Owning and Overlanding in a FJ40 - What are the Pros and Cons?

[Sisyphus]

I am considering purchasing an FJ40 for trips into the mountains and for overlanding, and only for these reasons only, as I live in the city and commute by bicycle.

Is this a smart choice? How good is the parts ability? Is it best to swap in a diesel or newer engine?

Is road noise as terrible as I think it may be?

When restored or well maintained, are they very reliable?

I'd love to hear your guys' opinion!

Thanks,

Miles

 

[cruiseroutfit]

First things first... Define "overland" in regards to how you plan to use the 40. I've got a fair bit of experience both daily driving and trail riding with a 40 Series but nothing I would really call "overlanding" per what I consider standard definitions: http://expeditionportal.com/what-is-overlanding/

Let me know what your thinking and I'll chime in accordingly.

 

[Sisyphus]

I would define my overlanding intentions as crossing great distances over many different climates and regions. I'm not expecting any extreme off road purposes or ever installing lockers, but I do see myself in situations where winches and self recovery gear will be necessary.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Well, in that case. Size is extremely limiting. It can and has been done but with 2 occupants and all of your travel gear, it's going to be tight and taxing on your comforts. 40's are extremely capable and can be built to maintain their core reliability which won hearts over around the globe. That said they are still a leaf sprung short wheel base vehicle with tight seating and low storage capacity. I have a '72 FJ40 that I've driven all over the Western US, it is perfect for some situations, overkill for others and a less than comfortable ridge for others. For instance I just got back from a whirlwind 4k mile trip to MX and back, something I wouldn't entertain in my 40 Series due to comfort, driver fatigue and speed/handling. Long story short, if I'm driving more than a few thousand miles, it's not something I would recommend as a first choice. Doing a week along some technical routes... great platform.

 

[Sisyphus]

I've done quite a bit of bicycle touring so I'd like to think that I could pack light enough considering the limiting size. Would you suggest soundproofing the interior and installing more comfortable seats and what are your thoughts on the stock engines?

Thanks for your responses.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Some more thoughts on the 40 Series (BJ40 in this case) here:
http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...planning-for-Central-South-America-and-Africa

The factory motors are fantastic in terms of reliability and lack-luster but appropriate in the performance realm. I've owned and run a handful of different setups ranging from V8 to diesel, the OE Toyota diesels (13BT) would be my first choice in a SWB Cruiser (40/70). Really you need to go put some seat time in a 40 and decide if it will work. You can have the most comfy seats in the world but it is still a leaf-sprung SWB vehicle with technology from the 50's

 

[hairy_apple]

I have owned my FJ40 for 13 years now, it's gone from bone stock, to built for rockcrawling.. now redoing a lot of stuff to make it more long distance capable. I will say this.. it's a glorified tractor. It's tough as hell.. but it's also rough as hell! It's loud, clunky, leaks and rattles. It's way too small, you're always looking at your pile of stuff and figuring out what to leave home because you don't have room. Driving it long distances is exhuastng, it rides rough and wanders so you're always correcting. It's not like a modern car, you're really got to drive it full time instead of just day dream and hold the steering wheel.

But.. it's awesome. Even just driving down the highway or around town you can't help but smile. It's tough, it's reliable, it is the most fun car I've ever driven. It's rough around the edges, but it's also elegant in it's own way. I always tell people an FJ40 is pretty much the absolute minimum required to be a car. No frills, no comforts. Just a drivetrain, steering, brakes, and body. But because of that it's super simple to repair, super easy to work on and troubleshoot problems in the field. You feel so much more connected to what's around you while your driving. A lot like ridding a bike or motorcycle.

A roof rack solves a lot of the storage issues. Engines, I'd keep a 2F or F engine if I had it to do over again. I hate my V8 and am going to swap back to a 2F, and then put fuel injection on the 2F. All the soundproofing in the world isn't going to make it any more aerodynamic. Most of my noise is wind noise. I'm building an FJ55 to have more room... but honestly my heart isn't in it yet, because I love my 40 so much I'd much rather use that.. even if the 55 makes more sense for the stuff I want to do.

 

[Sisyphus]

What are the things to look out for when buying an fj40, besides rust, and how is parts availability for the 2f?

 

[hairy_apple]

Parts for the 2F and F seem to be easy enough to get. I haven't had any issues. Most auto parts stores have all the normal stuff you need. Toyota still can get a lot of it if you like to spend lots of money. I actually am buying a clutch tomorrow.. Napa had it in stock. That is one thing about the F engines... you do have to order the parts a lot of times. The water pump, starter, ect I just got for my 55 I had to wait a day or two for.. but overall I'd say parts are pretty easy to get. There are a lot of good cruiser places out there, and a lot of people with lots of parts horded that will sell them to people when they need something.

What to look for.. bastardisations. Hack job mods. Rust. The newest FJ40s are 30 years old.. so their going to have some issues.. but just look for the least messed with one you can find. I see you're in WA, so don't have to worry about smog.. so I'd find a 76 and up. Disk brakes and stronger axles stock. Like I said, I'd stay away from V8s.. I hate mine. A lot of people swear by them, but I am not a fan. The F was much better in almost every way. Honestly, FJ40s don't have a lot of big weaknesses.. rust and bad mods are the big ones. The early disk brakes suck really bad, but there are ways to fix that.

All in all, they are pretty awesome. Just need to keep in mind it is what it is, a tough off road truck. It's road manners are pretty harsh.. but in the 13 years I've had mine it's only failed to get me home twice. I drive mine 200+ miles from home without a second thought about it all the time... like I said, it tires you out, but the drive is enjoyable in that it's just fun to drive an FJ40.

My absolute favorite memory of my cruiser is going to Oregon a few years ago. We left at 9pm and drove through the night up highway 5. No doors.. no top. Freezing our butts off the whole drive... but man.. going past Shasta at midnight with no other cars on the road... looking up at the stars is one of those things I'll remember until the day I die.

 

[CA-RJ]

Watch the first minute of this video and you'll see what it's like to drive a 40. Looks like fun to me! Back in my younger days, I used to drive a Jeep TJ and did many trips in it. For one person, there was enough room, 2 it got a little more cramped. You just get better at packing, better at deciding on what you really need to take with you. Sometimes driving with the top and doors off sucks, sometimes it's awesome. You'll always come home with a story though. I can still remember the trip I did with a buddy with the top and doors off in 30º weather. It was freaking cold! I don't remember the pain now, just how fun it was.

 

[kletzenklueffer]

I was just thinking the other day about a road trip I made with a buddy back around '92. He had a 73/74/75 FJ40 (not a guess of the year- it was cobbled together from three 40's). It took us near 11 hours to make a normally 5-6 hour trip. We drove on back roads 90% of the trip, took about every dirt road as a detour, and hated when we finally had to drive about an hour on an interstate. If a shower came up, he would hang out under a bridge or overpass until it ceased. The whole trip was a joy, driving on the beach in that old ride. Funny thing is, I don't remember the drive home.

 

[redthies]

I've done some longer trips in both 40 and 60 series trucks. Like 10,000 miles long. I was young and foolish then, as opposed to just being foolish now. I had a lot of fun, but going over passes in winter in my 40 driving in a -30* down bag to stay warm (with feet poking out) was "character building" to say the least, as was driving a diesel 60 around southern Mexico for 4 months with no AC. If you are young and rugged (read: foolish like I was), then go for it. If you want a comfortable ride for long days in the saddle with room to crash in the back instead of setting up your tent in a downpour or snowstorm, I'd look at an 80 or 100 series.

 

[Box Rocket]

I'll chime in. It's been a while since I've had my 40 but I still think I've got some experience with them. I think Kurt (cruiseroutfit) has given an excellent breakdown of pros/cons of a 40 series for this type of travel. The biggest issue is going to be driver fatigue resulting from the short wheelbase and stiff leaf sprung suspension along with the noise. I personally think I had a 40 that was extremely comfortable (for a 40 series) but comfort is relative. I daily drove mine 60+ miles/day for more than 8 years and it was the primary offroad vehicle as well and it only got trailered twice in its life. Otherwise I was driving it to and from everywhere I took it which were some pretty long distances.
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The things that *helped* in terms of comfort with my FJ40 was first having a drivetrain that ran well and ran smoothly (as smoothly as a 2F is capable of running). As has been mentioned they are a glorified tractor and the motor feels that way but having one in good mechanical condition will be key not only for comfort but for reliability on long trips. Every single part in the drivetrain had been rebuilt or replaced on my FJ40. Also, for suspension there's only so much you can do. A spring over axle conversion can do a lot for ride quality if done right but will result in a minimum of 5-6" of lift which might be more than you want. I had suspension that was sprung under in the stock configuration but I did all I could to dial it in for ride quality and offroad performance. I had custom Alcan springs made for it that were built to my specs and for the weight of the vehicle. Matching those with some quality shocks made for a good ride as far as a FJ40 is concerned.
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Adding Power Steering is also a nice comfort mod and also makes life off-road much nicer. The manual steering that is stock on FJ40s will give you arms like Popeye in no time if you have larger tires and spend time in the dirt/rocks.
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Seats. Everyone is totally different when it comes to seats and which ones are comfortable. I had a set of Procar Rallye seats in my FJ40 and I thought they were VERY comfortable. But I'm 5'8" and 160lbs so I'm not that big. Some of my friends that were bigger than me found them to be too tight and not as comfortable. But for me they made a big difference and made the long trips much more comfortable. I could drive for hours and not feel fatigued.
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Tires. If your trips involve a lot of pavement a smooth AT type tire will make the drive much nicer. I always had aggressive MT style tires on my FJ40 because of the terrain I liked to drive. The aggressive tires were more noisy and not as smooth going down the road but I compensated by running ~25psi in the tires consistently on the road. This improved the ride a lot.
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Noise. This is a hard up-hill climb with FJ40s that are old. There is no sound proofing and most of the FJ40s you'll find have dry, brittle weather stripping and window tracks/felts (if they have them at all). If the weather stripping and window tracks/felts are in poor condition it will make the truck a massive rattle-trap that will make you want to shoot yourself in the face. As part of the rebuilding process with my FJ40 new weather stripping was possibly the single best thing I did. It made the doors fit tight again, it made the windows tight and smooth and it sure quieted things down a lot not only with the rattles, but keeping road noise out........sort of. I also had the inside and underside of the tub lined with bedliner that helped reduce some of the road noise also. But don't be fooled, even with all of that FJ40s are still not quiet.
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Room for gear will be the next hurdle. Room for gear is hard to come by in an FJ40. When my wife and I would take multi-day trips the back of the tub was packed from floor to the top of the rollbar, and we didn't have any fancy stuff like fridges etc taking up room. An FJ40 definitely makes you streamline your packing and causes you to be very selective about what you take and what you leave home. Even before my wife and I had our kids, we were considering an offroad trailer to pull behind our FJ40 because we felt like we needed more room for gear on our longer trips. If you are solo most of the time, then I think it would be possible to fit all the necessary gear for an extended trip.
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I haven't had my FJ40 for 10 years now and I gotta say I miss it badly. There is just a feeling you get driving an FJ40 that I haven't experienced in any other vehicle. I genuinely miss the noise, the smell, the tingle in my hands and legs from the constant growl from the motor after I finished a long drive. It was awesome and I hope I can be back in another 40 someday. But I'll be honest it won't be a real "overland" vehicle. There are just much better options out there.


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[1911]

I use my 40 a lot for back-country trips up to a week long with one passenger, but it gets pretty full. You have to be able to appreciate a 35+ year-old truck for what it is, and what it isn't.

 

[Upland80]

The 40 is no doubt the coolest way to travel in the back country, but I personally would opt for a 80 over a 40 for serious adventure travel any day of the week. More comfort, power, reliability, storage, and comes with optional lockers and still retains the iconic solid axles. I'm biased, but since no one brought it up...just my 3 cents.