The (2nd to) Last Hurrah... a 2007 HZJ105 - 'Missus White'

[John Young]

So will you attempt to import this truck to the US? Man that'd be interesting

The basic idea is to use this as my primary driver here in Dubai until I retire--a couple of years from now. Then register the truck in Canada with a friend who lives there and use it during summer months to explore Canada and Alaska during the first few years of retirement. I like the comfort of the 100 series and while I may do some camping, most likely it will be a lot of airBnB and motels. By the time I can import to the US under the 25 year rule I probably won't want to do so much long distance exploring anyways. I've never spent time in Canada and I'd like to do a fair amount during summer months. Indoor heated storage can be had for about 1200 USD per year so that's the key element of this 'plan'.

I've always wanted one of these, especially a diesel one. I've seen a couple of them here but only 2007. And this one is especially nice in that it only has 200k km and it was a government vehicle so it saw normal maintenance. And it has power windows, which I like.

It is also possible to bring Canadian vehicles into the US for up to 30 days.

 

[John Young]

Just to briefly update those who might be interested, the mechanical work is almost done. The biggest hurdle is the radiator. The original factory was leaking from the top tank. No new OEM was available strangely--supposedly it is the same radiator as is used on the 1FZ 100 which is very common in the UAE and region.

I initially tried to buy an aluminum radiator on amazon.ae but the wrong one came.

I then went to a radiator shop I've used before for 80 and 70 series heater cores that said they could make one but even though they had the original radiator the new one came back with the mounting bosses in the wrong place and the bottom catches for the shroud not long enough, and the pipe from the bottom of the radiator not long enough for the hose going to the engine block. I took an afternoon off work and took it all back to the shop, including the shroud this time, and it still came back looking poorly and without the extension we asked for on the pipe at the bottom of the radiator.

We don't know what this little tab is for. They were supposed to extend the outlet pipe.

The other thing that bothered me when I saw the radiator in person was that some of the fins were a little bent. Just sort of rough handling marks. This is a new radiator. I asked the staff at the mechanics whether they had done that but they said it came that way. I asked the owner if I should make an issue of it and he said it would not affect operation so I left that issue alone. It still did bother me though.

As I said, I have used these guys before and been very happy with their work, but I really don't understand what has happened with this radiator. The latest is that they are going to try one more time. I know they can do a great job. In their office they have examples of really fantastic custom radiator and semi truck oil coolers. So I am crossing my fingers.

 

[John Young]

So will you attempt to import this truck to the US? Man that'd be interesting

Eventually. In 2032. Assuming I am still around and capable of safely operating a motor vehicle. In the meantime I intend to use it as a daily here. Even after retirement I may come back and forth to the Middle East for offroad and for parts hunting. I do enjoy it here. The diesel 105 with barn doors has been something I've been lusting after for a long time. My 1998 100, Dhanno, has been my favorite car to drive of all time.

 

[John Young]

Progress! About 3700 USD in parts (4100 counting the new radiator) and a like amount in (very) skilled labor costs and ... it was ready for testing so that I could then export the vehicle from Abu Dhabi to Dubai!

The first step was to get the truck to the steam cleaners before testing. The shop owner advised that it is really worth it to do that before sending for inspection. The inspectors dislike dirty undersides.

My flatbed truck driver (who I use all the time) was a bit delayed and it took more time for the cleaning than expected. He made it to the testing center 3 minutes before the testing center would close for the afternoon. They post 3 pm (Ramadan hours), but they shut down the computers at 2:30 on the dot. My 105 got there at 2:25. What do do... I had called the Road and Transport Authority and earlier in the day and confirmed that a center in Sharjah would be open all day so I asked Mohammed to take the truck there (about 70 minutes away). He said ok and started off but then called me to say that traffic was really getting bad and couldn't we find a close place... It was a 'Doh!' moment. After he and I called around we found that the big center next to Mall of the Emirates was also open all day, and that was only 20 minutes away.

This is where things kinda fell apart... It turns out that the clerk at the check-in forgot that diesels only go to line 6. Here we ware in line 4. We had to back out through dozens of vehicles to get into the right position. Then I started looking at the truck....

A big red 'X' painted on it was probably a bad thing to try to get through inspection, I cleverly thought to myself for the first time...

That and tint so dark on the sides than I've only seen it on police vehicles and locals with lots of local pull. That also was probably not a great thing to try to get inspected. I wet my thumb and tried to scrape off the red X. No joy. Kept rubbing and my thumb turned red. Maybe it was water soluable? I ran and got some water and a T-shirt from the Omani diesel 80 I had driven there in and with the help of keys and coins and rubbing and water it slowly came off, all while the line of cars is inching towards door 6.

Thankfully we got the tint off easily enough. Then the truck went in for testing and I went inside to wait... and wait... and wait. It turned out they lost track of the truck when it moved from gas to diesel testing. It took a long, long time for that to get sorted. Getting close to dusk and you have to remember that Mohammed has not eaten or drunk anything all day. I prevailed upon him to take the 105 to a garage to leave it. Paid him more than he asked for and took a breath... But the truck passed inspection:

Then it was time for me to run to the Iftar (breaking of the fast) for my day job-we do that once every Ramadan. That ended about 9:30; it was very nice.

My next step was to do the export certificate.

For .... reasons .... I did the export paperwork in Sharjah. It is Ramadan now, so the hours are crazy. The government offices stay open until 1 am. I was out and already dog tired so why not drive an hour to Sharjah and try to get this over with. Besides I wanted to see if the Sharjah parts guys were open in the evening. They were. The parts guys stay open until 11 or 12 midnight.

I went to the Sharjah Tasjeel office at around midnight and prevailed upon the 'VIP' services (the criterion for which I am unaware of) and after a bit I got a SHARJAH export certificate (which I am told will serve my purposes).. But, that top number? It turned out that my 105 had 8 cylinders and 8 seats.

I gave up trying to correct the number of seats but did succeed in correcting the number of cylindars:

So today, I get some insurance and send it for ANOTHER inspection. The exact same inspection. But this time for registration. With a little luck I will get plates today.

 

[John Young]

Huzzah! The Last Hurrah is registered, insured and licensed!

I started and drove it for the first time just a couple of days ago. Up to then it was on flatbeds everywhere. First impressions were very good. To me if feels like driving my comfortable old 1998 Model 100 Dhanno except when you go over bumps. That's when you notice the difference between the solid front axel from the 80 and the independent front suspension on the 100. It is pleasantly roomy and the turning radius is good. Just an overall very nice ride. The diesel engine is not quite as peppy as a 1FZ but it is not bad.

I am getting an odd humming sound from the left front at certain speeds; like a brake pad rubbing, but not quite. I'm not sure what it is. It comes and goes. I will be watching this closely.

I -really- like this truck!

 

[John Young]

I have not posted on the 105 recently, mostly because the thing has been a super reliable daily driver--my primary vehicle right now.

Sadly, in the aftermath of an argument with a family member I backed up -hard- into a concrete post in my apartment building.

This was a damn shame but there is a silver lining. It has accelerated my desire to take care of the body, now that the mechanicals are so well sorted.

I've started gathering parts for the repair. I can get a complete set of rear doors with tire carrier for 2400 AED, and I am going to look at them this weekend. My garage tells me they can fix this easily. I'm tempted to let them do it. There also serious issues around the top of the windshield where the prior government owner did some not-so-great body work. There is even a rust through hole above the passenger side of the windshield. The windshield will come out and we will see how bad the filler looks. Right now from knocking on it, it looks pretty poor and I suspect a lot of metal work will be required. Maybe even taking a section from another 100 and grafting it in above the windshield.

Anyways here is a bit of new parts porn:

I am hoping that this either will work or it can be modified to work on the Holy Truck because it is unobtainium for the 80 series part number, and this roller thing got lost somehow.

CruiserMatt (who takes care of my son's 77 in Florida) has recommended putting in hubs to save a couple of MPG and I thought I would try that on the 105. I've been keeping track of the gas mileage and so I should be able to confirm Matt's suggestion after they get installed.

The part number for the 105 hubs is 43530-60130

 

[John Young]

I've been using the 105 as a daily and parts transporter for the most part. This weekend I finally got around to swapping in a new bumper.

I noticed that the cross member behind the bumper had a bit more rust on it than I liked and pulled it off, flap-disk'ed it and gave it to a guy in a neighboring garage for priming and painting. So right now there is nothing behind the new plastic bumper. This truck is going to Canada so I really want to take care of any rust that I see before anything else. I'm going to put it up on the rack later and see what else can be taken care of without a frame-off.

 

[Wadepat2]

I've been using the 105 as a daily and parts transporter for the most part. This weekend I finally got around to swapping in a new bumper.
View attachment 3161578
I noticed that the cross member behind the bumper had a bit more rust on it than I liked and pulled it off, flap-disk'ed it and gave it to a guy in a neighboring garage for priming and painting. So right now there is nothing behind the new plastic bumper. This truck is going to Canada so I really want to take care of any rust that I see before anything else. I'm going to put it up on the rack later and see what else can be taken care of without a frame-off.

Man how did I miss this. I'm also in Dubai and bringing my LC back to US in few years. Mine is 2uz GCC spec. Would love to know the shop you are using and if you are happy with their work.

Keep the updates coming!

 

[John Young]

Man how did I miss this. I'm also in Dubai and bringing my LC back to US in few years. Mine is 2uz GCC spec. Would love to know the shop you are using and if you are happy with their work.

Keep the updates coming!

Sure, send me a PM with your whatsapp.

 

[John Young]

I'm back in Dubai and the 105 is about to go to SebSports for body, trim, paint, etc. in preparation for shipping to Canada later this year.

I need some help with the headlights for this 2007. I did use proper plastic polish but even with that, they are not going to get where I'd like them to be:

Here is the backside of the fixture:

Ideally I'd like to replace plastic with glass. Here in Dubai I can find used glass headlights, and they seem to come in two sizes. I'm ok with the idea of changing the trim around the grill to the 98 era version and I think I can get those parts too, but my question is about the wiring. One of the guys in the yard here says that there are differences in the bulbs, which implies differences in wiring. Any wisdom would be greatly appreciated! (I've already reached out to Luke111 about it.)

 

[John Young]

After a long hiatus during which the 105 served as my daily driver, she is back in the shop, this time subject to the tender ministrations of SebSports, a really great shop here in Dubai. The truck is in for an extensive body and trim tear down, which now has started:

 

[John Young]

Some interesting details are showing up from its government service, for example it seems clear it had police lights on top at some point:

They guys are going to address my little accident with a concrete post:

It is good to see it stripped down like this.

Looks pretty good overall.

 

[John Young]

The most urgent matter is the windshield surround, which I knew had gone bad.

They are going to cut out, and insert new, formed sheet metal. And they are going to strip further back to address various things we are seeing, like a dent in the roof.

They are a quality shop if a bit on the high-end, price wise. But I really want this 105 to be right.

I've collected a ton of parts already. Continuing to work on that.

 

[John Young]

So Seb just sent me a couple of photos; it is not as bad as it looked at first glance.

The grey is bare steel. The corner there will be cut out and replaced by new sheet metal of the correct type and grade.

Seb also mentioned that the priming will be with a Dutch epoxy normally used for exposed steel for ocean-going vessels; both above and below the water line:

I find this stuff fascinating.

 

[D21FJ60]

Always a good time watching what you have done to your cruisers.
You started this thread 13.5 months ago, and haven't retired yet...beacuse you are rehabing all these cruisers

 

[OGBeno]

So Seb just sent me a couple of photos; it is not as bad as it looked at first glance.
View attachment 3272091
View attachment 3272092
The grey is bare steel. The corner there will be cut out and replaced by new sheet metal of the correct type and grade.

Seb also mentioned that the priming will be with a Dutch epoxy normally used for exposed steel for ocean-going vessels; both above and below the water line:
View attachment 3272099
I find this stuff fascinating.

Seb and his team do great work. Spent a bit of time at his shop when I visited in 2021 and had dinner with him. Rad dude. You are in good hands.

 

[John Young]

Seb and his team do great work. Spent a bit of time at his shop when I visited in 2021 and had dinner with him. Rad dude. You are in good hands.

I could not agree more.

Seb sent across some pictures from recent work for our viewing pleasure:

 

[John Young]

The thing I have been most concerned about, after the windshield surround and roof, was the right rear barn door. I had backed up hard into a concrete post after a discussion with my son and it was pretty badly damaged, as you can see in the photos a couple of posts above. I had been looking in the scrap yards for a replacement but I could not find any that also had the mounts for the rear tire carrier, and even the ones without the mount points were quite expensive.

A couple of body men had suggested that the rear door could be repaired and Seb's team certainly do seem to be demonstrating that!

I need to ask Seb for his advice on locations for a rear camera that would not require new holes in the sheet metal. I had some luck mounting a camera inside on my 80., looking out through the rear window. I happen to have two new decent cameras. Might be fun to put one under the truck looking forward and one looking out the rear out of the window.

 

[Andrew S]

John, I'm not familiar with the barn door models, but I was able to mount a reverse camera on my 80 series in the license plate light housing. Looked completely stock, and I was able to route the camera wiring inside the loom/boot for the plate lights.


Andrew

 

[John Young]

John, I'm not familiar with the barn door models, but I was able to mount a reverse camera on my 80 series in the license plate light housing. Looked completely stock, and I was able to route the camera wiring inside the loom/boot for the plate lights.


Andrew

I think that is a good suggestion, Andrew. Thank you.