Builds Sentimental Restoration of Family 1990 FJ62 (1 Viewer)

[LCnAZ]

At $55 prime shipped I dont know that I would really consider that overly expensive. I usually go through the Costco ones about every year and those are about $20ish. So if this last more than a couple years then it is worth the money.

And much like anything else that fits our beloved LCs well, things are not necessarily "cheap".

Interesting. You need to give it a review so that peeps know its a real product. Looks like foamboard and vinyl and mylar. How sturdy does it feel along the folds?

Glenn in Marana

It is foamboard and such. The folds are stitched. Can you beat these up if you don't care for them? You bet. I can speak for durability under my care, but not yours. If the utility of your vehicle makes it unlikely you can kind of protect these, they are not a good choice. The rigid structure does make it a bit awkward to stow when folded up. That's when they can get beaten up. We've had them for four years or so in three of our vehicles. The one in my wife's '04 Sequoia is a bit beaten up. The ones in my '16 Sequoia and FJ62 are in excellent condition. My wife trashes automobiles. That's why she'll never have a new one. She just doesn't take care of them or their contents. Although all of us are likely the type that care for things, these are utility vehicles, and we are often rough and tumble in them. Risk/benefit analysis required.

Foamboard R-value is very good compared to the floppy stuff. It also assures excellent fit and coverage.

I don't think Mylar is used, but...Mylar like a Space Blanket is incredibly tough. Very difficult to tear it.

 

[LCnAZ]

Counting down days until refinish is complete. Looking good here from final work this week. Note the wet floor from the color sanding. The peculiar color on the sides is due to an unusual amount of red in the lights illuminating the sides. It appears that the camera white balanced closest to the light from the front. It has to be rather green in reality to force the others to have so much magenta in them. Camera tech talk.

 

[LCnAZ]

Oops, I was mistaken. It has not been color sanded yet...or at least it hadn't been when these photos were taken.

 

[Trapper50cal]

They laid that down well...

Looks good!

 

[LCnAZ]

It might complete color sanding this weekend, but the tech won't know until late tomorrow (Saturday).

 

[Michael Hanson]

What brand of paint did you go with ? Mike

 

[tucson_sailors]

Whats the color. Looks like a nice dark champagne, wondering if you have the factory code for it?

Glenn in Marana

 

[LCnAZ]

What brand of paint did you go with ? Mike

I don't know the brand of paint that was used. I'll find out if you like. I left that to the tech since he's been at the body shop that we've used for a long time. They guarantee their work forever (a USAA requirement for "5-star" certification), so I suspect it's good quality material that he's using.

Whats the color. Looks like a nice dark champagne, wondering if you have the factory code for it?

Glenn in Marana

It is the OEM color metallic beige 4G8. The color in the photo is an attractive illusion due to the differing color of lights and the white balance of the camera. It's kind of a taupe in the light on the sides.

 

[LCnAZ]

A little bit of disappointment today in that I won't get the vehicle for a few more days...but the logic/motivation is sound. The tech says that the finish has not cured hard enough yet to color/wet sand. He says he can still make an impression in the surface with a thumbnail. He says that it needs to cure completely before color sanding. I appreciate that attention to detail. So it's sitting out in the warm autumn Arizona sun today.

 

[Michael Hanson]

I wish all painters cared that much instead of just getting it out the door. Mike

 

[tonka az]

Your truck is gorgeous! It looks like you're going in the opposite order I'm going with mine. Look up my build! My truck has a sentimental value as well. Too bad you're in north Mexico.... (go Devils!)

 

[LCnAZ]

Your truck is gorgeous! It looks like you're going in the opposite order I'm going with mine. Look up my build! My truck has a sentimental value as well. Too bad you're in north Mexico.... (go Devils!)

Hahaha. My wife in in mourning. Actually she's pissed! We were a the TSO SW (Tucson Symphony Orchestra Star Wars) concert instead of the game, so she learned via her phone during intermission of the final score. Her's was not pleasant company on the way home.

It went the "opposite" order due to the fact that everything to follow depended on the success of this step. If this step failed, everything else could be aborted.

 

[tonka az]

Ya, I went the order I did due to order of failure. First, she was overheating. Threw in an aluminum radiator. Still overheating. Found the head was cracked, and during that found two cylinders scored. Therefore, rebuild. And, after 315,000 miles, it was time. Torque converter went, new pump, trans rebuild, and cooler. Steering was slushy, and tired of the rough ride- OME's, 33's, and rebuilt the box. Trans pump went, replaced it. Trans pump went again, ripped out the whole damn A440 and threw in an H55f. Greatest decision of my life. Now, I have a hole in the carpet where the old shifter was- interior resto. After that, paint.

 

[LCnAZ]

Ya, I went the order I did due to order of failure. First, she was overheating. Threw in an aluminum radiator. Still overheating. Found the head was cracked, and during that found two cylinders scored. Therefore, rebuild. And, after 315,000 miles, it was time. Torque converter went, new pump, trans rebuild, and cooler. Steering was slushy, and tired of the rough ride- OME's, 33's, and rebuilt the box. Trans pump went, replaced it. Trans pump went again, ripped out the whole damn A440 and threw in an H55f. Greatest decision of my life. Now, I have a hole in the carpet where the old shifter was- interior resto. After that, paint.

Makes good sense. Did you do the H55 conversion yourself? That's a bigger task than I can tackle. I'm planning on sending this one to Georg's after the first of the year.

 

[tonka az]

No, I had Tom, formerly of Camelback Toyota, now at Desert Toy Shop in Mesa, do it. All Tom works on are FJ40's, 60's, 62's, and 80's. He has been the one working on my truck and my dad's 83 Toyota SR5 pickup for years. I can't be more pleased with the conversion. Seriously, best decision ever. Its a completely different truck. No more sluggish acceleration, weak torque, fear of the slightest hills, etc. I went through CruiserParts.net for the conversion kit and Camelback Toyota for the transmission. It basically had everything I needed for the conversion. Other than the crossmember needing minor modifications, transfer case shifter needing to be trimmed, and some sweet talking to the transfer case to bolt to the H55, it was pretty straight forward, per Tom.

 

[LCnAZ]

Got another part...while the getting is good. Gotta start somewhere on that conversion.

 

[LCnAZ]

Here is an update.

I sort of got the vehicle back this past weekend. The painter buffer-burned a spot on the hood, so he pulled it and shot it again Saturday. I took the vehicle home Sunday...without the hood. The hood needs several days to cure before polishing.

I brought the vehicle home to inspect the paint job. 95% of it looks terrific...but there are significant oversights that will require it to return. There are maybe 15 spots or areas that were not polished well. Most of these are things like too much orange peel compared to the rest of the vehicle, but especially a nearby adjacent area. There are a few clear coat runs...mostly very small. The back hatch had the most problems. It is a mess. I marked all the spots with tape and a note.

To the painter's credit, he came over after work yesterday and we went over all of these. I told him I understood that these were overlooked; that we know he is human and that his is not the Lamborghini shop. He did think he might have to shoot the back hatch again, but everything else he is confident he can touch up and polish out. He photographed all sides of the vehicle so that he could see all the taped spots, then I carefully removed all the tape so that didn't damage the finish.

The vehicle returns to the shop early Saturday morning for the work over the weekend. The vehicle may have to return a week later to polish the rear hatch, presuming it has to be shot again.

I understand that this cannot be the perfect factory finish. I'm not sure that is possible at any price. There will still be the tiny imperfection here and there. My goal is just make sure that there is not a suddenly glaring bad area next to a gloriously excellent area.

Another headache to solve is also a product of the painting task. The painter removed all four belt mouldings...and most of the clips broke. So I'm spending a lot of research time to find a solution for that.

By the way, the gutter sealing job looks excellent! Photos later.

The front BMW seats are in, but not powered yet. I powered them just long enough to initially adjust. Lord they are comfortable! I now have the leg room I could only have dreamed of all these years before. But...there is now no hope for a rear passenger's leg room if I'm driving. It also lowered my seating height so that I can now use the OEM rear view mirror.

In a week, I'll have an update with photos...presuming all goes well.

 

[86aggie]

Words can't convey how comfortable the BMW seats are.

 

[tucson_sailors]

Words can't convey how comfortable the BMW seats are.

I can concur that replacing the seats makes a world of difference. I put Izuzu Rodeo (I know, non-OEM and an evil competitor) and it was amazing. Biggest problem is it sits so much higher that the OEM stock that were broke down that I now have to worry about bashing my head on the doorframe getting in.

As for the rear seat...hmm...pick small passengers?

Glenn in Marana

 

[LCnAZ]

Hobbits, Munchkiins and the like.