Hi, new member here with another FJ62 project. I have taken on a 1988 full frame off restoration for a friend of mine that is the original owner. Vehicle currently has 192K on the clock and is tired. It was also T-boned in the right side many many years ago (both doors, inner and outer rocker panel damage only, missed the frame). After doing a lot of research on this forum, I've had a rollercoaster of ideas that may make it to this project and would greatly appreciate any input from those of you that have more experience than I on this model vehicle. This is the 3FE with the A440F auto trans, and the owner wishes to retain this (or a modified variation thereof) drivetrain. He simply said "keep it all Toyota please". I already suggested going to the H55, but was met with a polite "no thank you, we're getting too old for that", which made me laugh, but they clearly want the automatic transmission again. So, 2FE? KISS 3FE again? Can't find anyone in NM to rebuild the auto trans, they all hang up when I tell them 'it's the A440--', and don't even finish saying the model. I also have a 1989 FJ62 donor vehicle with the same drive line (125K) that was supposedly running great, before it was involved in a heavy (left) front end collision, 3 years ago 
Good news is I now have the right side doors and rocker section I need (and extremely rust free I should add) and a whole lot of spare parts to work with. Then the idea of simply swapping the entire drive line from the 89 into the 88 was discussed. He (and more importantly his wife) are looking for a fresh rebuild on the engine, transmission, TC, axles, suspension, steering, and everything else that can be overhauled, rebuilt, restored, reupholstered, replaced (if needed), repainted, you get the idea. I did find a local machine shop (Empire) that said they would rebuild the engine, but I'm at a loss on the transmission. Advise? I found the valve body in AU everyone talks about, but not sure if it's even needed. This is primarily a street driven vehicle that will retain stock wheels and tires. It will not be off-roaded and will most likely never even see snow. It's just a member of their family that's getting a 2nd lease on life. Can I rebuild the transmission myself? Maybe. Depends on whether or not I have the necessary tools, if anything special is required. I'll attach a couple of pictures of the vehicles as they are now and update as the project proceeds. Thanks in advance for input
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Good news is I now have the right side doors and rocker section I need (and extremely rust free I should add) and a whole lot of spare parts to work with. Then the idea of simply swapping the entire drive line from the 89 into the 88 was discussed. He (and more importantly his wife) are looking for a fresh rebuild on the engine, transmission, TC, axles, suspension, steering, and everything else that can be overhauled, rebuilt, restored, reupholstered, replaced (if needed), repainted, you get the idea. I did find a local machine shop (Empire) that said they would rebuild the engine, but I'm at a loss on the transmission. Advise? I found the valve body in AU everyone talks about, but not sure if it's even needed. This is primarily a street driven vehicle that will retain stock wheels and tires. It will not be off-roaded and will most likely never even see snow. It's just a member of their family that's getting a 2nd lease on life. Can I rebuild the transmission myself? Maybe. Depends on whether or not I have the necessary tools, if anything special is required. I'll attach a couple of pictures of the vehicles as they are now and update as the project proceeds. Thanks in advance for input
