1983 FJ45 Troop Carrier Buildup
- Thread starter Hltoppr
- Start date
Hltoppr
El Gringo Spectacular!
Big Friday!
So, a milestone has been reached for the Troopy...
The plate I chose was an Alternative Fuel/Clean Air one since the Troopy is rigged to run off propane:
See the pretty clouds....
Well, as of this morning, she's walkin' the walk and talkin' the talk! Filled up the propane system and she's good to go! No more petrol exhaust!
:jumping: :jumping: :jumping:
I've noticed no apparent loss of power, and she runs smooth.....
-H-
(And I did have my morning coffee in a recycled paper cup....:costumed-smiley-007 )
So, a milestone has been reached for the Troopy...
The plate I chose was an Alternative Fuel/Clean Air one since the Troopy is rigged to run off propane:
See the pretty clouds....
Well, as of this morning, she's walkin' the walk and talkin' the talk! Filled up the propane system and she's good to go! No more petrol exhaust!
:jumping: :jumping: :jumping:
I've noticed no apparent loss of power, and she runs smooth.....
-H-
(And I did have my morning coffee in a recycled paper cup....:costumed-smiley-007 )
Hltoppr
El Gringo Spectacular!
Rear Seat & Propane Thoughts....
I've finally, finally, had the opportunity to get the rear seat installed. If you guys will recall, I ordered a Bestop Trailmax fold and tumble rear seat for a Jeep, with the intent to use just the "fold" feature to allow for a sleeping platform or cargo loading.
Wil and Wendy at SierraExpeditions were great to deal with, and got me the seat (twice; the first one didn't have hardware from the factory...) so fast it was scary!
In locating the seat, I found that the original mounts which came with the seat were too low; only being about 4" from the floor. I wanted to add an additional bracket to raise the seat another 2-3", and allow for better adult leg room. For the most part, the rear seat will be a mount for the car seat for my daughter.
I had some 1x2" rectangular tubing cut and drilled to match the front mounts, and the same tubing cut at 3" lengths to raise the rear of the seat. All are bolted through the floor with large backing washers.
Here are some pics of the front brackets...from the front and rear. Yes, I kept it simple....
One lap belt is mounted for the rear seat. It's really too small for more than one, and all it will do for now is secure the car seat.
I'm looking at the rear seat off of a BJ70, a 70/30 folding bench, for when I need to convert to shoulder belts and larger, adult passengers....
Also, since I've been asked, here's a shot of the front adapter plate I made to fit the Bestop front seats to the factory Toyota mounting locations. As you can see, the seat bracket mounts inside of the factory captured nut; allowing for the slight (approx. 1") less width of the Bestop seats.
Now...my impressions on running propane.
I like it! Generally, the truck runs no differently on propane than on unleaded. It does like to start on the second crank of the starter when cold; however. I guess the propane just needs a little more time to prime the system....
Mileage may be a bit less.
-H-
I've finally, finally, had the opportunity to get the rear seat installed. If you guys will recall, I ordered a Bestop Trailmax fold and tumble rear seat for a Jeep, with the intent to use just the "fold" feature to allow for a sleeping platform or cargo loading.
Wil and Wendy at SierraExpeditions were great to deal with, and got me the seat (twice; the first one didn't have hardware from the factory...) so fast it was scary!
In locating the seat, I found that the original mounts which came with the seat were too low; only being about 4" from the floor. I wanted to add an additional bracket to raise the seat another 2-3", and allow for better adult leg room. For the most part, the rear seat will be a mount for the car seat for my daughter.
I had some 1x2" rectangular tubing cut and drilled to match the front mounts, and the same tubing cut at 3" lengths to raise the rear of the seat. All are bolted through the floor with large backing washers.
Here are some pics of the front brackets...from the front and rear. Yes, I kept it simple....
One lap belt is mounted for the rear seat. It's really too small for more than one, and all it will do for now is secure the car seat.
I'm looking at the rear seat off of a BJ70, a 70/30 folding bench, for when I need to convert to shoulder belts and larger, adult passengers....
Also, since I've been asked, here's a shot of the front adapter plate I made to fit the Bestop front seats to the factory Toyota mounting locations. As you can see, the seat bracket mounts inside of the factory captured nut; allowing for the slight (approx. 1") less width of the Bestop seats.
Now...my impressions on running propane.
I like it! Generally, the truck runs no differently on propane than on unleaded. It does like to start on the second crank of the starter when cold; however. I guess the propane just needs a little more time to prime the system....
Mileage may be a bit less.
-H-
24HOURSOFNEVADA
Expedition Leader
Looks good A-
Seing your Troopy in action makes me wish I had gotten a troopy instead of the Hj45 pick-up.
Seing your Troopy in action makes me wish I had gotten a troopy instead of the Hj45 pick-up.
Hltoppr
El Gringo Spectacular!
Wow...time will fly by. I must be working too much.
Recent changes to the Troopy:
Upgraded the batteries to two Sears Diehard Platinums...work great!
Got the kiddo's carseat installed; she loves riding in dad's Cruiser!
I have some spray cans of custom color matched paint that will take care of the primered sections.... :ylsmoke:
....and today, I finally made the decision to help with some of the heat and security caused by the copius amounts of clear glass...
TINT!
Front and center windows are 32% 3M film, with the rear windows 14% 3M film....
So far, I like it. It looks darker than it is. Much cooler in the cab, and it provides a bit more security from prying eyes!
-H-
Recent changes to the Troopy:
Upgraded the batteries to two Sears Diehard Platinums...work great!
Got the kiddo's carseat installed; she loves riding in dad's Cruiser!
I have some spray cans of custom color matched paint that will take care of the primered sections.... :ylsmoke:
....and today, I finally made the decision to help with some of the heat and security caused by the copius amounts of clear glass...
TINT!
Front and center windows are 32% 3M film, with the rear windows 14% 3M film....
So far, I like it. It looks darker than it is. Much cooler in the cab, and it provides a bit more security from prying eyes!
-H-
So where's the info on the propane conversion??? Costs for the conversion? Did you run the propane in Mexico? How was availability? Of course, if I had 4 tanks and you're getting 500 miles to two tanks.....
FourByLand
Expedition Leader
That looks great!
I know you will enjoy it as the temps start to rise!
I know you will enjoy it as the temps start to rise!
Also, where did you get the custom matched paint in the spray can? I'm thinking about leaving the cruiser its original mustard yellow but fixing the bad spots....
Hltoppr
El Gringo Spectacular!
LaOutbackTrail said:
The conversion was done in 1993 in Australia, so I don't know the costs. I just had to make sure everything in the system was hooked up and in good condition before filling the tank and running it. So far it works great!
I didn't have the system up and running for the Mexico trip, but I think it would be difficult to find reliable supplies of propane from what I saw...we were looking...
As for paint, I'll have to get the name of the place in Phoenix that did it. I had a neighbor take my gas cover in and have it color matched, drop by drop. Two cans ran me just under $50; including the match service. Now that I have the codes, they'll run about $15 a can.
I'm gonna see about doing some of the rear section and rear doors this weekend....I'm not sure if I'll have enough to make it all one color....
-H-
Hltoppr said:
What about if you have the Toyota paint code? I think the theme for mine will be... mix-n-match.
