I believe I have seen a couple 80's here on the board and I am going to look 94 model on Sunday. What areas should I ask about and inspect? It's high miles (270k), the birfields have supposed been replaced. Being Fzj I know I need to check the cooling system and see if the radiator has been replaced yet. I have lurked on ih8mud but I have mainly been checking the 60's forum.

More importantly, any tips on convincing the wife that a cruiser is acceptable as 4th car?

Airbags and ABS were added in 95, if that matters to you. Not much difference in price between and 94 and a 95-97 model at this point. I think 95 is when they dropped the TOYOTA logo for the weird Toyota symbol though.

Birfields and the pesky heater hose are things to inspect, ask about maintenance and specifically a head gasket replacement. Many will have small oil leaks, can come from a few places - some easy fixes and others a bit more difficult - and aren't a big deal breaker. Front, rear, and center differential lockers are desirable and good for resale but not really s necessity for average owner. Leather seats are always worn so don't let that concern you. Sunroofs can leak, look for signs of that. Roof rack can rust out at base - signs of long term uncovered parking. Power seats often lose ability to go forward and backward due to stripped plastic gears - easy fix but does require seat to come out. Rear heater pipes tend to rust out so people just bypass that circuit and do without rear heat.

I bought a 96 with 231k miles a year ago, it's not a daily driver and I've loved owning it. It had quite a few of the above issues as well as a power steering and a/c problems to address. But I've loved it and price was incredible.

Complete idiot gave you some good advice.
Look underneath for rust.
The Head gasket will fail, it's not a question of if, it's a question of when. If it's been replaced already then get a receipt to prove it. It's a $2-3k job. Check for white exhaust smoke at cold start up. If coolant looks rusty another bad sign.

Post some pics. Does it have lockers ?

I have a 97

95 owner here. Really good advice above.

Also best to buy one with records or a guy who semi cares about their rig.

I'd spend more to buy a well sorted one then a half assed one.

Abs would be nice, but 20 year old airbags aren't going to bring me confidence. The birfields are supposed to be replaced. Talking to the owner he said it does have some leaks. I'll find out about the headgasket.

It's been in his family for 8 years and has been his wife's daily, so he has some history with it.

My plan would be to have this as a weekend adventuremobile and if it's up to it, tow my 240 to the occasional track day.

http://dallas.craigslist.org/ndf/cto/5153399719.html

These are expensive to own - poor gas mileage and twenty years old. Go in knowing that.

Upgrades are endless and addictive as well

Has new front Birfield SEALS, I think that is fairly cheap. The birfields themselves fail and are more expensive to replace.

It looks clean and the owner sounds like they've tried to take care of it. Aftermarket stereo and speakers. Get to keep the bike rack? It does have the locking differentials - highly desirable to some, make sure you test their function. When fully engaged red light will stop flashing.

As a point of reference, one year ago I purchased my 1996 with 231K miles for $3500. It had Old Man Emu lift and shocks, ARB front bumper, winch. hella lights, sliders, and new exhaust. The 35" inch tires needed to be replaced ($1200), it was rusty (cant really fix), windshield was cracked ($200), and there was a check engine light (turned out to be $40). It was also dirty so it didn't show well, but it cleaned up nice.

I might offer that guy $4000 and see what his reaction is.

The Mrs. and I just back from checking out the cruiser.

The bad:
Its been in an accident, hit from behind.
Its got high miles.
The seats in the back were pretty warn.
The fronts have replacement leather bottoms, but the backs are still original.
Its been repainted, but the owners dog left some scratches on the outside.
There's a little play in the steering.
ABS sometimes kicks in right before coming to a stop.
I believe the abs issue was prevent the center diff from locking so the front and rear lockervlights were flashing
Trans/TC is leaking on the support cross member.

The Good:
6 month old iron man 2" springs and shocks kit
Headgasket replaced 20k miles ago- owner sent off the head to inspect for cracks and decked it.
Radiator replaced with headgasket.
Looked like I saw a "blue" fan clutch installed as well.
It has been repainted.
The rear frame that becomes the bumper did not really show signs of being bent.
No rust underneath.

Keep looking, find a nicer one even if it's more expensive, they are expensive to "fix up"

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Keep looking, find a nicer one even if it's more expensive, they are expensive to "fix up"

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We are picking it up tomorrow, lol. It ran and drove fine and the major items seemed to have been tackled already.

I am going in to it knowing that I'll swap the engine in 5-10 years and it won't be my daily.

Enjoy!

I've been trying to find an 80 for a while. Need to add to my collection of a 40 and a 62.

Brought it home last night. Now the fun part begins. I plan on taking it to College Station this weekend to clean out my parent's barn which means towing my cb750 and various 240 parts back to Fort Worth. So if you are in College Station and interested in 1974 honda cb750 let me know.

This makes me sad. I'm going to sell mine as soon as it gets out of the shop (again). Second burned AC compressor (second one is free under warranty) and two trips for 02 sensors in two months.

It's my daily driver and I just can't keep being out of a vehicle with needing to shuffle kids around.

Sigh..... 1995 151k miles. My kids are going to miss sitting in the third row with the "silly windows" (sliders) open.

Congrats on the rig... Hold on as long as you can.

How much do you want for it?

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This makes me sad. I'm going to sell mine as soon as it gets out of the shop (again). Second burned AC compressor (second one is free under warranty) and two trips for 02 sensors in two months.

It's my daily driver and I just can't keep being out of a vehicle with needing to shuffle kids around.

Sigh..... 1995 151k miles. My kids are going to miss sitting in the third row with the "silly windows" (sliders) open.

Congrats on the rig... Hold on as long as you can.

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You'll post it here first, right? right??

I might be willing to unload my XJ for a good condition FZJ80

Sorry guys it has some under body rust concerns, leather needs replacing on the drivers seat and the speakers are pretty shot. I'd hate to sell it to a good Ag knowing how I feel about it. I think it's probably bound for a ranch or shady used car lot.

I think I probably paid too much for it a few years ago and am going to learn an expensive lesson. But hey buying my first older truck was a fun learning experience.

I'm going to get a quote or two since I'm not really sure what it is actually worth. Before I sell it I'll let anyone come take a look at it if they want. I'm in southlake.

Here's hoping my wife's memory has faded by the time I find a good deal on a 110.

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This makes me sad. I'm going to sell mine as soon as it gets out of the shop (again). Second burned AC compressor (second one is free under warranty) and two trips for 02 sensors in two months.

It's my daily driver and I just can't keep being out of a vehicle with needing to shuffle kids around.

Sigh..... 1995 151k miles. My kids are going to miss sitting in the third row with the "silly windows" (sliders) open.

Congrats on the rig... Hold on as long as you can.

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The guy I bought mine from had his kids there I think for a last good bye. Their plan was to get a newer one too.

For now the sliding windows will be occupied by the dog.

What did you end up paying for it, TSJ?

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What did you end up paying for it, TSJ?

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Offered 45 he countered 47 so we took it.

Is there any trick with removing abs sensors? I pulled the front wheels late last night, but ran out of time to work on it. It looks like the sensor is connected to a support bracket that also holds the wiring for the sensor. it looks like the brack is the only that holds the sensor into the axle, is that correct? Once that bolt is out, they should pull freely?

I'll try to get pictures when I get home.

Looks clean and sounds like they did their best to maintain it. Good price.

95 cruiser is out of the shop. I think at this point the AC system is practically brand new. I need to get it washed and take it by a dealer to get a baseline price on it. Let me know if you are interested in looking at it.

I can send some pics with some details on it if you shoot me a message. I've had a couple of guys express some interest already.

It 100% is getting sold. The 2015 tundra crewmax I bought is helping to take the sting out a little.

Wow with as many Land Cruiser owners on here we should have a check in thread! LOL!

I'll seconded that. The J--- Brah's might want in on it too.

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I'll seconded that. The J--- Brah's might want in on it too.

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Yup, 40,55, 60, 62, 80, 90, 100, 110, 200 all welcome.