Restore FJ60 or Low Mileage FJ40?--Part 2 (w/Photos) (1 Viewer)

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Edited to add: Maybe I wasn't too clear in the initial post. I think it's pretty evident that the FJ40 is in better shape than the FJ60. I imagine that the overwhelming responses are going to be "restore the FJ40". What I'm needing is specific advice on how much it would cost to have each vehicle restored (or, just the FJ40 if you're in favor of that one) and what specifically will need to be done to it. As I describe in my posts, I know nothing about restoration and the rust really scares me...but I know nothing about fixing rust. So please provide as much detail as possible and what will be involved. Because right now, I'm looking at these things thinking that it's not even something I could remotely afford. Thanks. -Phil

This thread will serve as a continuation of this thread from over in the 60 series forum. In case you missed it, I essentially have two Land Cruisers in the family that have been sitting unused for many years and I'm thinking about trying to fix one of them up. One is a 1980 FJ40 and the other is a later model FJ60 (I'd mistakenly thought it to be an FJ62 prior to taking a look at it). On that thread, I was asking for advice on which one to pick for the restoration. On this thread, I will post photos that I took (there are actually more but I think these will suffice) and tell some things about the vehicles that I was able to learn. Hopefully y'all can then give me some ideas about how much it would cost to restore each of them to excellent condition. (Oh, and in case you're wondering, I chose to post this thread in the FJ40 area cause I have a feeling the 40's going to be more easily restorable. You can judge for yourselves though.)

Anyway, when I got up there to look at the LCs, I was extremely disappointed. I'm not Land Cruiser expert or anything, but they look to me to be in pretty rough shape. Especially (and surprisingly) the FJ60. I'll start with it...

I'm not sure what the exact year on this 60 is but it's supposedly a later model. We are the second owners and bought it around 1995. It has 180,000 miles on it and probably has not been driven since about 1997. As for what I saw... I saw a lot of rust but I don't know the first thing about rust repair. I'll let the photos speak for themselves. I also saw a lot of damaged interior panels and cracked dashboards which I'm assuming would have to be replaced. Those can't be cheap. Basically, the interior was trashed. Again, I'll let the photos speak for themselves. Looking at this truck, I got the impression that it would require a very extensive restoration to get it in excellent condition.

fj6001.jpg



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(above) Rust on some part of the front right wheel well


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(above) Rust around the entire edge of the roof, also rust and peeled paint on top of the roof; note the dents in the rear doors


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(above) Rust on the rear seat; carpet's trashed too


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(above) Cuts, tears, and holes in the interior panels


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FJ40 info will continue in the following post due to image posting limitations...
 
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This one is probably pretty bad too. I don't know...I'm new to this whole thing. This truck has also been sitting in place for many years. You can tell. But surprisingly, the interior looks to me to be in pretty good condition, at least compared to the FJ60. And here's the neat thing about this truck. We are the original owners, the top has never been off, and the engine only has 80,260 miles on it. Yep. My step-dad took very good care of this truck...up until it was left to sit outside unused for 15+ years (lol). But you know, stuff happens and hindsight is 20x20. I know he'd do it differently if he had the chance. So...oh well.

As for what I saw... The worst rust I could see was on the driver's side rear corner. Strange location seemed like. There was also some around the edges of the door (I could only get to one door due to vegetation) and on the interior around the edges of the roof. Again, I don't know ANYTHING about rust repair so I have no idea if this is a terrible level of rust or if it's fixable. That's what I'm relying on y'all to tell me.

The dash looked to be in good condition. The seats looked good, although they had a lot of what looked like mold on them. Not sure if that can be cleaned up but I'm assuming it could be?

Again, I'll let the photos speak for themselves and then I'll let you guys tell me how big of an undertaking this would be. I would not be doing it myself but would be finding a skilled LC restoration shop to do the work. It very well may be outside my price range. But I had to at least come on here and ask. Thanks for your insight.

fj4001.jpg



fj4002.jpg



fj4003.jpg



fj4004.jpg



fj4005.jpg

(above) Rust around the lip on the roof


fj4006.jpg

(above) Rust on the frame(?) and exhaust


fj4007.jpg

(above) What looks to me to be severe rust on the left rear corner


fj4008.jpg

(above) More rust on the left rear corner


fj4009.jpg

(above) Rust around the door seal


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(above) Rust around the door seal


fj4011.jpg

(above) Door panel looks pretty clean!


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fj4013.jpg

(above) Good looking dash as far as I can tell


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(above) Not really sure what to make of all this


fj4015.jpg

(above) Or this


Thanks again folks.
 
Yank that '40 outta there and get to work. It aint going to be easier next year. It looks like a good place to start. You should look to see if it has factory power steering.

I see some cool parts. The factory white wagons are kinda rare and the inside rollbar pads are really hard to come by.

The carpet could be trouble if it's sat there wet for 15 winters.
 
FJ40 hands down.

The 60 is a beautiful car, but there's way too much damage to non metal parts, interior, etc. The FJ40 looks like its all there.
 
I added this edit to the initial post...

Maybe I wasn't too clear in the initial post. I think it's pretty evident that the FJ40 is in better shape than the FJ60. I imagine that the overwhelming responses are going to be "restore the FJ40". What I'm needing is specific advice on how much it would cost to have each vehicle restored (or, just the FJ40 if you're in favor of that one) and what specifically will need to be done to it. As I describe in my posts, I know nothing about restoration and the rust really scares me...but I know nothing about fixing rust. So please provide as much detail as possible and what will be involved. Because right now, I'm looking at these things thinking that it's not even something I could remotely afford. Thanks. -Phil
 
A full resto could cost between $25 and $50K depending on what you do and where you do it.
If you do it all yourself expect spending about $10 to $16K depending on what may need doing. ie engine rebuild, tranny, xfer case, body replacement. No way to tell unless you pull that thing out of there and see what kind of rot it may have.

My bet is that if the engine is not seized, you could replace all the fluids, fuel lines and put a battery in it, air up the tires and drive it out of there.
 
Take the 40 and have fun with it and get a daily driver gas saver.
 
They both look do-able. I'd try to get both of them running, sell the 60 and use the money to help you on the road to recovery with the 40. The rust seems to be mainly surface rust which is fairly easy to take care of, don't see a whole lot of holes in the body. What does the floor of the 40 look like ? Something sure packed a bunch of nuts in that 60....................good luck.
 
They both look do-able. I'd try to get both of them running, sell the 60 and use the money to help you on the road to recovery with the 40. The rust seems to be mainly surface rust which is fairly easy to take care of, don't see a whole lot of holes in the body. What does the floor of the 40 look like ? Something sure packed a bunch of nuts in that 60....................good luck.

GREAT advice!!!! :wrench:
 
GREAT advice!!!! :wrench:

x2. If it doesn't cost too much to get the 60 running, then sell it and use the money on the 40. I know in the other thread you mentioned that you wanted air conditioning and I think power steering but a rusted out 60 is really not worth much (imho) since you can find rust-free ones for not too much money. On the other hand finding a 1980 fj40 that doesn't have too much rust is a real find and you're the original owner. Try to do as much work on it yourself as possible. That will save a lot of money. Plus what are you going for? Do you want a pristine fj40 as though it just rolled off the factory line or do you just want all the rust holes fixed and something fun to drive? If you don't plan on selling it and are wondering about the limit of your finances, then just fix the rust enough so it doesn't spread and don't worry if it is in factory-original condition. Good luck on your decision!

:beer: Chad
 
Edited to add: Maybe I wasn't too clear in the initial post. I think it's pretty evident that the FJ40 is in better shape than the FJ60. I imagine that the overwhelming responses are going to be "restore the FJ40". What I'm needing is specific advice on how much it would cost to have each vehicle restored (or, just the FJ40 if you're in favor of that one) and what specifically will need to be done to it. As I describe in my posts, I know nothing about restoration and the rust really scares me...but I know nothing about fixing rust. So please provide as much detail as possible and what will be involved. Because right now, I'm looking at these things thinking that it's not even something I could remotely afford. Thanks. -Phil



The reality is that any restoration is going to be expensive :doh:

The rule of thumb is that what ever you think it will cost...triple the amount and that is probably going to get you close to the real cost.

That said, the cost will vary depending on how nice you want the vehicle to look and run, AND how capable you are of doing the work yourself.

If you are looking for specifics in price for the FJ40, I can forward you a price sheet of what we are spending (and anticipating spending) on our rebuild. The list is far from finished but I will be glad to share if you want to drop me an email to fjcruisertrd@gmail.com.

Add to the mix, that not all fj parts are even available any more and you may have to scrounge to find particular parts.

My advice (Hindsight being 20/20), you may be better off pulling both of those out of the weeds and selling/parting them out. Take the earnings and buy a nice FJ that someone else has devoted the time, effort and money into. FJs tend to become a huge money pit and obsession...welcome to the madness...either way ;)

Doc
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so, the 60 was bought in whatever year, and then parked just a couple years later.....make sure it has no extra holes in the engine.

Yeah, I didn't really think about the timeline there. I guess we really didn't have it for very long before it was parked. That's probably my fault. It was supposed to be my first truck when I turned 16 but for whatever reason, I didn't take to it and went with a 1996 F-150 instead. :bang:

They both look do-able. I'd try to get both of them running, sell the 60 and use the money to help you on the road to recovery with the 40.
I don't think I'd be able to afford to get both up and running. What do y'all think I could get for the FJ60 in its current condition?

The rust seems to be mainly surface rust which is fairly easy to take care of, don't see a whole lot of holes in the body. What does the floor of the 40 look like?
Didn't get a look at the 40's floorboard. I'll take a look at that the next time I'm up there which will hopefully be in just a few weeks. I'm also hoping to have the vegetation cut away from the trucks by then. I'm crossing my fingers that the floorboard won't be in too bad of shape, especially since the rest of the body wasn't too bad.

Is the rust on the left rear corner a common thing on LCs? How is that repaired? Is there a Tech Article or Reference section on this forum with step-by-step guides detailing procedures like that?
 
The rust on the corner isn't as common as the bottom seal under the ambulance doors rusting out. One of the first lessons I learned with rust is that it is usually 4-10x worse than you can see. CCOT and several others sell complete rear quarter panels and other sheetmetal and body parts. It is not an easy fix by any means but a shadetree mechanic CAN do it if you are patient and take your time.

IMO, the 60 is only worth money as a parts car for the drivetrain (if it's in decent shape) I wouldn't even attempt to restore it. Too many good ones out there.

And the 40 may be good to restore or just get running and drive and do small restoration projects as you go. The 40 is worth way more than a 60 in a good running condition just based off of the 40 getting much harder to find than a 60
 
Aggiephil,

Collect all those pecans out of the 60 and sell some pecan pies for funds !!

Seriously, pull those vehicles out to an area where you can really get to them. Take pictures of all bad areas, engine bay, interior, and people can give you a better assessment. I would get the 40 running if possible (you need to know history), get the brakes, fluids, lights etc. working properly and drive it. Work on the body as you go along and have time and money. The money part never seems to go away. If the top is in bad shape, take it off and run without the hardtop. Enjoy it while you work on it. Makes it less daunting. Do you have a budget in mind ?
 
Without being able to see under the carpet an assess rot, I have to say that 40 looks like it is in very good shape for starting a project! Appears to be all original and not hacked on.
 
I really appreciate all the advice guys. I know that there's a lot to read in my original post, but there's some good info there that I think some of y'all might have glazed over (my bad for being wordy). The FJ40 only has 80,000 miles on it and we're the original owners. Top has never been removed. It has NOT been dicked with in any way. So...I do agree that it has some potential. I just don't know if it's something MY wallet can handle. I'll try to keep future questions brief (lol)...

Can the stuff all over the seats (which I think might be mold) be cleaned off or will they need some other kind of restoration? What is typically done to seats? I know it'd be a lot easier for me to just try hitting them with some Chlorox Cleanup but I live 200 miles away from this vehicle.
 
Sport that 40 as is. Bust out the chainsaw to get it out of the sticks. clean the carb, change all the fluids, new battery, get some used tires.
 

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