1985 Diesel Toyota Land Cruiser Bj-73 on 2040-cars
Bellingham, Washington, United States
Body Type:SUV
Vehicle Title:Clear
Engine:3.4L 4-cyl Diesel
Fuel Type:Diesel
For Sale By:Private Seller
Make: Toyota
Model: Land Cruiser
Trim: 2-door
Options: 4-Wheel Drive, CD Player
Power Options: Air Conditioning
Drive Type: RWD
Mileage: 172,000
Exterior Color: Gray
Number of Doors: 2
Interior Color: Gray
Warranty: Vehicle does NOT have an existing warranty
Number of Cylinders: 4
Up for bids is my 1985 diesel Land Cruiser. It's a great vehicle and I don't want to see it go but I recently bought a 17' travel trailer and I don't want to tow it with the LC. I'm the second North American owner and I've had it since 2007 - I bought it from a friend in B.C. who imported it from Japan. He and I have both been meticulous about care and upkeep of this truck. It has an interior roll-bar. A PTO winch - used only once to get a guy out of trouble. Don't be put off by the seemingly high miles (or I should say kilometers because that's what the odometer measures). This has the famous "million mile" 3B diesel engine which is renowned for its longevity...500,000 miles before requiring an overhaul is not uncommon. This is a very reliable vehicle - I've never had an issue with it in 6 years, and I'm not exaggerating. It has started every single time without a problem. The electrical system is 24-volts which at the time Toyota used to conform to NATO military specs. All the bulbs are 24-volt and I have plenty of spares included. I added two 12-volt Duracell AGM batteries (two 12-volts in series are used to make 24 volts) one year ago and they work perfectly. I recently added two intensely bright FYRLYT fog lights (2 x $350 +$75 wiring harness = $775). The XM-radio CD player is 12-volt...a 24-12 volt converter was added in-dash and is concealed nicely. The cigarette lighter, however, is still 24-volts. The truck can tow a trailer but the lights would have to be converted to 24-volts or another converter would need to be added for the towing harness (I'd guess $400 for that).
The interior is in great shape and to ensure it stays that way I added custom-made Tuff Duck covers over all the seats from Specter Off-road ($700 total). The AC still blows cold after all these years. Heater works great. The odometer is currently at 270,000 kilometers (168,000 miles) - that's a true reading, not from a rolled-back odometer which happens frequently with imported vehicles from Japan. I put a good deal of those miles on myself and I can assure you they're mostly highway miles. The most off-roading I've ever done would be classified as off-road "touring" (gravel roads). I've never had this thing mudding and neither did the previous owner. It keeps the water outside where it belongs. Fuel economy is surprisingly good for such a heavy vehicle. I get ~20-25 miles to the gallon combined depending on how fast I'm going, etc. There isn't a timing belt or chain on this thing - it's gear-driven timing which is ultra-reliable. The "helicopter" style seats work nicely with a lot of adjustable ranges.
More details:
- A new, heavy duty, one month old exhaust system with a whole new muffler. A new was clutch installed last April. I can still tell the difference from the old/original(?) clutch, as it still pulls strongly. A few months ago I purchased and had installed a complete front-end steering knuckle kit from Australia (Ebay calls it a swivel hub bearing seal kit).
- This is a right-hand drive vehicle and you shift the 5-speed manual transmission using your left hand. It only takes a few minutes to get used to. It is completely legal to drive this way in every single state, no matter what anyone tells you. A special drivers license is not required. The only issues you have are a long reach to roll the window up and down at a drive-through business or security gate. The gas and brake are situated the way you'd expect them for a LHD vehicle. The gearing is situated the way a LHD vehicle would be with first in the upper-left and fifth in the upper-right. Easy stuff!
Rust: There was a moderate amount of rust when I first got the vehicle. This rust, which is typically for mid-80s LCs was found over the wheel arches and below the doors. I had it taken care of last fall at great expense. The repair work yielded ~15 pounds of rusty, scrap metal and I'm happy it's gone. There's still a tiny amount over the front fenders (not a lot believe me). The front window frame however will need attention within a year or two. I had a new window installed 3 years ago and I took the opportunity to thoroughly silicone the window frame area but I only slowed down the rate of rusting...a new frame will eventually need to be purchased (I'll guess ~$500).
I'm throwing in a second set of wheels and tires. The current set of Canadian Tire brand tires is good for another year or so. I'm also throwing in a JDM roof rack which I bought a fellow in BC who had it one top of his 80 series LC -$500 value. This is a heavy duty roof rack, not a cheap set from your local outdoor store. The bush bar is JDM and it's skookum. Also included are new, unused radiator hoses and a water pump and some other spare parts in case you get in trouble and need stuff right away. And know that when you need them, 70-series parts are not hard to find. In fact, the 3B diesel and associated parts were occasionally found on 60 series LCs in the 80s. You need to be a bit social when you drive this around. It gets a lot of looks and attention. People will approach you to chat about it and discuss its history, etc, especially people who have previously seen these in use in Africa, the Middle East or South America.
The bad: The interior dome light no longer comes on when I open the door. It comes on manually however on the third setting. The rear window defroster stopped working - I think one of my dogs scratched that conductive metal - I'll check that out. This is not a modern style posh SUV - the diesel engine is loud.
I want you to be happy with this purchase so I encourage you to either email me or phone me or best yet, come visit me in NW Washington state and see the vehicle for yourself. You won't be disappointed I promise you. All receipts and logs are included. The reserve is set moderately high but isn't unreasonable for the quality of the truck. I'm going to try selling it FSBO so the ad might get pulled if someone in my area wants it. Research these vehicles for yourself on sites like ih8mud.com or youtube and see for yourself how much people like them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m03ppDrr84A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQI7kMcQ0vo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHbCCDMru5M
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