FJ40 Gas pedal height (1 Viewer)

[musthave]

Just getting back to cruiser stuff after some life issues. My son has his 74 FJ40 and has been working on it. Finally able to go for a ride.

Here's the problem. He is having difficulty with the gas pedal height. I can barely reach it with my size 14 boot. He's tried putting his foot partially on the transmission cover but that's just bad and doesn't work well either.

Is there a way to adjust the height?

Anybody else have similar issue and a solution?

 

[fyton2v]

Are you saying the pedal is too high off the floor to easily press? I don’t recall it being adjustable, but I’m not sure about the ‘74. It does seem likely it’s not supposed to be high off the floor. A pic of your son’s 40 would help.

 

[igotta40]

I have a 74. It’s not adjustable. I removed it, heated with a torch and shaped it how I need.

 

[musthave]

Are you saying the pedal is too high off the floor to easily press? I don’t recall it being adjustable, but I’m not sure about the ‘74. It does seem likely it’s not supposed to be high off the floor. A pic of your son’s 40 would help.

Here's what I have.

 

[musthave]

I have a 74. It’s not adjustable. I removed it, heated with a torch and shaped it how I need.

Can you send a picture of what you did?

 

[igotta40]

It was a really long time ago. Looks like I moved it and reshaped it. I had removed the mechanical linkage and put in a cable from an older Corolla. It works way better now.

 

[45Dougal]

Here's what I have.

View attachment 3467659
View attachment 3467658

View attachment 3467660

Looks like the tunnel is sort of in the way on the LHD trucks. The RHD has the throttle right by door of course, so there's a bit more space.

 

[projectTuRD]

Here's what I have.

View attachment 3467659
View attachment 3467658

View attachment 3467660

Pedal pads would be a great idea as well.

 

[musthave]

Pedal pads would be a great idea as well.

You mean just the rubber piece I presume? Yes, need them on all 3.

Perhaps I will try to bend it like @igotta40 . But mine is mechanical, not cable. I'd rather not convert. If I can bend it, it may be fine. I can't think of a better way.

 

[3_puppies]

depending on which way it is bent, you may lose some throw on the pedal and not get full revs from the engine
maybe shorten the rod and move the foot pad higher up on the rod??

 

[79FJ40TLC]

I took a different approach to solving the size 14” boot ( I got the same size foot as you mentioned ) v/s the pedal issues because I was also worried about losing full throttle stroke by modifying the lever.

With everything in the stock location it forced me to always drive ( LHD FJ40 ) with my right foot in a constant state of semi lift mode to control the desired throttle position - needless to say this got old real quick and caused cramps in whatever muscles that are in charge of lifting your foot upwards while the heel acts as a pivot point for various throttle positions.
I figured on killing a couple of birds with one stone and decided to modify the drivers seat brackets to allow for as much sliding back direction movement as possible and it worked out great !
Now my leg is in a much better position to allow my foot to be in a much easier ergonomic way to deal with it. I still have to cock my foot to the side and use the trans hump for rest and a little resistance while driving but it has made driving so much more enjoyable now.

It also helped out with the left leg and clutch pedal ergo position as well not to mention giving room to get your torso back further so you do not feel as cramped in the cabin.

By far my most favorite interior mod that I have done with my 40 series!

 

[musthave]

I took a different approach to solving the size 14” boot ( I got the same size foot as you mentioned ) v/s the pedal issues because I was also worried about losing full throttle stroke by modifying the lever.

With everything in the stock location it forced me to always drive ( LHD FJ40 ) with my right foot in a constant state of semi lift mode to control the desired throttle position - needless to say this got old real quick and caused cramps in whatever muscles that are in charge of lifting your foot upwards while the heel acts as a pivot point for various throttle positions.
I figured on killing a couple of birds with one stone and decided to modify the drivers seat brackets to allow for as much sliding back direction movement as possible and it worked out great !
Now my leg is in a much better position to allow my foot to be in a much easier ergonomic way to deal with it. I still have to cock my foot to the side and use the trans hump for rest and a little resistance while driving but it has made driving so much more enjoyable now.

It also helped out with the left leg and clutch pedal ergo position as well not to mention giving room to get your torso back further so you do not feel as cramped in the cabin.

By far my most favorite interior mod that I have done with my 40 series!

Thank you, Ok, interesting twist. Maybe I need to look at that solution. Any thread you created or used? This may be the solution.

 

[79FJ40TLC]

Thank you, Ok, interesting twist. Maybe I need to look at that solution. Any thread you created or used? This may be the solution.

I’ve never done a build thread or, sad to say, any picture documentation in which I now deeply regret…this I did on my first FJ40 back in the late 80’s and will do on my second 40 once I get it home - it took me many years in Chevy off road ownership before coming back to my first 4WD love of Land Cruisers.

It was a fairly simple modification though - I welded two sections of steel flat stock together, one on top of the other, to give enough meat for bolt holes and threaded holes to be added ( each piece of stock was a 1/2” thick, 2” wide and however long was needed ) and a fixed it between the seats slider rails and floor supports on each side.

I relocated the mounting position of the slider rails as far back as the seat would physically allow and still be practical with regards to my calves touching the foremost seat supports ( but that never really became an issue ).
I counter sunk the the flat stock bolt holes that were used to attach to the seat supports so they would not interfere with the position and movement of the sliding rails and just reused the stock hardware to attach the rails, in their new position, in holes that were tapped in the flat stock ( this is why I made it an 1” thick so that I would have enough depth for the bolt holes and threads - it also gave an additional inch in seat height too ).

It was simple and could be returned back to OEM if ever desired to do so.
I no longer had as much forward seat movement but that never was an issue - not even with shorter leg drivers on occasion.
Hope this helps ya out, Tom

 

[Living in the Past]

Looks like the tunnel is sort of in the way on the LHD trucks. The RHD has the throttle right by door of course, so there's a bit more space.

Because the engine is offset to the left so the front driveshaft have room the transmission cover is offset to the left as well making the right footwell wider.

Like @3_puppies mentioned you can shorten the rod. But shortening the rod will make the pedal more sensitive.

Like @79FJ40TLC it's the steep angle of the ankle that causes the leg cramps on long trips. Moving the seat should help.

I'm thinking of cheating and using hand throttle for certain situations. The way the hand throttle connects to the pedal if adjusted for a lower speed where your ankle is more vertical you can then speed up using the pedal as needed. Just need to pay attention and be ready to push the hand throttle in at times. 72 model the hand throttle was connected to the accelerator. Would be possible rig a solenoid connect to the end of the throttle to pull the cable when the brake pedal switch activated. That way would cancel it just like cruise control.

 

[TWW77]

I’m having the same issue with my ‘72, gas pedal is too high off the floor to drive comfortably. I temporarily put a piece of 2x4 under the floor at to raise my foot up, but long term plan is to bend the gas pedal… unless somebody has a better idea.

 

[TWW77]

Meant to say floormat

 

[musthave]

I’m having the same issue with my ‘72, gas pedal is too high off the floor to drive comfortably. I temporarily put a piece of 2x4 under the floor at to raise my foot up, but long term plan is to bend the gas pedal… unless somebody has a better idea.

I was considering that, but as @Living in the Past stated, and others quoted, you lose some of the distance if you bend the assembly.

I think I am opting to adjust the seat higher and further back.

 

[SteveH]

I made a custom gas pedal after my EFI conversion (AFI) and found that it's nearly impossible to get a comfortable gas pedal that also has enough excursion to fully open the throttle. I don't think FJ40s will ever have a 'relaxed and comfortable' gas pedal, based on the trans tunnel shape and pedal location.

 

[cruiserkev]

Seat extensions definitely helped me with this same issue. I didn't adjust the pedal but pushing the seat as far back as possible helped tremendously on improving the driving experience. I'm 6' with a size 13 shoe and would get leg cramps on long drives from holding the weird pedal angle. Much better with a little more leg room. Wish I had done this decades ago.