Our Copperstate Overland Build - 1981 FJ43

[UZJ40]

Congrats. $176k is more than twice the $70k-$90k estimate by Gooding.

Wow! $176k! Congrats!

On an unrelated note.... My FJ40 is now officially for sale.....

 

[The FJ Company]

Did you give them a discount on the hood hooks that won't hold down the windshield?

Congrats! It is an impressive 40 you guys do great work!

Thanks! But yes, the hooks work just fine. Just not the standard hooks you'd see on this year.

 

[ginmtb]

Thanks! But yes, the hooks work just fine. Just not the standard hooks you'd see on this year.

Oh okay so you ended up slotting the OEM hook bases - of course you wouldn't miss that detail with your company's attention to detail. I really like the matching door panels that was a slick addition.

 

[Honger]

Thanks guys! Appreciate your comments and support.

Now let's see if the buyer accepts the invitation to the Copperstate Overland. If they do, we'll do some follow up posts of the event in October. We'd like to see this rig where it belongs.

@tls3601 yes, BFG/33/MT

Congrats again! This was a smokin' good looking truck.

I really hope the buyer takes the truck on the overland trip. I would LOVE to see that video and photo shoot.

 

[Varty Yo]

My guess it will sit in a collectors garage along with 50 other vehicles with no intention of ever driving them more then around the yard.

Sadly

 

[Honger]

My guess it will sit in a collectors garage along with 50 other vehicles with no intention of ever driving them more then around the yard.

Sadly

Maybe I'm being a bit naive, but really? Is this the common fate of cars sold at nice auctions? Why collect cars if not to drive them?

If you have this kind of money to spend at auction on a 4x4 you can afford the detailing to bring it back to concours looks after an expedition trip.

 

[tls3601]

Very good point Honger

 

[Varty Yo]

yah for 176k he isnt gonna do s*** with it but sunday drive it. if that! Prove me wrong here please.

I get what your saying man for sure, but dont see it happening.

 

[Varty Yo]

And if you can afford to pay that much period for a vehicle you dont really care if you drive it

 

[Racer65]

I think the same can be said of a Mercedes G class, Range Rover or any number of capable high end SUVs. As @65swb45 said elsewhere, "times have changed". To many people 20 grand would be a lot of dough, and if you want to wheel your wheels off, it may be wise to pick something more disposable.

Overall I think any effort to preserve the legend is a good thing. A values rise, hopefully we'll see more people doing proper restorations and fewer hack jobs.

 

[AussieFJ40]

I think the same can be said of a Mercedes G class or any number of high end SUVs. As @65swb45 said elsewhere, "times have changed". To many people 20 grand would be a lot of dough, and if you want to wheel your wheels off, it may be wise to pick something more disposable.

Overall I think any effort to preserve the legend is a good thing. A values rise, hopefully we'll see more people doing proper restorations and fewer hack jobs.

This

While it's great to see large numbers of 40s still exercised regularly off road, a restoration of this caliber is really getting into 'preservation' territory. There is nothing to gain by wearing it out over time, and plenty to lose.

If I had the money for a truck like this, I would also have a mechanically excellent/partially refurbed truck to use off road.

 

[thecrazygreek]

That's why I consider my restorations high end yet driver quality. If you take everything to level 10 you get something you may not want to drive as it was originally intended. Even at a nice driver quality I found all but one of my restorations that i have sold has become a weekend / vacation at the beach or vacation home only cruiser.

To each his own I suppose.

 

[120mm]

You know, I'm going to swim upstream, here. As values of restored vehicle rise, something funny happens; people tend to go out and use them in their intended role more.

Look at the WWII warbird and Vintage race car markets, for instance.

As values hit the high 6 and low 7 figures, owners seem to use a different logic. If you wreck the thing and die in it, you don't care its value. But if you wreck it and don't die, the vehicle's value makes it worth fixing again. If you doubt this, watch airshow or Goodwood footage to see exactly how these high value vehicles are treated.

If I had the disposable income to buy this rig, I'd tend to use it up, then return it to FJ Company for a 100% refresh. That is exactly what guys like Jay Leno do.

 

[tls3601]

@120mm you hit the nail on the head my friend.

 

[teleskier]

Do you powdercoat the chassis?

Also - where do you source the rubber part of the lines on the power steering cooler? Mine are in bad shape and have not been able to find a replacement.

 

[The FJ Company]

Do you powdercoat the chassis?

Also - where do you source the rubber part of the lines on the power steering cooler? Mine are in bad shape and have not been able to find a replacement.

Yes, we completely sandblast the chassis and then fully powder coat.

We make our power steering lines in house. The hoses are just hydraulic hose, most shops capable of producing hydraulic lines (example: tractor or farm equipment shops) can provide this hose.