MountainGoat
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- PNW
Well I cant say I havent enjoyed the XJ. I have taken her offroad on a regular basis now. Drives more like a car then my past rigs. Still all stock. Here is whats going on. Before I bought my first jeep I owned Land Cruisers. Mostly stationwagons (FJ55/62). The main reasons why I went to an XJ are as follows:
1) Cost: I can find an XJ with almost all the bells and whistles for about 1500 bucks. (an FJ55 in same shape is 2 to 3 times the price)
2) Money again: It cost a hell of a lot less to lift an XJ then an FJ55 or FJ60/62 TLC. (XJ less then 1K.. 55/60/62 TLC more then 1200 for 2" lift)
3) Money again: Fuel economy right off the line is twice what I had in a TLC wagon. (XJ gets about 19/20mpg.... TLC gets 10/14mpg)
4) Money again: More stuff on the market for Jeeps then TLC wagons.
5) Money again: Body parts are less.
Overall my reasons were due to money. I could find an XJ for less money, there are a heck of allot more on the market and when I needed parts or aftermarket stuff I could find it almost anywhere and it would be more then affordable. So all in all it was more cost effective to go with the XJ then with another TLC wagon. But this week I had a wrench get thrown into the picture.
I came across a nice FJ55 for 1000 bucks.
Here are the "cons" with owning an FJ55.... They are big and heavy. My last FJ55 was weighed by the military before I moved. Completely stripped out with zero fuel in the tank it came in at just under 4400 pounds. The F series engine at best gets 14mpg. Body parts are very hard to find. A set of fenders with no rust can easily run 600 bucks and a set of outer rockers new (very rare) will set you back about 800 bucks. Forget about other stuff like the tailgate (which weighs a ton) and finding a rig with rear ambulance doors (very rare). also they have no real ceature comforts. Only the late 70's came with AC and thats hard to find. The floors have rubber floor mats, and at highway speeds to cant hear the person next to you without yelling. The factory radio hole sucks and is too short to fit any aftermarket system.
Pro's: Heavy duty frame thats somewhere between a 1/2 and 3/4 ton chevy. I had 3/8 channel iron bumpers front and rear on my FJ55. I was reared more then once and nothing ever happened to my rig. Hit a tree hard enough to bend the bumper at a good 45 degree angle... nothing happned to the frame. They can be feild stripped and repaired on the trail if need be. Some have a factory PTO/Winch. My last FJ45LV had the factory PTO/Winch. My FJ55 wasnt from the States.... it was shipped in and came from the factory with 33" OD 16" split rim wheels. It sat higher then an XJ with a 6" lift and higher then other FJ55's due to the tires. The engine was die hard and went about 400,000 miles on original bearings. Never had a rebuild. I only swapped the engine out because one of my buddies was selling his 87 2F engine. 100K on it and the pig was fresh. In all the miles I placed on that rig.. and all the extreme abuse it was delt.. it never gave me any issues. When the head gasket finally blew at 225K, I made it home. If something went wrong I was almost always able to fix it while still in the field. It never overheated on me or died in traffic. When I overloaded it with 1200 pounds and drove across washinton state, into oregon and idaho it never complained. I load my XJ up with stuff and move across town it dies while in rush hour traffic or would overheat (thats fixed for now). The FJ55 is old school and still holds it roots as a military vehicle. Mine came with an artic heater that would bake you. Some folks think Toyota copied the US jeeps... well in a way they did... because the US Government gave them the blue prints to manufacture 4x4's for the US military serving in the Asain islands and goin to Korea. Kind tells you why the early 25 and 40 series looked so much like swb open jeeps.
Now I have to say even though I have had issues with the past two XJ's I have owned....... I still like my XJ because it fits well into my family. When I want to wheel its there... when its hot the AC works... when its cold the heater works well and the family can go around town in comfort and talk without being beaten to death with road noise.
But... I have to say when this FJ55 came into the picture it really threw a monkey wrench into things...... I have recently returned the college...... if I went with the FJ55 I would be giving up comfort (better ride, AC, less road noise, etc.) and fuel economy. But the FJ55 would be better with realibilty and I could always adapt AC and other features. I know I cant own both rigs.
Guess Im trying to talk myself out of owning the FJ55... just curious to see what advice some might have. I think my common sense reservoir is running a bit low. Im still new to the XJ crowd... so far even with the issues it has been good. Sure its a huge stress factor when the XJ breaks down on the freeway or in rush hour traffic... but I like the XJ.... then again I like the FJ55 too.
1) Cost: I can find an XJ with almost all the bells and whistles for about 1500 bucks. (an FJ55 in same shape is 2 to 3 times the price)
2) Money again: It cost a hell of a lot less to lift an XJ then an FJ55 or FJ60/62 TLC. (XJ less then 1K.. 55/60/62 TLC more then 1200 for 2" lift)
3) Money again: Fuel economy right off the line is twice what I had in a TLC wagon. (XJ gets about 19/20mpg.... TLC gets 10/14mpg)
4) Money again: More stuff on the market for Jeeps then TLC wagons.
5) Money again: Body parts are less.
Overall my reasons were due to money. I could find an XJ for less money, there are a heck of allot more on the market and when I needed parts or aftermarket stuff I could find it almost anywhere and it would be more then affordable. So all in all it was more cost effective to go with the XJ then with another TLC wagon. But this week I had a wrench get thrown into the picture.
I came across a nice FJ55 for 1000 bucks.
Here are the "cons" with owning an FJ55.... They are big and heavy. My last FJ55 was weighed by the military before I moved. Completely stripped out with zero fuel in the tank it came in at just under 4400 pounds. The F series engine at best gets 14mpg. Body parts are very hard to find. A set of fenders with no rust can easily run 600 bucks and a set of outer rockers new (very rare) will set you back about 800 bucks. Forget about other stuff like the tailgate (which weighs a ton) and finding a rig with rear ambulance doors (very rare). also they have no real ceature comforts. Only the late 70's came with AC and thats hard to find. The floors have rubber floor mats, and at highway speeds to cant hear the person next to you without yelling. The factory radio hole sucks and is too short to fit any aftermarket system.
Pro's: Heavy duty frame thats somewhere between a 1/2 and 3/4 ton chevy. I had 3/8 channel iron bumpers front and rear on my FJ55. I was reared more then once and nothing ever happened to my rig. Hit a tree hard enough to bend the bumper at a good 45 degree angle... nothing happned to the frame. They can be feild stripped and repaired on the trail if need be. Some have a factory PTO/Winch. My last FJ45LV had the factory PTO/Winch. My FJ55 wasnt from the States.... it was shipped in and came from the factory with 33" OD 16" split rim wheels. It sat higher then an XJ with a 6" lift and higher then other FJ55's due to the tires. The engine was die hard and went about 400,000 miles on original bearings. Never had a rebuild. I only swapped the engine out because one of my buddies was selling his 87 2F engine. 100K on it and the pig was fresh. In all the miles I placed on that rig.. and all the extreme abuse it was delt.. it never gave me any issues. When the head gasket finally blew at 225K, I made it home. If something went wrong I was almost always able to fix it while still in the field. It never overheated on me or died in traffic. When I overloaded it with 1200 pounds and drove across washinton state, into oregon and idaho it never complained. I load my XJ up with stuff and move across town it dies while in rush hour traffic or would overheat (thats fixed for now). The FJ55 is old school and still holds it roots as a military vehicle. Mine came with an artic heater that would bake you. Some folks think Toyota copied the US jeeps... well in a way they did... because the US Government gave them the blue prints to manufacture 4x4's for the US military serving in the Asain islands and goin to Korea. Kind tells you why the early 25 and 40 series looked so much like swb open jeeps.
Now I have to say even though I have had issues with the past two XJ's I have owned....... I still like my XJ because it fits well into my family. When I want to wheel its there... when its hot the AC works... when its cold the heater works well and the family can go around town in comfort and talk without being beaten to death with road noise.
But... I have to say when this FJ55 came into the picture it really threw a monkey wrench into things...... I have recently returned the college...... if I went with the FJ55 I would be giving up comfort (better ride, AC, less road noise, etc.) and fuel economy. But the FJ55 would be better with realibilty and I could always adapt AC and other features. I know I cant own both rigs.
Guess Im trying to talk myself out of owning the FJ55... just curious to see what advice some might have. I think my common sense reservoir is running a bit low. Im still new to the XJ crowd... so far even with the issues it has been good. Sure its a huge stress factor when the XJ breaks down on the freeway or in rush hour traffic... but I like the XJ.... then again I like the FJ55 too.
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