A friend came to visit on Sunday

[Joaquin Suave]

He showed up in his new FJ.



I went over it with a fine toothed comb...



Loved the driveline / traction control

Loved the suspension

Loved the beef'mo frame

Loved the "rough and ready" interior

loved it on the road

loved it on the sandy trail



I'd buy one in a minute...



IF IT WAS'NT SO FUUUUUUUUUU*KING UGLY



I can't stand the styling AT ALL!

[Scott Brady]

Do you think the looks would improve to an acceptable level if:

ARB front bumper
Roof rack with tent
Straighten the rear tire and install a beefy rear bumper
lift and bigger tires.

I think that would help a lot.

[BKCowGod]

my problem is the sheer bulk of the thing. Pictures make it look small and I'm still surprised every time I see one. It really dwarfs my BMW, and even the truck looks small in comparison.

And then there's that slab of metal behind the passengers. Sooooo wide!

[Joaquin Suave]

Scott wrote:


Do you think the looks would improve to an acceptable level if:

ARB front bumper
Roof rack with tent
Straighten the rear tire and install a beefy rear bumper
lift and bigger tires.


NO! I've become too much of a Ludite. The concept of taking REALLY SOLID mechanical design then gooping it with all kinds of frilly gizmos, rapping in the "flavor of the month / year" styling, JUST IRKS ME.

Another SAD example...Look what Mercedes did to the G Wagon.

What ever happened to K.I.S.S.????

My buddy does agree with you however, and has enlisted my help in designing and finding vendors to build (too busy in my own shop) racks, bumper, etc.

He's a total gearhead with really good taste so I'm sure our stuff will turn out killer. I'll stick to my 1983 Scrambler!

[Seeker]

I had the chance to crawl around one of these at work the other day and I fully agree with you Joaquin. I also thought that boom box in the rear really needs to get the boot; the roof and interrior practicly scream out for a sun-roof; when I saw the engine compartment, all I could think was "There's where the 2nd battery goes; there's where the air compressor goes; there's where the battery solenoid goes..." The under-hood space is really nice on that vehicle.

All that shiny plastic is going to get nice and scratched really quick and make for some serious detail work whenever you take the truck out for some fun.

[ShottsCruisers]

Becky and I like it and it's looks. Just need to protect those rear lights. We almost snagged one but decided we really don't need it. It would be for her to drive and her Taco's already tricked out.

Let's give it some time.....the look might grow on you?

I can't stand the look of the new 4Runner, BUT.....I started to see a lot of them with color-matched bumpers and flares. That look has grown on me a lot and if they don't have the black bumpers and trim, I thnk they look sharp. :ylsmoke:

[OverlandZJ]

Glad someone else said it! I'v hated the look since the prototype was revealed. Which is really disappointing to me...i'v owned 3 FJ-40's ( 2 parts rigs) before i went Jeep.

Mechanically it looks impressive, just cant get used to the look and doubt i ever will.

[Jonathan Hanson]

I wouldn't be so resistant to the vehicle if Toyota hadn't billed it as the spiritual successor to the FJ. I've seen one in person and I think it looks okay, actually quite unique (except for those massive rear quarter blind spots - why didn't they stick in FJ-esque quarter windows?). But it shares absolutely nothing with the original FJ except its maker.

A true successor to the FJ40 should have looked like Specter's PX10:

Specter PX10 (http://www.sor.com/sor/partpict.tam?cart=06E20kxg.zzp&lpg=%2Fsor%2Fmodels%2Etam&lpt=1148133432&xax=23176&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&itemnum%2Ectx=Prado%2C%20PX10%2C%20Mega%20Cruiser% 20%26%20Retro%20FJ&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&itempict%2Ectx=%2E%2E%2Fshared%2Fimage%2FVID%5FPX1 0%2Dbig%2Ejpg&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&itemnumdesc%2Ectx=Prado%2C%20PX10%2C%20Mega%20Crui ser%20%26%20Retro%20FJ&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&page%23%2Ectx=&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&catpage%2Ectx=models%2Etam%23Other&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&itemnumtext%2Ectx=&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&pagetitle1%2Ectx=Vehicle&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&pagetitle2%2Ectx=Identification&pagenumber%2Eptx=1&descriptionpg%2Ectx=Vehicle%20Identification)


. . .with solid axles and a tidy little overhead-cam inline six. Or, of course, a three-liter turbo diesel.

But who am I to gainsay Toyota's marketing department?

[OutbacKamper]

A true successor to the FJ40 should have looked like Specter's PX10:


. . .with solid axles and a tidy little overhead-cam inline six. Or, of course, a three-liter turbo diesel.

But who am I to gainsay Toyota's marketing department?

I'd say Toyota should hire you Jonathan, in there product planning dept. I had never heard of a PX 10 until your post. If Toyota was selling these today instead of an ugly Prado (FJ) I would not be able to resist, and a 1990 HXJ73 would not be selling for $28,000. Obviously Toyota will sell lots of FJ's, but they are still missing out on a big part of the market. Where is the competition for Jeep's wrangler?

http://www.luxuryimports.ca/forsale/1990HZJ73-1/index.php

Interesting Sukuki Samurai (1988 with 9660 miles):
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Suzuki-Suzuki-Samurai-JS4JC51C6J4263800_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6468Q QitemZ4639641329QQrdZ1

Cheers
Mark

[Jonathan Hanson]

Mark, there area couple of right-hand-drive 70-series in Tucson, imported privately through Canada under what sounded like to me extremely dodgy circumstances.

That's a cool little Samurai!

[The Swiss]

I owned a FJ for 10 days before trading it for a Tacoma. Here my opinion for what it's worth:

Loved the driveline Agree / traction control Disagree: It takes the fun out of driving. I don't like a nanni preventing me from stomping on the gas and throughing the rear around

Loved the suspension Agree

Loved the beef'mo frame Agree

Loved the "rough and ready" interior Strongly disagree: The interior is not at all as tough as Toyota wants to make buyers believe; the plastic in the luggage compartment is so soft you can scratech it with your finger nail, there is very little storage (a under floor storage like the Xterra has for the basic trail gear would really be nice, the entire space between the frame railes behind the rear axle is wasted) The interior is actually amazingly small; despite it's boxy shape, wheelbase and over all length that is identical to the 1999-2004 Grand Cherokee and bigger height and width, the interior was considerable smaller than the one of the Jeep. IMHO Toyota did not put the same amount of thought in the interior as they did in the drivetrain and design; it was just not as practical as I expect from a Toyota.

loved it on the road Agree

Well, maybe that's just me. I have not regretted trading my yellow FJ for the red Taco (except for the color :D )

[BajaTaco]

... there is very little storage (a under floor storage like the Xterra has for the basic trail gear would really be nice, the entire space between the frame railes behind the rear axle is wasted)

I have to disagree here. I think that space they left between the frame rails is a perfect place for an aux. fuel and/or water tank, keeping the COG nice and low for such items. I was really stoked to see that they did this. If I had an FJ, this little consideration alone would save me from having to make a rear tire carrier for it. Having said that, I can definitely see your point for the typical owner who has no plans for the long-range stuff and would rather have stowage under the floor.

[gjackson]

IF IT WAS'NT SO FUUUUUUUUUU*KING UGLY

I agree. I think the styling sucks. I can only prey that LR does a better job with the next Defender. I doubt they will, but I can always hope.

cheers

[The Swiss]

I have to disagree here. I think that space they left between the frame rails is a perfect place for an aux. fuel and/or water tank, keeping the COG nice and low for such items. I was really stoked to see that they did this. If I had an FJ, this little consideration alone would save me from having to make a rear tire carrier for it. Having said that, I can definitely see your point for the typical owner who has no plans for the long-range stuff and would rather have stowage under the floor.Oh, I agree with you, it's an ideal place for any aux. tank or some kind of storage for heavy stuff! Problem is that on something like this, I'm doing very well on fabbing stuff in the idea and planning phase and then hit a wall :confused:when it comes down to actually making it. So, I would have to wait until the aftermarket suppliers come out with a straight bolt-on, and who knows when that will be. My guess there will be 5 different Rock Crawler conversion kits out for the FJ before long range stuff will be available.