Here's another post about the past couple of years, things I've done, people I've met, and cruisers I've bought....
Throughout the last few years, I've bought and sold a few Land Cruisers. They have each been very unique, and a lot of fun. Even though they took a lot of time away from my main 40 project, I was able to work on them, hang out with friends, and sell them for more 40 $$$.
On average, I look at craigslist a few times a day. I usually look for 40's or 40 parts exclusively. One day, I decided to look on MUD at the 80's For sale section. I came across an FZJ80 that was currently not running and the owner was basically giving it away.
I got pretty excited!
I looked at the location, and it was in Pahrump, NV, about an hour west of Las Vegas.
I got even more excited!
I noticed the ad was posted about 6 minutes before I stumbled upon it. The timing was perfect! I called him right then, set up a meeting time, and agreed on a price.
The seller even dropped it at my house for an extra $50! I got it the next evening.
A quick rundown-
97 Land Cruiser
ARB front and rear lockers
Slee heavy duty lift
Slee sliders
35" KM2's
ARB front bumper
Front seats just recovered with leather
The seller had just changed the head gasket. After putting everything back together, there was still a knock in the bottom of the engine. I think he got pretty discouraged after a bit of diagnosing, and gave up. I started taking it apart to trace the noise. It was extremely difficult, because when it was apart, I couldn't run it to pinpoint the rattle. I had to reassemble the motor numerous times to see if it was better.
It turned out it was a tooth on the gear that was between the crank and power steering pump. Each revolution, it created a loud sound, similar to rod knocking. I ordered brand new gears from Toyota, and it was fixed!
So of course, the first thing to do after it was running was take it to the desert!
Even though I thoroughly enjoyed working on and driving the 80, I ended up selling it a few months later for almost twice what I was into it. Although that seems like a good profit, I had close to 80 hours into it. That $ went straight toward my project funds. I knew if I kept it, I wouldn't use it very often, and I did not have room to store it.
Next up, a 78 40 series. Yet another local seller about 6 months after the 80 sold. He was the second owner and bought it only a few years old. It had been sitting for about 10 years when we went to look at it. At the time, I was going to pass on it, but a good friend of mine that went to look at it with me decided he wanted it. So, we loaded it up on a flatbed and took it home!
After cleaning it up a bit, my buddy took it from there. It's a beautiful, well running rig now. He's done an outstanding job with it!
And yet another 78. This one has a strange story about how I acquired. I'll try to keep it brief-
I was driving around in Boulder City, NV, which was about 20 minutes from our house, looking at neighborhoods to possibly buy a house in. As I passed by a house, I noticed the unmistakeable sight of a white fiberglass 40 top behind somebody's fence. I knocked on the door, and no answer. I go on my way and forget about it. Then, about a week later, for some reason I told my fiance I wanted to drive back and ask about the 40 again. Off we went!
The 40 was still there, but once again, no answer at the door. So I left a note with my business card. It said 'If you're interested in selling your FJ40, please call me'. Pretty straight forward!
About a week goes by and nothing. Then I get a call from an older lady. She asks what I'd be willing to pay, and I tell her I don't know till I look at it. She tells me she'll call me that weekend so I can come look at it.
That weekend rolls around and she doesn't call. I had her number, so I called her. We set up a time the next day, and I went to see it!
This is how it had been sitting for 15+ years:
Come to find out, between the time the lady called me the first time, and the weekend she was suppose to call me, her husband passed away. He was the original owner of this 40. She was now ready to sell it, the house, and everything else she owned so she could move to Oregon and be closer to her daughter.
We agreed on a price, and off it went to my house!
Unloaded and wiped off:
I spent quite a bit of time cleaning this one up, but never got it running before I got a good offer on it. Because I had modified my 76 so extensively, I really wanted to keep this one to have an original too. But, there were too many mods on this one I didn't feel like working around. The biggest were:
Horrible job cutting fender flares
Aux tank fuel door
Big holes in firewall for A/C lines
I also wanted a 60's 40 for the original, so I'd keep looking. After cleaning up the 78 a bit more, it was gone in no time.
Before it left, my buddy stopped back by to pay a visit! Look how much nicer the blue 78 looks now!
As I mentioned earlier, I had been looking for an early model, stock 40 to go with my 76. A few months ago, I came across a 67. After looking at it and agreeing on a price, it was time to take it home! At one time, it had a Chevy 350 in it, but had been removed. So when I bought it, there was no engine.
First seeing it:
Loading it up! Seems to be all too familiar sight by now... taking a Land Cruiser home on a flat bed!
The hard top on it was from an early 80's. If the top was period correct, I might have kept it, but since it wasn't, I took it off and sold it, including all 4 doors.
I was fortunate enough to find a local MUD member selling a complete 1F drivetrain out of his running 67. He is in the process of upgrading to a 2F. I went out and helped them pull the 1F and load it on my trailer.
So that's it for other cruiser's. We are down to two. I'm waiting till I finish my 76 before I start on the 67. There will be another build thread coming soon for that one, but it will be the polar opposite of my current build!
