Excited New FZJ80 Owner (1 Viewer)

[CVBackroads]

From CA, bought it in NE, CO plates.

What's up there?

Keen eye. The seller just recently moved from Colorado to Nebraska and didn't switch registration. If this were a Lincoln vehicle it would have rust.

 

[CVBackroads]

Same "we broke up in the drive[way]"

Haha, we kept our 'cool' while sweating profusely.

 

[CVBackroads]

I must admit, at first I read that as "we broke up only three days into the drive"!

Looks like a nice clean rig. Bumper and AC should be fairly easily sorted. Hope you have a lot of fun with it!

I can certainly see your reading being an option!

Thanks, I'm excited to work on it. It's going to be a few months until I get into it. My girlfriend and I are restoring a 1987 Toyota Dolphin and part of the deal in buying this Cruiser was that I will not work on it until the camper is done!

 

[CVBackroads]

Throw on a replacement bumper, fix the AC and sell it for $35,000.

Tempting!

 

[CVBackroads]

Welcome! Nice 80!! Body looks good and so does the seats / interior. Win Win!

Get a good baseline on it, drive it for a while and get use to it. Spend some time on here and you'll figure out which direction you want to go.

Thanks! I've looked at quite a few 80s that have just had weird stuff done to them or look beat up, so I'm excited to find this one. It is far from perfect, but I think it has good 'bones'. Thanks for the advice, that is just the route I'm leaning towards. It's tempting to jump into an aftermarket bumper since it needs a bumper, but I may hold off.

 

[CVBackroads]

Welcome! and congrats to what appears to be a great start on good rubbers no less.
Since it has lockers, I recommend no mods yet. Drive it offroad several times to get a bead on the condition of the locker actuators, tranny, and engine performance. Prepare to be amazed at its stock capability.
Determine if there's any factory stuff needing attention - bushings, bearings, brakes, etc.
Get a baseline mpg for on and off road. For dirt roads and somewhat technical off road driving. The values will be different for each scenario.
Then consider baselining as your first mechanical foray into 'Cruiser Life'. You'll learn a lot and be better able to decide what mods you really need/want after.
Happy Trails!

 

[CVBackroads]

Thanks for the nice response! A buddy has a 1997 triple locked Cruiser that we have played around with and I was blown away by what it could do. That was bone stock. They are impressive machines. I'm most excited about working on it myself, so I will be bringing you all questions!

 

[CVBackroads]

Welcome.
I live 1 hour SW of you...
195K is low mileage nowadays ha ha.
May the adventures begin!
There are good trails 1 hour NE of Fresno call Bald Mountain, Strawberry, Mirror, Red, Coyote, Swamp lakes & many other

Nice! I've been up Bald Mountain several times in my friends Cruiser, but I haven't checked out those other destinations. Thanks for sharing. My thoughts exactly on the mileage!

 

[CVBackroads]

It's the right colour! I have the front bumper you need, with tips.
Long way to ship it though.
Welcome to MUD!

Where are you located? I have family around the country so I may be able to work something out!