my fj55

Yesterday, the family went out for lunch after church and then we went for a drive to check out the FJ55 you see above. I had found an FJ55 in Georgia before I left for Dallas, but it was rough but driveable, but I  have been looking for something that's ready to drive that didn't need that much work. My FJ40 project is just taking a little longer than anticipated and the weather has already turned cold here in Boone. We've been living with one car for the last several months since I haven't been driving the sidecar much. I  had sold a couple of my motorcycles earlier to help fund a "new" car, and this FJ55 popped up on Craigslist near Boone. I contacted the seller Saturday night and he said to come take a look at it. We drove over past Wilkesboro and met the couple so we could take a look at the FJ55. I looked things over and took the FJ55 for a test drive. down the road. I came back and looked everything over again. Jill and I discussed the purchase and we decided to purchase from the nice couple. The owner told me about the Jaguar he had just sold and also mentioned two old Corvettes that he was selling. Noah and I hopped in the FJ and we followed Jill and the girls home. I was a bit worried about the drive home since driving an old unfamiliar vehicle never inspires confidence. The brakes needed bleeding as the footpedal required a little pumping to get full brake and the carb had a little hesitation once letting off the gas and getting back on the pedal. With my co-pilot keeping an eye on oil pressure, charging, and engine temps we listened to the whine of (what sounds like) straight cut transmission/transfer case gears as we worked through the 3 speeds climbing higher and higher. Regardless we navigated the highway and climb up the mountain without incident. We pulled into the driveway a little more confident that this FJ55 was worthy for the trip home. I took a few pics of it as we began to inspect things closer. It needs some work, but it's a driver, and I think it will be something we can work on as I drive it back and forth to work. It appears that the rancher that owned it in Wyoming did a repaint on it along with some body work. These old FJ55's are typically completely rusted out, and are becoming a bit more difficult to find in drivable condition. I simply love the styling that they have. In my opinion the front grill/hood/fender area is such a cool design. The FJ55 isn't as iconic as the FJ40 front end, but I think the styling was ahead of it's time considering that this particular vehicle was made in 1970. This should be fun and I can even fit car seats in this beast. I'll be on the lookout for a few simple things to upgrade the missing parts and I'm just looking forward to simply driving this old thing; should be fun.