help me identify this??? (1 Viewer)

[M THOMPSON]

This is my first post - so be kind!

I am looking at a Toyota Land Cruiser. I have been told it is a 1986. It has the 2LT diesel motor with a 5 speed, coil suspension front and rear, left hand drive, and has TURBO on the front grill.

The VIN is JT3BJ70V9G0004931. I have reason to believe the VIN has been swapped? But don't know for sure? I have been told the left hand drive has been swapped from right hand drive? And that is was originally imported from Germany?

Are there any 'for sure' identifiers from what I have explained?

I have an opportunity to buy this rig CHEAP ~2500 or less. No visible rust, odometer says 166000 km. Anyways, I am new to Land Crusiers and any insight is highly appreciated - THANKS!

 

[Rigpig]

I'll miss a few things here i'm sure, but someone will catch em'. Being from Germany, it might very well be left hand drive, and not necessarily swapped unless you can tell from the firewall or other slight modifications. Secondly, the vin# is stamped as a 3B diesel(3.4L) and not the 2.4Lturbo like you say. Probably a swap from the not so famous 2.4L that's notorious for overheating/cracking heads, hence the swap. Its probably not original in any way shape or form, get it for a good deal and enjoy it!
Cheers!
edit: having re-read, looks like the vin was just swapped, like you said...

 

[M THOMPSON]

So what model is it?

 

[roscoFJ73]

It has a BJ70 vin which should definately have a 3B engine. An authentic BJ70 will have the front indicator pods attached to the fenders with leaf springs,an LJ70 will have the indicator lights built into the fenders with coil springs all round.
LJ70 are classed as a light duty landcruiser and have smaller gearboxes and diffs.

The reasons why it has been swapped are varied and many.
The 1st one that pops into my head is that it may have been stolen in a rebirthing scheme where they get the vin from a wreck and fix it to a stolen car to avoid detection.

If it was RHD it most likely came from Japan. Germany has always been LHD AFAIK

Its buyer beware on these. Be prepared to lose it.

A pic will tell us what model it is

 

[M THOMPSON]

Is there anywhere else on the vehicle where the VIN is stamped. I think the older Land Cruisers had the frame stamped? Anywhere where it might be?

 

[roscoFJ73]

Is there anywhere else on the vehicle where the VIN is stamped. I think the older Land Cruisers had the frame stamped? Anywhere where it might be?

Yes ,on the front RH chassis rail. You should be able to see it by looking in the RH wheel arch.

 

[M THOMPSON]

I will look there. Does this LJ70 have a frame or is it a unibody? I don't remember a frame, but it was sorta dark underneath!

 

[lj73]

Go to ToyoDIY and put the VIN in the appropriate field. And you can see what it was when it left the factory.

HTH

 

[roscoFJ73]

I will look there. Does this LJ70 have a frame or is it a unibody? I don't remember a frame, but it was sorta dark underneath!

Yes ,they both have the same frame from the firewall back. The LJ70 are about about 100mm shorter in the nose.
But as I said before,if it has coil springs its not a BJ70

Go to ToyoDIY and put the VIN in the appropriate field. And you can see what it was when it left the factory.

HTH

Not much help if it has an incorrect vin.

 

[coldtaco]

Like mentioned before some pictures would/might help to identify if it truly has been converted/tampered with to something else. Is it 4 door or 2 door? If the drive train has been swapped out to a 3B/H55F than this would be a good rig, you get coil suspension with a better motor. Try and find out the history better.

 

[M THOMPSON]

I am planning on looking at it again today or tomorrow and I will try to post some pictures.

A few more questions for you guys...

If it is a LJ70 with the 2 LT diesel - What kind of fuel consumption could I expect? It seems to be a little motor moving a lot of weight (4000 lbs).

Are parts accessible if I need them?

How can I tell the gearing in the axles? I would expect they are quite low - maybe 4.10's?


Thanks again, everyone!

 

[roscoFJ73]

The 2LT doesnt have a great reputation because of the cyl head.
I think you could expect around 9-10/100
Parts availabilty should be ok

There should be an aluminium plate on the firewall that has the gearbox and axle codes
If it does you can check them here TLC FAQ - 9.1 Axle Codes
I think they are 4.11 with an 8 inch diff

 

[M THOMPSON]

I am still hoping for some pictures.

Some more questions.

Are all the LJ70's 24V? And if not, how can I tell if it is 12V or 24V? How would one work with auxiliary lighting, winches, stereos, etc.

Being new to Land Cruisers and diesels, are they simple to work on? My experience has been completely rebuilding old Jeep CJ's - gasoline engines of course! I am learning about diesels as I go and don't want to rely on paid mechanics to do the work.



Thanks guys - learning a lot up here in cold Canada!

 

[coldtaco]

As far as I know LJ's are all 12V. You could check a light bulb to see if it says 12V or 24V. I think 24V winches are more desirable since they do the same amount of work for half the amps of a 12V. Old school diesels are easy to work on since there really are no electrics and spark plugs and all that goes with spark plugs. Therefore easier to water proof also.

 

[Radd Cruisers]

I am looking at a Toyota Land Cruiser. I have been told it is a 1986. It has the 2LT diesel motor with a 5 speed, coil suspension front and rear, left hand drive, and has TURBO on the front grill.

The VIN is JT3BJ70V9G0004931. I have reason to believe the VIN has been swapped? But don't know for sure? I have been told the left hand drive has been swapped from right hand drive? And that is was originally imported from Germany?

Are there any 'for sure' identifiers from what I have explained?

I have an opportunity to buy this rig CHEAP ~2500 or less. No visible rust, odometer says 166000 km. Anyways, I am new to Land Crusiers and any insight is highly appreciated - THANKS!

Sounds like a re-tagged LJ7*.

if it is: Run away...

A BJ7* on the other hand is a great machine.

For the price, even if it is an LJ7*, the prices is right.

The JT3 indicates, afaik, that it is North American VIN. We did not get coil sprung light duty Cruisers in Canada.

~John

 

[roscoFJ73]

The JT3 indicates, afaik, that it is North American VIN. We did not get coil sprung light duty Cruisers in Canada.

~John

My 1995 75 series VIN starts with JT73************* but my 73 series is just plain old FJ73

Got this off a 4runner site.

VIN decoder for all vehicles sold in North America 1981 onwards

The seventeen numbers found on all vehicles manufactured or imported into the US and Canada since 1981 can be decoded like this:

1st character- Identifies the country in which the vehicle was manufactured.
For example: U.S.A. (1 or 4), Canada (2), Mexico (3), Japan (J), Korea (K), Great Britian (S), Germany (W), Italy (Z)

2nd character- Identifies the manufacturer. For example; Audi (A), BMW (B), Buick (4), Cadillac (6), Chevrolet (1), Chrysler (C), Dodge (B),
Ford (F), GM Canada (7), General Motors (G), Honda (H), Jaquar (A), Lincoln (L), Mercedes Benz (D), Mercury (M), Nissan (N), Oldsmobile (3), Pontiac (2 or 5), Plymouth (P), Saturn (8), Toyota (T), VW (V), Volvo (V).

3rd character- Identifies vehicle type or manufacturing division.

4th to 8th characters- Identifies vehicle features such as body style, engine type, model, series, etc.

9th character- Identifies VIN accuracy (check digit).

10th character- Identifies the model year. For example: 1988(J), 1989(K), 1990(L), 1991(M), 1992(N), 1993(P), 1994(R), 1995(S), 1996(T),
1997(V), 1998(W), 1999(X), 2000(Y)------2001(1), 2002(2), 2003(3)

11th character- Identifies the assembly plant for the vehicle.

12th to 17th characters- Identifies the sequence of the vehicle for production as it rolled off the manufacturer's assembly line.
The VIN is usually found on the dashboard on the driver's side. It is also found on the driver's side door post near the striker plate. The VIN may also be found on major components of some high-theft cars.

__________________

 

[coldtaco]

If it's a legal import to Canada with a 3B I would think this would be a good rig, although I would be easy on the rest of the drive train, like not go too big on tires and such? Probably still be OK with 33" tires. Be more comfortable than a BJ-70.

 

[pnightmare]

if it's an lj70 (i think it is: coils, 2l-t), gears are 4.88 for sure.

probably the vin was swapped in europe for homologation problems (big tires for example).
you can check the metal plate in the engine bay, near the brake master cylinder.

it's 12V, the engine is SLOWWWWW (ok for 31", i run 34" but it's REALLY slow).

you can easily swap a 1kz-t, but i don't know the availability in us...
maybe it's easyer to find a 13bt or 14bt

 

[M THOMPSON]

So I took a closer look at it and found the right VIN JT1V0LJ70********

It looks pretty good. A little dusty, but no rust I can see. Here are a few pictures. Let me know what you think.....

 

[roscoFJ73]

Let me know what you think.....

Its hard to say congratulations when we've seen so many blow up on this site.