| User: |  bring_a_trailer |
| Date: | 2013-05-22 11:36 |
| Subject: | BaT Exclusive: Owner-Built 1978 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 |
| Security: | Public |
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BringATra
http://bringatrailer.com/?p=59621
This 1978 Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 (Chassis FJ40276697) was purchased by the seller in SoCal in 2009, and he has personally transformed the truck inside his 1-car home garage into the excellent looking example shown here. Starting with dragging the truck home on a U-Haul trailer, he has documented every major milestone in the build here on the IH8Mud.com forum. We love how he has brought it back to tasteful, near-stock condition, and has paid attention to the details of how the dash and minor components are assembled. He calls himself OCD, and we’d say that is a good thing given how nice this truck turned out. It is now available in Las Vegas, Nevada for $22,500.
The seller says: “I searched long a hard for the rig about 4 1/2 years ago and found it in the hills of Poway, California. It had been running around the large property for many years after coming form up north. The owner said that he wanted it to have a bright future and I was looking at restoring one for a while. I am a software engineer for my own company, that is very OCD and detail oriented. I used to build custom motorcycles and had lots of fun cruising around the US. With that being said I can’t stand a car looking pretty and never doing anything. So I decided not to do a frame off for the additional time it would take. After all, I wanted to run this on the trail as well as on the road.”
The seller brought the truck back to Las Vegas where it spent 7 months getting hand sanded as opposed to blasting and then painted. He says it was in splendid shape with one dime size rust are that was replaced. Over the months he was able to rebuild or restore original parts. All colors were matched to many samples of the original paint from this truck and other rigs. He wanted this to maintain the 1978 style and resemble the way it would have driven during that time, so he kept the original motor and started replacing most of the parts.
All body and paint was done by California Auto Body in Las Vegas. They believe in old school practices that take longer and it was worth it. All paint is Sherwin Williams CC/BC Toyota OEM match.
The seat covers were built following original templates, and the seller says you can’t tell the difference to OEM vinyl. The rear mat is very thick rubber, and the front mats are regular aftermarket. (he has yet to find the one of my unicorn pieces of the OEM front mat). Brand new custom beveled glass was installed in the front doors, with new door hardware in and out as shown in the forum pages. The dash is spot-on OEM including the vintage style radio. There are 150k miles on odometer, and after investigating records, the seller believes this to be accurate. The Yokohama Geolander 30 x 9.5 x 15 tires have about 15k on them.
The following is a list of what has been replaced (new as noted otherwise replaced during build):
ENGINE:
-brand new OEM radiotor/hoses
-new upper thermostat housing and thermostat
-replaced distributor
-spark plug and OEM wires
-starter
-rebuilt original carb
-air filter
-intake hose
-HEI igniter bypass system
-OEM fuel pump
-new fuel tank with lines
-fuel sensor
-oil cap
-all smog lines
-master brake cylinder
-all belts
-all valves adjusted
-new exhaust and muffler
-endless amounts of nuts and bolts either cadmium, stainless steel or steel
The seller also has 99% of what is needed to finish the hard top, including:
-original fiberglass white top
-all hard body pieces are finished and were painted blue with the body
-ambulance doors
-all original glass for hard top
-front radiator/rebuild kit
-extra “door off” side view mirrors
-many extra parts, nuts and bolts
The seller has all the paperwork and every receipt along with clear title.
The seller says: “I am selling it because my business is growing and I need to make big changes in my life including letting this guy go. There are still things to do to it like wiper motor, visors, dash pad that would be great fun for the new owner to complete while enjoying it. Its not perfect but it is truly what it was meant to be and I hope it goes to someone who loves it as much as I do.”
Click here to email the seller directly if you are interested.
Check out the additional photos in the Flickr gallery and slide-show below.
