What is so great about a 45? (1 Viewer)

[bull]

I was reading an ancient post on pirate last night and I thought it should be asked here as well. What is so great about a 45?

For me personally something just clicked and I fell head over heals for the 45lpb pickup. Saw several pictures online and decided that was that and bought one when the time was right. For me it just fits who I am, ulitarian and rough around the edges. Since then I have picked up several 45s and fall in love all over again. I have owned and driven all the different models and really like my LPB the best. Although my FJ55 came in at a very..very close second.


original post: What’s so great about owning an FJ45? - Pirate4x4.Com Bulletin Board

 

[D'Animal]

They are utilitarian. You canhaul fence posts, people, camping gear ect in them and still follow everyone on the trail.

 

[osagecruiser]

i just could not decide...i really love the odd look of the 55 plus you can load a s*** ton of people and gear in them....ahhhh but the 45 swb pick up....now that is cool....so i bought one of each...problem solved!

osagecruiser

 

[Mikesta]

For me it was 2003/4 and I was searching the Web for Landcruisers and I came across this very Link.

1964 Land Cruiser FJ45 LV Wagon

It was all over for me after that. With a son soon to be born and a large family on the mind... I figured it would be better than a Minivan. After doing research on my new dream truck I realized that they were rare (Posing a challenge).

I'm now on my 4th LV. I'm actually thinking of modernizing it and making it the official Family wagon in 2-3 years. Great for camping, road trips and going anywhere I want to with the family.

 

[nuclearlemon]

they're cute

 

[bull]

For me it was 2003/4 and I was searching the Web for Landcruisers and I came across this very Link.

1964 Land Cruiser FJ45 LV Wagon

It was all over for me after that. With a son soon to be born and a large family on the mind... I figured it would be better than a Minivan. After doing research on my new dream truck I realized that they were rare (Posing a challenge).

I'm now on my 4th LV. I'm actually thinking of modernizing it and making it the official Family wagon in 2-3 years. Great for camping, road trips and going anywhere I want to with the family.

I remember seeing my first LV. I think it was photos fromt he first ever FJ45 run with OrangeFJ45s rig. Then I started searching for them more and realized I had and expensive addiction.

 

[krzyabncanuck]

For me it was what we did with them overseas. We could not break / stop them. I already had a 40 by then but it just made me have to go out and find one for myself. It was so bad for me i tried for 8 months to buy this one in Afghanistan from a local there. Ofcourse he would not sell it, but i kept trying. We had others we would use over in those places but this one was in great shape.

 

[landcrusher909]

Whats so Great

Whats so Great about a 45 The People You Get To Meet : They Blend into there suroundings, They still look Cool , and Travel its all about Travel and if Mark rebuilds the steering box they drive like a DREAM ( at least mine does )

 

[landcrusher909]

YouTube - Driving a FJ-45 and the sound they make following Mark on the freeway doing 50 MPH while your kid is sleeping on the way to the 45 Run

 

[Landpimp]

because......they are the coolest of the Cruisers made....and ya dont see them on every corner

but for me the real reason was that back in the 80's when I was a high school, one of the ex students(year or so ahead of me) had a tan 45LPB with a 327.....and it was the coolest thing I had ever seen(I was driving a all orignaly 69 Z-28 at the time, which was a freakin cool car) So I wanted one.......took me 20 or so more years before I had my own.

also, the 45 from back in my school days is on the road again, it had been sold a few times, at one point a tweaker got his hands on it and took it all apart where it sat in a field.....now its up and running again and I have shown pics of it.....my buddy was selling Salmon out of the back of it

 

[romegadave]

I don't have a 45 but you guys (and the pics) sure do make me want one! Dave

 

[dieseldude]

Damn all you guys - especially Mikesta. How am I supposed to curb my insatiable desire for these beasts when you :

a) include pictures
b) have the nerve to say "I'm actually thinking of modernizing it and making it the official Family wagon". I've often thought it would be so cool to do it - and here you are giving me the green light.

Now I got to talk wifey into 'The Plan'.

 

[carfarmer]

The Retro Cruiser sold me on them. Dig that utilitarian look.


I also love and how rare they are. Nobody driving a '57 Chevy has anybody walk up to them and ask them what their car is.

 

[TJDIV]

did you say 47?


I liked my LV. Hated that the top didn't come off though (especially in FL).
So I've compromised.

 

[merbesfield]

For me it started with a 40 I bought while in college. Then a couple of years ago I stumbled on the 55 that become the running gear for my 45LV. While looking for parts for the 55, I saw the 45LV's and it was love at first sight as they say. I never knew they existed. It had to be love bc if I knew then what I know now I probably would not own a 45, or maybe I should say it would not be in pieces in my shop. But when it is done, there will be none like it in Atlanta and it will be the coolest SUV on the road. I have always liked old s***. I would also have to say the the LV's that Jonathan did at TLC contributed heavily to my sickness. Oh yea, lets not forget Mr. Matt, he is the one that made me think I could single handedly restore my LV. Just not as fast as him.

 

[cruiserbrett]

I am not sure what it is... something out of the ordinary, cool lines, and of course the utility...

I got my first FJ45, an LV, back in 1996, and because of moving in the military, never got to truly enjoy it. Ended up selling it, and I think it now after another change of hands is in Georgia somewhere.

I always knew a 45 pickup of sorts was in my future, and I found a 67 LWB in Costa Mesa, for a good deal. Had a V8 and other undesirable PO mods. I sorted most of it out, and while it was fun, there were still outstanding issues with it, that I didnt want to deal with when it came time to resto. So it got sold...

Before I sold that one, I ended up with two more LV's. A rougher one that is now buckroseau's beautiful 45LV, which I sold to him after getting ahold of one of the crown jewels of 45LV's.... It is currently patiently waiting for a full resto... just need some $$$.

Other than that, the only other landcruiser that I want to add to the stable is a removable top short wheelbase FJ45 pickup. I might resort to building one, since I have a 45lv frame....

there is something about the FJ45. I love the wheelbase over the FJ40, the pure coolness factor and the simplicity of them. Yeah, thats it. It has nothing to do with the fact that I am addicted to cruisers....

 

[Mikesta]

Damn all you guys - especially Mikesta. How am I supposed to curb my insatiable desire for these beasts when you :

a) include pictures
b) have the nerve to say "I'm actually thinking of modernizing it and making it the official Family wagon". I've often thought it would be so cool to do it - and here you are giving me the green light.

Now I got to talk wifey into 'The Plan'.

You could always gouge your eyes out with a pan handle... or go back to 56k or better yet 9k. I think you should talk to your wife though. Fortunatly I have a cool wife. I say "hey I'm going to buy a cruiser" and she says "Dont you already have some?" I say "yea, but this one is really cool... cooler than the rest" and she says "ok, what do you want for dinnner, or what do you want to do this weekend". I scored with a great, Understands Mikesta's sickenes Wife!!! Ask Bull... he knows.

Getting the wife to buy in and the ability to sell Plasma will guaranty you an LV. Do it man!

 

[island45]

I saw my first 45, an LV when I was 12 or 13, back in about '66. My dad and I were driving on the brand new interstate I-5 in N. Seattle, and we passed the wagon and my dad gave me the typical ww2 era comment... "see that thing? it's a Japanese jeep, and if you tear down the headliner, it has 'prince albert' printed all over the inside of the roof..." ( referring to it was made from our old discarded tin cans). I agree, the 45's are the coolest of the cool. I've already written here about my later years working with some 45s for boat transport etc. They have been in my blood since about '68. Buying the one Landpimp owns now, was a huge milestone in my life. I LOVED that thing! Life circumstances forced the sale 5 years later, but shortly thereafter I was afforded the opportunity to buy another.. This was a '66 that I'd been following since it came to Seattle from Southeastern Oregon (frikken desert). The body was the best I've ever seen on a 45. It had been restored to some extent by a friend who didn't know cruisers, so a lot of stuff was 'wrong' to me. I kept it for about 3 years. I was a single dad of 4 in those years and never had time to do anything for myself, so I sold that one to a local builder friend. Kids are grown now for the most part, and I have tried my best to get the guy to sell it back to me, to no avail... Heck, it was f engine/3 spd anyways. So now I have my Arizona truck and all this cool gear that's going into it in a few months.... (driving it to a big 4th of July bash for sure!) . In closing I gotta say the 40 series, well the 45 in particular,doesn't have a 'bad angle'. I feel SO lucky to be on the verge of driving this new 45 for the upcoming summer. Here's the middle one I owned, just because I've never posted it up before. ....

 

[FJ45Dude]

The story of my FJ45 is one of a quest started as a high school junior while working at Mark's Off Road. I had a '64 FJ40 as my first 4x4 and after coming into Mark's every day to buy parts, it quickly became clear that working in the shop would be a great way to keep the trucking going on my meager high school funds. I was in a great environment to be soaked in 'Cruiser lore and learn from the Master.

As usual on Thursday mornings I picked up a fresh off-the-press copy of the Recycler on my way to class and came across an ad in San Bernardino, CA for an "FJ40 Pick Up". I went over to the pay phone and made the call. A child answered the line and said his dad was out. I asked one question: "Is it a pick up?". He said. "Yes". I blew off class for the day and drove out to San Bernardino. I found a Del Taco and got back on the pay phone. Still no dad at home, but I managed to get the address out of the kid. I drove over and stole a look over the fence into the backyard. Jackpot!!! A complete, red, FJ45. I will never forget the moment I saw her. Well, many hours later dad came home, found me on the sidewalk and we made a deal. I came back the following day and towed her home. The truck had all the records since new and I am the 3rd owner. Originally registered in Running Springs, CA. The engine was seized, but every single thing on the truck was original and not a spot of rust.

Mark was all smiles and we had a freshly build 2F put in. I promptly painted it yellow in a moment of confusion. A decision that makes for a great story to this day! The FJ45 was pretty much good to go after that. I had all my senior year in high school to wheel it around and had a blast. He also managed to find a headache rack from Japan still in the crate, which is currently in my garage, never yet installed and STILL in the crate.

College came and the FJ45 stayed at my dads place. I got to drive her on the odd weekend, but not really put any time or money into her. That worked for a couple of years, but dad moved and we lost the storage for the 45. I was not about to let her go. I sent her into an indoor storage yard in San Jose for the next 11 years as I moved from Santa Barbara to Seattle to Portland to Orange Co. to Arizona. All the while knowing she was safe. No matter what financial situation I was in, or where I was at career-wise, I knew that the FJ45 would be a part of my life forever. Luckily the woman I married knew me while the 45 was still rolling around and she was as dedicated as I was to keeping the hope that one day the build would start and I would have the 45 back.

In June of 2007 I had her towed from San Jose to Mark's. After many, many years I once again stood in his shop... with a wild look in my eye and a killer project to go after. Mark took on the project and I don't know what I would have done if he'd have said no. The build is coming along well. See it under. "The FJ45" build thread.

I can say with 100% conviction that the goal of returning my FJ45 to the road has made me work harder and take more chances so that one day I would have the opportunities I have now.

So the best part about owning an FJ45? First and foremost: the fortune to work with Mark. Second, these trucks are worth nothing less than a 16 year quest.

Cheers and I look forward to meeting my fellow 45 owners and doing my best to contribute to this amazing group!

Michael

 

[2ndGenToyotaFan]

Great story Michael!!! We'll see you at the 45 Run then?