:crybaby2: this makes me cry (http://www.rockymountaincruisers.com/07212002_bm.html)

looks great, right price, right year, wrong location... :crybaby2:

-LCL

:feelingsorryforhimselfoff:

so what EXACTLY do you want (year model color etc)

year: pre '74 because i live in california and don't want to worry
about the smog standards and such...

model: FJ40

color: anythin if it conforms to the rest of my specifications... i
really dislike the ass green color that they have though...

price: under $4000

condtion: fair rust, fair inside.... running, minimal work to be done,
could be drivin as is...

miles: almost anything if it's been rebuilt recently....

that's all that i can think of... my main ones are year, price, and
no pitted rust... i could have a crappy interior if the exterior was
in good condition but that doesn't sound possible...

-LCL

also... i need to be able to check it out and have it inspected by a
mechanic before i buy it... if someone is willing to ship and risk the
chance of having to take it back, i will look at cruiser from other
states...

thank you for your help, but i'm not sure how much you can give
as of your location...

-LCL

i got one word for you junior: ROADTRIP !:flipoff2:

:flipoff2: :shrek: of greeat thanks for the help, orangy :/shrek:

hard to take a road trip when you can't drive :flipoff2:

-LCL

That is pretty close to where I grew up. If you want I will check it out the next time I head up that way, probably won't be for another month or so. Let me know. That is where I picked up my cruiser, virtually a rust free 74, 92K miles, new tcase and a whopping $1500. Idaho rules.

I would add that no mechanic is going to make any sort of guarantee that things will be okay...who knows, maybe the owner knows him... If everything is working the day of the sale, and craps out later, oh well. I would really look at rust... Everything else can be dealt with fairly straight forwardly, but rust can really be alot worse than meets the eye-especially some non-landcruiser mechanic doesnt know how it should be....

-Brett

I'm really dealing with that "rust can be more than meets the eye" thing right now. My FJ has a really straight body, but the original owner had carpent with foam underneath it, in the interior. Naturally, the foam held moisture wonderfully, but even though there was some pitting, it just didn't look all that bad...until I took a wire wheel to it. It's still not *that* bad, but I just didn't expect to be breaking through in so many places.

74cruzah... thank you, but as I said, I wouldn't buy a cruiser
unless it came to me... I was just :crybaby2: about it....

-LCL

why cant you drive?

Well, this doesn't conform to your under $4000 thing, but there is a cruiser that has been for sale on craigslist for a while. The guy is asking 5995. I personally think he could be talked down to 5g's because he's been trying to sell it for so long. Here's the link.

http://www.craigslist.org/sfo/sby/car/4896066.html

For those of you that are lazy, here are the specs.

1976 Toyota FJ40, Chevy 350 V8 conversion done right. Fully smog legal. Mint condition inside and out. Runs and drive great. Full cage rollbar. Custom front bumber AM/FM Cassette. 33" tires, 4" inch lift. Give a call or reply for more details.

I dunno what "done right" means, but I could drive over there and check it out for you. My family owns several cruisers, and have done most of the work ourselves so I know what to look for.

cruisd64- that doesn't conform to being older than '74 and the
price, but thanks for the help anyway... How many cruisers do you
own?

-LCL

to everyone... do you think it's stupid that i'm only looking for a
cruiser older n '74? i don't want to worry about it having to pass
smog and want to be able to put in a corvette engine if i felt the
need (and found the cash :D)... but is it really worth it? i've been
searchin since february and i've found 1 cruiser that was worth
looking at... the year takes a lot of cruisers out of the question...

i was just wondering what your thoughts are about it....

-LCL

we have 5 cruisers total. This one does pass smog. If it passes smog, why not, eh? Its not like you're going to be lacking power. It has a V8. Mine is smog legal and I have enough power to pick up the front end almost.

all of our cruisers are 75 and up. 75,76,77,78 and 89. I feel that the 76 through 78 are the best, but thats just my opinion. You get disc brakes, the 2f motor, 4.11's and a 4 speed...... other things too. Making a truck smog legal isn't that difficult. I'm sure you've seen the BTB trucks that put a brand new vortec engine into a cruiser. Ton of power, and emissions safe. Thats what I plan on going for.

Originally posted by LCL
to everyone... do you think it's stupid that i'm only looking for a
cruiser older n '74? i don't want to worry about it having to pass
smog and want to be able to put in a corvette engine if i felt the
need (and found the cash :D)... but is it really worth it? i've been
searchin since february and i've found 1 cruiser that was worth
looking at... the year takes a lot of cruisers out of the question...

i was just wondering what your thoughts are about it....

-LCL

I think you are making a big fuss, and it doesn't appear you are doing any real (non-bulletin-board) leg-work to find one, any test drives, etc.

Why do you keep talking to us about getting a cruiser? Go get one!

Ok, that said, there is nothing wrong with buying a post-smog cruiser. You will only buy it if it passes smog, and then you just have to keep it in good running shape. I've got a few friends running post-73 cruisers with stock motors who are happy with their cruisers. If you are going to keep the six - and I have - the '75 and up cruisers have the better 2F. It's a great motor.

If you are set on doing a swap (and why would you be if you have no personal experience owning and driving a cruiser as of yet?) then just make sure you do a smog-legal swap.

There are plenty of cruisers out there. You have to do some more work to find them all, and you may have to travel or ship the right one to you. If it has to be a pre-74 smog-exempt cruiser under some dollar amount in the east bay, then prepare for a long patient search and put notes on the windshields of every suitable cruiser in the area and introduce yourself in person (not on the internet) to local cruiser guys and read all the classifieds of the local papers.

Nobody found their dream cruiser by complaining on an internet bulletin board about it.

Your cranky neighbor in Oakland,

Morgan (found my 55 in Oakland, my 40 in South SF, my 80 in San Diego)

cars.com search for cruisers pre-82 within 150 miles of zip code 94602 (http://www.cars.com/search/used/cc/standard/results/multiple/fs_search_results.jhtml;jsessionid=SPXBICOQ5ZHKNLA ZGJHJPRA?aff=national&src=&cid=&_requestid=44450)

Morgan

cruisd64 - why do you not suggest the years after '78... i've only
been focused on pre '74 so i need to get myself aquainted with
the specs of later years...

morgan- thank you for the kick in the ass... that is exactly what i
got from "complaining on an internet bulletin board about it."

btw, i have been doing some work outside of the computer... i
found a cruiser in the tahoe area wheels and deals and was
gettin ready to buy it... called to set up an appointment and was
told it was sold the night before...

i think that broadening the years i can search for will prove many
more suitable results...

thanx for the help all
-LCL

I said 75-78 :)

then i said why not the years after...

-LCL

Dude, forget about the internet. Instead of posting 423 times to the Pirate Board, go out and get the truck trader THE DAY it comes out and hit the pavement. Get up at 6 and get the paper every day. Any good deal will sell that same day and often if you are first to call, you get the first chance to see it.

Do what Morgan said too, get on your mountain bike, drive around in your car, walk, etc. Bring some paper and leave notes. Knock on doors. since `88 I have owned 14 Land Cruisers. Most I have bought from friends and or knocking on doors only a few from the paper. I found my house, several cool BMW motorcycles and Vespa motorscooters the same way. Shit, I found a Willys' that ran once for $200. Got a free BMW R90/6 and got a Mint Vespa for $150. Just by seeing it and asking the people if they wanted to sell. Sometimes, you even meet cool people.

I once traded a well worn Fat Chance mountain bike for a FJ40 that I later sold for $4000. I don't know who got the better deal though, the guy still rides my old bike and the cruiser has long since died and gone to hell.

I have no pity for you what so ever. I go to Ca every year for a week and every time I get the truck trader and read the paper. Every time I look, I see cool cruisers for sale (and tons of other neat shit). I go for a walk, I see nice Cruisers, I go a drive, I see more.

Get off the internet and go and look at some.

As an east coaster who had to learn to weld just so I could afford to even own a POS cruiser, again I have no pity.

Lastly, the most important thing is not to look for a particular cruiser, but to try to find the best deal. There might be a awesome `79 FJ55 out there with factory PS and AC for less that you have to spend. Keep your eyes and your options open.

-Stumbaugh

PS, aren't you the guy that flamed me for joking around with Tom Waynes about bringing me a hard top back east from Tahoe? Get off the computer and hit the pavement!

There is a nice `68 for sale here in Northern VA. I think that it has a PTO winch. $3500 I think that I could talk to guy down to $3000 - I don't really know him well, just know who he is.

Would cost you about $700 to $900 to ship out west if you found a good deal.

want me to try and get some pics?

I think it's blue, I know it's not rusty, it came from out west a few years ago...

-Stumbaugh