‘What I wish I knew before buying my old Toyota LandCruiser’

The Toyota LandCruiser is one of the most iconic 4WDs in the world, consistently topping both the charts for new SUV sales in Australia, as well as dominating the local used-car market.

The LandCruiser has been in production for over 70 years, enduring through numerous generations and with more variations than can be counted. But it all started in Australia when the very first FJ25 landed Down Under in 1959.

Since then, LandCruisers in all their forms have been a popular option for car buyers – from shoppers wanting a large luxury SUV to those who are into project cars to those who want to venture off the beaten track.

However, with the cheapest new LandCruiser you can buy in 2024 being the 70 Series WorkMate – with a price tag of $75,600 (plus on-road costs) – perhaps you're tempted to jump into a classic or older model.

Drive reached out to a handful of old LandCruiser owners to find out why they decided to opt for an older 4WD over a new one – and what they've learned along the way.

Tom: Dad bought his 1994 80 Series when I was a kid. Many of my fondest memories are in the back of that LandCruiser going on family trips. Back in the early 2000s, it was considered very normal to own a mid-'90s 4x4 as they were less than 10 years old.

Once you've spent so much time and effort keeping the vehicle at a known level of maintenance and durability for big off-road trips, it's hard to change back to square one.

Now I look at these old LandCruisers, especially the 80 Series, and think about how much I'd much rather go off-road in one of those than a modern 4x4. There are too many electronics and non-serviceable parts to go wrong.

I only drive an old Jimny now because it's cheap. If I had the opportunity, I'd be in a LandCruiser, but Dad still does serious cross-country desert trips in his.

George: I purchased the ex-government 80 Series base model with barn doors and a 1HZ engine at a vehicle auction and my 2017 Prado 150 new as a work vehicle. They advertise Prados as LandCruisers, but I wouldn't consider them one in my opinion.

Having owned other brands of 4WDs, I purchased the LandCruiser because of its longevity, quality of engineering, and materials used.

I originally purchased them for the dual purpose of an everyday drive combined with some off-road use, and by that, I mean no road or track – true cross-country.

The 80 Series has proven to be extremely reliable. For a 30-year-old vehicle, you would not hesitate to take it into the remotest deserts of Australia, where your life depends on getting back.

What is generally not understood about solid-axle LandCruisers is that they are rebuildable, use fully floating axles, and use high-quality components – they are, in fact, small trucks.

They're very simple to work on with minimal tools. Although they may be described as outdated designs, they are tried and proven worldwide. There is a reason that they are used in war zones, the UN, mining, cattle stations, government, and NGOs.

I'm a Toyota man through and through. Having only owned Toyotas, it wouldn't be right to get anything else, so I opted to get a 1988 HJ61 LandCruiser in GX trim, which is mid-spec.

It's mainly used to take us on camping trips, but I do use it as a runaround when needed. There's not a lot I wish it had after sorting out the air conditioning besides some less rust. I guess that's just the downside of owning older cars.

Sure, some of the creature comforts of a newer car, like better sound deadening and insulation to reduce the in-cab noise, would be nice, but that just gives me something to do when I get around to it.

It's been super reliable, but I have put a lot of work into keeping it going and making sure it's reliable. With over 670,000km, you need to keep the maintenance up, especially when I don't know the full history of the car for the over 30 years before I owned it.

I've rebuilt the engine, rebuilt the brakes, changed every bearing and bush on the car, and changed a bunch of seals. But on the assumption that nothing had been changed previously (except wear items), it gives me comfort that I've got a long road ahead of trouble-free motoring.

The 'Cruiser has some quirks. I used to have to get under the car to start it with a screwdriver. If you know that trick, you'll know you get some weird looks.

You always end up bumping into people who have owned one, still own one, or grew up around one too. Those conversations and sharing stories with strangers are a great part of the Toyota community and the passion that owners share for them.

I bought my 2009 120 Series Toyota LandCruiser Prado in 2023 after I had been on the lookout for a 4WD for a daily driver that could do everything.

I was considering older Mitsubishi Pajeros and Nissan Patrols, but most of them seemed way more tired and worn out for the price. I heard a lot of negative things about the ZD30 engines in the Patrols. I was also considering HiLuxes, but I preferred having an enclosed cabin for my dogs over a ute.

I landed on the Prado because the prices seemed decent, there seemed to be plenty of parts, and they were reasonably reliable.

Daily life is great. It's way more fuel-efficient than I expected and super practical. I wanted a bigger car and 4x4 because I often go on farm properties for WIRES rescue stuff. I needed space in the back for a big wombat carrier, so I fitted drawers in the rear to fit all my tools and rescue stuff, as well as giving me a safer spot to lock up my cameras.

It's fairly comfortable, the AC works well (in the front), and there is plenty of room for all the things I need.

I also plan to use it for camping and some light overlanding in the future. Nothing too hectic off-road, but it's nice to know it can handle a bit of rough stuff getting to campsites if I need to.

One thing I don't completely love is the interior. All the plastics are nasty grey and scratched up. I tried to find some wood-grain interior panels from Japan, but I gave up because it seemed like too much to spend on such a trivial thing.

But honestly, everything else about it is great. It already came with the options fitted that I wanted – LED spotlights, roof racks, awning etc. I haven't really been desiring much else other than maybe an AC inverter and an additional battery for charging things when on the road/camping, but that's pretty easy to get done when I need it.

For the past year on the road, I haven't seen any major issues despite the car being 15 years old. However, I had to pay a fair amount for suspension replacement because the entire suspension was shot — a new lift kit with shocks/springs and new front suspension arms. That cost a bit, but mechanically, everything has been fine.

It did have a fuel leak between the two tanks that I put off fixing for about a year. It turned out it was about a $50 pipe that took about an hour to replace. I was very happy with that, and now I can use both tanks to travel around 1400km without filling up.

I watched a movie called CB4 when I was young; in the movie, they had a CJ40 Jeep with wide all-terrain wheels and a convertible with windscreen-mounted spotlights.

I waited until I got my licence to try and find one, but the closest thing I could find in Australia at the time was an FJ40 LandCruiser.

I bought the 1976 model from a friend in 2005 for $1500. It had a four-speed manual, and a straight-six engine running straight LPG because the petrol tank was so rusted out that it was removed.

It was a fun car; I wasn't a hunter, though it did have a hunting roof hatch poorly installed on the roof with padded edges to stand up and shoot while spotlighting.

Fundamentally, it was an awful car. The roof was so leaky that the cabin would fill with water in the rain, and it rusted the floors out so badly that they were fibreglassed over. It was literally like a Fred Flintstone car.

The funniest part was that despite its bad condition, it still ran and drove. I did have some issues, like the gearbox blowing up and the steering being so bad it looked like I was trying to steer the Titanic, but otherwise, it just drove you to where you needed to go.

I originally started to pull it down for restoration after finding a fibreglass tub in Bega. It was pulled apart at a friend's house, and I planned to convert it into a bit of a hotrod with a V8. It all fell apart when the friend became no longer a friend and moved to Queensland.

I went over with a hired trailer towed by a Toyota Camry, wheeled the shell that was on a jig, and collected as many parts as I could find remaining. I had the rolling chassis tow truck dropped at my house and then advertised it in the Trading Post, selling it as is for $500.

Zane Dobie comes from a background of motorcycle journalism, working for notable titles such as Australian Motorcycle News Magazine, Just Bikes and BikeReview. Despite his fresh age, Zane brings a lifetime of racing and hands-on experience. His passion now resides on four wheels as an avid car collector, restorer, drift car pilot and weekend go-kart racer.

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