Should I Trade My 60 For a 55?

Should I ditch my 60 and get an Iron Pig?

  • Hell yes. Iron pigs are the best.

    Votes: 8 50.0%

  • Yes, but absolutely not for a daily driver.

    Votes: 5 31.3%

  • No. You'll probably regret it.

    Votes: 3 18.8%
  • Total voters
    16

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FishTown

FishTown

TLCA Member #29560
10 Year 15 Year
Joined
Jul 19, 2010
Threads
137
Messages
1,385
Location
New Braunfels, TX
I've had 55 lust recently and I'm contemplating trading/selling my daily driver FJ60 for an FJ55. I know parts are going to be hard to find. I'm already comfortable working on my 2F, so I imagine not much will change there. And I would probably consider a V8 swap into it anyways.

What say ye?
 
I voted “Yes, but absolutely not for a daily driver” unless you have deep pockets. My 55 is my daily driver and having just sent my taxes off I got a firsthand look at the Toyota asset line and what I spent last year to keep this pig running and driving dependably.

I may be at one extreme end but the question my accountant asked was “what makes you want to spend the cost of two brand new full size trucks to drive an old Toyota that you always have to work on” and I couldn’t honestly give an answer that would even remotely make sense to an accountant so I just shrugged my shoulders and smiled. :meh:



Good luck!
 
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I'd consider that kind of a trade if the 55 was pre 76. The smog thing is absolutely the worst thing to live with in California when you have an old cantankerous wagon.
 
Cruiserdrew said:
I'd consider that kind of a trade if the 55 was pre 76. The smog thing is absolutely the worst thing to live with in California when you have an old cantankerous wagon.
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Being in San Antonio, TX I do not have to worry about smog inspections. So, that's a non-issue for me.
 
J Mack said:
I voted “Yes, but absolutely not for a daily driver” unless you have deep pockets. My 55 is my daily driver and having just sent my taxes off I got a firsthand look at the Toyota asset line and what I spent last year to keep this pig running and driving dependably.

I may be at one extreme end but the question my accountant asked was “what’s makes you want to spend the cost of two brand new full size trucks to drive and old Toyota that you always have to work on” and I couldn’t honestly give an answer that would even remotely make sense to an accountant so I just shrugged my shoulders and smiled. :meh:



Good luck!
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The same could be said about the FJ60. I am far from having deep pockets - I lucked out with an FJ60 that had a new 2F short block and H55f trans put it in 2005 along with tons of maintenance records. I've saved thousands of dollars performing some additional maintenance work myself. It would be nice to have a second vehicle for the times I've got it under the knife, which is something else I'm considering as well.
 
bobm said:
How far do you drive?. Mines a DD but I don't go far. Except June week of 19th :pig::pig::pig:
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It's about 16 miles round trip every day to work. Add in trips to the hardware store and the occasional 1-2 hour drive for camping/fishing trips and the very rare 5-10 drive for real camping/off roading.
 
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And for anyone interested in such a trade here's Shirley.

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Not me. For DD keep the 60. It's the last true good looking Cruiser and it is plush as was said earlier in comparison.

Keep the 60, buy a project 55
 
IMHO the 60 is far better suited for a modern daily driver than the 55 by design from Toyota.

The 55 was built more as a pure no frills utilitarian vehicle without much thought given to driver comfort, highway speeds or longevity to the shell if driven daily in varying road conditions like “wet roads”. Just to get the 55 where a 60 starts in these categories is no small task in both time and money if everything else was equal, most of us have updated the running gear to at a minimum some combo of 60 and 55 parts like transfer cases, brakes and axles, window and door rubber is almost always deteriorated beyond usable in a 55 and often times cost one and a half times the purchase price of the car to replace.

I’m not trying to encourage or discourage, just passing along some facts that I wish I was aware of before I got in so deep with my project. Hind sight a 60 would have been a better vehicle albeit not nearly as cool for my needs.
 
I'd also like to say, I'm totally fine with not having a plush ride. There are a lot of people in the 60 Tech section that think I'm crazy for DD'ing a 60. Maybe I'll just have to wait for the 60 values to go up even more, that way I can trade for a 55 that "has it all." Or maybe I'll just keep the 60. Or not. Who knows.

This is the definition of being on the fence. Keep the comments coming. Let's see some iron pig pics so I can dream more.
 
Do you have another vehicle to drive while you work on the 55? If not, look for a high end one already done., not cheap! From the picture, you've got a great looking 60. 60s are too modern looking for me, but man she's already to go with the H55, etc. It takes a lot of time along with the money thing, so don't plan on using it for a while.
 
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J Mack said:
IMHO the 60 is far better suited for a modern daily driver than the 55 by design from Toyota.

The 55 was built more as a pure no frills utilitarian vehicle without much thought given to driver comfort, highway speeds or longevity to the shell if driven daily in varying road conditions like “wet roads”. Just to get the 55 where a 60 starts in these categories is no small task in both time and money if everything else was equal, most of us have updated the running gear to at a minimum some combo of 60 and 55 parts like transfer cases, brakes and axles, window and door rubber is almost always deteriorated beyond usable in a 55 and often times cost one and a half times the purchase price of the car to replace.

I’m not trying to encourage or discourage, just passing along some facts that I wish I was aware of before I got in so deep with my project. Hind sight a 60 would have been a better vehicle albeit not nearly as cool for my needs.
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I second everything J Mack said here. The 60s are far more advanced. I cherish my Papa Smurf for what he is, a great looking off-roader from a bygone era, not a DD. But that may be exactly why it has the Thumbs Up factor. That being said, I drive the hell out of my pig. Its suitability as a DD really depends on your lifestyle.
 
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Hank Tank said:
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I second everything J Mack said here. The 60s are far more advanced. I cherish my Papa Smurf for what he is, a great looking off-roader from a bygone era, not a DD. But that may be exactly why it has the factor. That being said, I drive the hell out of my pig. Its suitability as a DD really depends on your lifestyle.
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