What things should I look for on a 1989 BJ74 with 160,000 miles (not kilometers)

[84lumberman]

I'm considering buying a 1989 BJ74 and I need to know what to look for. I know these are durable diesels and yes I know a 1HZ would be a better engine but it's all about affordability. But, are there tell tale signs of things to look for? I will include some pics of what I was mulling over. What issues should I look for on a diesel at 161,000 miles? Any known rust spots? I;m probably going to spend around $15,000 if this doesn't sound like too much.

 

[jblueridge]

I have an ‘88. It had rust in rear quarters and rockers. Lower parts of the doors are rusting more slowly.
When I replaced brake lamps I found a little rust under the rear light assemblies.
The engine compartment on yours looks cleaner than mine. I have rust starting on the pinch welds visible in your photo below the windshield.
Folding down the windshield I found rust under it and in the windshield frame itself.
Some of this rust I cut out and repaired myself, some I let a body shop do after buying repair panels here on MUD.

My radiator and ac condensor looked fine until I took the radiator out for a look. Major rot going on in between them unseen. Radiator got repaired, condenser was replaced.
Is that a pto winch under the cover? I replaced bearings and u joints on mine’s drive shaft but the winch itself was in good shape.
I like the 13BT. I have never owned or worked on a diesel before this cruiser. Very fun to work on. Not super powerful but affordable, as you wrote.

 

[84lumberman]

Here are more pics to check out. Are these rust spots normal? I've seen these common on old FJ40's though.
Does that look like a dent on the bottom rear left door hinge?

 

[Cavalier2000]

I have over 200k miles on my 13bt and it still just takes the abuse I give it. I did have a cooling issue and screwed up the head and my radiator was shot. That would be more because of age than anything else.

 

[FJBen]

Nice looking BJ74. Pretty standard rust areas on that. Of course you know there will be more once you start digging in. That rear door does look dented from the photo.

I would always try and get a compression test if possible. I can tell you the first thing I would do if completely refresh that cooling system. It's leaking already and I bet that radiator needs some help. The 13BT are great diesel engines. The PO of mine had a hose blow on the freeway which blew the headgasket at 305,000miles. I did a full rebuild and she runs fantastic. I'd replace waterpump all hoses and recondition/test that radiator and flush the whole system and heater core, new thermostat.

If you can drive before, I'd get it nice and warmed up to check the coolant/overflow for signs of a blown HG. Not a common problem, but with the looks of some leaking coolant hoses, I would definitely check that.

I would also plan on injector rebuild, cheap and will help out. Unless the pump is leaking all over or not running great, it should be good to go.

Most of the other stuff is pretty standard leaf sprung land cruiser issues, axles, suspension, steering joints, tie rod ends etc.
the underneath looks "coated" or painted. Could be hiding a lot of rust, or maybe it has been preventative and touched up. I would just double check that.

Other typical things like leaks and who knows what other weird things the Previous Owners did.

 

[joekatana]

With the visible rust already there be prepared for more when you dig in , I sell rust repair panels for these models and am about an hour North of Dallas .
Windshield frame and lower door seems are common places and behind the rear bumper and inner wheel wells front and rear , if that one is for sale local in Tx he will have a hard time selling it as people here are not used to that kind of rust

 

[84lumberman]

I just want to make sure of what to look for before considering a purchase, but I am also curious if there are goodies available like snorkels, roof racks, bull bars, that kind of stuff. I have also read that getting parts for a 13B-T is difficult. I have a 1970 FJ40. It's more difficult than that? I'm mostly trying to make a decision between this and a 1995 Mitsubishi Jeep I saw. It seems like parts may be hard for either one. Except the engine on the Mitsu is easy to find parts for. I've never considered any other "truck" other than a Landcruiser so it's a difficult decision. The Mitsu has 61,000 miles and only a tiny bit of rust on the tailgate. But a Landcruiser is what it is and hard to go away from. I'm sending an appraiser and mechanic to both of them. Here are pics for a comparison.

 

[84lumberman]

I just saw this 1994 KZJ78. Aren't these all 24V? Isn't this missing a battery?

 

[OGBeno]

No. That's a 12V.

 

[FJBen]

Definitely different beasts. Just depends on what you want I suppose.

I rebuilt my 13BT 2 years ago completely and didn’t really have any issues with parts. There are a chunk you aren’t finding new like block/head/cam/crank. Cam and crank you can used but usually those can be turned/ground and not needed to be replace.
you can still get valves,pistons bearings basically all rebuild parts you would normally need without issue. Engines Australia has a rebuild kit if you would need one.

almost all maintenance stuff you can find save for a few molded heater hose. I went to a Napa and browsed Hoses That were close.

as for 12v it depends on the market for 70 series although I believe most is not all prado/light duty land cruisers were 12v. My bj74 from Australia is 12v.

 

[jblueridge]

Parts exist and I personally enjoy tracking things down and getting packages from Japan and UAE.
My cruiser has electric windows which changes everything about riding with my dog.