Ever since I can remember I've loved Land Cruisers.... I loved how they looked, I loved the reputation they had as unbeatable go-anywhere rigs, and I knew at some point I needed to have one.
When the FJ-Cruiser came out I was really excited and knew I would need to have one, and earlier this year when I finally had the means and opportunity to buy one I did.. I love my FJC, and IMO it's a perfect modern incarnation of the older LCs... (more so than the 200 series anyway...).
That said... It's no FJ40... and I feel bad about beating up on a rig I'm still making payments on...
So a few weeks ago when one popped up on Craigslist not too far away from me I knew I had to take a look......
These were the original pics from his ad:
So I sent the guy an email...
He actually had two of them.. One was a 1971 with a fiberglass tub waiting for a V8....:mecry: Not my style at all....but to each his own...
The other was a 1975 that he had purchased to use as a parts-rig for the 1971. As soon as I saw it I knew it was the one for me... All original, solid frame, low miles (was a farm rig in its previous life). The tub is in pretty rough shape.The rear sill is toast, but the floors are surprisingly intact, and as far as parts/ interior pieces it's complete. It also has a hard-top and soft-top (bestop).
At the time, he wanted to sell them together and wasn't interested in selling me just the '75 (plus he wanted an arm and a leg for them!). I had resigned myself to the idea that this nice FJ was going to be cannibalized for a dedicated off-roader...:mecry:
Well, a couple weeks later he calls me up and tells me he has someone interested in just the 1971, and wants to see if I'm still interested in the '75 because he just wanted them out of his garage...
So my father-in-law and I go up to look at it, and $1400 later this is mine...:clap:
These are the only pics I have for now. I realize the hard top and roll cage aren't on it... He's going to stick them back on for me in the next few days though...
This weekend or next I'll be able to haul it home and get to work on it. I'll have plenty of pictures while I go over this thing.
This is going to be a LOT of work...:boohoo: But it's a labor of love... I'm saving this cruiser from the scrap yard...
My plans for now are just to get it cleaned up, patch up some of the bigger problem areas, and get it running. Eventually it will get the attention it deserves with a frame-off resto (and a 4bt swap), but for now my wallet (and wife..lol) will only allow some basic fixes...
Stay tuned...
When the FJ-Cruiser came out I was really excited and knew I would need to have one, and earlier this year when I finally had the means and opportunity to buy one I did.. I love my FJC, and IMO it's a perfect modern incarnation of the older LCs... (more so than the 200 series anyway...).
That said... It's no FJ40... and I feel bad about beating up on a rig I'm still making payments on...
So a few weeks ago when one popped up on Craigslist not too far away from me I knew I had to take a look......
These were the original pics from his ad:
So I sent the guy an email...
He actually had two of them.. One was a 1971 with a fiberglass tub waiting for a V8....:mecry: Not my style at all....but to each his own...
The other was a 1975 that he had purchased to use as a parts-rig for the 1971. As soon as I saw it I knew it was the one for me... All original, solid frame, low miles (was a farm rig in its previous life). The tub is in pretty rough shape.The rear sill is toast, but the floors are surprisingly intact, and as far as parts/ interior pieces it's complete. It also has a hard-top and soft-top (bestop).
At the time, he wanted to sell them together and wasn't interested in selling me just the '75 (plus he wanted an arm and a leg for them!). I had resigned myself to the idea that this nice FJ was going to be cannibalized for a dedicated off-roader...:mecry:
Well, a couple weeks later he calls me up and tells me he has someone interested in just the 1971, and wants to see if I'm still interested in the '75 because he just wanted them out of his garage...
So my father-in-law and I go up to look at it, and $1400 later this is mine...:clap:
These are the only pics I have for now. I realize the hard top and roll cage aren't on it... He's going to stick them back on for me in the next few days though...
This weekend or next I'll be able to haul it home and get to work on it. I'll have plenty of pictures while I go over this thing.
This is going to be a LOT of work...:boohoo: But it's a labor of love... I'm saving this cruiser from the scrap yard...
My plans for now are just to get it cleaned up, patch up some of the bigger problem areas, and get it running. Eventually it will get the attention it deserves with a frame-off resto (and a 4bt swap), but for now my wallet (and wife..lol) will only allow some basic fixes...
Stay tuned...