Long Time FJ40 Fan, First Time Poster--Question about FJ40 Popularity (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Jul 31, 2020
Threads
2
Messages
5
Location
Birmingham, Alabama
Guys, I learned to drive in a '69 FJ40 3 speed in the mid-90s and I've been interested in the 40 ever since. Dad bought a '69 FJ40 out of a guy's front yard for $800 in 1994 and sold it in 1998 for $2500. We've argued about that decision many times! I bought a '72 FJ40 last year with a Chevy 350 in it, 4-speed. It's my daily driver. I've got child seats in the back for the kids and they love it.

Almost every day someone gives me a thumbs up while I'm driving around town (Mountain Brook), or someone wants to talk to me about the 40 when I'm getting in or out of it. I've had a 60 year old lady stop me in the street and ask me about the "cool looking old Jeep" (I was slightly insulted but politely corrected her: It ain't no Jeep!!!). I had a hippy chick tell me it was her dream vehicle. An Alabama Power bucket truck followed me for a mile and finally caught up with me in the Home Depot parking lot and we talked for I don't know how long. A guy in a Bentley stopped to talk to me about the 40. I walked out of Publix one day and saw a guy doing a walk around on my 40. He was a retired engineer from Afghanistan. He told me the FJ40 saved his life in the desert back in the 70s. My 40 was parked in my driveway one Saturday morning, and a road cyclist (ie bicycle, spandex, weird looking helmet) stopped, pulled out his cell phone and took a picture of the 40 and we talked for a while. Stuff like that happens all the time. My wife just rolls her eyes. But, I sincerely enjoy talking about the 40 and its been really cool that the 40 has jump-started conversations with so many complete strangers.

Just to be clear, I don't have a $100k ICON rig or an FJ Company rig. I bought my 40 for $12k and I've got another $6k in it. Its got an okay paint job and it currently has a really loud squeaky fan belt which I need to fix! So, its nothing special.

I didn't realize these things were so captivating to the general public. I thought the "popular" 4 wheel drives were the Bronco, Land Rover, Jeep and various Bro-Dozers(Ford F250 etc). But, I've never cared much for being popular, I've just always loved the FJ40. So, do you guys have the same experiences with the general public driving your 40s around town?
 
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Same here. Almost every time I get gas somebody comes over and starts a conversation about the cruiser. Once I came out of the hardware store and found 6 jeeps surrounding it with several people looking it over. I've turned down more offers to buy it than I can possibly remember. It is kind of fun watching other people's reactions when driving by, lots of open mouthed staring and waving. All part of driving a semi-rare vehicle I guess. :)
 
I was sending an exhaust manifold that I sold to someone in France and was in the post office for about 15-20 minutes. When I came out there was a guy circling my 69 Fj40 come to find out he had just bought one from Jersey and was asking me questions about it. Long story short he now wants me to help him restore his.

I will have my kids in the cruiser with me and every where we go people will do double takes to look at it. I just smile and keep going. I had a jeep guy offer to buy it while i was on a trail run.
 
I had a lady follow me flashing her headlights as I was going to auto parts store. She pulled in behind me and talked to me for a while and just had to send her husband photos. He was a corporate Toyota guy.
I have had multiple people offer me cash for it although never enough. And my personal favorite is when my wife and I were on date night stopped at a red light. Two youngish girls in a convertible pulled up beside and said hey Mr we love your Landcruiser. My wife just rolled her 👀.
 
its always been like this.
i've been getting " my buddies roommate in colleges dad's friends sister's uncle had one" stories since the late 90s.

my 75 gets it picture taken at least once a week...i'll be stopped in traffic, at a red light or whatever and notice the camera flash in the rear view from the car behind.

get thumbs ups and flashing headlights all the time.

passengers in passing cars crank necks around to get another look at it.
 
More cows see mine than humans. The cows aren’t too impressed. Unless I have protein for them, then it’s skookum.
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Parked in the shade at a starbucks parking lot this weekend with my 16yo son. Fellow pulls up in a gorgeous green '66 vette convertible, which must have cost him close to six figures. All he wanted to do was talk about my 40. His wife kept giving him the WTH?? expression, even as they drove away. It was pretty funny. Yep, happens all the time. Even had a road crew turn all their SLOW/STOP signs to STOP and held up traffic just to they could yell at me about how cool it was.
 
I'm in the I-95 corridor in Northern Maryland. I get about a 50/50 split between people giving me thumbs up or asking me about it, vs. people laying on their horn and riding my bumper because I'm driving too slow.

My favorite, so far, was a gentleman filling up his Lincoln Navigator behind me at a gas station who said to me "Excuse me sir, I don't mean any disrespect, but what the **** is that?"

For what it's worth - my truck isn't pretty. In fact, right now it's being driven around with one fender flare...
 
In Colorado I don't get many people interested in it. Their are a lot of jeeps here and I think it's just another Jeep to most people. I think my 80 series gets almost the same amount of attention. I had a pretty good looking girl recently tell me how nice my land cruiser was, that was my 80 series. When I take the 40 on the trail however thats a whole different story. It gets tons of attention on the trail.
 
Oh yeah some dumb drunk guy wanted to buy mine at little ceasars until i told him how much i would sell it for. and coming home from a car show this last week this car load of teenage girls came up and said nice car. To which i just said thanks and kept driving.
 
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Guys, I learned to drive in a '69 FJ40 3 speed in the mid-90s and I've been interested in the 40 ever since. Dad bought a '69 FJ40 out of a guy's front yard for $800 in 1994 and sold it in 1998 for $2500. We've argued about that decision many times! I bought a '72 FJ40 last year with a Chevy 350 in it, 4-speed. It's my daily driver. I've got child seats in the back for the kids and they love it.

Almost every day someone gives me a thumbs up while I'm driving around town (Mountain Brook), or someone wants to talk to me about the 40 when I'm getting in or out of it. I've had a 60 year old lady stop me in the street and ask me about the "cool looking old Jeep" (I was slightly insulted but politely corrected her: It ain't no Jeep!!!). I had a hippy chick tell me it was her dream vehicle. An Alabama Power bucket truck followed me for a mile and finally caught up with me in the Home Depot parking lot and we talked for I don't know how long. A guy in a Bentley stopped to talk to me about the 40. I walked out of Publix one day and saw a guy doing a walk around on my 40. He was a retired engineer from Afghanistan. He told me the FJ40 saved his life in the desert back in the 70s. My 40 was parked in my driveway one Saturday morning, and a road cyclist (ie bicycle, spandex, weird looking helmet) stopped, pulled out his cell phone and took a picture of the 40 and we talked for a while. Stuff like that happens all the time. My wife just rolls her eyes. But, I sincerely enjoy talking about the 40 and its been really cool that the 40 has jump-started conversations with so many complete strangers.

Just to be clear, I don't have a $100k ICON rig or an FJ Company rig. I bought my 40 for $12k and I've got another $6k in it. Its got an okay paint job and it currently has a really loud squeaky fan belt which I need to fix! So, its nothing special.

I didn't realize these things were so captivating to the general public. I thought the "popular" 4 wheel drives were the Bronco, Land Rover, Jeep and various Bro-Dozers(Ford F250 etc). But, I've never cared much for being popular, I've just always loved the FJ40. So, do you guys have the same experiences with the general public driving your 40s around town?
I can relate to just about all you said about people stopping to talk to you about your FJ40 as I am sure others can too..
I had one lady compliment me on my jeep and when I told her it was a Toyota she became attomant that it was a jeep.
When I told her I had owned it for over forty years and all that time it has been registered as a Toyota Land Cruiser she sort of changed her tune and said it was because it was from WW2.
I think she was trying to cover for her mistake.
I smiled and left.
Know what you mean about wives, Guys that stop and want to talk about my rig often get an impatient look from their female companions.
I asked my wife if it bothered her and she said she enjoyed watching me talk about my Land Cruiser.
Post a picture of you Toy.
 
More cows see mine than humans. The cows aren’t too impressed. Unless I have protein for them, then it’s skookum.
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My home where I keep most my LCs is pretty rural and I keep them in the garage. Last week had driveway paved with asphalt. Because they paved right up to the garage I had both doors opened. The garage is deep and keep the FJ40s in the back. Moved the DD out side and parked my FJ62 sideways blocking the view of at least part of the 40s. The crew had no interest in the FJ62 and crowed around the FJ40s.
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Only one FJ40 is registered for the road and don't have to leave the subdivision to get into the national forest.
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I too have had similar conversations at gas pumps, hardware stores etc. I'm amazed how many people will walk over and tell me how they used to have one. Seems like these things should have been everywhere at some point. My 5 YO daughter loves riding in ours. She takes great delight in replying to the shouts of "Nice Jeep!" with "It's not a Jeep, it's a Land Cruiser!". Makes every broken bolt extraction and skinned knuckle worth it.
Zoey Cruiser2.JPG
 
I'm amazed how many people will walk over and tell me how they used to have one. Seems like these things should have been everywhere at some poin.

I hear the same thing. Tell them I bought one back in 1974. Difference is I still own it.
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But I haven't owned one since since 1994 when I bought two. One of which I've been sitting on since. Was offered to me at a price I couldn't pass up.
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Been a 40 series addict for too long to hope for a cure.:hillbilly:
 

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