Before sadly but the PBR takes away my Alzheimer's at least lol its always a surprise to wake up and read my postsIs that before or after the PBR?
Why do you drive a TJ?
- Thread starter Irun
- Start date
Brianj5600
TJ Expert
You definitely win. That body style will always be favorite. Where were those pictures taken and around what year?
The Zooks have a new found following here and cost as much as a TJ, they were called Suzuki Sierras, here and in Indonesia they did a 2 wheel drive version. There is a pretty long waiting list for a new Suzuki Jimmny.Before I ever had a TJ, I had a "poor man's Jeep" Suzuki Samurai (for 6 months). I will never complain about anything on my Jeep again. A TJ is a Caddy in every way compared to that.
Stats;
Carbureted 1.3-liter overhead-cam four-cylinder delivering 63 horsepower and 74-lb-ft of torque. Manual-locking front hubs were standard. It was noisy and slow—MotorTrend clocked it from 0 to 60 mph in 16.9 seconds.
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Because all modern cars drive exactly the same, whether Porsche or Mercedes or Toyota or any modern Jeep.
And I have or have had all of the above. They are all smooth and quiet and safe and insulating and BORING as heck to drive, the whole time.
I kept spending more and more money on increasingly expensive new cars to try to have driving thrill again, and the longest the thrill would last was about four months, then I'd be bored again. I went through 7 brand new cars in 10 years and blew a LOT of money just trying to have fun driving again.
I testdrove my 97 TJ on a used car lot four years ago, just because it looked interesting and i had never driven a TJ before.
Revelation.
In two minutes I understood everything that was wrong with modern automobiles.
I am completely over sitting in computers on wheels.. I do keep two modern cars for commuting and long road trips, but otherwise I mostly drive my XJ and the TJ whenever I want to have fun. And years later the thrill remains, as does the perpetual grin when the top is down!
And I have or have had all of the above. They are all smooth and quiet and safe and insulating and BORING as heck to drive, the whole time.
I kept spending more and more money on increasingly expensive new cars to try to have driving thrill again, and the longest the thrill would last was about four months, then I'd be bored again. I went through 7 brand new cars in 10 years and blew a LOT of money just trying to have fun driving again.
I testdrove my 97 TJ on a used car lot four years ago, just because it looked interesting and i had never driven a TJ before.
Revelation.
In two minutes I understood everything that was wrong with modern automobiles.
I am completely over sitting in computers on wheels.. I do keep two modern cars for commuting and long road trips, but otherwise I mostly drive my XJ and the TJ whenever I want to have fun. And years later the thrill remains, as does the perpetual grin when the top is down!
Because all modern cars drive exactly the same, whether Porsche or Mercedes or Toyota or any modern Jeep.
And I have or have had all of the above. They are all smooth and quiet and safe and insulating and BORING as heck to drive, the whole time.
I kept spending more and more money on increasingly expensive new cars to try to have driving thrill again, and the longest the thrill would last was about four months, then I'd be bored again. I went through 7 brand new cars in 10 years and blew a LOT of money just trying to have fun driving again.
I testdrove my 97 TJ on a used car lot four years ago, just because it looked interesting and i had never driven a TJ before.
Revelation.
In two minutes I understood everything that was wrong with modern automobiles.
I am completely over sitting in computers on wheels.. I do keep two modern cars for commuting and long road trips, but otherwise I mostly drive my XJ and the TJ whenever I want to have fun. And years later the thrill remains, as does the perpetual grin when the top is down!
And I have or have had all of the above. They are all smooth and quiet and safe and insulating and BORING as heck to drive, the whole time.
I kept spending more and more money on increasingly expensive new cars to try to have driving thrill again, and the longest the thrill would last was about four months, then I'd be bored again. I went through 7 brand new cars in 10 years and blew a LOT of money just trying to have fun driving again.
I testdrove my 97 TJ on a used car lot four years ago, just because it looked interesting and i had never driven a TJ before.
Revelation.
In two minutes I understood everything that was wrong with modern automobiles.
I am completely over sitting in computers on wheels.. I do keep two modern cars for commuting and long road trips, but otherwise I mostly drive my XJ and the TJ whenever I want to have fun. And years later the thrill remains, as does the perpetual grin when the top is down!
??
I've had 2 Jimny's and loved them. They would suck to drive on anything but secondary roads over here though. They can't hold a candle to my TJ for being comfortable and power, but they had the best off road modification known to man---I didn't give a shit about smashing them up. You can go anywhere with that mod
I was trying to say front and rear coils. As opposed to the XJ, for example, with its unibody and leaves in the rear.
HardSell
TJ Enthusiast
Thank you. Late June,1974: 1)Taking high road NE out of Creed, drove above timberline then turned around back to Lake City; 2) Next morning after camping just below timberline well beyond Lake San Cristobol; wifey shot this near top of Cinnamon Pass. Went over to Animas Forks, down to pitch the tent in Cunningham Gulch. Then to Black Canyon and Grand Mesa. 3sp manual 302 positraction with a 2" coil spacer lift and slightly over sized tires. That 302 would idle up nearly anything. Going down hill I shut off ignition for torque to assist with braking. A lot of Blazer and CJ drivers gawked at me on that trail. After 200k miles I sold the 'Stang for more than I bought it new....got a Subaru... needed 4 doors. The pony had black Mach 1 tucked and rolled high back seats.... 22mpg, 2200rpm at 80mph on Kansas Turnpike. Loved that car as much as I loved throwing papers through college out of my '54 100 Aluminum bodied Le Mans Healey I bought for $375 in '68! No one wanted exotics back then! Nearly traded that for a yellow Jag 140E, 650 bucks! Turned it down, bought a '65 Mustang 289 4sp and rally pack after deciding against a '62 XKE same price ($1800) because I got tired of messing around with all those damned limey carburetors. My Healey had four rows of louvres on the hood and a one of a kind, easy to remove hardtop. Exact color as this '56. Got that car up to 140mph, taching 3100 rpm....big 33% reduction overdrive and alot of torque! The kid I'm holding near top of Cinamon drives a tricked up LJR and his wife has an ocean blue JKUR Pentastar, both factory ordered. My brother, a high school sophomore threw papers out of a $900 '56 T-bird! And we thought the world was only going to get better! American Graffiti graduates we were.
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deadbeat son
TJ Addict
I've owned a number of classic 4X4s over the years: Wagoneer, Bronco, FJ60, Range Rover Classic, and some newer ones too: XJ, '09 Taco, 4th Gen 4R, 5th Gen 4R. The Toyotas were my favorite of the lot, starting with my first, the FJ60. I was actually looking for an FJ40 last fall, but as I started planning out my build with an H55F 5spd, 2FE (2F with 3FE fuel injection system), front disc brakes, etc. it dawned on me I was practically planning to build a TJ. So, I figured I'd save some money and just start with a Jeep, and as a bonus, it would be somewhat safer for my kiddo to ride in with rear shoulder harnesses, etc.
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FJ40 is basic but will quite happily run on 4 of 6 cylinders plus you have to get out and lock the hubs, problem is most here in Oz have been Furked up with V8 swaps and used to push trees out of the way for fun and make new tracks! They are not at all Wrangler feeling in my opinion, sort of a cross between a wrangler and a land rover! Passenger front twin seat gives it a Utility work vehicle fell and long gear stick screams Trucker with a Dog on the Hood
I kinda got to disagree with you. My Fj's drove like a dream. I did the v8 swap in my 74 and never had a problem with it.FJ40 is basic but will quite happily run on 4 of 6 cylinders plus you have to get out and lock the hubs, problem is most here in Oz have been Furked up with V8 swaps and used to push trees out of the way for fun and make new tracks! They are not at all Wrangler feeling in my opinion, sort of a cross between a wrangler and a land rover! Passenger front twin seat gives it a Utility work vehicle fell and long gear stick screams Trucker with a Dog on the Hood
It also had a nice set of Recaro seats which made it comfortable to drive.
The FJ's have a bullet proof drivetrain, I put 450hp thru it and never blew nothing up, and I ran it at the dragstrip a few times.
The only drawbacks to them was there was no reverse lockout, and some of them rusted out so damn fast.
Now-a-days there are so many aftermarket parts available for them that weren't available when I owned mine.
I wish I could afford to go balls out on another FJ, but until then....I'll keep dropping coin on my LJ.
BTW..... the best custom part on my FJ40 was the "VB" beer tap shifter. It gave a real redneck look.
OP
Lots of good
When the TJ came out with 4 wheel coil springs, it was a revolutionary suspension leap forward. However, it wasn't until I went to a dealer in 2003 and saw my first LJ that I knew I was hooked. I couldn't afford one then, but eventually bought one. I've now been through several TJs and LJs. I've owned the current LJ for going on 9 years now and don't see myself ever getting rid of it.
I had several FJ40s, which were all the later 2F. They were basically a tractor and had bulletproof drive trains. The only complaint I really had about them was the same complaint I had about the CJ (which I owned) and the YJ, i.e. the leaf springs sucked when trying to make them flex.
When the TJ came out with 4 wheel coil springs, it was a revolutionary suspension leap forward. However, it wasn't until I went to a dealer in 2003 and saw my first LJ that I knew I was hooked. I couldn't afford one then, but eventually bought one. I've now been through several TJs and LJs. I've owned the current LJ for going on 9 years now and don't see myself ever getting rid of it.
HardSell
TJ Enthusiast
Your description exactly matches my experience with my first car back in 1964; a 1954 6000 lb Desoto Firedome 2 speed auto transmission. Me, a six footer, could stand up in that car! The newer versions admittedly have more pickup
Angry grills are laughable compared to the factory Desoto grill.
Yep. I love the interaction with the MACHINE, something today's wheeled iPhones completely lack. That's one reason I'm done with new cars, the other being acquisition AND maintenance costs, as well as decreased reliability. Never mind having to deal with the crap on a daily basis.
HardSell
TJ Enthusiast
I've never known a redneck to have anything to do with Toyotas. So, I'm not sure where you're coming from.
OP
You obviously haven't been in my area. As the former owner of a Toyota SR5 4WD truck, with a Chevy 350 V8, they''re out there!
DustyRhodes03
TJ Enthusiast
I daily mine and it's just the most fun and practical vehicle for my lifestyle. I do a lot of hiking, camping, fishing and landscape photography, so having something small, maneuverable, and reliable (most of the time lol) was a no-brainer. Everything else is just a bonus because like I said, it's just a damn fun vehicle to drive lol
My only regret was not getting one years ago, I could have saved the underside of my Ford Focus a lot of pain and suffering lol
My only regret was not getting one years ago, I could have saved the underside of my Ford Focus a lot of pain and suffering lol