I have to admit this 40 series Land Cruiser is the first trail-ready 4×4 that doesn’t even go out on the trails that I truly and hugely respect.

The owner, Benedict Evangelista, is a good friend of mine and he will tell you he has received a lot of ribbing from me about not taking this ‘Cruiser to the trails. At the time, seeing the pictures posted in the 4x4PH.com forums for the first time, I thought it was a waste of hard-earned money to completely build-up and modify a time-tested, trail-worthy off-road vehicle like the Land Cruiser.

Now, don’t go bashing me up yet. Like I said I have a whole lot of respect for both the man and machine.

Starting the Journey

It took quite a long time for Evangelista to finally step back and say his journey is complete in giving a new life to this ‘Cruiser, but this isn’t new to restorers — it comes with the territory.

After going through his first FJ40 (a wedding gift from his dad who then decided to sell it), then on to an FJ 62, Benedict felt owning a 60-series ‘Cruiser still isn’t the same as owning a 40. At the time his only experience on restoring Land Cruisers was by watching and helping his father, so when Evangelista decided he needed to have his own 40-series again he talked to the senior Evangelista about it who respected his decision and gave his support in his son’s upcoming project.

When Evangelista officially started his search he got help from his friends by informing him of prospective units. Nothing even came close to their standards. It took months and months of searching, even draining him of his hope of finding the right unit. The beginning of the next phase of his journey arrived when a new customer arrived at ABC Motor Parts in Nueva Ecija, his auto supply store. The primary reason this person visited was because he enjoys seeing the variety of Land Cruisers parked often outside the shop. Evangelista mentioned he was looking for 40-series to restore, and the new customer promised to inform him if something comes up.

Later that evening Evangelista received a call from his new customer informing him he had found the perfect unit for this restorer. But there was a slight catch, “If you want one, you better buy two!” was what he was told. As it turns out the importer wasn’t selling the units separately.

The next morning they were on their way to Manila to check out the units. What was offered to him were two Land Cruiser 40 bodies on top of one another crammed into an aluminum trailer van. A BJ41v on top of a BJ40. The chassis were out in the yard.

Seeing the tubs in its condition didn’t impress Evangelista as it was ripped in a lot of areas, plus the rust that was eating away at the metal. The chassis were a different story. From his trained eyes he knew the chassis and under carriage only needed to be cleaned and can be restored easily; and it came with 4×4 Engineering alloy shackles and a 2.5-inch Big Country suspension system which Evangelista later replaced with Rancho RS9000x shock absorbers for the flexibility it provided. With a nod from his mechanic friend he brought along, and a smile, he was told that these are the units he’s been looking for.

The journey started on January of 2004.

Reviving a Legend Starts

Sourcing out the parts didn’t come that easy for Evangelista, but with encouragement and support from his his dad and mechanic friend he pushed on.

While the body was being worked on Evangelista concentrated on looking for the only parts that were missing from his unit: the two rear seats. Having a hard time finding these he decided to move them down his list of things to acquire and shifted his attention to the other details, stocked up on parts that needed replacing like the weather strips, lights, emblems, etc. This took quite some time, too, as his strategy was to save up then buy the parts, though, one of the first things he purchased were the Goodyear Wrangler MT/R 33×12.5×15 on 15×10 AMS chrome alloy wheels.

After 8 months the unit started to look like a Land Cruiser. As soon as they fitted the body onto the chassis the journey became easier.

The Final Stretch

On October of 2004 Evangelista was able to get the 1979 Land Cruiser BJ41v running.

But it wasn’t until January 2007 when he was finally able to say this project is finished, because that’s when he was sold some Land Cruiser spare parts. With these spare parts were two sets of rollbars which are rare in the Land Cruiser world. The owner was able to bring home these rollbars from the U.S. After Evangelista installed the rollbars in January 2007 that’s when he finally closed the book on this project.

1979 Toyota Land Cruiser BJ41v Specifications:

• Engine: 2B
  • Displacement: 3,168 cc
  • Injection: indirect
  • Horsepower: 93 @ 3,600 rpm
  • Torque: 159 ft-lbs @ 2,200 rpm
  • Valves: 8 OHV
  • Compression ratio: 21:1
• Transmission: 4-Speed (1974-83)
• Wheelbase: 90 inches
• Length: 152.4 inches
• Width: 65.6 inches
• Height (stock): 76.8 in.
• Towing Capacity: 3,000 lbs.
• Suspension: Semi-Elliptical Leaf Springs
• Brakes, Front and Rear: Hydraulic 4 Wheel Drums
• Power Front Disc (Nov. 1975-83)
• Curb Weight: 3,263 lbs.

Read and join Evangelista as he discusses his Land Cruiser BJ41v with other 4×4 Philippines forum members. Click here for the discussion: Dick’s BJ41V