Meet Lucille - A '74 Crusty Back Road Cruiser - Turbo 3RZ W56 Swapped

[cruisermatt]

Im still doing research, but a buddy has an '83 FJ60 that hes parting out. Assuming he has the 4-speed in it, will this bolt up to the fj40 bellhousing i currently have? My transmission is a 4-speed as well. I hoping that his 4-speed and t-case from the 60 will be a direct swap and i wont have to modify driveshafts and/or crossmembers to make it work.

Yes it will bolt to your bellhousing. Shifter is a few inches rear-wards of the 40 shifter (the top covers are different) but the 60 top cover shifts soo much nicer. The 60 transfer is way quieter as well.

 

[gericurl]

Quick question: The vin plate says its a 11/74 LC. Is that yep a 74 or 75? I thought '75s had disc brake front ends? Or is this some wierd transition year?

'74 without a doubt. Your front door pull handles are the dead giveaway (straight rubber straps with metal ends) That style was ONLY on the '74. '75 was also the big change for doors for the FJ40. Rear would be ambulance style, fronts would have paddle style handles (rather than lever). '75 and later had thinner sheet metal, changes to hard top windows. Windshield wipers moved to bottom of windshield frame along with different windshield hinges. Rear tire carrier moved to the driver's side I think.

Reportedly, there can be a few "transition" parts on a '74 that showed up earlier or later, but for the most part, there was a hard stop between '74 and '75 parts.

On the Tranny stuff. If he has the 4 speed, it should be a direct swap.

 

[Lucille]

'74 without a doubt. Your front door pull handles are the dead giveaway (straight rubber straps with metal ends) That style was ONLY on the '74. '75 was also the big change for doors for the FJ40. Rear would be ambulance style, fronts would have paddle style handles (rather than lever). '75 and later had thinner sheet metal, changes to hard top windows. Windshield wipers moved to bottom of windshield frame along with different windshield hinges. Rear tire carrier moved to the driver's side I think.

Reportedly, there can be a few "transition" parts on a '74 that showed up earlier or later, but for the most part, there was a hard stop between '74 and '75 parts.

On the Tranny stuff. If he has the 4 speed, it should be a direct swap.

Thanks for the information.

Looks like im going to get the trans and t-case and get it back on the road. Might go ahead and get the 60 rear end as well (i read i will have to move the perches a little and its 2.5-3" wider than my 40) but this should get me new brakes. Ill swap the 40 third to keep my matching gears.

 

[Lucille]

Yes it will bolt to your bellhousing. Shifter is a few inches rear-wards of the 40 shifter (the top covers are different) but the 60 top cover shifts soo much nicer. The 60 transfer is way quieter as well.

Good to know. Ive read that the top covers interchange so i can keep the shifter in the factory position, but if the top covers shifts that much better ill either bend the fj60 shifter or make the hole in the tunnel a little bigger and cover it with the boot.

 

[cbmontgo]

Quick question: The vin plate says its a 11/74 LC. Is that yep a 74 or 75? I thought '75s had disc brake front ends? Or is this some wierd transition year?

Disc brakes arrived in the 1976 year model.

 

[Lucille]

Ah, there’s my problem.

 

[cruisermatt]

Time for the 60 series transmission/t-case. You'll loose the parking brake but doesn't sound like it really matters for what you want to use this truck for.

 

[Lucille]

Time for the 60 series transmission/t-case. You'll loose the parking brake but doesn't sound like it really matters for what you want to use this truck for.

Yep. Already have one lined up. Picking it up Thursday or Friday.

 

[hooter]

Eeek.

 

[Lucille]

Clutch looked good as new

 

[Lucille]

First time taking off the bellhousing from a 40. No idea you have to drop the clutch and flywheel to get to the bolts. I went about it a little backwards. I’ll just leave it on there now since I have the flywheel off to access the rear main seal. Flywheel will get resurfaced. New clutch, pilot, slave, hose for the slave, clutch master, etc are all getting replaced.

 

[reddog90]

Best of luck. Here's a good resource on model year differences:

TLC FAQ - 15.1 40 Series Production Timeline

 

[gericurl]

Good to know. Ive read that the top covers interchange so i can keep the shifter in the factory position, but if the top covers shifts that much better ill either bend the fj60 shifter or make the hole in the tunnel a little bigger and cover it with the boot.

My shifter already hits the driver's seat when in reverse and now that I put in a center console (tuffy) it won't go into 4th at all. Not too big a deal, I was already planning to modify the shifter for a custom shifter I'm working on. I am essentially repositioning the "knob" about 4" forward of where it was by heating and then taking some of the bend out of the stick. FJ60 shifter might also be trickier to bend than that in the FJ40. (See pics)

shifters.jpg

• gericurl
• Apr 16, 2019

FJ60 vs. FJ40 shifters

FJ60 has a more "refined" outer shell. FJ40 is just a bent piece of metal tube. FJ40 shifter is a fair bit longer as well.

 

[Lucille]

Just to update things. The flywheel is back from resurfacing and looks good. I used Bear Creek Automotive in Katy, TX and they turned it around in one day for $45. Not too bad i think.

Before i re-installed the flywheel i changed out the rear main seal. It always had a small leak there in the rear, but come to find out after the new RMS, it still leaks. Im pretty sure its just the oil pan gasket (new ordered)

Flywheel back on and torqued down

To keep up with the new clutch parts, i also changed out the crusty clutch master.

I also picked up a new 4-speed and t-case from the fj60 i mentioned earlier. I gave it a good powerwash and am waiting on the Aisin clutch to come in from RA so i can get it installed.

Didnt get any pics, but i also picked up a rear from a fj62 to get some larger drums. The additional ~3" width wont be an issue for me and ill just move the springs mounts in some. Ill run some spacers or IFS mini truck hubs on the front when i change it out to discs.

New parts left to install
upper and lower radiator hoses
new coil, distributor cap and rotor (probably will end up going with a Pertronix ignition because i saw what it did to my dads 55 Ford. Woke it up tremendously)
new plugs and plug wires to replace the chewed ones from mice
New alternator (pretty sure the one i have isnt charging)
Install new grounds from battery to body/engine/frame and everywhere else
install fj62 rear
IFS mini truck outers with fj60 discs and IFS truck/4runner calipers
Tacoma (probably) booster and master cylinder (i have one on the shelf so why not)
new Best Top Jeep buckets i picked up cheap
new slave cylinder
new rubber brake lines
Change out oil pan gasket and valve cover gasket
new (to me) windshield hinges from a mud member

 

[Lucille]

A problem i am still having:

After i installed the flywheel and the the starter, i wanted to hear it run again after an oil change. I installed a new ballast resistor and new ignition switch. I still cant get it run without leaving the key turned all the way or without a jumper from the battery (+) directly to the (+) on the coil. Also pretty sure i burnt up the coil i had because now i am not getting any spark at all. (thats why i ordered all new coil, plugs, wires, etc)

Any thoughts? Is there anything else i should check? maybe something under the dash or elsewhere in the engine bay? I read that the ignition isnt fused so that cant be it. There is an "engine" fuse in the panel on the drivers side, but the fuse is still good. (hell there wasnt even a fuse in there when i first got it so i have no idea what it does)

 

[parker019]

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[Lucille]

Any thoughts on my electrical issues above? anywhere else i should start to look?

 

[Lucille]

Alright so I’m sure I have no spark. I’ve replaced the following today:
New coil
New ballast resistor for the coil
New rotor and cap
New plugs and wires

It’s just turns over and won’t start. It used to start if I held the key on while cranking but now it doesn’t even do that.

Off to do some research, but if anyone has any ideas , please let me know.

 

[Lucille]

Alright, so I got it to fire but it’s still won’t stay running without the key cranked. I’ve replaced everything that could cause this with new stuff.

I’m going to bypass the ballast and see if it will run. Can I swap out the coil to an internally ballasted one and not worry about it?

I’m going to order a pertronix kit to replace the points anyways.

 

[yotadude520]

Have you checked to make sure all connections on the ignition switch harness are nice and tight? You could have a faulty ignition switch too..