1984 FJ40 Restoration

[nOmS6]

Well.. the paint job is progressing.. slowly but surely. it's coming out good. Here are some recent snaps..

We will start putting it back tomorrow. Also getting strated on the minor mechanical work left so that the baby be start and ready to roll as the paint job is completed.

Am having a hard time selecting alloys for wheels.. am looking for original (japani) used, maybe "the boat rim" from 94 cruising.. not sure.. any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks and regards.

[tareen]

The original wheels from 94 LC (cruising) look perfect on J40. Modern yet less flashy.

[nOmS6]

Got a chance today to collect some pictures of the engine. Thought should share. Also, ran into an amusing situation when took the front shock absorbers off for painting and found them to be strangely un-matched

The pic is taken at full extension of both shocks. This prompted us to take the rear shock absorbers off as well just to make sure of any joke present there. Proved to be a good idea since although they looked taut installed, they had surely lived their life full. Soft as a sponge. So the rigg will be getting all 4 shocks replaced with new ones. Tomorrow will paint the new shocks and get them installed.

The original 2F engine had been over hauled but the pics were not posted before. Thought should share them as well.

The new water-body is visible. The distributor and carburetor have been over-hauled and are ready for installation. Most probably day after morrow.

Check out the insulation (astar) installed at the engine compartment wall for heat and sound proofing of the passenger cabin.

Similar insulation (4mm jumbolon pasted under 'aster') will be installed at the passenger cabin side under the console.

We are trying our best to start the engine by the weekend and get the jeep on road by next week. Inshallah!

till next time..

[juadjee]

Sir, you are doing a marvelous job that is worthy of praise. So much attention to detail, I am just loving every development you share with us. Keep the pictures coming and that engine looks brand-sparkling-new! Wish you best of luck and a hiccup-free restoration.

[nOmS6]

@juadjee : Thank you bro. your appreciation is driving me to do the best I can. I appreciate your feedback.

Well today I arrived at the body shop and found a surprise waiting for me. All teams were present and working on the rigg. So we accomplished a lot today. Thanks to all the masters working on my rigg. I am so excited that I decided to post more pictures today along with credits

Remember the shock absorbers story from last post? Well the new shocks were bought and given a special touch by "Bao G" the paint guru ! Here are the front shocks and the rear shocks in the 3rd one.

Then we started putting the body parts on. "Master Ilyas" the upholstery guru is visible in the first pic. "Ustad Zahid" from the 'spit fire fame' is in the 3rd pic. I had the honor to have him work on the body work. and the shy "Anwar Mistri" a.k.a "Ustad Wadday" ('wadday' is punjabi for elder) who put all the hard work in restoring the engine, making it look like new and putting even more hard work on the suspension and other mechanical work is visible in the 5th pic. "Bao G" the paint guru has done an amazing job with the paint work but he has asked to save his pic till it is all ready.

THANK YOU !! all you GURUs !

The inside heat/sound insulation was also finished. Also pasted a thin padding on the door hinges before bolting the doors onto the body.

The doors came next.

The bolts are genuine japani. These bolts are being used in all the bolt/nuts requirement of the vehicle to give it a symmetrical look. Although, we didn't like them on the door (golden against grey) so after some 2 hours struggle we managed to buy 12 genuine japani bolts in grey color and replaced the ones shown in the above pics. Will update new look morrow.

Here are a couple more pics

Tomorrow we plan to install the power steering pump, it's housing, steering handle,hand brake, brake servo and clutch servo. Other body parts will be bolted on as well. I am pushing everyone at this moment and hoping that the rigg will be started and put through first test run in the next week. Inshallah!

Till morrow then !
regards

[bboyxtacy]

Oye sensei!!!Cha gaya hay...anxiously waiting for the cruise trip...

[fhz84]

all i can say is that it cudnt hve been done better, gr8 job thr, hope to c it ready soon...Good luck on the restoration project.

[nOmS6]

For the last two days I have been trying to get the work completed and give the engine it's first start-run. Well.. today we have reached a point where it is now "seemingly" possible that it will be started in the morning. Inshallah..

Thought should post some more pictures in the meantime

The carburetor has been installed. The clutch and brake is complete. Oil bleeding and pedal pressures have been adjusted. (not shown in the pic) Good to go that is !

New generator/alternator has been installed and so has a power steering pump from a later TLC

The front hood is ready for installation but waiting for the mechanicals to finish. Other body parts that were painted and were waiting to be installed have been put on the vehicle.

I have almost finalized the wheels for the rigg. We checked the "look" today. It was late and the picture quality is not good. But I think they look great. So these are probably the wheels the rigg is getting.

These are Indonesian A/T tires 275/75 R16. The wheel setup is proving costly but I am beginning to think that used rims would not be fair to rest of the shine of the vehicle. So will swallow this one :-!

The steering column has been fixed and the original radiator has been serviced as well. In the morning we finalize the power steering housing, add engine oil and Inshallah will start the engine. Check the wiring (it's almost complete), and will give the rigg it's first ignition start. If all goes as planned, will update more pics morrow night.

Let me hear out about the wheels

[VCheng]

Excellent progress! The end result is going to be marvellous I am sure.

[ANK]

Cant wait to see the final touches and when it hits the roads:) great work keep us updated

[hanzala]

really nicee... and by the way for how much that LC seat cost you???

[hsumbal1]

Visited the Bao's work shop today and had a look at the progress myself.
Bao is a good and a capable denter painter. The job he is doing is good.

Now coming to the engine issue. There is no harm in going wid a genuien 2F Petrol Plant, though I wud have personally gone for a diesel Power plany had I been in ur place.
The problem area in a 2F mainly is the carburator. Normally the auctioned FJs have a pretty much passed out Carbys so they are a little trick to tune but that in not the case with every unit, there is a good chance that you are lucky and find that the engine is running fine. If you visit the FJ/BJ 40 fan club thread you will come across "razaz" he is an authority on FJs and a really nice guy, he will help you anytime. He had a problem wid 2F petrol engine so he shifted to a 1KZ diesel.
In case you want to stick to a 2F wot you can do is get a Carburator from USA. Preferebly Webber. Check the fuel pump, even if it is running fine change it for a new. And get the coil also sorted out.

COOLCRUISERS.COM - Toyota Land Cruiser Parts & Restoration

Take a look at the above link. You can also get the parts from Australia.

Take care

[sarmadqureshi]

That's a beautiful build. Whats the ball park figure like end to end ?

[MITSU_MAN]

@nOmS6

Mashallah very very nicely done, deserve 10/10......though would prefer something more OEMish when it comes to the rims to match such a pristine job.....but that's just me, you go ahead with your plans for your rig....great effort!

[noman8ff]

@nOmS6

Mashallah very very nicely done, deserve 10/10......though would prefer something more OEMish when it comes to the rims to match such a pristine job.....but that's just me, you go ahead with your plans for your rig....great effort!

Very true

[nOmS6]

Thank you all for your kind appreciation. I am lucky to have found good people to work on the rigg with me. One even twists my arm as well if I slack down a bit.

@sarmadqureshi: I am trying to keep it under 650K (end to end). There is however no limit to what can be spent on such projects. There is always something shinier to install I am keeping all records and remember your earlier request to share the costs of the project. Will do Inshallah.

@Mitsu_Man: Thank you sir. I totally agree with your rim type suggestion. In fact I wanted to put the 1994 Cruiser original rims in my rigg. However, I have been unable to find them locally still. There is one place left to check and I will check that before I buy the ones shown in my post. If you have other OEM recommendations, please do share as I need this help now.

Well! After running after the mechanic and electrician for the last two days, begging, scolding, hunting them.. today the engine finally got it's first ignition start !! YUPPEE !!! we kept it idling for a little more than 2 hours. No leakages, sounded great and all systems working fine. I made a video and am not sure if pakwheels will let me put it here. Otherwise I will link to youtube when I will upload it there.

Hopefully Bao G can rap the paint job within this week now and I can enjoy the ride on the next weekend !

Stay tuned as we are approaching the finale !

[adeelhanif86]

nice work done

[ANK]

Amazing.....

[noman8ff]

video's r allowed. Do post it. Would love to hear 2F thundering.

[nOmS6]

The engine kept idling for at least 5 hours today.
Smooth purring - ready to roar

The electrician completed all wiring today. All lights and indicators are working fine. Wind shield wipers included. However he somehow managed to blow the cutout of the generator today so it will be replaced again. I will not be paying for the replacement this time. Also one of the front light beams was fused so will get a new one for that as well. The dashboard meter gauges need refurbishing and will be done/installed morrow.

The power steering pump that we put in (it was not stock) is not working so will replace that morrow as well. Also, the accelerator and choke wires will be installed morrow and thus will wrap the mechanical work of the rigg. Here is a picture of the engine running. I know its redundant posting a pic of a running 2F but since I have not yet figured out how to upload a video here (@nauman8ff: sir tutorial plz ) a pic goes at least.

Oh well.. managed to upload a video on YouTube of the 2F running. Here is the link.

YouTube - 2F engine - first idle run after rebuild

Since the mechanic was on leave today, we decided to put the painted parts back on frame. We have run out on the "japani bolts" that were being used for the rebuild. So we had to put some older bolts to complete installations. I will replace them later as I will replace some of the fittings (the back door lock handle eg.) as well after the rigg is completed and on road. The front "TOYOTA" monogram is also broken so will have to get a new one.

Stay tuned now for daily updates (hopefully)