My impulse FJ40 purchase (1 Viewer)

[Michael Hanson]

Hi, Nice cruiser. Those radios were nice in the day and very dependable. Probably strapped to the dash in back. Check for a blown fuse in the wiring harness before you pull it . Also make sure the speakers are not shot instead of the radio. Toyota original radios were just ok. Mike

 

[hedgehog23]

the moab trip pictures are great. I think your going to enjoy that turbo setup. no sense in 5 speeds if you cant use them

 

[John in Utah]

Hi, Nice cruiser. Those radios were nice in the day and very dependable. Probably strapped to the dash in back. Check for a blown fuse in the wiring harness before you pull it . Also make sure the speakers are not shot instead of the radio. Toyota original radios were just ok. Mike

Wiring has been gone through up to the head unit and it's got power. At this point I'm just going to throw a modern head unit and speakers in there. Not too expensive

the moab trip pictures are great. I think your going to enjoy that turbo setup. no sense in 5 speeds if you cant use them

Yup those long roads with gradual hills really get ya ... but man it seems like I go back and forth daily on what to dump money into first!

 

[John in Utah]

Well snow has finally come to the City of Salt and as a result my progress has slowed considerably. My list of life goals is going something like this:

1. Own a landcruiser
2. Have a garage to keep it in
3. ???

Priorities I guess

Improved the gauge cluster lighting with an LED strip and bulb pigtail adapter. All in all about 15 bucks and no cutting of the "shields" required

Thinking about ways to use the leftover LEDs, maybe a strip along the bottom bevel of the dash pad to illuminate the switch panel, tied to a toggle switch or a dimmer circuit?

Can anyone identify the two highlighted terminals on the back of my gauge cluster? I know some markets had a speed limit buzzer type device of some kind, maybe that's it?

My Autometer Diesel Tachometer showed up today

After a quick test run I'm very happy with it. Need to dial in the calibration with a photo-tach still but I'm waaaay more excited than I should be to see my revs finally

 

[Martyt]

You had me at "impulse." By the way, what is this "radio" you speak of?

 

[Honger]

Some relaxed progress this week on the interior - I figure someone went through all that trouble to source and install the H55F I might as well get the correct shift knob (lots of hard work, I know )
View attachment 1635395

View attachment 1635394

Does anyone know if this is the original radio? When did cars start to have cassette tapes? I'm out of my element here ...
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Either way it's turned into a huge PIA trying get this thing out (it doesn't work ) . I'm about ready to destroy it! I know some older 40s came with AM radios but I can't seem to find as much info on these late model NA trucks.

Bonus picture of the funky upholstery:
View attachment 1635398
(Ghetto-fabulous interior accessories coming soon )

Not the original radio... but that is an OEM Toyota speaker you have there. Pretty cool.

Also, regarding your front seat upholstery... the "plaid" on your passenger bench is original spec here in the region. There's a guy here in region that has had the material reproduced in South Korea. We've re-upholstered a few rebuilds with this material. It's not my thing... but it does grow on ya!

 

[Honger]

Well snow has finally come to the City of Salt and as a result my progress has slowed considerably. My list of life goals is going something like this:

1. Own a landcruiser
2. Have a garage to keep it in
3. ???

Priorities I guess

Improved the gauge cluster lighting with an LED strip and bulb pigtail adapter. All in all about 15 bucks and no cutting of the "shields" required
View attachment 1648177
View attachment 1648178

Thinking about ways to use the leftover LEDs, maybe a strip along the bottom bevel of the dash pad to illuminate the switch panel, tied to a toggle switch or a dimmer circuit?

Can anyone identify the two highlighted terminals on the back of my gauge cluster? I know some markets had a speed limit buzzer type device of some kind, maybe that's it?
View attachment 1648189

My Autometer Diesel Tachometer showed up today
View attachment 1648193
After a quick test run I'm very happy with it. Need to dial in the calibration with a photo-tach still but I'm waaaay more excited than I should be to see my revs finally

That's not the original cluster for your truck... they must have swapped it in along with the diesel swap OR someone in the States swapped it in. It looks brand new inside! No clue on the terminals...

Did you source the LED strip from Amazon? It looks really good. Is there light escaping around the edges of the bezel where it meets the dash or is that just reflection?

 

[Jetlander]

Plaid is one of my favorite colors... I love it and am a bit jealous. Nice rig.

 

[FJ40 that green thing]

Bonus picture of the funky upholstery:
View attachment 1635398
(Ghetto-fabulous interior accessories coming soon )[/QUOTE]

John, cool truck. I noticed your apholstery, I think what you have there is a front bench seat out of a late model FJ45 pickup. Would have been early 80's Middle East truck. I only know because I have an 82 FJ45 from Kuwait with the same seat in it, noticed many others with that plaid vinyl. So cool.

 

[John in Utah]

Not the original radio... but that is an OEM Toyota speaker you have there. Pretty cool.

Also, regarding your front seat upholstery... the "plaid" on your passenger bench is original spec here in the region. There's a guy here in region that has had the material reproduced in South Korea. We've re-upholstered a few rebuilds with this material. It's not my thing... but it does grow on ya!

Driver seat is also plaid, but has a small tear and came with the SOR cover. It’s definitely grown on me. Maybe one day I’ll get my jump seats upholstered to match!

That's not the original cluster for your truck... they must have swapped it in along with the diesel swap OR someone in the States swapped it in. It looks brand new inside! No clue on the terminals...

Did you source the LED strip from Amazon? It looks really good. Is there light escaping around the edges of the bezel where it meets the dash or is that just reflection?

Yes there are many variations on amazon, I think in the ballpark of $5. The pigtail adapter is really the key, since it plugs right into the old bulb socket you don’t need to alter or add any wiring or switch. Guessing those are reflections in the photo, it’s not as bright in person.

Guessing the cluster was swapped with the engine, but no clue when that happened. Odometer reads ~030k. Would a 3B be easier to source in the Middle East or US I wonder? It’s a 12V and the oil filter adapter suggests it’s from a 70 series.

 

[John in Utah]

I’m a little embarrassed about neglecting this thread I started. The cruiser has seen some more upgrades (or are they downgrades?)

Added a bumper from @lcwizard to replace the chrome. I tried painting the black NOS fenders but the dune beige came out too new looking so the rusty old ones went back on. Been taking small bites out of the rusty spots using @wngrog ’s recipe with good results, but the rear corners will need replaced when I find the time/funds.

Tackled my first knuckle rebuild and swapped to mini truck knuckles and calipers. Sent some engine oil to Blackstone labs and they determined all metals/soot/silicone etc was average or better so even though I have no engine history to go off it seems to be free of major issues. Overall very happy and driving the everloving out of it

My current cold weather project is building a custom wiring harness for the engine. Initially I wired everything individually to get it running and now that I have some flight heritage on my glow/start/charging circuits I want to consolidate everything into one harness with tidy fuse and relay block.

 

[Honger]

Those rusty old fenders look perfect with the truck man. Love how you're not letting it sit idle... and love seeing a GCC-spec truck getting put to proper use stateside!

 

[Jetlander]

Any chance you have some pics of how you hooked the led strip inside the gauge? I know there’s a write up somewhere on MUD about it.

 

[bikersmurf]

Well snow has finally come to the City of Salt and as a result my progress has slowed considerably. My list of life goals is going something like this:

1. Own a landcruiser
2. Have a garage to keep it in
3. ???

Priorities I guess

Improved the gauge cluster lighting with an LED strip and bulb pigtail adapter. All in all about 15 bucks and no cutting of the "shields" required
View attachment 1648177
View attachment 1648178

Thinking about ways to use the leftover LEDs, maybe a strip along the bottom bevel of the dash pad to illuminate the switch panel, tied to a toggle switch or a dimmer circuit?

Can anyone identify the two highlighted terminals on the back of my gauge cluster? I know some markets had a speed limit buzzer type device of some kind, maybe that's it?
View attachment 1648189

My Autometer Diesel Tachometer showed up today
View attachment 1648193
After a quick test run I'm very happy with it. Need to dial in the calibration with a photo-tach still but I'm waaaay more excited than I should be to see my revs finally

The two brass tabs beside where the speedo cable are for a speed sensor. There is a reed switch inside the cluster that opens and closes with the rotating cable. It is used for emissions boxes on gassers... not sure if diesel also use it... never owned one.

Not sure about the other hole you circled.

How long a strip of LEDs did you use for the cluster? I’ve got a length around, but I’m not sure if it would be long enough & I’d rather not pull the cluster to check.

 

[John in Utah]

Any chance you have some pics of how you hooked the led strip inside the gauge? I know there’s a write up somewhere on MUD about it.

Most strips come with an adhesive back. I added some tape in strategic spots but it’s been ~6k diesel-rattling dirt road miles since I added it and it’s holding on pretty well.

 

[Jetlander]

Thats a nice official gauge housing prop... On a serious note, I meant electrically. Where are you pulling power for the LEDs?

 

[John in Utah]

Appreciate the support, Greg! thanks for all the pushes in the right direction here... feels good to take a break from all the GX this and LX that and work on a 40 again... man you've got me wanting to put my hard top back on now.

The two brass tabs beside where the speedo cable are for a speed sensor. There is a reed switch inside the cluster that opens and closes with the rotating cable. It is used for emissions boxes on gassers... not sure if diesel also use it... never owned one.

Not sure about the other hole you circled.

How long a strip of LEDs did you use for the cluster? I’ve got a length around, but I’m not sure if it would be long enough & I’d rather not pull the cluster to check.

Well a standard beer can is 4.83 inches, so based on my photo you should be good with 4*4.83 = 19.32"

Thats a nice official gauge housing prop... On a serious note, I meant electrically. Where are you pulling power for the LEDs?

Sorry, should've known that's what you meant. I used bulb pigtail adapters - about as plug and play as you can get:

Wire Harness Miniature Pigtail Male 194 168 2825 T10 Four Cables Light Bulb Fit | eBay