Fully Built Restored 1973 Land Cruiser – Michigan (Spent its entire life in Southern California) with 122,xxx miles on it.
I jumped at the opportunity to pick up this gem when Mark at Mark’s Offroad was selling it a few months ago. Mark was right, there have literally been thousands of hours put in to this truck and it shows. The original owner kept a log, including mileage, of everything done to the truck from 1973 to 2005 and I have that log! How cool is that?! The second owner, to his credit, made this Land Cruiser what it is today. It’s a real head turner. The third owner, me, is a long time Toyota truck owner who has always done my own maintenance and builds. Unfortunately, family, two Land Cruisers, and an 80 hour/week job have proven to be too much and this hobby has to take a back seat for awhile. Here’s the good news – I am selling it for what I paid for it minus the shipping costs from California, so if you’re in the Midwest or East Coast you have access to a Southern California Cruiser without the hassle of shipping it across the country and believe me, it’s a hassle.
This truck has the original paint and is very clean as you’ll see in the pictures. Here’ a recap of what this truck has (Thank you Mark for your categorical approach):
010 [engine electrical] - dual Optima batteries (yellow/blue) in a MAF 4+ battery tray with a heavy duty isolator [one is for the winch], vacuum advance distributor with Pertronix installed, rebuilt alternator and starter.
020 [valvetrain] rebuilt cylinder head (three angle valve job, fresh head gasket) with upgraded aluminum valve cover and custom PCV vent tubing.
030 [engine] refreshed original F engine with new oil pump and rod bearings, new front and rear main seals, all new motor mounts, new stainless braided oil filter lines.
040 [cooling] heavy duty re-cored 4 row radiator, new water pump with upgraded 6 blade Toyota plastic fan, all new radiator hoses and thermostat. The front heater sports a pair of brand new OE defroster ducts [an NOS find from Mark's Off Road]
050[intake, exhaust and fuel] rebuilt Mark's Off Road carb ported for vacuum advance, with a Mark's Off Road Tri Y header leading into a brand new 2.5” exhaust system (sounds great). The stock fuel tank was boiled out, all the fuel lines were replaced, along with a new Kyosan OE fuel pump.
070 [clutch] ALL NEW! New master and slave cylinder, along with delivery hose (braided SS), new clutch disc and pressure plate, pilot and throwout bearings.
080 [transmission] the stock 3 speed transmission was replaced with a good, low mileage H42 4 speed transmission.
090 [transfer case] the stock case was refreshed with new bearings and seals, a new hi lo shift sleeve, and a new input gear for the 4 speed transmission. NO LEAKS!
100 [rear axle] The axle was replaced with a full floating rear axle from an overseas FJ40 and fitted with a new ring and pinion, Toyota Limited Slip Differential, and all new bearings. The truck also sports a set (5) of 33x12.5x15 BFG MT tires on 15x8 chrome steel rims with approximately 5k miles on them.
110 [front axle] the front axle was completely torn down and rebuilt with OE bearings as a disc brake front end, using FJ60 brake components. While the axle was disassembled, a Lockright mechanical diff locker was added to the front third member, making this a true four wheel drive.
120 [steering] the steering system was completely overhauled, and the stock steering box was upgraded with a Saginaw power steering system. This included a brand new heavy duty steering shaft, a rebuilt steering box, a rebuilt steering pump, and a custom set of high pressure power steering hoses. All the tie rod ends were replaced as well.
130 [suspension] The entire suspension system was replaced, starting with a Mark's Off Road 4” lift kit supplimented with a MAF 4+ shackle reversal, ConFerr U-bolt skidplates and Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks.
140 [brakes] The entire brake system was overhauled, including a new OE master cylinder, rebuilt booster, rebuilt calipers, all new wheel cylinders, new pads and shoes, and new stainless braided brake lines from the frame to the axles.
140 [brakes] The entire brake system was overhauled, including a new OE master cylinder, rebuilt booster, rebuilt calipers, all new wheel cylinders, new pads and shoes, and new stainless braided brake lines from the frame to the axles.
150 [body] The frame has been cleaned and repainted in satin black, and fitted with a custom front bumper, winch guard and winch mounting tray. Underneath, the transmission and transfer case are protected with a ConFerr heavy duty skidplate. [another Mark's Off Road find]
151-The hood sports new hooks and billet hood hinges, as well as new rubber windshield cushions.
152- The windshield has a brand new glass and weatherstrip, as well as a new pair of genuine Toyota sunvisors. The dash sports a brand new OE Toyota dashpad and a very rare genuine Toyota AM radio.
153- The hardtop still sports the original headliner. Both front doors were completely disassembled and all weatherstrips and seals replaced, inside and out, along with new window regulators and vent window weatherstrips. NO RATTLES!!
154-The stock seats were reupholstered, and the replacement fabric shows some signs of wear. Not worn out, but worn. The rear jump seats have been upgraded to a ConFerr forward facing rear seat, which is in excellent condition. (very comfy seats – plenty of cushion)
156- The tub was separated from the frame and a full set of fresh urethane body mounts installed. The vast majority of the underside of the tub was cleaned down to stock paint at that time and sound deadening mats applied. Reinforced rock sliders were added to the rocker panels.
157- The rear hatch was disassembled and all the mechanisms cleaned, lubricated and readjusted. Then brand new OE hatch struts were installed [another rare NOS find from Mark's Off Road]
158- The factory tire carrier was replaced with a heavy duty MAF 4+ unit that adds the ice chest rack, a $1100 upgrade all by itself.
159- Factory side mirrors were upgraded to the earlier style tub mounted type, with both new mirror arms and heads.
160 [electrical] New OE turn signals were installed front and rear. This 40 has also had a hand throttle installed. There is also a custom hard wired interior light and a wired/switched secondary back up light.
200 [accessories] in addition to the dual batteries, the lift, the lockers, the bumper and the tire carrier, the truck sports a Warn 8000 winch with a remote solenoid tucked nicely in the engine bay, a full Metaltech rollcage with CB radio, a Tuffy center console, and a NWMP 22.5 gallon auxiliary tank with skidplate.
Just about every single bolt or fastener has been replaced on this rig. Taking the top off was a breeze with all of the new hardware. This rig comes with a spare distributor, coil, fuel pump, Pertronix internals, snatch strap, D-rings, and a genuine OEM Toyota Land Cruiser trouble light. It also comes with the 32 year history log of everything that was done to it.
All gauges work, oil pressure is perfect, runs very cool, idles smooth, and has plenty of torque to take you up or through anything. I'd prefer to sell this gem to another Mud member if possible, but I’m not in a huge hurry to sell it. It’s going to crush me to see this leaving my driveway. Please PM me if interested.


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