Searching For An 80

[MJADDICTION]

I've been spending alot of time on here, and Slee. I've decided that an 80 is what I need, still love the 60's though too.

Here is what I thnk I want to look for;

-95 to 97 FZJ 80 no more than 150,000 miles
-I want to have the dif locks
-want sunroof

What I wil use it for;

-Daily Driving, not much off-roading the first year. although I will have to test it out when I get it...
-Camping, carrying bikes, and cannoe

Questions;

#1-What are the differences between the FJ and the FZJ?
#2-I need to tow a boat that weighs about 6000lbs up a 15 to 20% grade from a dead stop, 1 time per year. Will I be able to do this without stuffing too much of the seat cushion up my arse? (read: last thing I want is to be stuck on a steep grade with a 6000 lb. boat behind me and my family inside)
#3-Are all FZJ 95 up full time 4x4's?
#4-From reading, these seem to be really reliable all the way through the 200,000 mile mark. I'm going to spend the time looking for a clean well maintained 80. SO... do y'all feel safe driving long trips with 150 or greater on the clock?
#5- any trouble getting these to pass emisions?

That's what I've got in my head for now. Thanks in advance for the replies.... and thanks for being patient with me, during my rehab...

 

[woody]

#1-What are the differences between the FJ and the FZJ?

biggie the motor...FJ is 91-92 only, 93+ is FZJ...you don't want the FJ...

#2-I need to tow a boat that weighs about 6000lbs up a 15 to 20% grade from a dead stop, 1 time per year. Will I be able to do this without stuffing too much of the seat cushion up my arse? (read: last thing I want is to be stuck on a steep grade with a 6000 lb. boat behind me and my family inside)

I tow a 5500#ish trailer behind my 1996 FZJ with 153k on it....9500 miles total in 2005, and 3000ish so far in 2006. That IS a heck of a grade tho, what kind of speeds do you need? You may end up with a low range tow...dead stop with that grade may not work with high...

#3-Are all FZJ 95 up full time 4x4's?

all 91-97's are fulltime, period

#4-From reading, these seem to be really reliable all the way through the 200,000 mile mark. I'm going to spend the time looking for a clean well maintained 80. SO... do y'all feel safe driving long trips with 150 or greater on the clock?

see above, I push mine REALLY hard, more than most, and consider it 100% reliable. Try wheelin it from 9a until 2p on a Saturday, airing up the tires/bags, hooking a 5500# trailer behind it, and towing 850 miles home (3 hours sleep, home at 7:30a on Sunday...lol) I'll be towin at least another...mmm...4000 miles with it this year (2xIN, MO, WI, MN...mmm...)

 

[MJADDICTION]

Thanks, Woody.

How do you like the cepeks?

The climb is about 300 yards. Speed? well it just has to get up the hill. Speed doesn't matter, just don't want to rip apart the tranny on a 10 Y/O 150,000 mile truck. Once I'm at the top, I have a mile to go for the boats dry winter storage.

I've had to do the low range crawl with my F-150 on 35's with stock gears. That has a 5.4 V-8, and a super chips programmer. It would make it in 2H but I'm afraid to push the tranny that hard. I have 4:56's for the Ford, but since I'm sellin', I'll leave that to the new owner.

How well do the Yota tranny's hold up? have you had any trouble out of yours? do you have an aftermarket cooler for the tranny? do you run a Tranny temp guage?

What kind of price range should I look at for a 95-97 FZJ with 150,000 on the clock?

Thanks for all the info.

 

[woody]

I've had zero tranny issues....other than Amsoil, it's 100% stock...cooler and all. 300 yards in low is no biggie, I wouldn't even try high for that short distance...no reason to push things...

no temp gauge other than the stock idiot light...it's never come on, so it may not even work...lol

check the Vehicle sale corner for price ranges....mine was $11k with 115k on the clock, bone stock, TX rig, factory lockers.

I like the Cepek's but won't do them again...bit too much rolling resistance for mileage and they aren't as quiet as I'd prefer....likely Nitto TG's next time...but at the rate these are wearing (nicely), it'll be another two years before that happens....

 

[MJADDICTION]

Thanks, Woody

 

[Grench]

300 yards in low range pulling 6K at a 20 degree grade? Make sure you do a serious flush & fill on the coolant system right after you buy it. A lot of these trucks have some nasty sludge in that mileage range.

Something else to consider is that your tongue weight on a 6,000 lb boat is going to be substantial. US spec '80s have a REAL soft set of springs on them. If your tongue weight is in the 500-600lb range you're going to be doing wheelies up that hill. Did you have a load distributing hitch on your truck for it? The stock hitch on an '80 isn't rated for load distributing hitch. DrawTite makes an aftermarket that is though. Moving the weight forward to the front wheels will give you additional traction on that climb too.

 

[MJADDICTION]

Ford has a stock hitch. Tongue weight is right at 350 pounds with a dual axle trailer.

Flush is a good idea? Or do y'all recommend drain and fill? Unless there are proven changes, I always thought a flush was bad for auto trannies. School me on the cruiser please.

I think I may just get someone at the dock to haul it for me if it's not up to the pull. That is a hell of a hill. The exit from the boat parking is set-up to allow the non towing vehicles right of way. I really don't understand it. If I didn't have to stop, I could get a good starting 35mph run for it.

Thanks...

 

[KliersLC]

Run the stop sign....

 

[Grench]

With the 350# tongue on stock springs you should be fine. The back end will sag an inch or two, but not badly.

I changed all of the coolant hoses in my grey one last year. When I dropped the lower fat hose a big glob of slime fell out into the pan. Over the years as pervious owners add incompatable coolants to 'top it off' or tap water, the impurities condense into this gunk. I think you would find a similar situation with any older truck. The 80s have fairly narrow channels in the stock radiator and this can be problematic. There are lots of threads here that go into detail what fixes different people have applied. Everything from flush and fill through replacing the radiator. Since you're going low speeds higher RPM (low gear) then you're going to want to make sure the radiator is working right and check the fan clutch.

The vehicle is more than adequate for the pull if you use the low range gearing in the transfer case. Especially if you keep stock tires on it. Smaller tires give you more torque where the rubber hits the road.

Using low range takes away a lot of the strain on the transmission. I'm not worried about it (trany) in this scenario.

The main disadvantage in doing this is probably that you will have to stop for a moment after you climb the hill, shift into neutral (foot on brake), shift the transfer case from low to high, then you're off to wherever. If you're only going 300 yards, you don't have to exceede 15mph and can leave it in low until you have the boat parked where you want it.

One more note about using the low range on the trany in this situation. Spend the $50-$70 for the Center Differential Switch (CDL) and then do the 'pin 7 modification'. (There are threads about it.) This will alow you to run in low range without the center diff locking. The advantage is that you won't have any wind up on hard surfaces (like boat ramps) if you turn while pulling. Toyota, knowing that Americans are idiots, made the center diff lock automatically engage when the vehicle is put into low range on the transfer case. Handy in straight line pulls, but not so good in maneuvering/backing a trailer. Being able to turn the CDL off when you're ready to steer is handy.

Oh, and as a general rule with any 80 series purchase, take the wheels off right away and inspect the brakes. These things eat front brake pads about every 12-15K.

Don't think I'm anti-cruiser. We own two '96s with 112K and 120K on them. We plan to drive them until my sons turn 16 and then they'll get them. My boys are 4.5 now. They truly are the best built vehicles I've ever owned or seen.

 

[MJADDICTION]

Thanks for all the info.

LC, never fails, I go to run the stop sign, and here comes granny from the dock restaurante with a belly full of catfish...

I can drive straight on the hill to a point to pull it out of Low Range. I don't mind stopping even if someone is behind me. Then continue another half mile to winter storage.

I'm going to stay stock with the 80 for a year. Then I'll do gears and tires, lift etc.

 

[NorCalDoug]

the only thing I can add is...

if you notice the temp guage moving at all above it's normal spot -- just a hair under the half-way point on mine -- you should flush the cooling system, replace the fan clutch, and/or radiator...

I'd go in that order, one at a time to determine the cause.

I did all three and have had no heating/cooling issues while towing since then.