1966 Toyota FJ45Lv Land Cruiser Wagon "The Unicorn" an Extremely Rare FJ Truck

Description

This is a 1966 Toyota FJ45Lv Land Cruiser Wagon. Often called the Unicorn of FJ Land Cruisers this FJ45 is a pristine example. This is a left hand truck. Please not this is a V-8 truck and does not have the original engine. The transmission is a later Toyota FJ 4 speed. We are able to travel on the interstate at 65 MPH and enjoy driving it on nice summer days. We are able to sit 3 in the front bench seat and 3 in the rear, forward facing bench seat. The rear cargo area hold the spare tire with cover. The engine is carbureted and runs very smooth. The transmission and clutch are very smooth. The weather stripping is new and it has all the factory glass. Door windows are rollup and the front doors have vent windows. The truck has 4 wheel disk brakes, single fuel tank, and 12 volt electrical system. Two speed transfer case with mechanical linkage. Heater works great, No A/C . The original cluster with odometer has been replaced and reads 99000 miles however we believe the true mileage is 20,000, however for the sake of sale we say true mileage is unknown.

History:

The Toyota Land Cruiser started out in January 1951 as the Toyota Jeep BJ. In September of 1955, the 20-series was created. There were ten variations available between the FJ20 to the FJ29. The FJ25 was the primary model sold to North America. It was the FJ25 that evolved into the FJ40 model we see today. The FJ40 and other models were built by Arakawa Bankin Kogyo, now ARACO Co., Ltd.

In 1956 a van body known as the FJ28v was introduced and the wheelbase was extended from 2,285mm (90.0in) to 2,430mm (95.8in). Toyota started the wagon series with a 2-door and a 4-door configuration, both were known as the FJ28va/FJ28lva. Between 1956 and 1960, 1,250 FJ28va and lva were produced. They were never exported to the North American market.

It was in 1954 when Gifu Body Co., Ltd. started working with Toyota motor sales. In 1960, Gifu Body produced the bodies for the wagons instead of Arakawa Bankin Kogyo. Gifu was responsible for the FJ45lv and possibly the FJ45v and earlier models starting in 1960. Manufacture of the wagon bodies by Gifu ended in 1967 when the FJ55 was taken over by ARACO. Gifu is still producing truck bodies today including the Mega Cruiser.

In September of 1960 the FJ35v and FJ35lv were created. This model looked a lot like the FJ45 wagons we know today but with one major exception. The front bib was exactly like the FJ25. Production of the FJ35 stopped in November of 1960 with only 60 produced. On a side note, the grill on this truck was made to look like an FJ35lv. You can mount a standard Land Cruiser bezel and put this one back to stock if desired.

There was an FJ43v produced from 1961 to 1963 and I have only seen one picture of it. The FJ43v was never sold in North America. The FJ43v was a 2-door version of the FJ45 wagon. The FJ43v has the same wheelbase as the FJ28v at 2,430mm (95.8in). I don't have any production numbers for this model.

At some point, the FJ45 wagons shared parts with the Toyopet Crown Wagon. These were produced from 1958 to 1964. The tailgate latch has a small metal cover held on by two screws. Under the cover is the Toyopet name. The only difference is the Toyopet latch does not have the holes drilled for the cover plate. Another similar part is the taillights. Although the taillights have the same shape as the dimpled (cat eye) lenses found on 1963-64 FJ45 wagons, the mounting is different. The lens is attached to the light housing from the rear and the whole assembly is bolted to the car from behind.

The FJ45v and FJ45lv was produced from 1960 to 1967. The front end looks like an FJ40 but from the firewall back, the body is completely different. This is the most common 4-door wagon aside from the FJ55 and later models. The FJ45lv was sold in North America from 1963 to 1967.

I have only found two sources for the actual production numbers. Rick Donnelly reported that the total number of pre 1968 [FJ45] frames came in at 20,000 plus These frames ran from 10,001 to 29,000 plus. This number includes all pickup and wagon models worldwide. According to Rick, the North American population of 45 wagons included the earliest, a 1963 at 14,088 sold by TLC, and the last, a 1967 owned by Don Roht at 29,964.

The second source was published on Koji Komoto's website, www3.telus.net/fj45lv. His site shows the FJ45v and FJ45lv was produced from December 1960 to January 1967. The total number of 45v and 45lv models was 5,080 with about 1,500 exported to North America.

In 1967, the 45lv was replaced by the FJ55. The FJ55 4-door wagons is the only Land Cruiser respectfully known as the "Iron Pig". Some documentation shows the 55 being manufactured in 1967 but most report the sales between 1968 and 1980. The total number of "pigs" produced was 113,000.

There are a lot of great sites on the internet for Land Cruiser history as well as a few great books. When it comes to the FJ45v and FJ45lv, most of the information is rather vague. The information has been pieced together and, for now, is as accurate as possible.