but how much of a difference in maintenance would there be between a 200,000km troopie and a 50,000km troopie?

2) Is it worth stretching for the V8 turbo, or is the V6 enough for it to crawl around with (not massively concerned with speed, etc).

3) Are the newer models (2010+) worth stretching for? Or are they similar enough to the older models that it doesn't matter too much?

4) Is it worth stretching the budget to go to our 'high end' of $35k? Or could we get a decent, reliable troopie for our mid-low range (25-30k)?

Thanks heaps all, any insight you have into the above would be awesomely helpful in helping us make up our minds! Been obsessively checking around, and it's finally time to start pulling the trigger.

Thanks,
Scott and Jess

 

[Qldelsie]

I am currently in Ecuador in my V8 Troopie, have traveled from Alaska. The answer is to get the best vehicle you can afford. Check out my blog about my car and my trip at can't enter address so just Google Giles Cooper Alaska and you will find it. Its called imgoingonanadventur
And the spare parts discussion above is wrong - I got a water pump in Panama last week off the shelf at the local toyota dealer.
Email me thru my blog if you want more info
Giles