Resto-Mod Dilemma (1 Viewer)

[Joe45]

What is your target Budget ?

Don't have one as of now. Maybe 15-20k for the engine/drivetrain setup.

 

[45Dougal]

Looks pretty clean under there compared to many I've seen.

Your turn signal problem is caused by a bad ground at one of the lights - the metal casing may be the only path to ground, and as you remove the cover screws, you lose the contact.

Try adding a dedicated wire from the metal casing to a solid ground somewhere on the chassis for each light.

 

[dazerb]

Prioritize that list by driving it.
Picked up mine in 2009 and focused on getting the engine running smooth.
Sorted through carburetor, dizzy and fuel system...
Once it ran decent, had to address Rusty old worn out springs and suspension.
Oh and those brakes. Lots of tinkering on brakes until i swapped in the front discs from an fj60.
Then i started on seals and bearings.

Etc, etc, ad nauseum

Body was fully done in 2007, but has now rusted THROUGH in several spots from low quality work on fenders, rear sill, quarters.

And i still have to rebuild the parking brake and rear seal. Have NEVER touched the transmission not even it's fluid, lol.

Have fun and learn while you go, you'll never be "done."

I drive mine daily and am enjoying these project victories s they slowly get done as they change my experience of the truck incrementally each time.

Now I'm jonesing for a tuffy console and seat slide extenders.
And i still have to get to that Steering box rebuild when i need a day of busted knuckles and creative swearing.

My rig is thoroughly unique. Many choices spread over time, Money obstacles, and motivation levels.

Have fun, enjoy the ride, and post lots of pics of that truck!

 

[South Texas 97]

Do a bit at a time. I started with my tail lights and the rear wiring harness- had a similar issue - four splices with different colors in about 2 feet and burned or chewed up under the pax seat frame side.
@Coolerman has connectors and you can get correct wiring colors from him or from these guys Harley Stripe Automotive Wire - 540 Colors Available - Custom Len - https://4rcustomswire.com/ reasonable pricing
Grab a wiring diagram from Coolerman's site. Follow the link to wiring schematics - it lists most years and models.

The clunk sound could be your axel shaft/birfields - check they are full of grease and the tie rods are solid.
If you drove it that far, not too much is wrong with it.....
by doing a piece at a time, you can keep driving it and enjoy the journey.

Rubber hoses under the hood are another thing worth looking at early on, vacuum hoses, coolant hoses, fuel hoses, heater hoses. All fairly cheap and easy to replace.

 

[RWBeringer4x4]

I understand you're worried that it's a South American truck, and that it might be a basket case - but at the same time you drove this thing 3/4 of the way across the country without issue, and are planning to remove/convert almost everything in it mechanically through the resto-mod process. So, assuming the driveline and suspension is largely "OK" and it's destined to be swapped anyway, I'd focus your attention on frame, body, interior as your main "unknown." Walk around it with a magnet and screw driver. Poke questionable spots. Prioritize mechanical repairs while you drive it. Your "clunk" could be a lot of things, from a shifting leaf spring to a binding birfield to a loose/sloppy rear differential, to motor/trans mounts, etc. You're only going to figure this out by spending the time to diagnose.

I bought a total basket-case of a v8-swapped FJ40 (an American one, but they can be basket cases too ). I spent months driving it, diagnosing, figuring out what worked and what didn't, then focused on mechanically stabilizing it, starting with "if this breaks, will I die?" and moving on to "this is broken, and I'm not street legal without it" to "This is broken, but it's a creature comfort and can wait." Along the way, if a repair is part of the system you'd like to upgrade, use then as an opportunity to make the upgrade. Once I went through it mechanically I found I had too much fun driving it to worry about the bodywork.

These trucks are a standard vehicle driveline wrapped in sheet metal sitting on a box frame. You can literally see every piece of the truck from over, under, or in it. Start going through it. Keep a list. Pick one system for day, and do a deep dive - ie: Today I'm looking at brakes. Today, I'm looking at steering. Then suspension. Then engine. Then trans/transfer/driveshaft/diffs. Do the homework to figure out how much anything you find will cost to fix. Figure out what you realistically want to budget for the work (then, double it ). Will the cost to rebuild the truck you have still come in under and Aussie/Middle-Eastern one? Will you be able to recover at least a portion of the work you put into it if you decide to bail on the project? How much is your time worth, vs. buying something that is "done"? All of these questions only you can answer. Keep in mind, you can get an Australian cruiser that lived it's life in a mine, or a middle eastern cruiser that spent it's life in the oil fields or rolled down a sand dune. These trucks were designed and built to live brutal lives doing hard work. No matter what country you get it from, there's a good chance the story is no different.

For what it's worth, I'd argue that just about any 40 year old vehicle is going to be a basketcase - learning its quirks and fixing them is part of the journey!

 

[Joe45]

Looks pretty clean under there compared to many I've seen.

Your turn signal problem is caused by a bad ground at one of the lights - the metal casing may be the only path to ground, and as you remove the cover screws, you lose the contact.

Try adding a dedicated wire from the metal casing to a solid ground somewhere on the chassis for each light.

Thanks!
I will try that.

 

[Joe45]

Prioritize that list by driving it.
Picked up mine in 2009 and focused on getting the engine running smooth.
Sorted through carburetor, dizzy and fuel system...
Once it ran decent, had to address Rusty old worn out springs and suspension.
Oh and those brakes. Lots of tinkering on brakes until i swapped in the front discs from an fj60.
Then i started on seals and bearings.

Etc, etc, ad nauseum

Body was fully done in 2007, but has now rusted THROUGH in several spots from low quality work on fenders, rear sill, quarters.

And i still have to rebuild the parking brake and rear seal. Have NEVER touched the transmission not even it's fluid, lol.

Have fun and learn while you go, you'll never be "done."

I drive mine daily and am enjoying these project victories s they slowly get done as they change my experience of the truck incrementally each time.

Now I'm jonesing for a tuffy console and seat slide extenders.
And i still have to get to that Steering box rebuild when i need a day of busted knuckles and creative swearing.

My rig is thoroughly unique. Many choices spread over time, Money obstacles, and motivation levels.

Have fun, enjoy the ride, and post lots of pics of that truck!

View attachment 3464751

Very good points indeed!
I think a great idea with these vehicles is to get an inexpensive wire welder and learn to use it: watch videos, maybe take a community college class on welding. Practice with scrap metal of the same or similar gauge as the sheet metal. I wouldn't use it for anything that has to do with safety or structure: like engine mounts etc (for that stuff I will outsource to a proven welder), but for bodywork and simple things, it can really save a lot of money.

 

[Joe45]

Do a bit at a time. I started with my tail lights and the rear wiring harness- had a similar issue - four splices with different colors in about 2 feet and burned or chewed up under the pax seat frame side.
@Coolerman has connectors and you can get correct wiring colors from him or from these guys Harley Stripe Automotive Wire - 540 Colors Available - Custom Len - https://4rcustomswire.com/ reasonable pricing
Grab a wiring diagram from Coolerman's site. Follow the link to wiring schematics - it lists most years and models.

The clunk sound could be your axel shaft/birfields - check they are full of grease and the tie rods are solid.
If you drove it that far, not too much is wrong with it.....
by doing a piece at a time, you can keep driving it and enjoy the journey.

Rubber hoses under the hood are another thing worth looking at early on, vacuum hoses, coolant hoses, fuel hoses, heater hoses. All fairly cheap and easy to replace.

Yes. Good points.
I'll look at those links and bookmark them. Thank you!

 

[Joe45]

A dilemma I have at the moment is that this has become a daily driver for now, so I can't do much. In fact, because of the brake lights issue, I have to borrow the neighbor's car to go to an appointment today. When I get back, I will get back under there and see about hopefully sorting it out.

One thing I noticed is that when I turn on the blinkers, left or right, both indicators on the instrument cluster flash.

Can't wait until my wife gets a damn car so I can use the FJ Cruiser again! I'd love to rewire the HJ and add modern fuse boxes etc.