For Sale CA 1972 FJ40

Year

1972

Vehicle Model

1. 40 Series

Mileage

31

Color

Red

Outside Link

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1972-toyota-land-cruiser-fj40-76/

Gents,
Not a lot of action on this 40 for sale on BaT. Can you give me some perspective as to why? I bid $20k just to start things off but it’s been almost a week and there just isn’t a lot of buzz or interest.

I know someone may be playing it slow and quiet until the last moment.

Can you guys weigh in and inform us of any glaring issues or anything that may help me make an informed bid?

1972 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40

Bid for the chance to own a 1972 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 at auction with Bring a Trailer, the home of the best vintage and classic cars online. Lot #66,831.

bringatrailer.com

Pell

 

[oakweb]

would rather have this one Toyota Land Cruiser 1968 - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle... - https://spokane.craigslist.org/cto/d/troy-toyota-land-cruiser-1968/7451413276.html

 

[FMC80]

Do you see anything wrong with the red one I posted?

 

[oakweb]

paint job looks really poor, and from there you really got to think about the build itself

 

[FMC80]

Copy. I will probably hold off on bids then until I’m in a better position to inspect first hand. I’m still trying to learn about the 40s. Thanks for the input

 

[toddfx]

I was surprised to see this truck on BaT as I swear it was for sale locally for a while on a couple sites such as classics.autotrader.com. I can't say for sure it was the same truck (especially since autotrader seems to be down at the moment), or why it didn't sell, but when I saw this one come up I felt like I immediately recognized it.

Regardless of any of that, personally I am skipping it because it's a soft top. If it's the same truck I recognize from before, it's a factory soft top.

 

[overton]

BaT is flooded with mediocre FJ40's recently. They may just need a little breather. If your trying to "learn about the 40's" you may want to read these articles.

Buyer's Guide

www.old.myfj40.com

THE 1983 FJ40 | Land Cruiser Nation

Find out the year your Land Cruiser FJ40 Engine was built using this table of engine numbers.

www.lcnation.com

TLC FAQ v3.0 LAST MODIFICATION 08/10/03

 

[FMC80]

Thanks fellas. I’ve read a lot including the sticky’s from this forum along with others’ builds.

Appreciate the inputs

 

[Pitter Patter]

Cheers if you pick this up for $20k. I don’t think that’s a bad deal but… be prepared to go through everything in detail upon picking it up and just anticipate an additional $5k in new parts and preventative maintenance. Buying any 50 year old vehicle on an auction site comes with the obvious risks. However, if this is your budget range and you want a land cruiser then I’d say you could do a lot worse. Hope you land this truck!

 

[Indygbd]

I think it all depends what you can afford and what you are looking for. Is this a beautiful mint frame off restored cruiser? No... Is it a pretty solid cruiser for 25,000.00 or less? Yes. Is it a 50,000.00 plus Cruiser? Absolutely not.
So, if you are looking for a clean driver to play with on the weekends this might be the one.

Here is my 1972 restoration project to compare. It’s stalled out right now. I have been working on my 1958 FJ25 restoration. It gives you an idea of what I called restored. It’s not black spray painted frame, underbody, and under hood.
1972 fj40 fst restoration. - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/1972-fj40-fst-restoration.1092702/

 

[MDH33]

It may go higher at the end, seems like there's always a flurry of bids in the last hour.

Why the heck is the steering wheel upside down? That paint job looks sketchy, especially underneath. Can't tell for sure, but doors may be reskinned with metal. Should be canvas matching the top. Non stock carb and distributor and some weird wiring under the hood.

 

[FMC80]

Really great inputs guys. I think I’ll be out bid but I really liked this cruiser because of the overall condition. No, it isn’t perfect but like you all have said, it’s appears to be a solid jumping off point.

I have two 80s so I know the cost of doing business with these platforms. I am prepared to drop several thousand just to baseline. I’m also prepared just to run it.

I doubt I’ll win this at $20k but if I do, I’ll be happy.

 

[CT40]

There seems to be about a 20-25% premium on BAT purchases over what I see elsewhere. Not sure if the buyers there just have more $ to throw around or what. This one went for $29k...for me to pay that price and ship it across country is too much. The dark green '79 Colombian import from yesterday had a reserve even higher than that. Prices are just too high for my comfort level at this point.

 

[EWheeler]

BAT is great for sellers based on the inflated sale prices and great for buyers with a pile of disposable cash who don't want to put in any work looking for a nice truck at or under market value. I get it, some people have more money than time and BAT is one option for pushing the easy button.

 

[cruisermatt]

I bid $20k just to start things off

I will probably hold off on bids then until I’m in a better position to inspect first hand. I’m still trying to learn about the 40s.

 

[ionyota]

BAT is great for sellers based on the inflated sale prices and great for buyers with a pile of disposable cash who don't want to put in any work looking for a nice truck at or under market value. I get it, some people have more money than time and BAT is one option for pushing the easy button.

I agree, except that I rarely see anything on BAT going for under market value.

 

[CT40]

I agree, except that I rarely see anything on BAT going for under market value.

I think their point was that BAT is good for disposable cash buyers who dont want to put in the work looking for something at or below market value...that BAT = easy button so there's a premium to pay for that.

I use it as another data point while looking, and I find the comments can be useful when I get past those who only deal with perfection. I'm not looking for perfect - just hoping for something reasonably priced that I can enjoy driving and learning how to work on cars. Huge projects, massive rust buckets won't work for me.

 

[Haggis]

I got caught up in a BAT "frenzy" auction for an 80 last November. I opted out at $37,000. The thing went for almost $50,000. Two weeks later I found a super nice one in SoCal owned by a cruiser head and paid half. I still visit BAT often, purely for entertainment purposes.

 

[FMC80]

I’m there for tracking the market mostly. I’ll admit, I was a little drunk when bidding the $20k. I also knew I’d be outbid but was prepared to buy if I won.

The bidding isn’t as fun as I thought it’d be, probably because I work hard for my money and don’t want to gamble with it.

I still plan to buy a 40 but it’ll probably be in much worse condition than I’m prepared for just to get my hands dirty and put sweat equity into it.

 

[EWheeler]

I’m there for tracking the market mostly. I’ll admit, I was a little drunk when bidding the $20k. I also knew I’d be outbid but was prepared to buy if I won.

The bidding isn’t as fun as I thought it’d be, probably because I work hard for my money and don’t want to gamble with it.

I still plan to buy a 40 but it’ll probably be in much worse condition than I’m prepared for just to get my hands dirty and put sweat equity into it.

You should be able to get a really nice FJ40 here in SoCal for under $15k, certainly for under $20k. You gotta hunt, you gotta be ready to move immediately and have cash readily available. You need to look at lots of trucks so you know what to look for. Start looking at as many local trucks as you can.