Builds New Guy Intro with an FZJ75 Troopy (1 Viewer)

[mcmarshing]

Hi IH8MUD,

New guy here down in SoCal. Just got myself a LHD FZJ75 Troopy from Turkey. It's got about 80,000mi on it, FR and RR factory lockers, and runs super smooth, looks great, and has minimal rust. I've had and driven 100 and 200 series LC's before, and this is my first personally owned 70 series, and I'm loving the raw machine feeling of it so far.

(Quick Phone Photos of it)

This is my dream personal vehicle, short of a VDJ78 (wanted one since I was 10 or so), and plan to use it as the "weekend warrior" and "road trip" vehicle of choice. I'm going to use it to get up to Oregon in 3 days to see how she does.

Quick stuff I did once I bought it:
-Threw on new 265/75r16 tires wrapped around Fifteen52 16" Alloy wheels. It originally came with the steel split rims and tubed tires, which were heavy and difficult to balance. Wanted to keep unsprung weight down, but keep the factory look - so I chose the Analog HD's by Fifteen52.
-Tinted it 20% today (not pictured yet). I don't have A/C in this truck, and a little bit of tint goes a long ways to not cook up (+added visual security inside)
-Removed roof rack (looks factory?)

Things I want to do to it:
-ARB front bumper. I think the narrow nose troopy's look fantastic with the ARB bumpers
-Reupholster the stock bench seats.
-Audio System
-Rear Splash Guards
-Factory, on-door, spare tire carrier (or rear bumper with carrier... Haven't quite decided)
-OME suspension
-Maybe 2nd gas tank from LRA? (Weight dependent, and depending on if i just do external fuel storage for longer trips)

And that's about it.... I've been debating on making it into a "camper van" style troopy like I've seen on MUD, but I like the simplicity, uniqueness, and utility of having the foldable rear jump seats. Plus, i'm also trying to keep weight down.

Maintenance Items:
-Needs E-Brake. The line from the handle to the 3rd member snapped. Cruiser Outfitters helped me find the part number, and I plan on having it shipped up to Oregon.
-Needs brake job. Probably going to pick up brake kit from Cruiser Outfitters on my way back down since i'm swinging through Utah.
-One rear wheel stud needs to be replaced.
-Busting rust. There's surface rust on the rear axle and rear drive shaft.
-Fix rear Diff locker. Doesn't seem to be locking, and i'll need to dig deep and figure it out...

Others:
Insurance - I currently don't have it in a garage, and I guess in California you can't insure rare or exotic cars if it's not in a garage... Going to dig deeper but hopefully I can figure this out before I drive up to Oregon tomorrow. Currently it's insured for the equivalent in value of a US model FZJ80.

More photos to follow. Got to get busy getting ready for the Holiday trip to OR and UT! I look forward to being less of a lurker and more of a contributor here.

 

[SNLC]

Yup, looks like a factory roof rack to me too.

Nice Troopy!

Cheers

 

[JuanJ]

Hello,

Yes, the roof rack looks factory.

Rear doors with spare tire carriers usually have an inner reinforcement structure. Before throwing in the OEM carrier, check the door's inside. If there is no structure in there, it is better to use a bumper-mounted carrier.

Some 75 Series have the spare tire where the sub tank should be, and yours seems one of those models.

The sub tank is a factory option, and you may want to go that way. All the parts are available from vendors.

Regarding the rear axle, it is worth checking (and replacing) axle seals and bearings when you do the brake/locker/broken stud job.

Transfer seals and clutch master/slave cylinders are worth replacing as well. Given the truck's age, it is likely they are about to give up the ghost.

Welcome to the madness.





Juan

 

[mattressking]

No need to disclose, but curious how you have it tagged in California (if at all).

 

[Blomdala]

No need to disclose, but curious how you have it tagged in California (if at all).

Should be easier since its not a diesel and that engine existed in the USA. The issue typically is the diesel engine which never had CARB or EPA info since it never came to the USA. However, it also depends greatly on the DMV personnel.


Beautiful troopy!

 

[tmarx]

Wow, congrats on a nice Troopy !

 

[63cruiser]

Others:
Insurance - I currently don't have it in a garage, and I guess in California you can't insure rare or exotic cars if it's not in a garage... Going to dig deeper but hopefully I can figure this out before I drive up to Oregon tomorrow. Currently it's insured for the equivalent in value of a US model FZJ80.

Why not get a hagerty's collector car stated value policy if it is not a daily driver?

 

[FJ73Texas]

How do those Analog HD wheels fit with the 4.25 BS?

 

[Honger]

Wow... very well done. Nice truck!

Go ahead and replace all your wheel studs when you're fixing the broken one. Over in that part of the world they routinely over-torque wheel studs which is why you've had one break. They've all been treated that way so best to replace all of them.

Is the 1FZ carbureted or fuel injected? What year is the truck?

 

[OGBeno]

It would be good to see your data plate.

These trucks were never imported into Turkey so I’m wondering if it arrived there either through the government or NGO operating in eastern Turkey.

How did you find this in Turkey and in what city?

Nice find.

 

[mcmarshing]

Hello,

Yes, the roof rack looks factory.

Rear doors with spare tire carriers usually have an inner reinforcement structure. Before throwing in the OEM carrier, check the door's inside. If there is no structure in there, it is better to use a bumper-mounted carrier.

Some 75 Series have the spare tire where the sub tank should be, and yours seems one of those models.

The sub tank is a factory option, and you may want to go that way. All the parts are available from vendors.

Regarding the rear axle, it is worth checking (and replacing) axle seals and bearings when you do the brake/locker/broken stud job.

Transfer seals and clutch master/slave cylinders are worth replacing as well. Given the truck's age, it is likely they are about to give up the ghost.

Welcome to the madness.


Juan

Hey Juan,

I checked the inside of the door and it does not have the braces, but I did see one troopy guy (ScoobyPNW I think?) who made and added his own braces, and then added the tire carrier. Yes, my spare is where the sub tank would be in other models, and at some point, I will definitely be looking into adding a second one.

Thanks for the pro tip on the rear axle maintenance and clutch, I think i'm going to rip the whole thing out from underneath and do a nice axle rebuild summer of 2020. I also hope that the clutch will hold out for this trip as well...

 

[mcmarshing]

No need to disclose, but curious how you have it tagged in California (if at all).

It's not tagged in California, I have it currently tagged in Montana.

 

[mcmarshing]

Why not get a hagerty's collector car stated value policy if it is not a daily driver?

I actually called them right up after I saw this post, and I got it fully insured for pretty much the same cost and a $0 deductible as when it was registered by USAA. I was stoked! Thank you!

 

[mcmarshing]

Wow... very well done. Nice truck!

Go ahead and replace all your wheel studs when you're fixing the broken one. Over in that part of the world they routinely over-torque wheel studs which is why you've had one break. They've all been treated that way so best to replace all of them.

Is the 1FZ carbureted or fuel injected? What year is the truck?

The truck is a 1994 carbureted 1FZ-F. Noted with the studs... Going to wait until I get all the parts for brakes, axle seals, and bearings and do it all at once.

 

[TonyP]

If you don't want to deal with adding a brace, you can purchase a new, tire carrier, door from Partsouq. Shipping isn't great but not terrible.

 

[mcmarshing]

It would be good to see your data plate.

These trucks were never imported into Turkey so I’m wondering if it arrived there either through the government or NGO operating in eastern Turkey.

How did you find this in Turkey and in what city?

Nice find.

Is the data plate the plate that has the VIN on it?
It was a Turkish Government Vehicle in Istanbul that I came across from a friend who imports Land Rover Defender's from Turkey.

 

[Blomdala]

Is the data plate the plate that has the VIN on it?
It was a Turkish Government Vehicle in Istanbul that I came across from a friend who imports Land Rover Defender's from Turkey.

Yeah if you snag a picture of the little metal plate in the engine bay on the fire wall it will have all the details!

 

[mcmarshing]

How do those Analog HD wheels fit with the 4.25 BS?

I think they look great, but it's all subjective. Here's how far back the 4.25 offset pulls in the wheels:

However, my own personal preference is to have tires and wheels tucked within the width of the wheel well because I like to prevent snow and mud from slinging up the side of the car/windows.

 

[mcmarshing]

Well, I made it up to Oregon crushing a thousand miles or so in a day. Here's what I learned so far:

The goods:
1. Just super fun to drive. I love the altimeter, pitch, and roll gauges, and how much space and headroom there is on the inside.
2. 1FZ engine is crazy smooth and I never had to leave 5th gear even in mountain passes if the speed allowed for it, which is something i'm not use to with my daily being a '92 pickup with a 22RE.
3. Impressed that I get 17.5-18MPG on this 25 year old brick on wheels.

The bads:
1. I felt a very subtle vibration from the rear end at 60mph+ that would be intermittent (about 2 seconds on, 2 seconds off, and slightly audible), I was worried it may had been a bearing, but the hubs were cool to touch. Turns out one of the U joints is a little loose. I'm about to go pick 2 up for the rear drive shaft. Hopefully that will take the vibrations away and allow me to drive faster than 70 without worrying about the truck exploding. If anybody is in Portland Oregon who wants to help, let me know!
2. No E-Brake still, which is annoying and can be worrying when parked at a steep angle. Hopefully the replacement will be here tomorrow. Need to find a How-to on swapping one out...

The others:
1. The factory bench seats are miserable to sit in after the 12 hour mark. It's been over 24 hours and I still feel it in my back and butt, and i'm a pretty athletic guy, so when I get back i'm going to look into getting a local shop to redo the seats.
2. It's be nice to have cupholders. I think i've seen some products floating around mud. For now, the "between the knees" and "e-brake to chair crack" holders will do.
3. Factory headlamps are a bit mediocre, but i think they're just aimed up a little too high.
4. I wonder what the factory fuel tank size is (I only have one)? Every time I fill up, the needle is at the Empty mark, but I can only get 17gal of fuel in. I read somewhere the factory fuel tank is 25gal, in which case, is the gas gauge just conservative?
5. I think I will eventually get sliding troopy windows. I found some on Ebay for $250 a pop (kind of expensive for my liking at the moment), I've got a dog who was in the back, and it would have been nice to have been able to open the rear windows to access stuff and for some air flow in the rear.

Also, it would look so good with an ARB front bumper, and i'm just itching to order one now...

 

[cruiserdan]

It's not tagged in California <snip>

And it never will be. A carbureted 1FZ without EGR, air injection and cats will never pass.