I have some questions about my 1970 FJ55 (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Feb 4, 2019
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Location
Silver City
Hey everybody! I have a few questions about my 1970 FJ55. I got this truck about a week ago, so I am definitely new to the whole thing. This truck has been sitting since 1996 so as you can imagine it is a serious project. I am still unsure on how invested I really want to be in the project. Although it would be great to atleast get it to drive around town once and awhile. Okay so here are the issues I have found so far.

1. The brakes are totally beat, the wheel cylinders don't look redoable. So I have heard of some people converting to front disc brakes using some parts from a toyota mini truck axle. Any thoughts on using parts from a toyota axle? The other options seems to be to just buy pads and wheel cylinders, and just keep it original. Any thoughts on this would be great!

2. The second large issue is there is a oil leak that is dripping onto the flywheel. My thought is that is the rear main seal. Any tips on how to diagnose if it is a rear main seal? If it is a rear main seal how should I go about replacing it? Maybe taking the engine out or transmission, to access it.

I am sure there are more issues I haven't found yet, but let's start with these. There some small electronic issues with it but I don't think those are huge issue. If you guys/gals have any other tips or resources that would be greatly appreciated. BTW i live in Silver City New Mexico. Thanks!
 
Welcome to Mud. Cannot really comment on #1. I kept my drum brakes all around.

Regarding #2, it is easier to drop the transmission & transfer case. The main seals are known to go out on these eventually. IF you do not know the history, I would drop it and replace the seal. It is also a good time to resurface the flywheel and change out the clutch. Finally, if your TC is leaking, it is s good time to rebuild it. Of course, this all takes $ and time you may not have. Just letting you know it is easier to do that all at once. I used a transmission jack from Harbor Freight. My relatively small FJ40 combo was easy to handle compared to my ‘98 Tacoma tranny/tc.

Regarding the electrical stuff, these older Yotas are also known to have issues. As they use a common ground thru the body, make sure there is no corrosion build up at the +ve connection and the ground thru the body. Clean your fuse block and corresponding connections as well.

Good luck!
 
Great thank you, I think I will take the transmission out tomorrow and see exactly whats happening
 
Probably easier to find the parts off an FJ60...plus the rotors have more mass, less heat fade.
So many parts from 40s and 60s can be swapped. 3speeds for 4 speeds, drums to disc. There's a lot of cruiser guys in NM.
First decide if you are keeping it stock originality or trying to make a better driver. Discs, 4 or 5 speeds, 60 series tcases
are the simplest mods with instant results. Power steering , motor swaps are a bit more involved. Depends where you are going with it.
My 55 had 60 series axles and t-case. a TBI 350 and 700r with a doubler. 35 swampers, air lockers, bumpers, sliders, winch, drawers,
compressor, and on and on
 
I have a person in my town that has a junk yard with tons of Toyota mini truck parts. He has front axles for sale. So the easiest thing for me is to go with a Toyota mini truck axle.
 
Not a numbered issue but.....since it has been sitting, do your best to clean/filter/flush/empty or replace the gas tank. You will have never ending battles with junk and rust in the system if you dont start fresh. Good luck with the PIG.
 
I did the mini truck swap and I can stop my 35’s on my 40, So I’d recommend the mini set up. Of course I used the mini knuckles, ifs(?) calipers and vented rotors(fj60?). The big thing to take off the mini axle is the knuckles, birfields and hubs. The rotors and calipers on the donor are likely trash anyways.
If you can find fj60 axles- they might be easier, but mini stuff works well.
 
You have gotten some great advice so far but I wanted to let you know that a lot of the drum brake stuff is still available new and if you are willing to put in the effort a lot of it is rebuildable. If you want to upgrade, loads of 60 and 70 series parts will bolt right up and bring that rig into the later part of the last century.
 

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