Intro and first-time buyer questions (2 Viewers)

[OrangeJoe]

Hi all,
I've been lurking here for a while and always wanted a classic LC. Now I'm finally in a position to purchase one and I've got my sights set on one in particular. It's a 1975 FJ 40 with 19,5k miles on it and appears to be in incredible condition. This will be a secondary vehicle that I don't plan to drive more than maybe 1k-2k miles per year. My first question is, are these reasonably reliable? This leads to the second question. Are they expensive to repair for normal problems you would expect? I had a VW for a while and could only find two auto shops that could fix certain things within 2 hours drive. This was in a major city too. I'll never buy a VW again. I'm hoping to avoid a similar problem with this. I'm pretty handy so small repairs aren't an issue. I'm just curious if it would be difficult to find a mechanic to work on it if needed. Finally, I was hoping to get a few opinions on the price. I'm new to placing value on classic vehicles and I know the price can vary wildly. Happy to post the listing if anyone is willing to take a look.
Cheers!

 

[sogafarm]

Post up some pics if you can.

 

[brian]

so that 19500 miles is more likely 119500 or even possibly 219500 miles.
they can be more reliable than far newer stuff(there is less to go wrong). they are incredibly simple to work on,
pictures will tell the tale of what you're looking at. in recent years the market has been flooded with 40s that are being imported to the US from countries below our southern border....they tend to be problematic on several, no, many levels.

 

[aging fleet]

@brian, I was typing the exact same thing.

@OrangeJoe, you've got some solid resources locally there in SLC. I've found my '75 to be pretty reliable though it's taken a lot of work to get it there.

 

[brian]

in fact you are likely to have more problems as a result of not driving it that much....i just saw the 1-2k a year thing.

 

[OrangeJoe]

Post up some pics if you can.

Hopefully these are big enough. Had to screen shot them.

 

[OrangeJoe]

Post up some pics if you can.

Here's a few more. I can get more if theres anything else in particular to look at.

 

[OrangeJoe]

Last three I have for now...

 

[70fj40]

Plenty of knowledgeable Landcruiser folks in Utah if you need some work done. I would find someone local to look it over for you. They are a noisy, rough and a slow ride with no modern luxury and expensive to fix. That is why we love them!

 

[70fj40]

Ok that one looks really good from what we can see. I bet there is a cruiser head local to that truck that would look it over for you to see if there is something sinister hiding amongst that shiny red paint.

 

[sogafarm]

Wow, wasn’t expecting that! You’ll probably be ok in the reliability question. Tons of work done on that one.

 

[OrangeJoe]

so that 19500 miles is more likely 119500 or even possibly 219500 miles.
they can be more reliable than far newer stuff(there is less to go wrong). they are incredibly simple to work on,
pictures will tell the tale of what you're looking at. in recent years the market has been flooded with 40s that are being imported to the US from countries below our southern border....they tend to be problematic on several, no, many levels.

Good to know. And exactly why I'm here. I've seen a few of those but this one stood out to me. Any way to confirm the mileage? I trust the guy but I need to be sure to drop this kind of cash. Still not opposed to higher mileage, I'd just want a MUCH lower price.

in fact you are likely to have more problems as a result of not driving it that much....i just saw the 1-2k a year thing.

I was kind of wondering about that. Not a problem to drive it more, I just don't really "need" a second car. I'd be more than happy to take it places instead of my primary

 

[swixtt]

Hell that is a nice 40 ... wish mine was remotely close to that! The price is always the question and whether it is worth it. good luck with your decision!

now i'm going back to look at those pics again

 

[70fj40]

I would not be worried about the mileage. At this point it doesn’t matter if it is 19K or 190K. It looks like that rig has been completely rebuilt. You just need to know if it is as advertised. It won’t take a cruiser head long to tell you that after an in person look.

 

[OrangeJoe]

I would not be worried about the mileage. At this point it doesn’t matter if it is 19K or 190K. It looks like that rig has been completely rebuilt. You just need to know if it is as advertised. It won’t take a cruiser head long to tell you that after an in person look.

Gotcha. Supposedly it was rebuilt by an FJ specialist. It's located in Arizona, so I would need to fly in and have it looked at before purchasing and driving it back to Utah. Anyone wanna take a stab at the price? I've been shopping for a while and haven't found anything close to as nice for not a whole lot less. I'd be interested to know if it's even in the ballpark of reasonable...

 

[jim land]

This is a 79-80 not a 75

 

[70fj40]

Based on it being as nice as it looks, more than 50K and less than 65K. Of course in todays crazinessI could be 30K short too.

 

[JackA]

It's been listed on CL for awhile now. It's got a big mix of various years. Looks decent, but I don't think it's worth what they're asking.

1975 Toyota Landcruiser FJ for sale - Tempe, AZ - craigslist

Classic Ruggedness, Modern Comfort: 1975 Toyota FJ Land Cruiser! An authentic, amazingly restored 1975 Toyota FJ Land Cruiser with high-value upgrades. This classic, timeless model blends the...

phoenix.craigslist.org

 

[igotta40]

I’m guessing that mileage is on that digital gauge cluster, not the truck. The FJ40 was out of production decades before digital anything was introduced. Also, that truck is closer to final production date, maybe 1981, just from viewing the photos. Who told you it’s a 1975? To your question, yes, they are as reliable as they are rugged. Everything is overbuilt. We also had a VW, a 1973 bus. You have to be a masochist. Never again. That’s a really nice truck if it isn’t hiding any problems. If so, it’s fixable.

 

[OrangeJoe]

It's been listed on CL for awhile now. It's got a big mix of various years. Looks decent, but I don't think it's worth what they're asking.

1975 Toyota Landcruiser FJ for sale - Tempe, AZ - craigslist

Classic Ruggedness, Modern Comfort: 1975 Toyota FJ Land Cruiser! An authentic, amazingly restored 1975 Toyota FJ Land Cruiser with high-value upgrades. This classic, timeless model blends the...

phoenix.craigslist.org

Yep you found it. Probably shouldn’t have given it away with the Arizona hint. I will say I’m in negotiations for a good amount less. Pending inspection of course. Just curious if we’re even in the ballpark. Do you mind tossing out your opinion of what you’d be a buyer at?