Nick Sabrazat
Active Member
Hi all,
Having recently fulfilled a boy’s dream, I thought I’d start a thread on the “monster truck” as it has now been nicknamed.
I was originally looking for a Defender 110, but after hunting for a decent one for the past 2 years, I decided to refocus on an old school Landcruiser instead. Having driven a few Defenders in the past, I don’t regret my decision to go for a 60-series.
I purchased the vehicle a couple of weeks ago, from a chap in London who hardly used it over the 9-10 months he’s owned it. I believe it has been for sale on eBay for a while which would explained why I accepted my offer without any struggle. So after a long trip to London on Sunday 18th February, I became the proud owner of a HJ60 GX, manual. The drive back to Birmingham was uneventful and I was surprised how well it was keeping up with the motorway traffic.
Those are the first pictures of the truck, taken the day after:
I kept the car on the drive for 2 weeks, unused, to give me the chance to have a better look at the vehicle before starting to use it as a daily commuter. Then on the 1st March, it started to fullfill his daily duty and replaced the Megane Scenic that I was using until then.
Timing couldn’t have been better. The snow came down quite heavily in the West Midlands as well as other part of the country on that day. But the truck managed to take my daughter to the child-minder and then me to work without any drama. Here are some pictures after its first journey to work.
At first the 4WD system was slow to engage due to probably never been used in London. But after a few operation of the transfer case lever it became quicker to respond.
I live in the middle of the Clent Hills, just outside Birmingham, and we tend to feel the effect of the snow 2-3 folds over the city, with untreated lanes and low traffic. My daily drive to work consists of twisty narrow lanes and a 16% incline just to get to the nearest “main” road. The decent of the say incline on the way back from work was a bit unnerving with snow and ice covering the entirety of the decent. But once again the Landcruiser was brilliant. In low range and 1st and 2nd gear, it felt sure-footed. Here are some pictures of the truck on its maiden decent the snowy hills!
Day 2 of the commuting duty made the purchase of the HJ60 even more worthwhile when I had to tacked up to a 1m snow drift on the way to work. Once again the truck performed so well, it was if the snow wasn’t even there.
Where we live, a 4WD is basically a must in the winter, and sometimes in the spring when we need to tackle flooded areas. Here is the car with one of its stable mate, the wife’s Rangey, another brilliant car that adds comfort to the exceptional off-road capability.
The Landcruiser previously belongs to a member on here before changing hands three times before I purchased it.
It is a solid base, with extensive mechanical work receipted so I hope it will be reliable. The chassis looks very strong and virtually rust-free. The body shows some signs of bubbling and the rear arches would need some attention very soon. I will take details pictures of those at the nearest opportunity.
The plan for the truck, is to use it as a rolling project, hoping to bring the car back to its former glory along the way. In the immediate future, a service and fixing the rust on the arches to stop it developing any further.
I also started compiling a to do list which will undoubtedly grow larger as time goes by:
Nick.
Having recently fulfilled a boy’s dream, I thought I’d start a thread on the “monster truck” as it has now been nicknamed.
I was originally looking for a Defender 110, but after hunting for a decent one for the past 2 years, I decided to refocus on an old school Landcruiser instead. Having driven a few Defenders in the past, I don’t regret my decision to go for a 60-series.
I purchased the vehicle a couple of weeks ago, from a chap in London who hardly used it over the 9-10 months he’s owned it. I believe it has been for sale on eBay for a while which would explained why I accepted my offer without any struggle. So after a long trip to London on Sunday 18th February, I became the proud owner of a HJ60 GX, manual. The drive back to Birmingham was uneventful and I was surprised how well it was keeping up with the motorway traffic.
Those are the first pictures of the truck, taken the day after:
I kept the car on the drive for 2 weeks, unused, to give me the chance to have a better look at the vehicle before starting to use it as a daily commuter. Then on the 1st March, it started to fullfill his daily duty and replaced the Megane Scenic that I was using until then.
Timing couldn’t have been better. The snow came down quite heavily in the West Midlands as well as other part of the country on that day. But the truck managed to take my daughter to the child-minder and then me to work without any drama. Here are some pictures after its first journey to work.
At first the 4WD system was slow to engage due to probably never been used in London. But after a few operation of the transfer case lever it became quicker to respond.
I live in the middle of the Clent Hills, just outside Birmingham, and we tend to feel the effect of the snow 2-3 folds over the city, with untreated lanes and low traffic. My daily drive to work consists of twisty narrow lanes and a 16% incline just to get to the nearest “main” road. The decent of the say incline on the way back from work was a bit unnerving with snow and ice covering the entirety of the decent. But once again the Landcruiser was brilliant. In low range and 1st and 2nd gear, it felt sure-footed. Here are some pictures of the truck on its maiden decent the snowy hills!
Day 2 of the commuting duty made the purchase of the HJ60 even more worthwhile when I had to tacked up to a 1m snow drift on the way to work. Once again the truck performed so well, it was if the snow wasn’t even there.
Where we live, a 4WD is basically a must in the winter, and sometimes in the spring when we need to tackle flooded areas. Here is the car with one of its stable mate, the wife’s Rangey, another brilliant car that adds comfort to the exceptional off-road capability.
The Landcruiser previously belongs to a member on here before changing hands three times before I purchased it.
It is a solid base, with extensive mechanical work receipted so I hope it will be reliable. The chassis looks very strong and virtually rust-free. The body shows some signs of bubbling and the rear arches would need some attention very soon. I will take details pictures of those at the nearest opportunity.
The plan for the truck, is to use it as a rolling project, hoping to bring the car back to its former glory along the way. In the immediate future, a service and fixing the rust on the arches to stop it developing any further.
I also started compiling a to do list which will undoubtedly grow larger as time goes by:
- Address cold start issue (new batteries on order) - Fixed
- Service including fuel and air filter and fan belts - Done
- Replace wiper blades - Done
- Change headlight lenses maybe upgrade
- Fix central locking - Fixed
- Fix electric windows - in progress
- Address grille appearance - Done
- Fix rear demist elements
- Investigate low engine oil pressure.
- Address oil leak from transfer case
- Offside horn - Done
- Rear tailgate carpet trim
- Electric window module (maybe) - Done (thanks Moggy)
- New chromed grille and headlight bezels - Done
- 31" tyres - Done
- Turbo kit
- Tool kit
Nick.
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