Just Inherited a Land Cruiser - Repairs and Body Work Needed (1 Viewer)

[charlieblues]

Let's just say I am a noob times a million. I've just inherited a Land Cruiser that was sadly very neglected in a driveway outside for years, but still running okay despite all odds. I have dreams of making this a daily driver as I am without a car now. I've received a quote for the repairs, and with body work it's getting well into the double digits... which is scary.

What are your thoughts on this undercarriage though? I keep reading how if there is rust just let it go, but since this car cost me $0 I have some money to put into it. Just not sure if I should. I am attaching photos from the report I got today and they didn't mention the rust to me (this was the mechanic not the body shop) so I am not sure if that means anything?
Thoughts?

Thanks so much in advance! This community seems awesome so far and I've enjoyed reading in the forums.

EDIT:
Just want to say thank you everyone for the vote of confidence and also note here that I apparently have no effing clue what rust looks like , but glad to hear that this old gal is rust free.

 

[NorCalFJ100]

Doesn't look terrible. Just the typical oil leaks. How is the rest of the truck. This forum requires much more pictures! What are the stats? Mileage, locked, mechanical history? Everyone is going to be dying to know these details! Lol.

And welcome to the addiction. Godspeed!

 

[charlieblues]

@NorCalFJ100 You saying that it doesn't look terrible brought a tear to my eye. haha... so maybe I am too far gone to consider not just going all in.

I am not a car person (and maybe that already disqualifies me from having a car like this) so I will have to investigate the answer to those questions:
Mileage - 150k (almost 100k less than my 99 civic)
Locked - Embarrassed to say I don't know. I will have to look.
Mechanical history - It's only ever seen backyard and family mechanics, it's gotten very little love which is why I am so impressed with how it still feels so nice to drive. It's had 2 owners, 1 my dad's good friend who gave it to my dad almost 20 years ago, and my family that kind of let it go to s***. It was driven on and off for about 5+ years by us kids and it was a tank. I used to fill it to the brim with school mates in high school. It's been randomly borrowed and driven by family and friends since. It's been on city streets most of its life. It's been painted a couple of times, very badly, and has had a lot of body issues due to my brother and I causing damage to it in high school.

My dream for it is to have it as a daily driver, I have a very short commute, and as a roadtrip car to take to West Texas.

 

[NorCalFJ100]

It's a Toyota. They run on shoestrings and will get you home! With some love and money, like all good things, she will take care of you!

Seriously though, you may get lucky and just need to do some basic baseline maintenance, but it sure does pay to do your own work. Not only gratifying, it will save you tons of money. So unless you're ready to drop coin, start reading the FAQ section and try to figure out how to fix things on your own.

These trucks are surprisingly very easy to work on. This forum is best place ever. You will be well supported if you are trying figure things out!!!!

 

[NorCalFJ100]

80-series FAQ for General Info, Modification and Repairs

The Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for the 80/LX450 series tech section continues to be a work in progress. The goal is to have links in the below to other threads and tech articles. By having these linked, instead of pasting the text, the threads will remain live. The live threads can...

forum.ih8mud.com

There are also tons of videos from @OTRAMM who is awesome and TexasKnowHow (don't actually know his mud name) all on YouTube!!! These are fantastic resources!

Oh and get to know @NLXTACY as he will become your new BFF and cash depository.

 

[Pascoscout]

I don't see any rust save the exhaust pipe which frankly looks normal. Rubber bushings look like they are on a 20+ year old truck. Should replace as you need to but if funds are short you can do only the ones causing problems. If it runs and drives ok then they will last a bit longer. Oil leaks look pretty standard.

Read through the FAQ. Baseline (ie replace) all of your fluids. Drive it for a bit and see if any issues show up and fix as required. Get yourself a factory service manual and a set of mechanics tools if you don't have one. Find a local cruiser club and enjoy owning one of the best SUV's on the road today.

 

[1911garand]

More pics - that 80 looks mint so far!

 

[zapatius]

We call that "rust free" where I'm from.

 

[Grandlooser]

You have no idea how good that looks underneath.

 

[BILT4ME]

Get ready for the adventure!

What year is your truck? Post the MM/YY listed on your VIN tag on the drivers door. Also advise if it states K292 or K294 on that VIN tag. I'm pretty sure it's K292.

We HIGHLY encourage you to learn how to wrench on your own.

Since you are not "flush with cars" we will assume you're like many of us here that are trying to get an old truck going to be a DD (Daily Driver).

First: These are NOT cheap. Parts are expensive. There is a REASON it has lasted as long as it has, even with the serious neglect. We are typically NOT about throwing local aftermarket parts (FLAPS) at them, as Mr. T designed things this way for a reason.

Yes, there are SOME things that we all "agree" on to get from other sources.

Start driving the truck.
Make a list of what you want to do and NEED to do to the truck.
Put on your Big Girl Panties.
We WILL harass you. We'll kick you and push you down, then help you back up and dust you off and get you on your way. Don't get butt-hurt about it.

Ask us questions.
LISTEN to what we tell you. There are some on here that are TRULY experts. You should shut up and listen to figure out who those people are. God gave you twice as many ears as he did a mouth, so you're supposed to listen twice as much as you talk.
There are a few "purists" here, but they encourage you to build and DRIVE it.

Whenever I get an old vehicle or one that is "new to me" I follow a specific list.

That list is:
Make it run
Make it stop
Make it safe
Make it reliable
Make it pretty.

Always in that order.

Since you are looking for reliability as a DD:

Do the MECHANICAL things first, unless the rust or other makes something unsafe. Rocker panels are low on that list.

* Make sure the brakes work very well. Replace brake hoses, rotors, calipers, pads.
* Make sure your engine is reliable. It may leak a little, but that's rust protection. If you can get 5000 miles on an oil change and only be down one quart of oil at the 5000 miles mark, you're golden.
* Make sure your cooling system is up to the task. If the radiator is yellowed, replace it. Replace ANY hoses that have dry rot marks on them, especially the PHH and around the heater valve. Do the rear heater bypass at this time. Keep the heater, but bypass the hard steel lines with Gates green stripe hoses and tuck them up, away from the catalytic converters.
* Make sure your axles and wheel bearings are good. Do one axle at a time, prepare ahead of time with all parts necessary. Do rebuilds in "groups" so you only expend your labor once.
* RESEARCH your projects. Everything you are planning on doing here has been done before by SOMEONE. Search it out, look up videos, ask on here on the hard stuff. Rusty stuff is hard, but there are techniques that can make it easier, but you will have to own specialty tools.
* PB Blaster is you friend. Buy a LOT of it, by the case. Seriously.
Find the proper FSM (Factory Service Manual) for your year truck.

Oh...... and: WELCOME!

 

[clx16]

Well You said it runs and drives well and you don't have any rust issues. I think you are good to go. Enjoy!

 

[charlieblues]

Thank you for the moral support @NorCalFJ100

Get ready for the adventure!

What year is your truck? Post the MM/YY listed on your VIN tag on the drivers door. Also advise if it states K292 or K294 on that VIN tag. I'm pretty sure it's K292.

>It's a 1992

We HIGHLY encourage you to learn how to wrench on your own.

>Ordered a manual!

Since you are not "flush with cars" we will assume you're like many of us here that are trying to get an old truck going to be a DD (Daily Driver).

First: These are NOT cheap. Parts are expensive. There is a REASON it has lasted as long as it has, even with the serious neglect. We are typically NOT about throwing local aftermarket parts (FLAPS) at them, as Mr. T designed things this way for a reason.

Yes, there are SOME things that we all "agree" on to get from other sources.

Start driving the truck.
Make a list of what you want to do and NEED to do to the truck.
Put on your Big Girl Panties.
We WILL harass you. We'll kick you and push you down, then help you back up and dust you off and get you on your way. Don't get butt-hurt about it.

Ask us questions.
LISTEN to what we tell you. There are some on here that are TRULY experts. You should shut up and listen to figure out who those people are. God gave you twice as many ears as he did a mouth, so you're supposed to listen twice as much as you talk.
There are a few "purists" here, but they encourage you to build and DRIVE it.

Whenever I get an old vehicle or one that is "new to me" I follow a specific list.

That list is:
Make it run
Make it stop
Make it safe
Make it reliable
Make it pretty.

Always in that order.

Since you are looking for reliability as a DD:

Do the MECHANICAL things first, unless the rust or other makes something unsafe. Rocker panels are low on that list.

* Make sure the brakes work very well. Replace brake hoses, rotors, calipers, pads.
* Make sure your engine is reliable. It may leak a little, but that's rust protection. If you can get 5000 miles on an oil change and only be down one quart of oil at the 5000 miles mark, you're golden.
* Make sure your cooling system is up to the task. If the radiator is yellowed, replace it. Replace ANY hoses that have dry rot marks on them, especially the PHH and around the heater valve. Do the rear heater bypass at this time. Keep the heater, but bypass the hard steel lines with Gates green stripe hoses and tuck them up, away from the catalytic converters.
* Make sure your axles and wheel bearings are good. Do one axle at a time, prepare ahead of time with all parts necessary. Do rebuilds in "groups" so you only expend your labor once.
* RESEARCH your projects. Everything you are planning on doing here has been done before by SOMEONE. Search it out, look up videos, ask on here on the hard stuff. Rusty stuff is hard, but there are techniques that can make it easier, but you will have to own specialty tools.
* PB Blaster is you friend. Buy a LOT of it, by the case. Seriously.
Find the proper FSM (Factory Service Manual) for your year truck.

Oh...... and: WELCOME!

> Thanks so much for the advice! Looking forward to updating y'all and learning a thing or two along the way.

 

[charlieblues]

More pics - that 80 looks mint so far!

You can see the body needs some work...

 

[Tachycardic]

It's not bad from what you are showing us. For $50, you should replace the way bar bushings: 80 Series Swaybar Bushing Kit

The shocks and springs should be replaced, but you can certainly drive it as is if you don't have the budget for it at this time.

The prop shafts look dry. Get yourself a decent grease gun, like a Lincoln 1134, and a tube of Valvoline Palladium grease. Find the zerks and pump the grease until it starts oozing out of the U-joints (also known as spiders or universal joints). Then find the zerks for the drive shaft slip yokes (also known as slip joints) and pump grease until you see the shaft starting to separate. That should be enough as over greasing it could lock the slip yokes and cause damage.

Here's a video for a visual. He's working on a 100-series, but the concepts are similar.

 

[cruiserdan]

It's a 3FE so it will have issues getting out of its own way and passing gas stations. Free is a fair price.

 

[NorCalFJ100]

Mirror is an easy fix! You're at a cross road with your flares, take the rest of them off or fix the one you're missing.

With a little sweat and tears you should be able to clean that up!

But as mentioned, baseline this rig and make it safe to drive!

Enjoy!!!!!

 

[BILT4ME]

It's a 3FE so it will have issues getting out of its own way and passing gas stations. Free is a fair price.

Dan, would you concur that the front DS is installed backwards?

 

[charlieblues]

Dan, would you concur that the front DS is installed backwards?

"Front drive shaft was installed backwards"

 

[cruiserdan]

Dan, would you concur that the front DS is installed backwards?

Yes.

"RUN Forest, RUN!

 

[BILT4ME]

"Front drive shaft was installed backwards"

As in.....

It should be unbolted, swapped end for end, and bolted back in.

Because you may hear the DS scrape on the sway bar if you drive over a curb at the mall.