Converted Land Cruiser prices (1 Viewer)

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I have been watching a couple of nice Cummins powered FJ60's on ebay the last few days, looks like they will both come close to the $20,000, one of them probably even going beyond it. This is great news for those debating between rebuilding or converting. There have been several threads about conversions with a lot of talk about it being better to rebuild your current drive train due to the cost of the conversion never paying for itself. I mentioned in one of the threads that the thing people are overlooking in this debate is the increased value of the vehicle that a properly done diesel conversion will add. If these two vehicles are any indicators of the value of a converted Land Cruiser this should help tip the scale in favor of a diesel conversion. Take for example a nice mid 80's FJ60 (like the ones on ebay now) if you need an engine rebuild it is going to cost you about $3,000 (that is a minimum). Most would/should rebuild the transmission at the same time, this will add about another $2,000 bringing you to a total of around $5,000. If you were to sell the vehicle after the rebuild you might get $8,000 - $10,000 if the rest of the vehicle is really nice, otherwise you would probably be lucky to just get your money back out of it. Now, if you are able to convert the vehicle yourself you can probably do a diesel conversion for around $10-12,000 but what you end up with is a $20,000 vehicle. Even if you have to pay the $20,000 price tag I have heard for someone to do the conversion you are still in the breakeven range that you would be by simply rebuilding the stock drivetrain. Add to this the fact that you will probably cut your fuel cost by 25-40% (depends upon who you listen to) and have the option to run WVO and even further reduce your fuel cost. I would like to think I am increasing the value of my 94 FZJ80 by converting it to a 6.2 diesel. I realize the 6.2 may not be as desirable as the Cummins to many (I prefer the 6.2) but the 80 series is more desirable than the 60 series to many (again not all). My point is I feel that my 6.2 powered 94 FZJ80 should be worth as much as a Cummins powered 60 series if not more. Again this is all dependent upon the quality of the conversion and the condition or the vehicle. I am tempted to put my 80 on ebay and see what happens!
Just food for thought for those of you considering any diesel conversion.
Rusty
 
Why a new tranny

Forgive my ignorance...why do you suggest a rebuild of the tranny. Is it because of a high mileage on a transmission......or because the increased torque of a diesel...that a stock tranny could not handle??
airlaird
 
I would think just for peace of mind and because of the fact you can kill 2 birds with one stone. When you pull the engine it is easy to go ahead and pull the transmission and take it somewhere to have it rebuilt, that should save you some money on the rebuild. Most people swapping to the Cummins/Isuzu/6.2 engines are using a GM transmission so that is a different story. I think the Toyota transmissions are probably strong enough (especially for the 6.2 and Toyota diesels) but just aren't used for most of the conversions I am referring to.
Rusty
 
Not to rain on the 6.2 conversion but I've had both naturally aspirated and turbo diesels and there is NO COMPARISON, the turbo is so much more desirable I would not even consider a non-turbo diesel or if I did the first thing I'd do is add the turbo. If the engine would be unable to take a turbo that would be a deal breaker for me!

So, based on the prices on Ebay for the diesel '60's what's the value of a BJ60 or a 3B converted FJ55? No, I'm NOT selling, I'm just curious.
 
So, based on the prices on Ebay for the diesel '60's what's the value of a BJ60 or a 3B converted FJ55? No, I'm NOT selling, I'm just curious.

Well I looked for six months or so and found my 85 FJ converted 3B for $6000. I found it on CL in Nevada(I live in Seattle). I have seen similar rigs to mine in the 7K to 9K range. I think I got a really good deal, even with some of the minor issues I am having right now. The PO who did the conversion was also a pilot and was very very good about up keep and had done almost everything to the rig.

As far as the original question posted in the thread. At least one of those two rigs on Ebay is COMPLETELY decked out. I mean it wasn't just take a stock or slightly raised FJ60 and drop in a diesel...That being said I am a huge proponent of diesels and swapping. However, I think unless you do all or most of the work yourself you would never come close to getting your investment back when you go to sell. I think you do the swap because it is what you really want. I really wanted a diesel 60 and will be swapping or buying a diesel(Toyota all the way, 1hz or 1HDT) 80 in the next 2-3 years for a expedition rig.

Just my mindless senseless ramblings!!

Tim
 
I just want to point out there is a marked difference between the asking prices and actual selling prices of trucks and other commodities. I hear and see some eyebrow raising prices being put out there and I'm shocked at what people will pay!


What will serve us all in this discussion would be to collect data from all the sales of diesel 'cruisers (stockers, converted rigs, NA and turboed) and do a comparison of the different valuations regarding the engine type and brand.

Rick
 
Cruiser-guy, a turbo is an option on the 6.2, they are easy to find and not too hard to install. I have seen them complete for around $500 so I am keeping that as an option. If it were a smaller displacement engine there would be no doubt it needs a turbo, but being 6.2 liters I think it might be ok. I think lack of power is one reason the 3B powered land cruisers aren't bringing as much money as the Cummins conversion. Possibly a turbo 3B would bring closer to the Cummins price. Another problem with the Diesel BJ60's is that most of them are from Canada and have alot of rust. It would be interesting to see what a really nice, clean, rust free BJ60 would sell for.
I agree you probably still won't get your money out of it but who buys a car for that reason anyway. Most people buy new cars off of the lot, drive them for 3-4 years and loose half the value of the car in the process. As I said, i may end up with $14-15,000 in my converted Land Cruiser and I am guessing that if I take care of it I might be able to sell it 3-4 years from now without losing much on it at all plus I will have a unique vehicle.
Rusty
 
Cruiser-guy, a turbo is an option on the 6.2, they are easy to find and not too hard to install. I have seen them complete for around $500 so I am keeping that as an option.

I thought the turbo didn't come out until the 6.5. I know the 6.2 has overheating problems (there's a guy right now here at the school with a 6.2 Suburban and two blown heads) and potential main crank journal issues. There are some good blocks and some bad, you need to check engine numbers. Even though the engine is a 6.2 I'd still be turboing it. The difference is almost unbelievable. In the flat lands of Texas it may not be such a big deal but in the mountains it makes a very noticable difference. On the 3B it's a 50% increase in power! Plus you get better combustion but to additional air which in turn helps keep the engine temps down.

I've had the BJ60 since '89 and the '55 only for a year and before that it was my daughters. I have no intention of selling either any time in the foreseeable future. The '45LV is still under restoration and likely will be for the next year or more. All are 3B turbo powered.
 
By "option" I mean it is an option for me to add it. You are correct the turbo did not come out until 93 on the 6.5's but it is a bolt on to the 6.2 and there are plenty of 6.5 turbos in the junk yards. There are also a couple aftermarket turbo set-ups that are available too. They do make a big difference in the performance but from the little I have driven my 6.2 it seems ok power wise, actually very similar to the 1FZ-FE that I am used to (which is ok in the flatlands of Texas but miserably slow in the mountains as I suspect the 6.2 will be as well) I am not at all opposed to the turbo and there is a pretty good chance I might add it at a later date but I like the simplicity of the non-turbo. Plus, there is a problem with main journal cracks in the blocks, most of the 6.2's can go a lot of miles with the cracks, the turbo's add enough extra power for them to become a problem. I pulled my pan and checked my main journals and didn't see any cracking, I am hoping they repaired the problems for the military models like I have.
I wonder if you could put a 3B (with turbo) into an 80 series? That could be an affordable Toyota conversion.
Rusty
 
Plus, there is a problem with main journal cracks in the blocks, most of the 6.2's can go a lot of miles with the cracks, the turbo's add enough extra power for them to become a problem. I pulled my pan and checked my main journals and didn't see any cracking, I am hoping they repaired the problems for the military models like I have.

Isn't there some sort of "girdle" made for the main bearings of the 6.2 to help avoid the cracking or at least keep thinks together if they do crack? I've read that ANY GM manufactured block is suspect even the military ones and it's not until the blocks were manufactured by someone else that the quality improved.

I'd look at the "girdle" as a safety measure much like the "T" case saver on the old single piece transfer case in use before 1980. I run a "T" case saver on both the '55 and the '45LV not because I've busted a case but to ensure I don't.
 
They do make a girdle for the main bearing journals, I have not installed them but probably will in the near future just, as you said, as a precautionary measure. They are also recommending different head bolts to prevent the head gasket problem. I am not too worried about either of these problems, although they do get alot of bad press, from what I have heard on the 6.2 forums it is not as much of a problem as it sounds. Hopefully the bad press on these engines won't hurt the value of my swap too much even though I have no intention of selling.
Rusty
 
They do make a girdle for the main bearing journals, I have not installed them but probably will in the near future just, as you said, as a precautionary measure. They are also recommending different head bolts to prevent the head gasket problem.

The guy here at the school is going to use the new head bolts since he needs to do the heads anyways but he is not going to drop the oil pan for the main bearing journal girdles. He's not intending to keep the truck long term. If I were you I'd do the girdle on the main bearings for sure and I'd pull the heads at the first sign of possible overheating and do the headbolts at that time. I've heard that many of the heads are cracked and if you leave them alone they may not leak for years but if you disturb them.....

It's the same on the 3B.

I have to say, if I was going to use a US diesel engine it would be a Cummins out of a Dodge pickup even if it required an SOA. I think the Cummins is a very good diesel. I think GM have been trying to hard to keep their same block and it's not working. From what I have heard they did not really solve their diesel problems until they outsourced the engines though each successive generation has been better than the previous.
 
I agree, the Cummins is a great engine but I didn't want to do the 4-5" lift or deal with the noise. The Isuzu was my first choice but I can rebuild the 6.2 a couple times for the cost the Isuzu would have cost with a rebuild, plus all the parts are easily available.
Hopefully I will be like the majority of 6.2 owners and not encounter any real problems but the good news is that if I ever find the Isuzu engine I am most of the way to that swap. I could easily take out the 6.2 if it is plagued with problems and put in the Isuzu or Cummins for that matter without a lot more work.
Rusty
 

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