Down in Mexico (1 Viewer)

[joshmckenna]

Hi mudders.
First time posting so bare with.

I live in Mexico City and have seen a 1987 60 series for sale that I`m interested in, but wanted to share some info here with the pros for opinions, warning signs and help sourcing parts (if I need) down here in Mexico.

The seller has a pretty neat collection of classic 4x4´s mostly Fj40s, 80s and 60s and knows his stuff, but a stubborn guy who doesn’t want to let it go very easy. Does not want to add more money to it otherwise he will not sell it. He has done mechanical work (head gaskets, valves, seals etc) with genuine parts from Columbia (?!). The motor is a 4.2 diesel. From what I can see it’s a 1HZ but with a turbo. Paperwork says it´s 4.0 but the owner says 4.2, so I had him confirm the turbo in which he sent a video and sure enough, there`s a turbo there. What motor do you think this thing is running and how reliable is a swap like this? Is a turbo`d 1hz a bad idea, and if not does it have a decent amount of power and reliability?

Looking at the rest of the truck it´s running on 33s, paintwork was done four years back and has sat in his barn since, but interior needs work. Dash, door cards, seats and windscreen all need some love. Happy to take on a project car that`s good mechanically but is it going to be impossible to get replacement parts here in Mexico, or shipped down here? Where is a good resource to find parts like the aforementioned?

He is asking $12k and is the only 60 series i`ve seen for sale since moving here a year ago. I`ll be going to see it next week but wanted to get some advice before I go.

Open to hear your thoughts, thanks much in advance. Josh

 

[DrRock]

Nice truck! My family used to live in Mexico City up until 2004. Amazing, crazy place! Regarding the truck, biggest issue is rust but if it has lived it's life in MX then that will most likely be a non issue. That said I'd still do a full inspection of the frame and body along the rain gutters, and back by the rear quarter panels for starters. If things look good, then you're in good shape. It looks like they did a fairly decent job on the respray too but as with anything, this can hide issues . The diesel is a huge plus. Does it run as it sits now? If so, you are along way there. As far as parts go, I can't comment on supply where you are but since there was a plant in Venezuela for a while things might not be as bad as you think. Many Mud vendors will ship- but my suggestion would be to ship them to a US address and ferry the parts down, if that's an option. I used to do this for my family when they were living down there. Last I came through MX City airport I had all sorts of stuff in my checked bags. I got pulled over by customs but as with anywhere, smiling and being nice got me right through.

Best of luck, hope this works out for you, there are some amazing places to explore around Mexico City and this would be the perfect vehicle to do it in.

Cheers, James

 

[cps432]

I'm a big fan of that color! As long as there's no rust under it I would be pretty happy with it, but it's hard to say what's going on with the metal just from pictures. Often a paint job covers bad body work, but not always. Most of these trucks have rust on them these days unless you've spent upwards of ten grand to have the body patched and welded properly.

As for the engine, it seems pretty sweet! That would be a swapped engine. It's a good engine too. As long as it's mechanically sound I'd be happy with it and have even considered swapping my 2F for the 1HZ. I don't have any personal experience with the 1HZ, however, I have done a good bit of research when looking at engine swaps and that one is up there in the top of the list.

If the truck has been in Mexico it's whole life it's probably not as rusty as a Canadian truck, but I have seen some real horrors on some of the imported vehicles from South America, so be wary. Be patient and do your due diligence. Parts are not impossible to find. Sometimes they are more difficult to find than would be a current model land cruiser, but you'll find what you need eventually. Lots of those trucks live in Southern and Central America.

12k seems high, but I think people are high for paying those prices, regardless. These trucks sold for around $15,000 when they were new so keep that in mind. Personally, that thing would have to be in really great condition/new for me to pay that much up front. I've probably got close to 12k in my truck after years of ownership and many upgrades, mods, and repairs. I paid 4500 cash for it 6 years ago. I do all my own work so that definitely is a factor in keeping the vehicle. If you are your own mechanic then I would be more apt to say go for it, but if you're going to be paying someone else for maintenance you better have pockets deeper than 12k...

 

[DrRock]

I'm a big fan of that color! As long as there's no rust under it I would be pretty happy with it, but it's hard to say what's going on with the metal just from pictures. Often a paint job covers bad body work, but not always. Most of these trucks have rust on them these days unless you've spent upwards of ten grand to have the body patched and welded properly.

As for the engine, it seems pretty sweet! That would be a swapped engine. It's a good engine too. As long as it's mechanically sound I'd be happy with it and have even considered swapping my 2F for the 1HZ. I don't have any personal experience with the 1HZ, however, I have done a good bit of research when looking at engine swaps and that one is up there in the top of the list.

If the truck has been in Mexico it's whole life it's probably not as rusty as a Canadian truck, but I have seen some real horrors on some of the imported vehicles from South America, so be wary. Be patient and do your due diligence. Parts are not impossible to find. Sometimes they are more difficult to find than would be a current model land cruiser, but you'll find what you need eventually. Lots of those trucks live in Southern and Central America.

12k seems high, but I think people are high for paying those prices, regardless. These trucks sold for around $15,000 when they were new so keep that in mind. Personally, that thing would have to be in really great condition/new for me to pay that much up front. I've probably got close to 12k in my truck after years of ownership and many upgrades, mods, and repairs. I paid 4500 cash for it 6 years ago. I do all my own work so that definitely is a factor in keeping the vehicle. If you are your own mechanic then I would be more apt to say go for it, but if you're going to be paying someone else for maintenance you better have pockets deeper than 12k...

You make some good points regarding the pricing but as we all know, these trucks are on the upswing. You also have to factor in local pricing and availability. Many of these trucks in MX are beat to death so finding one like this that has been upgraded by someone who is a fan goes along way. If it were me I'd be willing to pay this price as I don't find it too unreasonable, give the upgrades etc.

On a separate topic, if you purchase this I cannot overemphasize getting a good anti theft system in place. Kill switch, club, wheel locks are just part of the arsenal. Check with some locals as to what's the best solution for the current times.

Cheers, James

 

[ceylonfj40nut]

labor might be cheap in MX. Getting it done by outsourcing may not be bad if it is someone good and trustworthy. With crazy prices today, the asking price is a little high but not crazy either. Getting a good idea on what was really done to get it where it’s at is a good idea. Speaking with mechanic would be good if seller outsourced it. I would do a compression check on the engine.

 

[g-man]

Looks like overspray got on everything. Tires, windows, front hood latch, bumpers, maybe marker lights. That's going to be fun to fix (sarcasm). Other than that, if it runs good it looks like a deal. I don't know anything about turbo'ing a 1hz. You may want to ask in the diesel section.

 

[cps432]

You make some good points regarding the pricing but as we all know, these trucks are on the upswing. You also have to factor in local pricing and availability. Many of these trucks in MX are beat to death so finding one like this that has been upgraded by someone who is a fan goes along way. If it were me I'd be willing to pay this price as I don't find it too unreasonable, give the upgrades etc.

On a separate topic, if you purchase this I cannot overemphasize getting a good anti theft system in place. Kill switch, club, wheel locks are just part of the arsenal. Check with some locals as to what's the best solution for the current times.

Cheers, James

Certainly, it's worth noting that USA prices and MX prices will differ. I'm sure mechanic work will cost differently as well and you'll probably find more people down there willing and able to work on old vehicles. In the states, more and more mechanics are loosing the art of rebuilding a carburetor. I heard a story of a Toyota dealership looking at someone funny when they handed then bulk fuel hose to use when installing a new gas tank. It took the mechanic a moment to figure out what to do with the bulk line.

I am aware that these trucks are on the upswing. I picked mine up JUST before the craze took over. Instagram and other social media have helped to put these trucks on a pedestal and their legendary status has been hoisted to "godlike" status. I believe, after owning one for 6 years, that this is a fad. A lot of the rave that's going on is because of trust fund hipsters or older nostalgic retirees who have money now and are willing to spend crazy amounts on an old vehicle. I've seen trucks that would have been priced 3-4k in 2014 sell for 15k in 2020. That's a massive increase and I have a feeling that once the honeymoon phase has worn off with a lot of these buyers they will be dumping them for a massive loss once they realize that they have an other 10k of work to do on top of the 15k they already paid for the truck. If you get the truck for 4k and then put in the labor yourself to fix the issues you get a great value. But if you're paying 30k or more in the end it better be a labor of love rather than an investment. It's not like this is a 100% NOS 1964 1/2 Mustang convertible. Maybe, I am wrong...

 

[DrRock]

Looks like overspray got on everything. Tires, windows, front hood latch, bumpers, maybe marker lights. That's going to be fun to fix (sarcasm). Other than that, if it runs good it looks like a deal. I don't know anything about turbo'ing a 1hz. You may want to ask in the diesel section.

That looks like good old MX City dust from my perspective . Everything down there gets this nice layer of grime from all of the pollution and dusty roads etc.

 

[g-man]

hmmm??, maybe pollen on the windows and bumpers, but that left rear tire has a definite paint line, like the cover didn't fit the tire. Also the front hood latch is spray bombed.

 

[cps432]

hmmm??, maybe pollen on the windows and bumpers, but that left rear tire has a definite paint line, like the cover didn't fit the tire. Also the front hood latch is spray bombed.

The rear lift gate strut is also sprayed.

 

[cps432]

Looking at the rear wheel well in the third picture I see what looks to be a rust hole that was painted over. I can't tell for sure, and it seems like the rest of the rear quarter panel was taken down to bare metal before they painted it. Maybe they fixed some of the rust??? I'm also not seeing any primer on the bare metal or any of the masking paper/tape. The inside of the hood looks like it was sprayed green and has rust peeking through. It seems like it's probably a good truck for using and abusing, but I'd seriously think twice paying that much money for a truck right now. Not to get doomy and gloomy, but the world economy is on the fritz due to factors beyond any one person's control and if you don't need a land cruiser right now then it might not be the best time to get into the hobby. Though a Land Cruiser is a pretty good choice for SHTF scenarios and you may not be able to get one in the future at all.

 

[FJ Silver]

There are just so few landcruisers in Mexico... I had an 80 series when living in Guadalajara for a while and ordered parts from like SOR.com etc. hard to get parts.
The people that do have them are super fanatics and don't wanna let them go or only sell them for crazy money.
It will just cost you more to maintain etc.

 

[joshmckenna]

Thanks for the input so far. There’s some decent points being made in regards to cost. I figured these go for crazy money in the states and 12k is quite steep for Mexican prices but like i said there is none down here.

Noted on the rust spots, I’ve added a few more photos that show the rear wheel well repaired (or just made pretty) and yes there some overspray to the hood latch but the truck is covered in barn dust which is what’s on the tyres too.

I’ve seen a video of the interior and the seats have tears, cracks in the dash and windscreen. So this would need money from the get go.

 

[MarkBC]

From what I hear you need to do the turbo right otherwise you'll wreck a 1HZ. Andrew St. Pierre White bought a 105 with 1HZ and aftermarket turbo and has lots to say about it.

 

[cps432]

Not gonna lie. That is a sweet lookin' truck. I understand why you want it. I won't say I don't want it too, but not for that price. If it was original paint and the interior was good and I knew the axles, suspension, and engine were solid It would be a different story, but we just don't know all the details. Being that the seller has other cruisers is a good sign. He's obviously got some love into the thing. I never knew 60s were so rare in Mexico so I suppose that HAS to be factored in. Not sure what it would take to import a car from USA or South America... maybe it's worth it, maybe not? Could be that this is a killer rig with an excellent backstory and a long road ahead of itself in your ownership. It really comes down to what you can realistically afford and how much of a nut for land cruisers you are yourself. Do you have any wrenching skills? Can you rebuild the steering knuckles or trouble shoot electrical gremlins yourself or would you be relying on someone else to do those things for you? Because the total cost of ownership goes way up if you can't do those tasks yourself. You're gonna have to do those things on a truck like this. If you can do the work yourself, understand what your getting yourself into, and you know you can afford it (cuz the after costs get large) then I would say go for it if you really like the truck. It seems like it's got enough good going for it. If you could talk him down a grand or two then you could easily fix up the interior. So long as everything else is solid, you might just score a sweet truck that's rare in Mexico.

 

[OSS]

Very very very rare.
For the most part, FJ60s don’t exist in Mexico except when driven by visiting gringos.

 

[joshmckenna]

Thanks all for your input. I'm going to see the 60 on Friday. If you have some specifics to this model that I should look out for then let me know. Not much experience with these old Cruisers but excited to see what it's like. Going to try and knock money off as he's open to offers.

He's selling the grey 80 too...

 

[WSOPgold2012]

Thanks all for your input. I'm going to see the 60 on Friday. If you have some specifics to this model that I should look out for then let me know. Not much experience with these old Cruisers but excited to see what it's like. Going to try and knock money off as he's open to offers.

He's selling the grey 80 too...

View attachment 2972978

price on the 80?

 

[joshmckenna]

price on the 80?

I think he said 450,000mx

 

[cps432]

Thanks all for your input. I'm going to see the 60 on Friday. If you have some specifics to this model that I should look out for then let me know. Not much experience with these old Cruisers but excited to see what it's like. Going to try and knock money off as he's open to offers.

He's selling the grey 80 too...

View attachment 2972978

Since there's so much work done to this truck already I would be focused mainly on the rust issues. Check all the suspension mounting points for obvious damage. Look to see if anything looks obviously bent or excessively rusty. Look at the back of the rocker panels under the truck. Look at the back of the rear quarter panels and make sure there's no rust hiding inside or under the truck. Check the roof and especially the rain gutters. The front pillars between the doors and the windshield get rusty and leak and can cause big headaches. This guy obviously cares for these trucks, so you've got that going for you. Just don't let your heart see for your eyes. If it looks like it's hiding a lot of bondo or rust, I would be wary unless he drops the price a lot. I learned, working in a pawn shop, that one of the best and most important tools in a negotiation is the willingness to walk away.