Can It Be Saved? 1978 Toyota Land Cruiser

In many ways, the FJ40-series Toyota Land Cruiser market has mirrored the air-cooled Porsche 911 market (at least to a point.) There was a period of time when every project was being drug out and bid up on eBay, allowing owners who had never thought the used-up truck on the back 40 would ever be worth anything to cash in. As we’ve seen with many vehicles, time has caused those fluctuations to settle, and now I only the best Land Cruisers get top dollar. This rusty and forgotten FJ40 is listed here on eBay with an asking price of $3,999 or best offer, but I wonder if even that number is too high in today’s market.

The seller has chosen an interesting array of photos to showcase this FJ40, and I’m not sure if it’s meant to make it look better or worse. Regardless, the fact that the seller recommends sourcing a new tub tells you the body is pretty rotten. The chassis is said to be solid, however, so perhaps the logic is sound that a simple tub replacement could be a cost effective and efficient way of rebuilding this truck properly. When Googling, you can find basic FJ40 tub replacements for under $6,000. That obviously doesn’t account for the labor involved, but if you have a clean title, a solid frame, and an engine that can be freshened up versus replaced – well, perhaps this makes some level of sense.

The dash appears to be more or less complete, but there is significant floor rust. This Land Cruiser does look like a truck that was left outside for years when it was just a tired 4×4. The trouble is there’s far more to replace here than just the tub. Most of us would prefer switchgear that isn’t rated, and a dash panel that doesn’t need refinishing / replacement. The seller is not trying to hide anything here, and that’s to be commended. But when you scan the recent sale results for an FJ40-series truck, there’s some driver-quality examples trading hands for safely under $20,000. This is a far cry from the pandemic bubble era when people with the cash to spend were both bored and looking for an escape vehicle, and it wasn’t uncommon to see $40,000 as the standard sale price for a driver.

The seller notes that the engine ran when he parked it, but now it won’t turn over with the starter. This is a shame, as selling of these with a running motor but some rust issues is much more feasible than it being dead in the water. The 4.2L inline-six is known to be a stout engine, so getting its 210 lb.-ft. of torque to kick back to life seems like a real possibility. Of course, there’s the other possibility of an engine swap which as become increasing popular to do with these old Land Cruisers. When looking at listing of sold trucks, many of them sport V8 swaps at this juncture, but to my nostalgic eyes, that kills off some of the appeal. Regardless, this old FJ raises all sorts of interesting questions. Which path would you choose towards a potential rebirth – or is this solely a parts truck?