New to J40 series & looking to get one. FJ40 or BJ42?

[motocykal]

Hi all.

As in the title, I'm very new to the J40 series cruisers. I really like the look of them and I've found 2 rather nice examples for sale near where I am. What I'm having difficulty deciding is whether to consider the 1982 FJ40LX or the 1984 BJ42LX. I have read that the diesels get better mileage per unit of fuel, but what I have yet to find in the interwebs is numbers. I have read claims of possible 5km/L for the petrol version, but what about the diesel? Is it marginally better, double or somewhere inbetween? I've also read that the diesel has less grunt than the petrol version. I think I can live with that. It is a 40 year old car anyway without the modern safety features, so I don't feel a need to drive at modern day speeds.

What I do know about the 2 vehicles:

1982 FJ40LX
Asking AU$33000
360000km
Factory power steering, 5 spd gearbox, disc brakes.
No rust in floors, doors, rear floor area, around roof gutters.

1984 BJ42LX
Asking AU$28000
215000km
Factory power steering, 5 spd gearbox, disc brakes
There's some rust on the bottom rear right quarter panel, just above the lights. Approximately the size of the Toyota logo. Also a bit of rust on the roof gutter. About 4cm of it.
Also missing the 2x rear "bumper" pieces.

I'm leaning towards the FJ40 because it does not have a big rust patch and that's something I don't have to deal with from the get-go. According to the images, the petrol version looks cleaner and better looked after. I have also read that spare parts for the petrol are easier to come by compared to the diesel.

However, I like the idea of the diesel as it gets better mileage and I can travel further between fuel stops. The distances between towns in Australia can get pretty huge, so in theory a diesel is "a bit" more useful.

My planned use case for it would be weekend fun drives and maybe some roadtrips now and then. Not too sure if I'll use it as a daily but who knows, plans can change.

Looking for some opinions on which way I should go. I hope to be able to view the vehicles during the coming weekend as well.

Cheers.

 

[charliemeyer007]

Not a diesel guy. Look for parts for "B" engine. Are you going to do your own work? if not make sure your shop will do diesels.
You can add an aux tank behind the rear axle to increase your range. I did a Datsun 12.5 gallon tank from a B210. It lasted since about 1985, it needs some repair work from playing in the rocks. I mounted the manual tank selector valve under the drivers side of the front bench seat. I played with 2% low ohm resistors and was able to get the factor gauge to read E was empty and 1/2 was full with the Datsun tank sender. Very nice to be able to flick a switch on the dash to read either tank. I put fill nozzle on the same side as the stock front tank - easier to fuel up at one pump that way.

The bumperatts are weak - I threw mine away, one was badly distorted anyway. I used 1/2 steel plate 2x4 steel tubing and 4" channel to make my new units and grade 8 bolts to mount them up - way stronger than stock.

 

[-MaTTi-]

I have read claims of possible 5km/L for the petrol version, but what about the diesel? Is it marginally better, double or somewhere inbetween?

You can get double (10km/L) when driving longer trips.

 

[Living in the Past]

10/82 would have a H55F five speed. Prior to 810/82 would be a four speed. Transmission tunnel would be different. What market did the 82 BJ40LX come from? Australia only had the 3B starting with 8/80 production. All 10/82+ BJ42 and FJ40 had the H55F in the Australian market 10/82+. Easiest market to find a 40 series H55F to use in an easy 40 series or a HJ47RV/FJ45.

 

[motocykal]

Not a diesel guy. Look for parts for "B" engine. Are you going to do your own work? if not make sure your shop will do diesels.
You can add an aux tank behind the rear axle to increase your range. I did a Datsun 12.5 gallon tank from a B210. It lasted since about 1985, it needs some repair work from playing in the rocks. I mounted the manual tank selector valve under the drivers side of the front bench seat. I played with 2% low ohm resistors and was able to get the factor gauge to read E was empty and 1/2 was full with the Datsun tank sender. Very nice to be able to flick a switch on the dash to read either tank. I put fill nozzle on the same side as the stock front tank - easier to fuel up at one pump that way.

The bumperatts are weak - I threw mine away, one was badly distorted anyway. I used 1/2 steel plate 2x4 steel tubing and 4" channel to make my new units and grade 8 bolts to mount them up - way stronger than stock.

Thanks for your suggestions. I don't have the garage space or the ability to do my own work, so any major work will be at a workshop. I've been told that the rear bumperatts are not mandatory, so good to know.

 

[motocykal]

You can get double (10km/L) when driving longer trips.

Double the mileage makes a very big difference and certainly makes a diesel variant very desirable for me.

 

[motocykal]

What market did the 82 BJ40LX come from?

From sunny Queensland in Australia. I had a look at the BJ42LX. Engine sounded good, unfortunately the rust spots looked very bad, with some areas especially the rear right quarter panel so bad you can stick a finger through the rusted hole. The roof gutter has a small section that's rusted through it too and I was told it would be a big pain to repair.

 

[ToyotaMatt]

From sunny Queensland in Australia. I had a look at the BJ42LX. Engine sounded good, unfortunately the rust spots looked very bad, with some areas especially the rear right quarter panel so bad you can stick a finger through the rusted hole. The roof gutter has a small section that's rusted through it too and I was told it would be a big pain to repair.

maybe skip the 40 series line-up all together ,.......


you blokes got the VX TURBO 60 Series , and from the looks of things below there might e something to all this chatter from down in OZ .......?

,






,



/.

 

[ToyotaMatt]

 

[cbmontgo]

My HJ47 got nearly twice the MPGs as my FJ40, but I did get tired of my shop smelling like a train roundhouse every time I cold started it.

All in all, I'd go with the one that's been best maintained.

 

[motocykal]

maybe skip the 40 series line-up all together ,.......


you blokes got the VX TURBO 60 Series , and from the looks of things below there might e something to all this chatter from down in OZ .......?

Awesome playlist of videos.

Yes, there's the option of the 60 series or even a brand new 70 series that can be purchased from Toyota here in Australia, but I still like the look of the 40 series. Old School Cool.

 

[motocykal]

Just thought I'd share some images of the BJ42 that I looked at. The rust on it looked pretty bad.

Rear quarter panel

Roof gutter

 

[-MaTTi-]

Bad? You have not used to see rust there. That’s more than common if nothing is ever done. Of course it will took time&money to fix it properly.

This is how mine was 7 years ago when I bought it (same age BJ42):

+ much more… Frame too.

 

[motocykal]

Wow. Those look really serious. Looks like a fairly big effort to cut, patch and weld those bits out.