Builds Salt wagon My first fj40 (build) (1 Viewer)

[Roastchestnuts]

I bleieve the engine is from 1971. I gotta double check but I have it written down. Ill post in the morning. I know the holley I put on made a world of difference. it is more drivable for sure. honestly has more get up and go than the fj80 and the kzj78 I had in the past.

Engine: T0504CCC so technically a 307 not a 350? I admitadly dont know much about the chevy engines. its really simple to work on so far and parts seem reasonably priced.
The bell housing is from a 1955 - 58 corvettte kinda cool.

 

[Skreddy]

Engine: T0504CCC so technically a 307 cid
The bell housing is from a 1955 - 58 corvettte kinda cool.

That is a Tonawanda build plant, built May, 4th. CCC denotes it is a 307 from a 71 Chevelle/Camaro/monte Carlo with a 2 barrel carb and powerglide transmission. Originally rated at 200hp. I had a suspicion it was a 307 for some reason. I’ve had a couple 307’s in Camaros and Chevelles. They were a low compression “economical” V8. They actually respond really well to a edelbrock intake and a quadrajet carb. The things to watch for on 307’s is the cams can be soft and they can lose a lobe. They also have a nylon coated timing gear that can get real sloppy. A cam/lifter and timing set change is good preventive maintenance, but absolutely not necessary unless you see signs of potential failure. I usually use a cheap summit cam with a quadrajet: I have numerous burnout videos to show this performs well….
Sorry for the long post. In short: 307 isn’t bad. They make more power than a lot of small blocks from the mid 70’s on.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

That is a Tonawanda build plant, built May, 4th. CCC denotes it is a 307 from a 71 Chevelle/Camaro/monte Carlo with a 2 barrel carb and powerglide transmission. Originally rated at 200hp. I had a suspicion it was a 307 for some reason. I’ve had a couple 307’s in Camaros and Chevelles. They were a low compression “economical” V8. They actually respond really well to a edelbrock intake and a quadrajet carb. The things to watch for on 307’s is the cams can be soft and they can lose a lobe. They also have a nylon coated timing gear that can get real sloppy. A cam/lifter and timing set change is good preventive maintenance, but absolutely not necessary unless you see signs of potential failure. I usually use a cheap summit cam with a quadrajet: I have numerous burnout videos to show this performs well….
Sorry for the long post. In short: 307 isn’t bad. They make more power than a lot of small blocks from the mid 70’s on.

I read up on some of the cam lob issues and a little bit on the 307 this morning when I figured it out. Any thing I can look out for signs of this type of failer? valve noise ect? Also stupid question but should I throw any zinc additives when I do an oil change? From what I have read its a pretty reliable engine witch is good for a land cruiser. and honestly I like the economy part with gas prices these days. Maybe this summer Ill throw in some lifters and a new cam when I do the intake. Looking at rebuilt block prices (out of curiosity) made me feel better about a chevy engine in there! soo much cheeper than even a fresh 3rz toyota.

Thanks!

 

[Skreddy]

I’ve had 3 cam failures in Chevy engines. All were on exhaust lobes and started backfiring through the carb. If it starts getting a really lumpy idle for no reason, it’s good to check it out. You can pull the valve covers and crank the engine over and see if any rocker arms aren’t moving as far as the rest.
As for additives, I just run valve line VR1 in everything now and no additives. There’s other oils that are likely just as good. I wouldn’t stress too much over the cam going bad. I don’t think the failure rate is near as high as people make it seem. I lost 1 307 cam out of 3 307’s I’ve had and it was a very high mileage and abused engine.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

I’ve had 3 cam failures in Chevy engines. All were on exhaust lobes and started backfiring through the carb. If it starts getting a really lumpy idle for no reason, it’s good to check it out. You can pull the valve covers and crank the engine over and see if any rocker arms aren’t moving as far as the rest.
As for additives, I just run valve line VR1 in everything now and no additives. There’s other oils that are likely just as good. I wouldn’t stress too much over the cam going bad. I don’t think the failure rate is near as high as people make it seem. I lost 1 307 cam out of 3 307’s I’ve had and it was a very high mileage and abused engine.

Thanks for the info! I will now come to you If I ever have some engine questions. I want to pull the valve covers this winter just to inspect everything. So ill check the rockers on the exhaust valves. But the engine seems to run great with the new carb. Smoother and it idles good. I am pretty sure the old carb could have been original to the engine. I do need to adjust/get a new choke cable though. I choke is sticking because of the cable. But thats not a difficult fix.

I was thinking I would change out the engine at some point but the more research I do the more I am like Humm the parts are cheep, reliability and I saw some people claiming 18mpg or better with this engine...... dont know if thats true but anything better than that 3fe I had in my fj80 (10 -12mpg) will be great.

 

[Grayscale]

The J80's 3FE engine had to do more work; the Cruiser it was bolted to weighed over 5,000k?

 

[Roastchestnuts]

The J80's 3FE engine had to do more work; the Cruiser it was bolted to weighed over 5,000k?

The model I had did not have an over drive transmission. From my understanding that was pretty rare though. it was what they call a poverty pack spec one. no sun roof or 3rd row. Made the driving experience pretty dreadful! The flip side is I liked that engine (for simplicity) much more than the engine that came in 1993. Seems like less head gasket issues too.

 

[pb4ugo]

You can put a vacuum gauge on it. After tuning the engine and the vacuum needle shakes at idle, it is good an indication there is worn valvetrain components. In my experience most people lie about the fuel mileage they get. With that said, I started tuning for mileage. I've never cared to do that b4. Recently, My 1st step was to check and recurved my distributor, so mechanical advance was pretty much all in at the RPM's I run at highway speed. It netted me about 2mpg's from where it was originally. I'm still playing with it. Once that's dialed in, I will go on to my next experiment. It's a stk 350 w/4bbl, nv4500 & 33" tires.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

I got the fuel gage working. I still need to clean up the wiring a little but its nice that it works now. It I am happy that it was just wiring that was making it not work. I filled it up and it went to full from half a tank. So the sender is at least working from a half a tank to full. we will see. So I have an amp meter, a fuel gage, speedometer, odometer and temp gage that work as of now.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Todays goals after work: I want to install the rear bumperetts that I purchased. and I want to see if the parking break works. I noticed while I was under the dash that the cable was not connected to the parking break plunger leaver. It needs a pin or bolt or somthing through it ti connect it. The cable is new and I am hoping that its just not connected. I have a parking break rebuild kit if it is not working. I actually have two rebuild kits. (was sent two). Weekend project: replace the rear wheel cylinders and break pads. I will take some pictures when I get off work of all I have done. Its been tough with getting off work at 3:30 and it gets dark at 5. Right now no garage for me. its the future plan though.

 

[iam_turner]

Nice cruiser man! It’ll be fun and encouraging watching you build yours out to where you want it.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Yesterday I attached the parking break cable to the handle. However I am wondering if anybody out there on mud knows what the correct pin or bolt size is for that? Additionally I pulled the driver door off to start replacing the weather stripping. OMG what a pain in the a... (I knew it would be though.) I do have questions. I am 99% sure I don't have the correct vent window weather stripping as my vent window does not close properly and it just does not look right. it fits the space but not the window itself. I have the early bug catcher style vent window. Below is a picture of the weather stripping I had semi installed. at a certain point I realized it was incorrect. The door weather stripping came with the fj40 when I purchased it. No harm foul. I saw @cruiseroutfit Might have correct aftermarket ones. is this correct for my year: https://cruiserteq.com/bugcatcher-vent-window-weatherstrip-kit-fits-1958-1967-2x-4x-bugcatcher-style-vent-window-applications-wsbugckit/

Here is some other pictures: pulled the door apart. glad I did some rust was finding its way in there. I sprayed some converter to stop it. I pulled the old felts in and installed new ones. I imagine because they are rubber now and not just felt but they were really hard to install.

new rubber gaskets. and the fuzzy thing on the other side. I dropped like three of those little metal clips inside the door.

A picture of the passenger gaskets for reference. They were not really even there. Crumbly things.

Then I realized I had not posted a photo of the factory bumper I installed. It does not match the patina but I like it. I will eventually put the original hood hinges back on but I am going to refurbish them first. they seem a little more beefy and slightly different than these oem ones I put on. One of the pins on the originals was broken. I also installed some mirrors. I like having the passenger one. I dont know if it ever had a facory passenger rear view mirror though.

 

[Grayscale]

Yes, we are using that part from Cruiser Outfitters / Cruiser Teq for those early door vent-windows.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Yes, we are using that part from Cruiser Outfitters / Cruiser Teq for those early door vent-windows.

Thanks! I think the weather stripping I got was for the other style vent windows even though it was for the same year. Idk I did not purchase it but still stinks it does not fit. The back of my mind knew they didn't fit.

 

[Green Bean]

Yesterday I attached the parking break cable to the handle. However I am wondering if anybody out there on mud knows what the correct pin or bolt size is for that? Additionally I pulled the driver door off to start replacing the weather stripping. OMG what a pain in the a... (I knew it would be though.) I do have questions. I am 99% sure I don't have the correct vent window weather stripping as my vent window does not close properly and it just does not look right. it fits the space but not the window itself. I have the early bug catcher style vent window. Below is a picture of the weather stripping I had semi installed. at a certain point I realized it was incorrect. The door weather stripping came with the fj40 when I purchased it. No harm foul. I saw @cruiseroutfit Might have correct aftermarket ones. is this correct for my year: https://cruiserteq.com/bugcatcher-vent-window-weatherstrip-kit-fits-1958-1967-2x-4x-bugcatcher-style-vent-window-applications-wsbugckit/
View attachment 3173420
Here is some other pictures: pulled the door apart. glad I did some rust was finding its way in there. I sprayed some converter to stop it. I pulled the old felts in and installed new ones. I imagine because they are rubber now and not just felt but they were really hard to install.
View attachment 3173425
new rubber gaskets. and the fuzzy thing on the other side. I dropped like three of those little metal clips inside the door.

View attachment 3173426
A picture of the passenger gaskets for reference. They were not really even there. Crumbly things.
View attachment 3173427
Then I realized I had not posted a photo of the factory bumper I installed. It does not match the patina but I like it. I will eventually put the original hood hinges back on but I am going to refurbish them first. they seem a little more beefy and slightly different than these oem ones I put on. One of the pins on the originals was broken. I also installed some mirrors. I like having the passenger one. I dont know if it ever had a facory passenger rear view mirror though.
View attachment 3173428

Everything looks really great. Agree that installing those little tiny pesky retainer pins for the window wipers is a real pain (literally). Keep up the good work.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Everything looks really great. Agree that installing those little tiny pesky retainer pins for the window wipers is a real pain (literally). Keep up the good work.

Thanks! and yeah I ended up having to tip the door upside down to get them out.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Nice cruiser man! It’ll be fun and encouraging watching you build yours out to where you want it.

Thanks! I am loving it!

 

[Roastchestnuts]

My Fiance and I took a beach ride this morning! it was cold! thankfully I connected the heater hoses back up!

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Some projects for after Thanksgiving (these could last till summer haha):

Immediate projects:

1. I have all new wheel cylinders to install front and back with break pads.
2. I am hoping to re install the rear hatch soon.
3. I am going to start measuring and mocking up templates for my patch panels. I will work on welding them in along with the rear sill and sill cover over my Christmas break (I am an art teacher). I am thinking I will need some new body mounts for the rear as well. will Re install the rear tire mount at this point.
4. do the bug catcher window gaskets.
5. passenger door felts and weather stripping.

Fixes/ projects that can wait but will do eventually:
1. Seats. I really want to find the front passenger bench style seats. I dont know if I am willing to have them shipped quite yet. (1000$) I am hoping I can find the seat frames in NC at some point. Then have them maybe reupholstered. I actually have the lower part of the frame for the passenger part.
2. I really want to put some sort of soft top on it for the summer. Living at the beach this will be really nice. I have sorta a vision of driving on the beach with the top off and windshield folded down.
3. New intake. Maybe new cam and lifters.
4. Heater. I got the one that was in the 40 working just by connecting the heater hoses back up to the block. However the heater is very noisy (probibly from factory) I am pretty sure this truck had the heater installed at the dealer. I am not sure what I want to do. I know I would like to have a shut off valve actuated by a cable in the dash. I like the vintage air heater.
5. a knuckle rebuild. Its not leaking or anything yet just some PM

 

[middlecalf]

JP’s @ClemsonCruiser a bit south of you, maybe he can help with seats/parts. No rivalry I’m sure .