LJ70 Build Thread!

[froggy Steve]

Working at the hospital has been the most boring, sole destroying, best paid job I've ever had and I cant wait to leave!

Great news Ben - I did the same with the MOD - on site for some 94 hrs a week, shed loads of cash - bought first house, 3 moto's and a car! Bored as hell. Gave it up for a massive pay cut and something more challenging, at 22

 

[Charlie]

Well done Ben on the job, its got to be better than working in a hospital.... but I'm not sure I'd want to give up the Queensland climate.

 

[doyle61]

Was just thinking about the soft top. Are you going to look for a detachable hardtop now or put the old soft top back on or get a new soft top made for it? I remember you saying that it wasn't a priority with the weather in the GC but now with it being more changeable in Melbourne what are your plans?

 

[Ben]

Thanks guys.

I am going to miss the climate and weather up here.

IMO it couldnt be more perfect!

We're in the middle of winter now and this is how its looking where I am now, at the hospital.

And this is Melbourne!

But I still believe the pro's out weigh the cons.

Regarding the soft top, I actually recently sold the alluminium cage and canvas soft top for $750!

My plan is still to make a canvas bikini top that will just cover the front 2 seats of the cab and the back will be fully open.

I will add a simple cage for protection but I dont want to make the vehicle too heavy.

It probably wont get used as much as the 78 and it will just be a summer/nice weather car really but I will be doing some 4wd trips in it, mainly just day trips.

As the 78 and LJ will both be on the cheap club reg (road tax) I will be limited to up to 90 days use per vehicle per year, although 45 days is also an option.

So what I will probably do is buy a road car, ideally something Japanese and quick (must be over 25 years young) and with 3 on club reg I will be able to drive to work in one each day, I will also have the motorbike.

Any suggestions for a late 80's/early 90's Jap road car?

I'm thinking Supra/Celica/MR2/Impreza/Evo/Skyline, that sort of thing.

 

[Chas]

I used to have a non turbo Supra, still bloody fast though , lovely car.

 

[StarCruiser]

Not Jap but Volvo 850 T5s went like stink and were solidly built. Loads of Imprezzas around here and every kid wants a Skyline as a drift car. You don't see many Celica Supras about. I do know the Evos are amazing. One of our 4x4 Response members changed to one a couple of years ago after slating everything Japanese from the comfort of his broken down Disco 3 and instantly sang its praises.

 

[Pat]

good luck on your your move back to Victoria.at least they have the best team sport in the world.The AFL.fabulous.best wishes Ben.

 

[AndyCook]

Impreza,
I have a 2.5litre turbo Forester and it goes like stink,
And surprises many audis because it is a wolf in sheeps clothing
Impreza has same engine

 

[Julian T]

Ben have you thought of a mk2 Toyota MR2, small light and mid engine balance.
And the Camry/Rav 3.0 V6 is lighter than and can be fitted in the same space as the standard 4 pot to the standard gearbox.
Better yet most of the suspension and brakes are common to the corolla family I believe.

Or you could get yourself another Lexus to use as a daily driver if you want something luxury barge with loads of power.

 

[Ben]

Thanks for all the suggestions guys.

I like the Lexus idea!

I really liked the LS400 engine donor I bought and could tell that it would have been a really luxurious, quality car once before it got abused.

But I'm just not sure its sporty enough.

 

[Julian T]

I bought a 1995 E38 BMW 740 for a road trip to Hungary in January of this year, it turned out to be surprisingly fun and compared to the love of my life, the 80 series when it comes to vehicles in case any one was wondering, it can handle the corners and press on quite a bit more than expected when driven enthusiastically so I have decided to keep it instead of selling after the trip it like I planned when I bought it.

It suddenly became the brides car while I was volunteered as driver, hence why I am so impressed to see the camera looking at me, as the purpose of the trip was to attend swambos daughters wedding.

It is really good at long distance high speed cruising work, on the autobahn of course, and is very good at surprising the boy racer types.
It is also able to catch the driver out if you do not pay attention as at anything over the legal speed in the UK it still feels like it is not working.

So Ben in short I would suggest in all seriousness go take a LS400 for a test drive.
I was looking for a 1998 LS400 when I found this b em trouble you, I say that specific year because it has from what my research indicated the best engine for power (vvti) and a 5 speed gearbox and was sold from new with a sport pack suspension upgrade if the first owner ticked the relevant options box.

 

[Paddler Ed]

R32 or R33 4 door skyline or stagea would be a good option, makes child
carrying easier.

854 and 855 T5 or R are too new so they're out.

Just work out what you need to do in terms of club membership and how strict their technical bod is. I know some are stricter than others. You may also need to look at going on M plates instead of H plates with the 1UZ, as I think Victoria have now recognised the need for a modified class.

Last thing... What's the build date on the low volume manufacturer plate on the 78 as that might through a spanner in the works.

Good luck with the move... I don't know how you've stuck it out for so long in QLD (or more accurately, the Gold Coast), I know I couldn't!

 

[doyle61]

I'd get a Mitsubishi legnum vr4. I love the estate ones myself. 2.5 v6 twin turbo 4wd what's not to like

 

[Ben]

Thanks guys, lots more for me to think about.

I went and met the trailer guy on Thursday. He was a really nice guy and spent quite a bit of time going through all the options with me and showing me the trailers they had in stock.

I've worked out I'm better going for the one thats rated at 2900kg GVM (rather than 2000kg) as their better trailers with their electric brakes and rocker suspension.

Bit more money though, especially once I've added a jockey wheel, hand winch and spare wheel though.

This is the one I'm thinking of getting built:

http://australiapacifictrailers.com.au/12x6-flat-deck-trailer-2800kg/

 

[StarCruiser]

Looks smart Ben. If I were you I would interrogate them on thecreliability of electric brakes. Not sure I like that idea, I thought brakes were supposed to be fail safe?

 

[Paddler Ed]

Looks smart Ben. If I were you I would interrogate them on thecreliability of electric brakes. Not sure I like that idea, I thought brakes were supposed to be fail safe?

Over 2,000kg trailers are just about impossible to register in Australia without electric brakes; they then have a self powered breakaway system that applies the brakes. The electric brakes are awesome - we've got them on our trailer and the brake controller is mounted just to the side of the steering column - small dial to increase the amount of braking applied, and a quick press just dabs the brakes. They take the signal from the trailer lights power feed... this works fine until the trailer cable wore through and wiped them out the day before we left for Tassie...

Also, good luck with losing the trailer - they run 2x 2,000kg rated chains normally that are crossed underneath to prevent the trailer detaching from the tow car (unless the towbar assembly catastrophically fails)

Ben:
-Check out the tow rating for 'Cruisers - I think they're only going to be 3,000kg max, possibly even 2,500kg.
-45 Square and SL Bearings (Ford) are a good combination - find out if they're Chinese bearings or Al-Ko, Timken or similar.
-Who are the brakes by? They're much of a muchness, from what I understand, but worth checking.
-Can you get it built with 6 stud Toyota wheels?

Alternatively, these guys were great when I was sorting out my trailer - I didn't end up getting from them, but they were a REALLY good price on their brake kits. Might be worth giving them a call, and seeing what they can do.

Last thing - any reason why you're going for a solid floor trailer? It adds weight if you're just using it as a car trailer, alternatively a mate runs a 12'x6' box trailer with both the front and back gates dropping down to carry a car more easily.

 

[Ben]

Thanks Ed, I held off replying to Rich because I knew you would and you've no doubt got more knowledge about them than me.

Which brake controller did you end up fitting?

I've been looking at the Redarc ones and also the Hayman Reese. Must say I'm very impressed with how incredibly easy they appear to be, to fit.

I've been unable to find the official towing capacity of the LJ/KZ78's.

But I'd be more than happy tow LJ behind the 78.

Not sure what bearings or brakes they use or whether they could fit Toyot hubs, I'd have to check.

Regarding the solid bed trailer choice...........

I feel it would be a much more versatile trailer as I'm planning on renovating/building when we buy some where and if I'm picking car parts up a solid trailer will be much more useful.

The trailer idea isnt 100% yet as I've been thinking about how much of a nightmare its going to be having to stop every 2-3 hours because of the baby.

So I'm now thinking we could fly down to Melbourne, hire a car for a week or 2 while we get a house sorted. Then fly back up, load LJ and the entire contents of the house and garage into a 40ft shipping container that would get dropped off at our house.

Then we drive down to Melbourne, me in the 78 with Lexi and Bec with the baby in the Subaru and just take our time and do the trip over 4-5 days and plan the route so we can camp in national parks and state forests along the way.

Then just unload the container when it gets to the new house.

But we will have to see what price they come back with.

If their too expensive I will drive up and down 4 times and get the 3 cars and truck full of stuff moved myself, probably on my own so I can just get it done and not have to keep stopping.

http://www.youpack.com.au/self-pack...OIIbjLdPRt1EYaZlEI507-5akHLGMvz6W8aAnvP8P8HAQ

 

[Paddler Ed]

No drama's Ben... I've spent ages working on the trailer issues after I realised my 7x4 box trailer was too heavy empty for the 4Runner... trailer =420kg tare, 4Runner unbraked towing limit = 400kg.... oops

I've since fitted brakes and had the maximum weight changed on the rego papers to 1200kg from 750kg, based on:
-SL Bearings (good for about 1200kg)
-45mm Square axles
-Toyota Hi Lux rims (good for about 1000kg)
-205R16 tyres (good for 1000kg+)

With the rims, check what the rating is that is stamped on them - my Dynamic rims on the 4Runner are 1060kg stamped, whilst I have another set of rims for the trailer that are stamped 1060kg on 3, and 980 on one...

With the brake controller, I got a Redarc Tow Pro Elite from Autoelec.com.au's ebay store (extra 15% on the ebay special) - have a look at what bundle they have that is useful... some are better than others, but their prices are less than most places can buy-in for. Service is awesome, I normally get it 2 days after ordering from them and it comes via AusPost so easy to organise sending to helpful places...

I did a quick and easy install on mine, which required the least hacking into anything, so not quite following Redarc's instructions perfectly... Instead of taking the feed from the brake pedal (because Toyota can be annoying with the switching), I took it from the trailer plug socket. I ran 6 metres of sheathed twin core along the chassis, with one taking the feed from the brake light pin on the trailer electrics, the other sending the signal back to the trailer brakes. As I said before, this works fine until the trailer cable rubs through, fuses all brake lights and you have no trailer brakes... 2 days before leaving for Tasmania...

 

[Paddler Ed]

We've just come back from another camping trip with our friends and their 2.5 year old.

Based on them, I'm not sure unpowered camping (NP and State Forest) is going to be the easiest.... they need power for the microwave to heat up food, drinks etc. Never mind hot water for poo explosions (great stories that remind you why someone else's children are the best sort) that erupt out of nappies and all over:
a) Child (one poo explosion was described as "out of the nappy and all the way up to her shoulder blades!")
b) Parent holding child
c) Collateral damage of any other near adult or soft furnishing including carpets, cushions and car seats
At least you'll have a fridge set up on 12v, but they use a tin tent, whilst we use the camper trailer.

Things to think about, and still a while off... Personally I'd just do cabins at caravan parks on the way - some are dog friendly and let indoor dogs in the cabins - so they'd be worth hunting out. At least they'll have aircon if you're doing the move in the summer which will give some night time respite.

 

[Ben]

As Bec is a NICU (baby) nurse shes spent the last 10+ years changing nappies and has said shes happy to do 99% of the changes!

Good point about the microwave.

I might have to do a Chas and fit one in the back of the 78!

Will need to come up with a solution as we wont be stopping camping, or doing anything else that we enjoy for that matter, the baby needs to fit into our lives. I dont want to be one of these couples who stop doing everything they used to enjoy, loose their identity and revolve their entire lives around their kids!