Landrover and Landcruiser (1 Viewer)

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curtislow

Third fj40
Joined
Sep 2, 2010
Threads
99
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377
Location
Western Massachusetts
I know I'll be ripped fot this , but I just watched a video about a Landrover rebuild and it looked alot better than a landcruiser rebuild . I wouldn't trade my 40 for anything on earth but the aluminum body seems to be the way to go.
I used an Aqualu 3/4 tub and I love it so I'm just curious of opinions.
I know this has been beaten to death before but I was bored and was on you tube so I sometimes get lost in videos.
The Brits certainly seemed to know how to build an aircraft, so it must have been a mechanical thing that made us better. Us meaning fj40 of course.
 
own an older rover and your opinion could change dramatically. There are variants of both that fit the elitist / expensive versus egalitarian / utilitarian principles. I tend to think that toyota hit a better balance up until the fj100. Then both brands lost their minds.
 
I've owned and worked on both. Owned (and worked on) a 1965 FJ45 and a 1979 FJ45 and worked on lots of 70 series LC's, owned both old Series LR trucks (88" and 109") and a Disco II.

--What shocked me about the FJ45 was the cost of every little thing, I could rebuild multiple Series trucks for one FJ45.
--Parts availability is really good for the Land Rover Series trucks, I can get parts from the US, the UK or Australia, (as I live in Papua New Guinea, I get parts from all of those places), and they are comparatively cheap. The ignition switch is over priced, but that's because it is a Lucas part that was also used in '60's British sports cars. Lots of parts are hard to get for LC's. Even newer LC's, if you are unfortunate enough to have to work on "general export" market vehicle, like I do. Giant pain in the butt to get parts for those. Toyota doesn't seem interested in supporting them, they just want you to buy a new one.
--LR Series trucks are super easy to work on, once you get used to them.
--LR Disco II: is very capable, but not cheap to maintain or keep running. It's better if you do away with all the fancy traction control junk. I'm considering an LS swap so that I can simplify the engine bay, too. Oh, I also want to do away with the ABS.
 
There is more than just aluminum vs. steel. Parts, etc.. becomes a supply chain vs. vehicle population, on and on. I do believe the @curtislow is correct on the aluminum. If you look at this forum, there is so many "resurrections from rust" , which would never happen if original material was aluminum. We all know the "value added" by using steel but the longevity is attained with aluminum. There are companies created just to combat this rust issue. The purists , which I am, always argues with the FJ40 with a steel frame and aluminum body. I will say, if my purism is compromised, I certainly will go with Aquala aluminum and never worry about rust.
 
I have a couple friends with old Rovers - they are just as painless to work on as an FJ40. I think the reputation they earned as being unreliable was earned because NEW land rovers would start leaking oil before they even left the factory, and were plagued with electrical issues, as many British cars seem to be. Off the showroom floor, the FJ40 was (as far as I can tell) far more reliable. Then again, I was born 3 years after they stopped bringing the FJ40 to the US so I have no practical experience there. I also feel like the FJ40 is one of the most over-built little trucks out there. The axles Toyota put under them are just absurdly large/heavy duty for the niche they were designed to fill.

I think nowadays when you're comparing two 40+ year old vehicles, all bets are really off. Both are going to require tinkering, repair, and maintenance, and will nickel and dime you as long as you let them. As others have mentioned - it's now a matter of parts availability and having options to actually repair something when it breaks. Globally, both companies sold a lot of these trucks but both were relatively low volume here in the US. I'm grateful for the internet and what that has done for parts availability and hunting.

Like any vehicle, from any manufacturer - they will both run for as long as you continue to fix them. I've never had to go shopping for old rover parts so I don't know how prices compare. The OE Toyota stuff is expensive but the quality is there. Most of the time if you got 40 years out of an original part, you'll get another 40 out of the OEM replacement if it's available. On my small block 350, I have the exact opposite problem - they are SO ubiquitous that the aftermarket has been almost entirely outsourced to China because the volume is there. We've been so flooded with Chinese engine parts that it's almost impossible to find the OE Chevrolet/GM parts in the "noise." 75% of the parts I buy that are engine related I wind up replacing in a year or two.
 
I test drove a '74 LR Series III years ago that was for sale, and then hopped back into my FJ40. No comparison. The LR would eventually top out at 45 mph, if you could find all the gears along the way. Leaked oil everywhere, after seal replacement. The seats are boat cushions atop a slab of steel. Very smooth ride on the LR due to narrow leaf springs with many leaves.

I positively re-fell-in-love with my FJ40 after driving the LR. I was surprised at how marginal it was in so many areas. Aluminum tub is cool, but there is WAY more to a truck than that. And what good is an aluminum tub, when so many Land Rovers have rusted out sheet metal 'frames' that need to be replaced?
 
As I was growing up, the reputation Landrovers had was miniature drive train, at least compared to Landcruisers.


Wasn't just the Land Rover, Jeep and Scout were behind the Land Cruiser as well. It was just the six cylinder engine verses the four cylinder engine. Those seem to be build with a war time mentality, last six months is all that was expected. I had three friends who bought FJ40s after going hunting trips in my 68 FJ40. Other than the conversion to a floor shift transmission it was bone stock at the time. It rode rough but no matter what I did never broke down. Was in the nineties a friend of mine with a 73 CJ5 asking to drive it down a steep high. I did what I had always done. As I was releasing the brakes I let the clutch out a little to use the engine for a controlled decent. It snapped a U shaped bolts on the front and back driveshafts. This how I had always done it on my 68 with never a issue. Besides the oil leaks years ago the British were know for electrical problems in their vehicles. Was lucky to get my 68 FJ40 in 1974. The original ownee had already messed up the wiring. Once I got it straightened up been find ever since. After all these years would think the PO wiring hacks are just as bad as a Land Rover factory wiring and put them equal today.

if my purism is compromised, I certainly will go with Aquala aluminum and never worry about rust.


Find this a interesting statement. I've found just keeping the underside clean rust is not a issue in AZ. Exception would be in a area ADOT salts the highways and not rinsing the underside off. Our two newest DD are the only ones that see salt and that isn't that often. Costco's car wash which is open year round in the Phoenix area does a good job of rinsing off the underside. Never had a problem. The thought of aluminum on FJ40 is something I would never consider. Have first FJ40s that two need very minor rust repair. Everything thing else is previous owners holes. My 68 I qualify as I have done enough holes myself. But it's sill as rust free as you will find.
 
Living in New England it's pretty much impossible to own a 40 from your youth. When I sold my 73 in the late 80's the only thing that was wrong with it was the body rust.
I daily drove it for about 10 years with all the salted winter roads , it had aluminum on it in the form of diamond plate panels that covered all the rust. That truck went everywhere I wanted it to go while jeeps and scouts dropped out or broke down behind me. I wish it had been aluminum I might still be driving it.
I was just impressed watching the teardown of an old Land rover compared to the teardown of my rotted out 77 fj40. I really know nothing of the Land Rover other than a bad reputation mechanic's wise.
 
Owned both .... loved both. They both have plus and minuses.
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One required drip pans in the garage, one did not.
You could literally cook food on the grill from one, while it would be a bad idea to try that on the other.
Both attract a lot of attention and are are often referred to as “cool Jeeps”.
One has the constant aroma of gear oil, hopefully the other one doesn’t.
Electrical do-dads can be finicky on one, less so on the other.
Both have histories that should be admired.
 
There was a sign inside the Lucas factory stating " A good days work and home before dark".
Having had Triumph motorcycles from that era we joked the compression stroke pushed the spark back into the coil.
 
The electrical systems on the old Series Land Rovers was actually very simple. It was a couple of fuses on the firewall and a hand full of wires. The Brits seem to do “simple” fairly well but struggle with “complicated” as evidenced with the newer Land Rovers.
 
"A gentleman does not motor about after dark" Joe Lucas, Prince of darkness.
 
Find this a interesting statement. I've found just keeping the underside clean rust is not a issue in AZ. Exception would be in a area ADOT salts the highways and not rinsing the underside off. Our two newest DD are the only ones that see salt and that isn't that often. Costco's car wash which is open year round in the Phoenix area does a good job of rinsing off the underside. Never had a problem. The thought of aluminum on FJ40 is something I would never consider. Have first FJ40s that two need very minor rust repair. Everything thing else is previous owners holes. My 68 I qualify as I have done enough holes myself. But it's sill as rust free as you will find.
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The reason I said this was I lived in the Northeast,Florida, Virginia, and if I had a rusted out FJ40, my replacement tub would be aluminum. Now, that is considering the fact that I never had climate garages and/or the ability to hide from all the weather. If the rig is a daily user, in those climates aluminum stands up better.

That said, I am in Arizona and weather has less issues and I can now be a purist. That was not always the case.
 

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