What do you guys think about this 91 FJ80?

[CA-RJ]

1991 FJ80

With our 2nd child on the way, the wife and I have been discussing larger vehicles and while I can't justify a FJ60, maybe a FJ80 would fit the bill. This one looks pretty nice, but I think the price might be a bit high.

Just judging what you see in the for sale ad, what do you think is a good price for it? Any thoughts or concerns about it?

Thanks!

 

[addicted56]

Reasonably fair I would think on the price and he is willing to negotiate. 3fe runs forever but like the power of the 1fze better and later on you get full floating rear axles as well as a few other things.

 

[RMP&O]

Why not an FJ60? To rugged for the family?

I was going to say at $8k I think he is a bit steep but he came down to $7k. I think it is worth $5-6K as it sits. While he has probably spent several thousands or more on mods, that doesn't make it worth a lot more then something else. Mods never return the $$$ put it when a truck is sold.

Offer him $6k as it sits, with new cats. He says in the ad he will do new cats out of the purchase price.

I don't see much rust, only surface on the undercarriage. California truck I bett hat is all it has. Cloth seats are nice.

Being a 91 it doesn't have the FF rear axle. It also lacks factory lockers. Mileage is average. Maintenance looks ok. I wouldn't pay more then $6500 for it with new cats though. So many 80s out there to pick from it seems easy to find a good one at a good price.

my 2 cents

 

[CA-RJ]

Why no 60? It's very hard to find a clean one that doesn't have 250k miles and cost $10k+. It also seems that most of them have had the smog equipment removed which is a no-no in California.

 

[CA-RJ]

Going to go look at it on Sunday. It sounds like a solid Cruiser.

 

[homey]

ME TOO!!

Ca, I literally just was in the same position as you are now. I ended up with a stock '91 LC two weeks ago. Like you, I started looking at trucks that were already built up like the one you're looking at on Mud. That is a really nice looking truck for sure but what ultimately swayed me from getting an "expo ready" rig was the unknown toll it had already taken and the stress it has already been through. Plus my budget would be wiped out in one fell swoop with one prebuilt and it would be risker, in my opinion, because I wouldn't be able to afford any unforeseen repairs if it needed them. I decided I would incur the future additional costs of building my own rig from a really nice stock LandCruiser. I searched for the nicest stock LC i could find within my budget and was lucky enough to find one for considerably less then I was prepared to spend and used the remaining funds getting it back to new condition (within reason) so it would be very reliable for whatever I chose to do with it. Mine is still a work-in-progress and needs (or wants) some cool ARB stuff mounted to it but for now I have a very safe, reliable and capable family hauler that I'm confident is in top shape, because all the work has been completed while I've owned it these last two weeks.

Keep in mind I'm a total newbie to this whole game but I feel like buying a stock, well-kept, 80-series LC was one of the best purchases of my life... so far! Plus I know my children and wife will be safe if anything ever happens while they're in it (knock on wood). The '91 and '92 are great trucks. You'll probably love whatever one you end up with as long as you go into in with your eyes wide open.

 

[Christian P.]

since you ask....I would look for 93+ instead. Much more power. This one seems to me like it's more toward the end of its life...all the extra make it tempting, but I have a feeling that the truck itself is a bit tired. the story about the cat also seems a bit strange.

just a very quick search...here's a 95 with similar mileage for $5K, probably less. that leaves $3K of room for repairs/upgrades, and you get a 95

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/nby/cto/2832132379.html

1996 for $6500

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/scz/cto/2820394658.html

or add a 2K more and get a 1999 100 series...

http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/cto/2777732540.html

 

[CA-RJ]

Christian, can you go into more detail as to why you think it is tired/toward the end of its life? Thanks.

 

[1911]

Why no 60? It's very hard to find a clean one that doesn't have 250k miles and cost $10k+. It also seems that most of them have had the smog equipment removed which is a no-no in California.

For a data point, I recently bought one from California; just passed CA smog, mechanically very sound (owned by a professional & well-known LC mechanic), OME lift, H55F five-speed, straight body, negligible rust, drive it anywhere, all for $5,500. I looked/waited a few months to get this one though.

since you ask....I would look for 93+ instead. Much more power.

Having owned a '91 FJ80 for many years, I would agree with this if it's going to be a family car. The 3FE motor in the '91-92 is a great wheeling motor and stone reliable, but the freeway performance with a car full of family and gear is sub-par for sure, unless you live in Kansas or only drive down-hill. And the fuel economy is no better than a 60.

 

[CA-RJ]

The plan would be to regear to 4.88's right away. I drive 55-65 on the highway now, so I don't need a speedy rig.

Having owned a '91 FJ80 for many years, I would agree with this if it's going to be a family car. The 3FE motor in the '91-92 is a great wheeling motor and stone reliable, but the freeway performance with a car full of family and gear is sub-par for sure, unless you live in Kansas or only drive down-hill. And the fuel economy is no better than a 60.

 

[1911]

The plan would be to regear to 4.88's right away. I drive 55-65 on the highway now, so I don't need a speedy rig.

No need to re-gear for that (unless you're going to run oversize tires), the 3FE will pull those speeds easily. It will go 70+ as long as it's not uphill and you're not in a hurry to get up to speed.

FWIW, my '91 is still in the family and running strong at well over 250,000 miles. The head has never been off. I would drive that truck across the country tomorrow without a second thought.

 

[CA-RJ]

Do you consider 33x10.50's "oversized"?

 

[Zatara]

The 91/92 FJ80s are great trucks but they are the red headed step child of the LC world.
They get little love here.
My 91 has been trouble free and more than adequate for the off roading I do. Yes, they are slower than the 93-97s but not by much.

 

[1911]

Do you consider 33x10.50's "oversized"?

The stock tires are 31", so 33's are only about 6% larger in diameter. Personally, I wouldn't go to the expense of re-gearing for a 6% difference. But if you're going to, the stock diff ratio is 4.11, so 4.88 would be 19% lower gearing, so your end result would be 12% lower gearing than stock with 33" tires. You may want to consider using 4.56 gears, which are 11% lower than stock. With 33" tires this would net you final gearing about 5% lower than stock.

 

[CA-RJ]

That is good info. Thank you.