editor@fourwheeler.com
Even if the Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40 wasn’t the first mass-produced, open-top, body-on-frame 4x4, it is arguably the world’s best. These durable SUVs, along with their predecessors (the FJ25 and the truck-based FJ45), are probably the most widespread and globally recognizable 4x4s on the face of the earth. Toyota did a great job of mimicking many great designs from other automotive manufacturers to build a bulletproof 4x4 that has a hard-earned reputation for durability, capability, and reliability. Built between 1960 and 1984 (and between 1968 and 2001 in Brazil), hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of these venerable 4x4s were produced.
Daniel (Danny) Solis’ ’63 FJ40 is simple yet effective. With GM LS power, a reliable TH350 transmission, dual Toyota mini-truck transfer cases, a built FJ40 front axle, and…