FJ40 on a freeway?

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2f, Sm465, 4.88 gears and 35's. She will do 60 all day long humming like a coffee grinder. I've installed a very loud stereo to overcome drone. I've had her up to 70 and while she does 70, she doesn't like 70. If I'm not pissing anyone off while doing it I prefer 55. CHP doesn't bother me anymore. I had a decked 1F with a fairly aggressive cam with stock 4.11s, a 4 speed and 33's in my 69 and that thing hauled ass, I would cruise around at 85.
 
yes, I take the 40 on the freeway - why not :confused:

it takes a little while to catch up to an 80 on 37s when I am running 33s and the engine is screaming, and the speed limit is 65 :doh:
 
chuckost said:
Re:ear plugs... Been driving my 40 with the window down since I bought it in 78. Just received a hearing aid for my left ear only! Dr. said damage most likely caused by continuous wind!!!! Sucks.
Click to expand...

I 'liked' your post, not 'cause of your ear damage, but, 'cause of your warning about '4TEar' - thanks for the warning!!
 
I never really checked the calc's - don't have a tach , either but I've ran @75mph for a couple hours straight . Stock 2F with Trollhole carb and distributor , 33x10.50 Toyo MT's and stock 4.11's . Yeah , it's loud and really doesn't seem to mind it , but at over 80mph it really starts to complain . Can't go too far at that speed , fuel tank empties pretty quick . I've figured out by gps tracker it will run 13mpg at 68 , 10mpg at 70 - aerodynamics just kills it but engine has plenty of power yet for being nearly 38yrs old .

Feels like an upgrade after driving a seriously lifted Samurai the same speeds with the engine tach'ing north of 5,000 revs and 33x12.50 Swampers howling like mad . Talk about short , that thing was only 84" WB stretched out a bit on springs , but handled like a tall Porsche due to no weight , 3200lbs fully loaded . Drove it for almost 12yrs and put over 300,000 miles on it . It lives in Indiana now , after the new owner rebuilt it ....

Sarge
 
Around here most highways are 50-55mph. With 3.70s & 33s the 350s turning 2k @ 50 mph... Happy as can be.:D
 
These are just not made to be safe at these speeds, no matter how safe you think you feel over 60 mph any sort of emergency and you will figure out how safe you were. You are driving a short wheel base high center of gravity non aerodynamic block. And most going this fast can do so with bigger tires causing the wort thing possible in an emergency situation, a higher center of gravity.
 
Has to be hell on a 2f motor winding it past 3k. 4 main bearings-no counterweights-and probably nothing else in it contusive to life at those rpms-like other big old gas or diesel motors of it's design era. At least that Samurai motor is a little revving ohc 4. With an older Chevy v8 it wouldn't be so bad wrapping it. Those are ok to run continuous 4200-4600 rpm under load in a boat.
 
1964_toyota_land_cruiser_fj40-jpg.437754


I keep hearing that these trucks were not "designed" to go fast. factory advertisements disagree ;)

Also, the toyota six can easily rev past 3K and even 4K if it is balanced well. Nobody bothers to balance them tho. Jim's comment about the F series motors turning gas into noise is based on the stock cam profile. It's dead after about 2800 rpm. Replace it with a cam that can handle higher RPM's and you have a whole new ball game.
 
I. know it CAN be done-about as well as it can carry 7 men and their gear too lol. Doubt going 85 was the design goal-more like max capability flat-out. There's not much that they won't do better than driving well at high speed-except maybe pas gas pumps.
 
My turbocharged 2F hits 4 grand every time I drive it. I keep waiting for a piston to shoot through the side of the block like everyone has told me it would, but it keeps working.. :D

I was actually with Mark (Marks off road) when he hit 85 in his FJ45. It was fairly stable (loud) but stable :)
 
Honestly, I can't understand how anyone could actually enjoy driving a 40 at 85mph... no matter how well it's tuned. There are plenty of safe 85+mph vehicles out there... an FJ40 is not one of them.

Your 40 may be able to hit 85 and you may be able to maintain 85 indefinitely and you may be the best and safest driver in the world... but what happens when someone else screws up and you have to panic stop or steer around them... at 85mph?

Everything's a situation... going 85 puts you (and all the drivers around you) in a potential situation that didn't have to happen.

Chris (@cjgoode ) mentioned the high center of gravity and short wheel base and I never read about anyone lowering the center of gravity or stretching the wheel base enough to make a difference, from a safety perspective.

So, IMHO, driving that fast is a danger to everyone around you -- maybe we need a thread on where people are going to be driving 85, so we can stay away.
 
I love how these threads always turn into a Polarized argument. It also happens in the 60 section. There are multiple people that maintain that the 60 is not safe over 55 mph even with a longer WB and wider stance. I'm sure the 80 section has comments as well.

Depending on the condition of a variety of pieces on your cruiser it may or may not be safe at any speed. I've been in cruisers that were totally unsafe at 45. Others that were just rocks at 70.

85 is not a "legal" speed in many places. Darting in and out of traffic at those speeds is dangerous in any car. It all comes down to being a responsible driver and obeying the posted speed limits. Part of being responsible is knowing the limitations of you and your vehicle. Everyone has opinions on what's safe. I've been criticized for towing a trailer with my Crew cab, long bed, F350 because it is a SRW and that has a greater chance of losing traction around a corner. :meh:
 
I think this all stems from the common misconception that 40's are "trucks," when in reality, they are closer to street-legal tractors. ;)
 
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