1977 Toyota Land Cruiser

The Land Cruiser is favoured by those across the world who place reliability above all other considerations and as such, this Toyota has always been popular in harsh environments. Unless your name’s Clarkson, you don’t tend to take a Land Rover into the desert or jungle after all. This particular vehicle has recently been imported from one such far flung locale; Colombia in Latin America. It’s a left-hand drive, three-speed manual, six-cylinder powered totem to dependability and we simply love it.

Said (by the prior vendor) to have been restored by a local Colombian Land Cruiser expert – with over three-decades’ experience of these machines – this Toyota is reported to drive as it should with no mechanical issues. The paintwork, interior and mechanical components certainly all appear to have received a great deal of recent restoration work, though sadly, any history documenting the same has been left across the pond.

Toyota’s longest model in series production has always been offered in a range of exhilarating colours; such as this 1977 FJ40’s Mustard Yellow hue. It’s certainly hard to miss. The finish appears excellent throughout with the correct contrasting white top. That roof does exhibit the main fault in this car’s façade, some cracks to the paint on the roof rail above the passenger door. Elsewhere there’s a few other tiny marks and scratches in the door and bonnet shut areas, but really, we’re being picky here as the general condition of the paintwork appears excellent.

There’s a slight bit of paint rubbing off the front differential lock covers and the petrol filler cap, some tiny bubbles under the paint, just under the bottom hinge for the rear door and some perishing to the outer rubber seal on the driver’s quarter window, but that’s about as bad as the wear gets. Overall, we’re very impressed with the level of finish on this FJ and we suspect that plenty of money and time has been spent to get this off-roader restored the right way. If nothing else, the matching set of premium Goodyear CHM189 tyres (including the spare) suggest fastidious former ownership.

In this era, the Land Cruiser was still a utility vehicle first and foremost so there’s not a lot to the interior. There’s a wheel, a couple of dials, two gear levers and a pair of seats. What more do you need? The vinyl covering the driver’s seat, front bench and door cards appears in great shape. There’s a similar recently refurbished feel to the dash, floors and transmission tunnel, clearly all having received a fresh coat of paint. The switches appear original and add a nice touch of patina though it’s not all old fashioned and comfort-free in here. A new stereo has been added, along with some custom (yellow) stitched Toyota over mats. Removing these reveals what appears to be an extremely solid front floor and bulkhead.

There are a few tiny niggles in here, but it’s worth pointing out that we’re being highly critical now. There’s the missing shift knob from the high-low transfer control and a few screws loose on the back of the lower latch for the rear door. While we’re in the back, it’s great to see the fold-down rear benches seem in fine shape. Less so, is the paint in the closing panel of the rear door, which is cracking in a similar fashion to the previously mentioned area of the passenger roof rail. If any more scratches crop up however, it’s reassuring to find that there’s a tin of touch-up paint in the glovebox.

Powered by what is probably the most reliable engine from arguably Japan’s most dependable manufacturer, you’re unlikely to ever have to lift the bonnet on this FJ. However, should you have a glance, you’ll be greeted by the vastly improved 4230cc inline six-cylinder 2F engine. This 135bhp carburettor-fed six-pot is a development of the original F-series engine that powered the Land Crusier from 1955-1988. This one is reported to run like a metronome, and though there’s an indicated 76k kms on the odometer, we’ve no evidence that this is genuine.

There’s plenty more signals of a fresh restoration underneath this FJ, with new paint covering the floors, axles and even the exhaust. There’s fresh grease smearing out of the right places and almost all of the fixing bolts, washers and nuts look new. It’s nice to see that things appear to be very much as Toyota intended under here, previous owners having resisted the temptation to modify.

Our Spanish isn’t up to much and Google translate isn’t exactly fluent, so the pair of bills in the history file from Colombia are a bit of a mystery. Though we’re reassured to see that this Land Cruiser was legally registered for UK roads from July 2021. Our usual HPI check also, obviously, doesn’t report anything amiss.

In November 2021 the Land Cruiser, as you can see in the document gallery, had over £2,000 spent on it with R.B Autos, where it had a full service with new fluids, a number of new gaskets as well as a new fuel lift pump.

The condition of this vehicle has to do the talking for it as there’s no further paperwork available. Though the vehicle does come with its complete set of four keys.

The FJ remains the most instantly recognisable generation of Land Cruiser. Its rugged and dependable reputation was earned in an era when working vehicles really did work hard. It’s the reason why Richard Hammond chose one to take on the Bolivian jungle during a memorable Top Gear special back in 2009, and the reason why so many residents of Latin America did (and continue) to do the same.

This example seems to have been given a thorough and sympathetic restoration by a specialist who understands these simple but rewarding vehicles. It might not have the history to prove it, but all you need to do is study the images (or ideally view the vehicle in person) to be won over. We’ve therefore no hesitation in placing an estimate of between £19,000 and £29,000 on this fine 4x4.

Viewing is always encouraged and as stated this car is located at THE MARKET HQ, Abingdon; we are open Mon-Fri, 9am-5pm and to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing to make an appointment. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.