FJ40 Buyers remorse..worried brother...

[taffy]

Hi... I'm new to this group, and not too sure where best to post this question. Any help will be very appreciated...
The following FJ40 was bought by my brother, and he loves FJ40's, has done research, but is overcome by huge buyers remorse... he has the opportunity to walk away from the down payment, but says that that would be wrong.
1968 body, 1978 F2 gears tranfer, power steering, no power brakes, disk front. $14700. Present owner says it pulls to the right a bit when braking. Shipping to CA will be about $500. Cruises at 65.

web address...
Toyota : Land Cruiser: eBay Motors (item 160442183847 end time Jun-05-10 21:59:10 PDT)

Did he get a deal, was he ripped off, or is it a fair buy?
Thanks for any reply, and for helping me watch his back.
Forgive me if this is the wrong place for this post.

 

[mcwinery]

My LC is still in pieces and I have almost 20k in it. Paint alone was over 7k. It all depends on quality of work. If good quality then well worth it.

 

[K2KK]

That's a sweet looking rig. Sure some on khere can complain about the differing years in parts and such but for an off frame resto that is a god price. And again like McWinery says..if good quality craftmanship went into the resto....ship it. It's a head turner...

 

[brian]

i see a bunch of little details that are not right.
for it to be "worth" almost 15K, in my book it needs to be at least 98% oem correct vintage parts.
it looks good, but not 15k good.
in addition it comes with a mechanical issue that needs addressed, more than likely a result of mis-matched parts.

 

[bikersmurf]

I'd buy it and not look back.

I've got about 12k into mine and the body work isn't even done.
The work done would cost more than he's asking.

I don't think he'll regret spending the money after he has driven it.

 

[eleblanc]

Flip the bezel and I'll be alright. If resto was done properly..nothing butched for a quick resell like I often see up here

 

[99UZJay]

Flip bezel, get a roll bar and drive that puppy...

 

[Bear]

You will have folks both for and against it--personal preferences.
At least once in our lives we all do something stupid and get a good case of buyer's remorse.
We think we have researched everything and become know-it-alls.
Then we discover something "better," or cheaper, or fancier-for-the-same-price, or see major flaws in our purchase.

The question for your brother is: will he get over it, or will he bash himself until he finally sells it at a loss.
So...how much money lost in the beginning would be better than money lost in the end?

If he actually has gone out and looked at the truck in-person, and feels the paint and body work was quality, the mechanical stuff was well-done, the owner didn't skimp on buying quality stuff, the truck runs smoothly, and the owner represented everything said honestly, then he should finish his purchase.

If, on the other hand, he never has seen it close up and has a gnawing feeling in his gut, well.........

I, too, protect my little brother, when I can and when he asks my advice.
I try not to voice my opinion when he doesn't want to hear it, despite his foolishness as I see it.

In the end, we all have to grow and gain experience--sometimes it's the school of hard knocks.
Maybe it's his time to gain some experience from this purchase, modify and improve what he bought, sell it down the line for something "better" and gain some wisdom.

Sorry for being so preachy, but I finally reached old-fart-status in my old age !

 

[skidplate]

If it is registered as a '68, I don't see why it wouldn't be, youll be good to go in Kalifornia. It looks like a very nice rig. Brakes are always a little wierd when it comes to adjustment on these. They have 2 wheel cylinders per wheel but after you get the hang of it its not difficult. Check for fluid leaks at the wheel cylinders. I had to rebuild all of mine within a year of buiyng it . The rebuild kits were under $4.00 per cylinder. Havent had a problem since then, that was 14 years ago. (knock on wood).

 

[dkroth]

So, this is your brother's first cruiser, huh?

YouTube - Predator Laugh Ending

 

[Krazyfj]

I did the same thing, I think I paid too much for mine although it was $4000 not $14700, for that much it better be perfect. IMO

 

[Scott68FJ40]

That seems like a lot of money, but by the time I am done with mine, I will have atleast that much into it, and I most likely won't have fresh paint.

 

[Brian in Oregon]

The question is... can he get something better for the money in California?

And a '68 (assuming it is titled as a '68) gets around the pollution laws there.

It may be a bit high for not being totally correct, but the upgrades in my opinion are worthwhile. I've driven stock FJ40's, but I prefer my modified '71. Depends on what he's really looking for.

As far as pulling to the right when braking, I see it has disc brakes, not the original drums up front, so the advice about the dual cylinders and shoe adjustment does not apply.

And, if he still has buyer's remorse after getting it to California, I'll bet dollars to donuts he could get his money back by selling it there.

 

[brian]

If it is registered as a '68, I don't see why it wouldn't be, youll be good to go in Kalifornia. It looks like a very nice rig. Brakes are always a little wierd when it comes to adjustment on these. They have 2 wheel cylinders per wheel but after you get the hang of it its not difficult. Check for fluid leaks at the wheel cylinders. I had to rebuild all of mine within a year of buiyng it . The rebuild kits were under $4.00 per cylinder. Havent had a problem since then, that was 14 years ago. (knock on wood).

it has a non power disk front end.

 

[GarageRat]

i see a bunch of little details that are not right.
for it to be "worth" almost 15K, in my book it needs to be at least 98% oem correct vintage parts.

I'm guessing you haven't A. seen the price a restoration involving OEM correct parts can cost and go for and B. driven a cruiser from the '60s, they are a different beast from your later 40.

For a cruiser using 98% OEM parts correct for say a '68, which will have some oddball stuff compared to later years, I could see a completely perfect resto commanding 25-30 thousand easy. Now, in this economy he might not see that much but that's what I myself would charge no problem at all for a frame off assuming minimal parts need to be acquired (the round fender turn signals for example).

For a '68 I think the seller did some smart, well thought out modifications. The 2F/4 speed combo is a nicer driving combination than an F/3 speed for most people. The disc front end is always a welcomed addition. The power steering, regardless of saginaw, minitruck, FJ60, or retrofit FJ40, is a modification I've yet to hear anyone regret doing. Electronic dizzy is also a great upgrade. I noticed that he kept the barn doors and hatch, adapting to the later hardtop. To me, this shows a methodical approach taking what he felt were the best options from all eras of FJ40 and putting them together. It is not a correct, true restoration. It is however a better driving rig than an original would be for the average person.

Now, as an owner of two early FJ40s with my DD being a '63 with none of the previously mentioned upgrades I can say that they would all be welcomed in my vehicle (except the 2F, I put a spare SBC in as it did not have the original motor). If the body work is done properly then I'd say it was a decent purchase, everything the PO did is the same as many here do with their early FJ40s over time.

HOWEVER, I do see a few issues with this cruiser.
1. He kept a single circuit master cylinder when he did the disc conversion. This is not the right way to do it, it would need to be upgraded to atleast the proper master cylinder without a booster. It's not a difficult modification to make but a necessary one for proper brake balance and one that makes me curious as to what else may not have been done properly.

2. The wiring in the engine bay is not that well done and leads me to wonder about the under dash harness and routing as well. Mind you it is not horrible, just in my opinion not as cleanly done as it could have been.

3. The rear sill area below the doors being painted black strikes me as interesting and not a single picture gives a good angle for it, being it's a common area for rust I'm interested to see how that looks even thought it's stated to be rust free

Examples for high end cruisers: Toyota : Land Cruiser: eBay Motors (item 320542988739 end time Jun-13-10 06:31:27 PDT)

Toyota : Land Cruiser: eBay Motors (item 290439284872 end time Jun-06-10 23:00:00 PDT)

Toyota : Land Cruiser: eBay Motors (item 390205662496 end time Jun-16-10 07:06:40 PDT)

 

[antFJ]

I see these and then wonder how much would mine sell for?? I would not buy this for 15k - black bedliner? yuck! That engine bay does not look like a 15K engine bay. I see things that aren't even cleaned let alone cleaned and freshly painted

EDIT: don't get me wrong its a nice truck - just make sure your brother has the seller put bolts in to hold that hardtop down before they ship it..

 

[cjgoode]

Looks nice, he should get it and enjoy it if he can afford it and wanted to pay that. If he backs out he will probably not find one as nice and have remorse for not going through with it. Many people will ding it for having a 2f engine, but if you owned it and the engine went out most people would tell you to put a 2f or SBC in it, very few would say put a 1f in it. I would say the 2F and 4spd will make it worth it. Sense your brother bid on it knowing that sounds like he does not care if 100% original and stock, so in that case the later motor and 4 speed transmission with a synchronized first gear will be nice. I like the 3 speed but a lot of people would love to swap them out for a 4 speed.

 

[BigFisher]

IMO he paid about 2x what I would have paid for it...

 

[Coastline]

I trailered mine home one year ago today. Paid 5K for a 77 that came with $1700 in brand new, never used parts. Had I waited one year I could got away with half the price. That's what a challenged economy can do for you. As of today I have about 19K spent and I did the body and paint myself, estimated value about 5K from a pro shop. Just wish I could ride it instead of working on it. Even if it did pull to the right.

 

[bakocruiser]

IMO he paid about 2x what I would have paid for it...

Walk away and come look at mine in Bakersfield.