Builds New Alaskan FJ40 intro thread (2 Viewers)

[Aussie Alaskan]

Can anybody tell me what this is?
It's inside the glove box compartment. Looks like an electrical plug of sorts and there is wiring run to it from the backside.

 

[Chungas Revenge]

It’s a plug for the accessory light.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

It’s a plug for the accessory light.


View attachment 3474816

I'm assuming it receives a constant 12V, but feel free to correct me if that assumption is wrong.

 

[RevISK]

That is a sound deduction

 

[Chungas Revenge]

Yep, should be getting power like your tail lights, headlights, lighter etc without the ignition being turned on.

I'm assuming it receives a constant 12V, but feel free to correct me if that assumption is wrong.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Pinion oil seal replacement complete.

Must have got some water in the dif and so I ended up changing out the gear oil with new.

Also noted that when I went to undo the nut, it was loose. I could turn it with my fingers and could have taken it off except for the stake.

When I put it back on the whole pinion bearing and drive shaft flange was much tighter and had no slack whereas before it had tons of slack and wobble.

 

[Devils Paw 80]

Also, RE: other Alaskan 40s. I know one of the pilots here in town has one, there is a really clean one I always see parked outside of the Guardian Flight facility at the Juneau airport, and there is a house in Petersburg that has 2 being reclaimed by nature in the driveway.

There are a few in JNU, you just rarely see them out. Yours looks pretty good!

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Mounted some lights to the front of the FJ40 this weekend. Used a 3" wide steel bar and mounted it to the frame via the tow hook holes and bolts.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Results were pretty good. Compared them to the 52" X Vision light bar on my brother's truck and they weren't quite as good as distance, but had a lot more flood light capacity vs his light bar.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Pulled the knuckles and axles out AGAIN, in order to check the backlash of the ring and pinion gears. Backlash was .013" and so I reset it back down to .007". I was trying to track down a grumbling sound that only occurs in 4wd and only happens when decelerating. 7.5 hrs later with everything reassembled and the grumbling noise was still present. Not a complete waste of time as I checked the backlash, but not the most productive project.

Also fixed the grounding issue that was hindering the function of the window washer pump and also tracked down the ground issue with the horn. Now I can honk at will...!

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

New tail light seals installed, and new bulbs installed.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Saw this new fangled science fiction looking vehicle in the local Walmart parking lot and had to get a photo of "Old meets New"

For those not familiar with the other vehicle in the photos, it's a 100% electric Tesla Cyber Truck up in Alaska undergoing Arctic cold weather testing prior to Tesla rolling out the vehicles for public use.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

It's been getting cold up here in the North. (Fairbanks, AK)
Around 0F the FJ40 really struggles to maintain a decently comfortable interior. Especially when driving. I know it's got big air leakage around every door and the windows and the roof, but that won't be fixed till after paint so I have to make do for now.
An old trick is to put cardboard in front of the radiator to help the truck warm up quicker, and this trick really works great and in the case of my FJ40, it seemed to work too well. After about 10 mins of driving with the cardboard, the engine was overheating. The heater was putting out a lot of hot air, and as soon as I stopped and pulled the cardboard out from in front of the radiator the engine cooled off and the heater was putting out semi hot air. .
Next step is to swap the T-stat. I swapped in a 190F T-stat and will see how it goes. The original T-stat was 180F.

I also wanted a bit more light when reversing in the pitch black of the Alaskan winter. I had a couple cheap led pod lights lying around and figured out a non-invasive and non permanent mount for them.

 

[middlecalf]

Were they picking up a new battery at the Walmart?

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

We're they picking up a new battery at the Walmart?

Unknown. But doubt it. They are truly an odd looking vehicle. But so is anything "new."
Should be seeing alot more of them here pretty soon.

 

[franklin40]

you can also cover 1/2 your radiator with cardboard. it’ll prevent it from overheating but won’t cool it down so fast.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Wasn't getting reverse lights.

I pulled the reverse switch out from underneath by snipping the one wire still soldered to the switch and using a 24mm socket to break the switch free.

Proceeded to clean the switch up and resolder new leads to it.

Tested the switch and it's a normally closed type reverse switch, and appeared to function flawlessly.

Reinstallation was a treat, but with a 15/16" wrench I was able to get it reinstalled. Plug everything in and amazingly my break lights now function! Who knew...

Also finished wiring up the two LED pod lights in the rear and tied them into the reverse light switch too. Now I've got loads of light flooding back behind me for all those miles of backing up I do. (Sarcasm)

Just another thing that I'm tackling now that would have been so much easier to fix when the motor and tranny was out. Live and learn.

 

[Devils Paw 80]

Good luck with a warm interior given your winter temps. My 62 in Alaska's SE banana belt failed to keep up with defrosting duties on side windows when temps dropped into the 20's. I think that could be all you can hope for-a defrosted windshield.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Good luck with a warm interior given your winter temps. My 62 in Alaska's SE banana belt failed to keep up with defrosting duties on side windows when temps dropped into the 20's. I think that could be all you can hope for-a defrosted windshield.

Yeah. My driver and passenger windows ice up quickly and render my side mirrors basically worthless. At 0F my front windshield stays defrosted for the most part. But honestly 0F is nothing for up here and pretty soon we'll be seeing -20F, -30F, -40F and -50F. Probably going to park the FJ40 for the winter when the temps drop much below -10F or -20F.

 

[CruisinGA]

Do you have a rear heater? Wondering if that would help keep the interior warm as long as you keep coolant temp up through cardboard or higher temp thermostat.

also- are you running a fan clutch?