Builds Let's build a 79 Series from parts... (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter c2dfj45
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Gotcha. I know the truck now. Well, at least it's in hands that understand the complexity.
Good luck.... Carquest parts and all.
c2dfj45
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- #23
Gotcha. I know the truck now. Well, at least it's in hands that understand the complexity.
Good luck.... Carquest parts and all.
HAHAHAHA......yeah. Carquest parts for sure. Thankfully it didn't get too far and the stuff that needs attention is pretty easy. This one should go real quick as I've got some good talent in the shop that I can devote to the build and after having done one, I feel real comfortable with where I need to focus time and energy on this one. Really looking forward the build. My bank account however is not. Ha.
Luckily, the clientele you interact with don't have to know the dirty Land Cruiser secret.
Just so I understand: You say you're putting this on a domestic 80 series chassis. That means you can register it in the US as a 80 series Land Cruiser despite having a different body and engine, correct?
c2dfj45
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- #28
Trying to get caught up to the current status of the truck....just a few more posts and I should be there.
So we did our quick inventory...had a look around....then it was into the new shop for the truck. New shop's site work wasn't quite developed just yet so getting it over there was a pain in the ass. The truck didn't roll or steer easily. Had to drag it over there.
Finally in a long term spot for a while....parked it's buddy next to it to keep it company.
So we did our quick inventory...had a look around....then it was into the new shop for the truck. New shop's site work wasn't quite developed just yet so getting it over there was a pain in the ass. The truck didn't roll or steer easily. Had to drag it over there.
Finally in a long term spot for a while....parked it's buddy next to it to keep it company.
c2dfj45
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- #29
I was fortunate enough to be able to purchase the property next door. An uncompleted 3000 sqft warehouse on 2.5 lots. The site work had been started and never finished when the owner bailed....looked at it for nearly 8 years and finally pulled the trigger. I was stashing trucks/cars/stuff everywhere as we ran out of room long ago. Figured this was a smart investment....plus....all the trucks could live inside now.
#1 in front of the building right after I bought it.
We started pushing around dirt in Sept of 2018.....a year after I closed on the property. Permitting in the City of Tampa is a painful thing to go thru.
Finally got smart and bought a drone.....kind of cool to see the progression. As long as I remembered to take pics. Fortunately the building process is a slow one so I was able to keep up.
#1 in front of the building right after I bought it.
We started pushing around dirt in Sept of 2018.....a year after I closed on the property. Permitting in the City of Tampa is a painful thing to go thru.
Finally got smart and bought a drone.....kind of cool to see the progression. As long as I remembered to take pics. Fortunately the building process is a slow one so I was able to keep up.
c2dfj45
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- #30
2 very fortunate things happened during the 'accumulating' stage of this build....first, this truck's interior popped up in the classifieds on Mud and I snatched it up. Full interior from a wrecked 2012 HZJ76 series. After going thru one of these builds and understanding the complexity of the wiring and the time it took to do it, this was something from the Land Cruiser heavens to get the full harness PLUS all the brackets, clips, fasteners, etc., etc. I spent hours and hours ordering parts for my other truck...and without having ever seen one, it was hard knowing all the bits and pieces behind the dash that were needed.
Huge thanks to @joekatana for making it about as easy as possible to get this stuff.
Sad to see a Cruiser down for the count but it's dash and harness will live on!
Huge thanks to @joekatana for making it about as easy as possible to get this stuff.
Sad to see a Cruiser down for the count but it's dash and harness will live on!
c2dfj45
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- #31
So while it was great to have all the interior parts....there was one problemo....it was an airbag dash. The dash we call the Rav4 dash. I don't really care for this dash and I knew that there were going to be some issues with the 09 body.....it used the older dash. Spent a lot of hours trying to figure out what was changed, what needed to be changed, etc., etc. I can lose many night's sleep over this kind of stuff. Definitely have some issues.
Very cool! Some real estate AND vehicle builds!
will they let you knock down the fence and curb between the two locations?
c2dfj45
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- #33
We combined the properties....that curb is actually my water retention area....we shifted that to the new property and built a driveway over it. Really cool.
We will be using the new building for long term customer storage. There is a pretty big need for that in our area. If I really park the cars in there correctly, I can do about 17-19....depending on how many storage lifts. There will definitely be room in there for my trucks.....
A very modern looking dash.
c2dfj45
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- #35
A very plastic looking dash. I will say that it was FAR easier to get that dash in the truck than the metal old school one. It's going to be way easier to run wiring too since the plastic dash is just a cover. Pop off the plastics, remove some bolts, it's out. Easy.
I’m looking forward to the 1HD swap and your thoughts on that. Now, very much looking forward to the deadeners. I’m about to start prepping for my truck. Was/am convinced on lizard skin based on #1 plus looking at other builds using it. Curious to see what you go with.
c2dfj45
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- #39
I used Lizard Skin on #1 and on a number of customer trucks. There are a few things I'm looking to change. It does a great job but I think there is some better stuff out there. We're going to use a couple of products that I will be detailing as we get going on them. Interestingly enough, the company I am using wants their sound dampener(think dynamat type material) laid down first...THEN their spray on sound deadener and thermal coatings go on top of that. Seems weird to me. I want to really spend some time insulating the firewall(both in and out) and this truck will get the back of the cab wall done too. Will have to give up the cool corrugated OEM painted look I think but I want this truck really nice inside....will be doing longer drives. And I'm sure the 1HDT motor will make a little more noise than the 1FZ.
c2dfj45
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- #40
The second fortunate thing that happened was I got a call from a buddy who said there was a "4 door Land Cruiser like your burgundy one" in a pick and pull lot not far from my shop. So I dispatched one of my guys to go see if it was a locker truck....figured it would be cool to have OEM lockers but I wasn't expecting much. Sure enough...it was a locked truck. So we got those guys out and brought them back. Found a few other bits and pieces too(brake pedal cluster as I recall).
The truck had been listed in the AM....we got there at noon or so....sent back a second guy to help the first guy at 2-ish. From noon to about 4....10 people must have stopped by asking my guys if they were taking both axles. Guess word traveled fast.
Another Land Cruiser going to Land Cruiser heaven who gave up its parts....thank you 40th Anniversary FZJ80....RIP.
Wrestling some axles out of an 80 in August in a hot FL junkyard should NOT be on one's list of things-to-do. Quite a job with minimal tools. Sketchy job too.
The truck had been listed in the AM....we got there at noon or so....sent back a second guy to help the first guy at 2-ish. From noon to about 4....10 people must have stopped by asking my guys if they were taking both axles. Guess word traveled fast.
Another Land Cruiser going to Land Cruiser heaven who gave up its parts....thank you 40th Anniversary FZJ80....RIP.
Wrestling some axles out of an 80 in August in a hot FL junkyard should NOT be on one's list of things-to-do. Quite a job with minimal tools. Sketchy job too.
