New Rig, need drive shaft and maybe more? (1 Viewer)

[bulldog8934]

So I purchased a 95 fzj80 mostly sight unseen but with a few guarantees from the PO that certain items were solid. Besides a few additional small things I noticed that didnt seem like a big deal while driving it around after shipping it to me, I found some big issues. The PO assured me that the title was clean and it was not... Unfortunate, but pretty much my problem now. It has been through the rebuilt title process which is about as good as I'll get. Sucks though as it would probably cost as much to pay to ship it back and try to recoup the money (through court or otherwise).

The bigger issue, and main reason I am posting, is that I found that the front drive shaft has been REMOVED! The LC has factory lockers and they seem to work while driving, but this is obviously all show and no go (in the front).

My question is, what is the best way to fix this, and why would this have been done in the first place?

Thanks for the help everyone!

 

[Rwhat]

Best way is to find a front drive shaft and go from there. Jack up front end and engage lockers. See if they work and both wheels turn the the same direction and see if there is any noise. With no drive shaft turn wheels by hand.

 

[bulldog8934]

Best way is to find a front drive shaft and go from there. Jack up front end and engage lockers. See if they work and both wheels turn the the same direction and see if there is any noise. With no drive shaft turn wheels by hand.

Awesome thanks! Any recommendation on a new drive shaft? Is used ok? Or should I maybe look into an upgraded one while I am at it?

 

[NLXTACY]

Does the truck have a lift?

 

[Desert Dino]

If when you rotate one wheel while lifted the other won't move in any direction, then the dif is missing the PO converted the Rig to 2X4

 

[inkpot]

You got royally ripped off in my opinion. Please tell us who the seller is so we can make sure nobody goes thru this again. Salvage title and missing front driveshaft are NO mistake on sellers part. I am sure he knew about it.

 

[bajaphile]

If you have a lift or plan on getting one, you can go ahead and just buy a double cardan style driveshaft which will eliminate any vibrations. If not, you can just get one from a junkyard, or from someone in the "parting out" classified section.

For it to drive, it would most likely need to have the center diff locked...

 

[RFB]

Please lay out the party that sold it, as noone needs to get ripped off long distance or otherwise, I bought my rig off this forum sight unseen but I had all paperwork receipts etc.

 

[LS1FJ40]

How much did you pay?

The salvage/rebuilt title probably doesn't make a whole lot of difference on a 22 year old vehicle. Unless you plan on doing a frame off restoration, which in that case, you probably have ridiculous money just laying around so life will go on.

Now post some pics! Especially of the VIN sticker so we can tell you if it actually has factory lockers or if the PO lied about that too...

 

[arcteryx]

OP- was this bought on MUD or ebay, CL etc. I would be livid if the title was salvaged and would be calling an attorney. I too want to know who it is if it was on MUD. Driveshafts are easy to find, I have some in stock.

The salvage/rebuilt title probably doesn't make a whole lot of difference on a 22 year old vehicle.

I respectfully disagree. The salvage title would require a huge discount. For 80s that are for sale in the 15-20K with a clean title, a salvage title 80 would be more in the 4-8K range IMO. I don't believe a salvage title can be insured for full coverage either. I personally would not pay more than 8K for a vehicle I could not get full coverage on, just too much of a financial risk.

I just sold a rebuilt/salvage title 80 to my 16YO nephew, first car and he gets his license next month. It was in a minor front end collision, needed a front bumper and a headlight. I put on an ARB for him and swapped out the headlight. I got it for $2200 and sold it to him for $500 more. They paid for the ARB. He is elated. If my BIL/SIL did not want it, I was going to sell it for $5000, that's all that it was worth with the rebuilt title.

 

[LS1FJ40]

OP- was this bought on MUD or ebay, CL etc. I would be livid if the title was salvaged and would be calling an attorney. I too want to know who it is if it was on MUD. Driveshafts are easy to find, I have some in stock.



I respectfully disagree. The salvage title would require a huge discount. For 80s that are for sale in the 15-20K with a clean title, a salvage title 80 would be more in the 4-8K range IMO. I don't believe a salvage title can be insured for full coverage either. I personally would not pay more than 8K for a vehicle I could not get full coverage on, just too much of a financial risk.

I just sold a rebuilt/salvage title 80 to my 16YO nephew, first car and he gets his license next month. It was in a minor front end collision, needed a front bumper and a headlight. I put on an ARB for him and swapped out the headlight. I got it for $2200 and sold it to him for $500 more. They paid for the ARB. He is elated. If my BIL/SIL did not want it, I was going to sell it for $5000, that's all that it was worth with the rebuilt title.

I figure he didn't pay anywhere near $15k for this rig. He knew there were some issues with it, didn't get a VIN# prior to giving cash, and still purchased it sight unseen. Plus he said it wouldn't be worth shipping it back and fighting for a refund. My guess is that he paid $3-4k for it. If he did, he's fined. If for some crazy reason he paid $15k for it, well, I've got ocean front property here in Iowa for sale!

 

[bulldog8934]

Hey everyone, thanks for the response. A few of these posts are right and here is the rundown (as well as some pics).

Bought the LC from craigslist after I had done a ton of research on 60s, 62s, and 80s. Settled on this one as it seemed like a good deal listed at 5k. It has 160k miles and has some standard issues like paint coming off here and there, not-so-new tires, and some rust on the upper tailgate. After checking it out, I test drove it, and gave it a once-over. However, I did not get on a creeper and inspect every nook and cranny of the undercarriage (I'll probably do this from now on). I found that there was no spare tire, no tool kit, no jack, but everything else seemed good. It ran well, I kicked it into 4lo, and tried both lockers. The transmission shifted and even the diff lock light came up. I negotiated down a thousand to make up for the issues above.

I asked for the VIN and ran an autocheck. It passed everything except it stated that there was a single accident on the check. The sell acknowledged this and we carried on. We got a bill of sale and the title was in the mail. I asked multiple times if the title was clean and after multiple assurances, I paid up.

Low and behold, when I get the title in the mail there is a REBUILT tag on it. I was pissed, gave the guy a call, and he does not answer. I said to myself, "oh well, I want to use the truck and don't really need a perfect title for it to do what I need it to do."

Today, when I was doing an oil change, I noticed that there was no front drive shaft. Now, I am pretty livid, I called the dude and sent him an email. I am not so much worried about the money, but the fact that I was lied to in multiple ways. Also, I am concerned that someone removed the front drive shaft because of some other problem with the drive train.

So I just went from having a cosmetically bad, but overall good FZJ80 for a few thousand dollars, to a potential basket case with a salvage title, in just a few days. I was looking at Land Cruisers for the 4x4 capability and this is obviously not going to work for that now.


So with all that being said, I am not interested in hunting the PO down (his name is Rene and is from Rockford, IL or a way-west suburb of Chicago) and making him pay for all this, nor am I interested in simply selling the truck to someone else (it has started to grow on me). I want to fix it up, get it right, and have this vehicle for a long time! Then, if/when I sell it, I will know that I sold it in much better condition than I received it. Hoping for all your help in making that happen

 

[bulldog8934]

Vin sticker

 

[Rwhat]

Did they weld the rocker to the side steps? Or is it caulking and expanding foam insulation?

 

[bulldog8934]

If you have a lift or plan on getting one, you can go ahead and just buy a double cardan style driveshaft which will eliminate any vibrations. If not, you can just get one from a junkyard, or from someone in the "parting out" classified section.

For it to drive, it would most likely need to have the center diff locked...

Thanks for the info, this helps a lot. It doesnt have a lift now, but I was considering getting one (2-4" at most) in the future. Would there be an issue with having a double cardan driveshaft without a lift in the meantime?

 

[Kaninja]

Oh man. Well that sucks. NO DRIVESHAFT?!

That takes the "It's so s***ty it's almost funny" cake.....but definitely not funny man.

If you weren't over 1000 miles away in Chigago I would show up with tools, a case of beer, and we would spend the weekend going through your 80.

Thanks for the info, this helps a lot. It doesnt have a lift now, but I was considering getting one (2-4" at most) in the future. Would there be an issue with having a double cardan driveshaft without a lift in the meantime?

No issue with a double cardan driveshaft really. As long as the measurement is correct for when you do have say a 3" lift.

 

[Rwhat]

I think your main concern will be to send it to a body shop and have them look it over or put it on a chassis machine.Since it has the original peeling paint will lead me to the concern of undercarriage damage or possibly frame.

 

[bulldog8934]

Did they weld the rocker to the side steps? Or is it caulking and expanding foam insulation?

ding ding! foam with some Flat black paint. it is actually to cover up the rust hole that was there I assume. I am ordering a replacement part of that quarter to get it fixed (should also fix the fat dent in the same quarter panel near the front side of the wheel). This is probably where the accident was and they most likely replaced the rear driverside door but not the body panel.

 

[bulldog8934]

Oh man. Well that sucks. NO DRIVESHAFT?!

That takes the "It's so s***ty it's almost funny" cake.....but definitely not funny man.

If you weren't over 1000 miles away in Chigago I would show up with tools, a case of beer, and we would spend the weekend going through your 80.



No issue with a double cardan driveshaft really. As long as the measurement is correct for when you do have say a 3" lift.

Haha tell me about it. I am trying to take that attitude as well! And if you were to make it here, I would provide the tools and the beer!

Where would be the best place to buy a double cardan and how much should I be looking to spend?

 

[Kaninja]

Haha tell me about it. I am trying to take that attitude as well! And if you were to make it here, I would provide the tools and the beer!

Where would be the best place to buy a double cardan and how much should I be looking to spend?

Look up 'Tatton'. IMO the best double cardan drive shafts for a Toyota.