BJ42 Build (finish off?) thread

[Biscuit]

So, it arrived today... My fun new tonka truck. A 1982 BJ42,.

These photos are from the original ad, I didn't get a chance to photograph it once it arrived, too much going on. The previous owner has been working on it for the last 10 years apparently.

Mechanically it seems to be great. Everything in the engine bay and underneath the body looks to be well done, it starts great with no smoke at all, and has only been driven to test during that time, as the renovation work meant it wasn't road legal, so everything still looks pretty much new. A little trouble finding 5th and reverse, maybe I'm just out of practice, too used to modern auto boxes, but I'll be looking at that once the basics have been done.

The bodywork was all sandblasted and repainted but some damage has not been repaired, I'm not sure why. I've got 10 years of rebuild photos to go on, so can see most of the problems prior to the repairs. In most cases panels have been repaired and additional panels riveted over the top and repainted. It was built as an offroad vehicle so maybe this was just in anticipation of damage?

There is some basic work that needs finishing: windscreen wipers, headlights, handbrake, bonnet stripping and repainting, ditto the rollcage... rear view mirror and wing mirrors. New seats & seatbelts? Then we can get into the fun stuff...

I'm new to early LCs but I'm fairly handy. I'll be giving everything a go myself then coming here to find out what I did wrong. I'm in no rush so updates will probably be sporadic. Thank you in advance for any and all help!

 

[Ben Stratford]

Looks like a great start point to finish off from. Do you have the doors, bonnet etc?

 

[Ian Chuter]

Gotta luv the 40's
Good luck with it

 

[clivehorridge]

Looks like a good restoration, lovely truck!

Love the 40s.

 

[Biscuit]

I've got the bonnet, emblazoned with an old Dakar logo, but no doors yet (although Rodger on here might be helping me out with that). I'm not too fussed about doors and roof though, I'm happy for it to be a fair weather vehicle, we get a fair amount of sun down here. I've got the rear window panels and boot door upper, but in pretty bad condition so it'll be a long time before I attempt to repair those.

 

[Rodger]

Alex,

Your 42 looks excellent - still lots to do but a good basis.
Froggy Steve will bring the half doors to France in October.
I shall follow your progress with great interest.

Regards,
Rodger

 

[Biscuit]

Thanks Rodger, and everyone else, for the support.

Should I be posting in this thread regarding individual issues; or start a new thread to deal with each issue separately and save this thread purely for build updates? Obviously, it's less cluttered if I post things here, but might make it harder for people who run into the same issue to find.

 

[clivehorridge]

I'd be inclined to keep it all in one thread, then you'd have a running diary of your efforts and the results.

Populate it with photos and you'll have a good visual record, and we will have the pleasure of seeing it develop, and chip-in with any useful info the 40 gurus can offer.

 

[Biscuit]

Ok, so the first decision I need to make...

The truck came with a 6-point roll cage, this and other features suggest the previous owner was building it with some serious off-road fun in mind. While I will use it off-road on occasion, it will be slowly and carefully. The 6- point cage obviously offers greater protection, but I find the encroachment into the driving area a little off-putting and distracting, and unless I plan to also install fixed back seats and harnesses, there's probably as much risk of me banging my head against the cage in a normal road collision as of rolling and being saved by it, right?

So what are peoples opinions? Keep the 6-point cage for the safety, and install seats and harnesses to match or just go with a 4-point bar? I won't be using a hardtop but this doesn't really add much roll protection anyway does it?

 

[tonytoyota]

Hi that is one cool looking cruiser love them good look with it and have a lot of fun with it.

 

[Rodger]

When we purchased our 40 it came with a competition 6 point roll cage already installed including the the drop plates welded onto the chassis. The truck had been used in winch racing so the cage was compliant to the rules.
Like you we didn't have a soft top or frame so when we had the soft top made we used the cage as the frame, thinking that roll cage and hood frame would make things very complicated inside. We have also installed harnesses which we both find very comfortable.
Does the cage impinge? Well yes as we cannot fit original rear seats but have used Army fold down seats. A couple of fold away LR seats would probably work as well and be forward facing when out. Fixed front seats does mean that rear passengers have to climb in via the tailgate.
The front of the 6 point locates close to the A pillars - for us it has never been an issue nor has it been for friends who are way over 6 foot tall. The cage doesn't make the windscreen edge and bar combined as wide as many modern cars and doesn't constitute a major blind spot.
In the event of a collision with whatever type of belts you use I would be very surprised if you got anywhere near impacting with the cage.
The cage is also useful for mounting hi-vis vests (legal requirement in Spain) fire extinguisher, umbrella, and in our case the spare wheel.

Regards,
Rodger

 

[Biscuit]

Thanks Rodger, all good points. Although they do lead me to another question, the cage I've got was only bolted to sheet metal, not welded to the chassis. Should it be joined to the chassis for safety or is being bolted to the bodywork sufficient for daily usage?

 

[clivehorridge]

I think the jury is still out on the chassis/body mount options.

The body moves relative to the chassis, so chassis mounts have to pass through apertures in the body, not so convenient.

I see nothing wrong with body mounts, as long as the body steel is good and the bars have suitable spreader plates to stop them just punching through.

I recon in an open vehicle, the bars could be very useful too, as Rodger said, for mounting stuff up and out if the way.

Harnesses are great, very comfy and keep you secure. A bit of a faff to get used to, but they're there to save you from horrible injuries when someone else does something stupid, like the cage is.

There's something of a macho charm about buzzing around in an open truck with no belts or cage, like a private in a WWII Willys, but I would suggest you drive more safely, with at least a cage & harness, you can leave the full face helmets at home though, and wrap the cage members with thick foam, if you're worried about banging your head.

Enjoy!

 

[Rodger]

Our cage was installed for competition use so the attachment to the chassis was mandatory and there is a rubber insert on the lower plate. Being aware that you want to stay within the realms of originality, I think that the extra lower plates are unnecessary providing, as Clive says, you have some spreader plates on the tube ends. The body metal is strong enough - I can stand on the bonnet & front wings without them denting.
With the 6 point cage you may find that you can fit harnesses that have a top location designed for roll bar attachment. My driver's seat is from an HGV weight adjustable and internal shock absorber but has integral seat belt mounts which I was able to use to mount the harness however the passenger seat is not so the mounts go to the floor with plates and the correct bolts etc.
Living near the mountains, as you do, you may find that passenger comfort is enhanced with the cage and harnesses especially on cross slopes with a significant drop on one side.
If you don't go the cage & harness route and employ a soft top or no top then there is no mounting point for the upper mount of a lap and diagonal. When we got ours it had L&D and in the photo you can see that the upper mount was welded to the roll bar. I use those belts for the rear passengers and the receiving end is attached to the roll bar base plate.
Hope that helps

Regards,
Rodger

 

[Biscuit]

Thanks for the feedback guys, I'll get the 6-point cage cleaned up and put back in, and see how I get on with it. It has reasonably sized spreader plates, around 13cm square and similarly size plates for underneath the panels, which I think should be sufficient.

I went to the mayor's office to register the car this morning and apparently I can't register it with the controle technique, equivalent to an MOT, and I only have a month to register it after a purchase! So it looks like this has changed from a leisurely rebuild to a sprint to an MOT worthy condition! Not sure what happens if I miss that deadline but I'd really rather not find out, so I'll be cracking on full speed tomorrow. I'm sure I'll be coming back with questions when the manuals fail me.

First things first, anyone know where I can order a replacement air intake hose? Numbers 17709 in this diagram. I can fabricate brackets and find alternatives for clamps, just need the hoses. Euro4x4 say they have one of the hoses, but not the other, and the only other place I can find them is direct from Japan, which would obviously take too long. Any ideas?

Air

• Biscuit
• Aug 2, 2017

Air filter assembly complete

 

[Rodger]

Alex,

I just checked the European sites I know and only Euro4x4 list it but not having it will not affect the emissions test as it is not on the engine side of the air filter - just ensure the engine is at running temperature for that test.

Your roll bar with lower plates will be fine.

Maybe be worth a chat with your neighbour, who has a 42, as to the French test attitude towards no doors. Down here it would be a no-no. If it is the same as here I may have a temporary solution.

Regards,

 

[Biscuit]

Thanks Rodger,

No problem, I'll go with what I've got for the time being.

I've sent him an email - unfortunately he goes back to Germany for the summer and won't be back until the autumn, which is a shame, I could do with his help! I think it will need doors of some description though, I saw some of the canvas type in a classified ad so was going to try and track that down, but I'm all ears if you have any other ideas?

 

[Rodger]

pm sent

 

[clivehorridge]

Nice one Rodger, "a member in need..." and all that...

(Oops, sounds risqué...)

 

[Biscuit]

So quick update, the roll cage has been stripped and will be painted today. I'll hopefully do the same for the spare wheel carrier today too. I've ordered some viton rubber sheets to make some gaskets for where the roll cage meets the bodywork - i've seen a lot of instances where the body rusts around the bolt holes so hopefully the gaskets will prevent that. Got an original steering wheel waiting for me at the post office so I'll pick that up and get it in.

Then over the weekend I'll start looking at the serious bits - difficulty getting the gearbox into 5th and R, Rodger's already suggested some adjustment on the slave, but any other advice is welcome. After that I need to get the handbrake installed, which I'm hoping is just a case of doing what it says in the repair manual... fingers crossed.

Oh, and I may have found some info about registering a car without an MOT but my French isn't good enough to be sure so I'll be checking in with some friends over the weekend to get a better translation.