Build My First Landcruiser: 78' Frame Off Resofication

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This is the first time I've ogled this thread. (Why I've missed it so far - I don't know. It is an amazing "build" you've done!)

I know you can't be serious about selling.

Few people can put THAT much into a project - And even those that do can't repeat it many times in their lifespan. That's a HUGE amount of work and a massive amount of "attention to detail". The end result is a real credit to you. You can't just dump it over a minor hiccup!

(Bad choice of words really. - What your beast did was rather like a "hiccup".)
 
Sell it and regret it the rest of your life, at worst put it in the garage and store the old girl and take a break. She will be there when your ready then.
 
Hey Eli,

Sorry to hear about your troubles. Keep your head up.


To repair I would say $1,200-$1,700 at the very most. Tunning will be extra, but not a huge cost. Pay someone to do it becasue if you have future problems at least you'll have a warranty.
 
Oh man!!! It has taken me four days to read this thread. Didn't want to cheat and read the end first. Although you have had your share of problems with the engine, this thread is one of the ones tempting me to put in a 350. I hope everything works out man. I am just starting to take fenders off today!! Good luck in school.

Brad:beer::beer::beer:
 
Eli,

Wow, what a story! We have not had an update in about 11 weeks, what happened? I truly hope that things have worked out well for you. This is the best thread I have ever read on Mud. I know that your perserverance and positive attitude will serve you well in life.

BTW-what are you interested in studying in College? Mechanical Engineering?

vrb,
Jeff
 
Well its coming to the time when I need to figure out what to do with the 40. I am taking it in to this gas station shop that is very honest down here in SB to be put back together and tuned. He seemed a bit confused when I explained the TBI setup, but he has been very honest and straight forward with me in the past and I have faith that if he doesnt know what he is doing he would tell me. Plus he is very very reasonable with his prices.

Here are my selling options. I can

A. Passively sell the cruiser, IE list it for 30k so that the chances of it selling are very very low. This way I atleast feel like im trying to deal with the problem at hand.

B. Start driving the cruiser as my DD, sell the VW, and hope to god that it doesnt brake down again.

C. Find a cruiserhead that wants to trade for something

Basically I would be fine selling the VW and driving the cruiser, but I run into the problem of that if it were to ever break down again, I certantly would not have the time to fix it myself, and definately not the money.

Its one of those things where I cant tell if there are allways going to be stupid problems, or if Im so close to having it done and finisshed and reliable that if I pay to have the engine tuned I wont have any more propblems.

I feel like I am gambling.

Other than the whole regreting it thing. I know I would regret it, but I am here at school to make money and learn, and I cant have a truck (a beautiful sexy beat of a truck;)) hold me back.

What do you guys think?
 
That is a hard choice. I always said that there are a few things I learned growing up. Don't join the Army before you graduate from highschool and never build a car in your garage. I had broken both those rules. But things have a way of working themselves out. I am still building cars (but now I have a shop for it) and had I stayed in the Army I would have retired this year. I guess the bottom line is, you have to make those decisions on your own. If you could sell the truck for the $30K you will have lost nothing as you will have had a great experience and learned an enormous amount. Then in 10 years, do it again! If you decide to keep it, you have to be all in. I think trading might not work out for you unless you got something bone stock that was in DD shape.

Good luck, happy holidays and hope all is well at school.
 
Great build! You put alot of hard work and money into your 40 and may regret selling it like so many people do. If you don't have the money to fix it right now, you always have the option of storing it at your parents house and driving the VW while at school. Working on it when you are home from time to time. When you finish college and get a really good job, your cruiser will be there waiting for you where you left off at. Someone would love to have that cruiser but I think it belongs with you. Your build has been an inspiration. I have a 78 Fj40 that I am trying to fix up. My 2 year old loves it and says its his. With my wife and I both in the military and the currents jobs we have, there is not much time for me to work on it. I have thought about getting rid of it and getting another one when I have the time but I can't. I will just do a little here and there and it will eventually get done. Best of luck in all you do. Hard choice to make:beer:
 
Eli,

Option D maybe?

Get the 40 back up and running and then drive it for awhile BEFORE selling the VW just in case the 40 breaks down again you still have transportation. If the 40 proves to be reliable and you can't afford to keep both vehicles, then sell the VW at that time. If the 40 doesn't prove to be as reliable as you need it to be and you can't get it there then either store it, or sell it.

Either way, a running 40 in the end will be worth more to a potential buyer than a non-running, basket case 40. The reality is you are not, and never will, get out of that 40 what you put into it unfortunately. So IMO if you really truly want to have a 40, keep what you have and get it running and reliable.
 
90 Weight said:
Drove her the other day before leaving. My mechanic did a great job, she sounded great.
Click to expand...
Good news! So are you taking it back to school with you? Keeping it? Tell us more?
 
dunno. Im back in colorado on vaca. Ill pick it up from the shop when I get back. I also came to the realization that if I move to europe after college I wont need a vehicle so I would have to sell it or store it. I offered it to my little brother but he isnt interested in 40's. Wants an 80. :rolleyes:

Im not sure if I should put it for sale on the mud board or not. Thats too much dedication to selling it. lol.

Ill probably enjoy it for a bit (if it is running really well) before really committing to the process of selling it. I have close to **K in receipts in a folder I kept as well as all of the hours logged in an excel document.

Haven't seen the bill for the tuning yet. I hope it doesn't bend me over. :frown:
 
Hey Eli!!!!

good to hear it sounds good man!!!! I got no words of advise for you.... you will figure out what you need to do when the time comes... but every time I have made a decision too quickly I have regretted it.....

good luck!!!
 
This thread is becoming worthless without updated photos. :whoops:

Also never took any detail shots of the paint finish....here are a few from when I first got to SB:


well crap...i just went to upload these photos and it says that I have exceeded my photo quota by 14mb....so I deleted everything that was not of importance (obviously nothing from this thread was deleted) haha. still says im 7mb over.....when did that change? anyone want to load em for me if I email them???? or how do I get more space :confused:
 
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