Box Rocket 1995 FZJ80 Build

May or may not have stopped and drooled over it for a minute. Slick rig in person

 

Its no beauty queen, that's for sure. But it's well used. Shoulda knocked on the door and said hello.

 

May have to do that later or tomorrow. Just depends on when I have to get out of town to be back for work

 

My soul is torn.

My 1st gen xtra cab is getting to small (cab wise) for me, my GF and daughter.

I want to get into a Land Cruiser. Either a 60 with modern upgrades (that cost a lot) or an 80 with the 5-speed and factory lockers.

But my grip on the Tacoma is strong. Have had it for nearly 20 years and 215,000 miles.

Just wanted to chime in on your build thread because I picked your brain a lot when you had the DC Tacoma.

 

I know you didn't ask me, but I doubt you'd like an 80 with a five speed. Also you'd have to swap it or find one that's been swapped as they weren't sold that way in the US. It's a lot of weight and the auto does a lot to mask the fact that the engine works pretty hard to get it moving. But other than that it's a great choice as long as your kids aren't tall. It isn't too hard to find 80s with factory lockers, bit it is getting harder to find them in good interior condition.

 

Unless you buy/build a 60 on an 80 chassis a 60 will never have the same level of comfort that an 80 will. The leaf springs just won't be as good. The 60 has a lot of "cool" factor though.

The automatic trans in the 80 is super strong and reliable. Having wheeled for 30 years no with manual and auto transmissions, I'm a total convert to the auto trans. Way more pros than cons to the auto IMO.

It's no secret I'm a huge fan of the 80 series but anyone new to them needs to remember that even the newest ones are 20 years old and stuff will need repairs or replacement. They are still one of the most reliable and capable off-roaders out there and can easily go 300k + miles with proper care. Just know going into it that you still have a car that will probably have lots of miles already and most will have some level of neglect that will need to be addressed.

But they are sweet for family rigs that want to explore and even play hard.

 

Thanks guys.

With the 5-speed, I meant the 100 series. My bad.

And the whole "getting into a 20 year old truck with unknown issues" is the 1b reason why I don't want to sell my Tacoma. It's been incredibly reliable for me and I've maintained it well its (near) whole life.

 

Oh you meant 5 speed auto, oh okay. Well depending on what year 100 LC you get some still have the A343 that the later 80 series came with. I don't know when they introduced a five speed auto. Mine has the older bus transmission, the A442, and really it is a pleasure to drive. Compared to auto tacos I've driven, the land cruiser is a completely different beast and far more comfortable and doesn't need to hunt anywhere near as often. Even with it's old four speed auto.

 

Okay, last post as I don't want to BS in Adam's build thread.

I meant the 5-speed manual for the FJ100

 

Oh, well that doesn't exist in the US either, pretty sure it can be swapped easy enough though. Feel free to BS in my build thread if you like. LCs stopped getting manuals in the US after the 60 series.

 

That was for sale in Montana awhile ago. Random fact.

 

More random facts...
There is no such thing as a "FJ100". The naming is tied to the motor type in the different models.
F=inline 6 cyl. For example the FJ40 and FJ60 that in the US had either the F or 2F inline 6. The later FJ62 and early FJ80 with the 3FE. Followed by the later FZJ80 that used the 1FZ motor.

The 100 series that all went to the 4.7L V8 in the US have a different model designation, UZJ100 with either the 1UZ or 2UZ (with vvti). So if you're talking 100 series the term would be UZJ100 rather than FJ100.

Like was mentioned there is no manual transmission option for US spec cruisers after the 1987 FJ60. You could look for a non-US model since the 25 year old ones are now coming into the states but you'd be stuck with an 80 series since the non US 100 series is still too new to legally import.
The non US 80 series will often be diesel 6 cyl, or HDJ80 (H=inline6 diesel) with the 1HD or 1-HDT(turbo diesel). Many of these trucks still have the auto transmission but you can find them with manual trans sometimes.
Check out Land Cruisers Direct if you're shopping for clean Japan spec cruisers. They bring the best ones into the US.

More random cruiser trivia...
B series motors are a 4cyl diesel. BJ40 BJ70, BJ60

For the record, I don't mind some random BS in this thread as long as it's halfway relevant.

 

I've only seen 1 land cruiser in person from land cruisers direct and wow was that thing in incredible shape. I need to stop reading your stuff and following you on instagram. You made me build my taco, I just had to get an 80 series though it's stock, and seeing your sons truck made me miss my old Toyota so now I got an 81. Also I've just finished my trailer which your build was critical and extremely helpful in doing so. I really appreciate your knowledge, creativity and input. My wallet hates you but I sold the wallet for more parts.

 

What is said IG account name...

 

@adam_tolman

Not that I'm stalking him or anything

 

^^^^ he said it first not me

 

Wow! Sorry to have been such a bad influence on you. At least you're building good trucks. hehe.

 

Don't beat yourself up but if you find a stout I'm out

 

I am going to stalk this thread so hard. Just bought myself an 80 as well. Feels good to be back in a yota.

 

Welcome to the 80 crew yo!