Initially introduced to the public as a concept car in 2003, the FJ Cruiser received the green flag to initiate production after garnering lots of positive feedback. Toyota promised to produce this unique SUV only as a one-generation model. With the now halted production, only a few FJ Cruisers, can be found for sale, and they're hot and pricey.
During its production years, the quirky-looking FJ Cruiser was a low-volume seller. On average, Toyota sold 20,000 units a year, but in total over 200,000 FJ Cruisers were sold in the USA alone. Today, finding an FJ Cruiser for sale is quite rare - for a 2014 model, one would have to fork over more than $30,000. There's a reason lovers of the FJ Cruiser want it to make a comeback ASAP. Here is everything you need to know before spending a buck on the FJ Cruiser.
10 Origin Of The Name FJ Cruiser
It's a question asked by many, but the FJ Cruiser has its roots in the legendary Toyota FJ Series. "F" stands for the engine type, while the "J" means Jeep. Some of the earlier FJs were recognized as BJs since they ran on the B-type engine and not an F-type engine like the one in the FJ Cruiser. The Cruiser part of its name was derived from the FJ40 Land Cruiser - a '60s off-road model which ranked as the best-seller for Toyota in the US (1961-1965).
Don't be mistaken though, the looks are not anywhere close between the two previous FJ Series models from Toyota. The FJ Cruiser is a modified version with improved modern features, comfort, and technical excellence. It's also more drivable compared to its vintage counterpart. Nonetheless, it remains one of the most reliable and durable vehicles.
9 Made Of Sterner Stuff
Toyota's rugged dependability and reliability have been proven over the years. Up to date, most FJ Cruiser owners attest how easy one can maintain and run the Cruiser. Looking at Toyota FJ Series cars, they are popular for not breaking down, explaining why authentic and antic FJs are still in working condition today.
When it comes to the FJ's transmission and suspension, their quality is legendary. Its electrical system is made to survive anything you throw at it. The FJ Cruiser durability is unmatched considering the beating and harsh off-road conditions they've endured at the hands of their owners.
8 Engine Configurations
While most automakers love to go for turbo-diesel and gasoline engines that differ in size and layouts (4-cylinder, V6, and V8 engines), Toyota played it straight with the FJ Cruiser. They offered one option, i.e. a 4.0-liter V6 gas engine. For such an engine, the specs aren't that impressive. It delivered only 260 hp. The secret lies in how the engine delivered 200kW power and 380Nm of torque.
The FJ Cruiser's engine had an impressive reputation, and it used a timing chain that improved the FJ Cruiser engine's life. Most FJ Cruiser owners tuned their engines and fitted them with LPG conversions even though several experts discourage such conversions on the Toyota V6 engine.
7 Models & Series
Toyota killed production of the FJ Cruiser after just one generation. To mark Toyota's final production year of the FJ Cruiser, they announced the FJ Cruiser Trail Teams Ultimate Edition at the SEMA show in Las Vegas, which was a limited production model — only 2,500 units got built.
Despite having only one model, Toyota offered the FJ Cruiser in a range of different colors with some old school blue, red, orange, yellow, black, gray, and green shades. All these came with a white roof. Toyota may have stopped production of the FJ Cruiser, but they left the mandate of production to specific countries.
6 Highly Customizable
The choice of customization all depends on the owner, but it's always good to know major tweaks and tuning are possible. The FJ Cruiser is an easily customizable SUV through either custom accessories or aftermarket custom kits. For buyers, an FJ Cruiser with dealer-fitted factory accessories costs more than the standard one.
Some of the FJ Cruiser's customization accessories include badges and emblems, bumpers, camping gear, grille guards and inserts, exhaust systems, light mounts and kits, and other off-road accessories.
5 Cabin & Interior Space
Compared to other modern off-road Toyotas, the FJ Cruiser isn't quite as big. Its exterior dimensions are shorter and lower than, say, a Prado. This contributes to the FJ Cruiser's smaller cargo storage capacity and boot space. However, it has folding seats behind the front seats, making it possible to squeeze in extra cargo. Most FJ owners fit their cars with drawers, roof rails, and racks for extra cargo hauling to counter this.
The FJ Cruiser was fitted with seats covered with durable and semi-waterproof material in place of the typical leather seats. Sound system? It's just eight speakers with a radio and CD player - forget about having a subwoofer, Android streaming, or Apple CarPlay. Other interior accessories and features include cupholders, Bluetooth, keyless entry, air conditioner, power window, and mirrors. From 2012, the FJ Cruiser was fitted with GPS-based navigation.
4 Driving
An off-roader will often turn out to be a gas guzzler, especially when compared to a conventional car. Powered by a gasoline V6 engine, its consumption is a rather scary 18 mpg. But it makes up for that thirst with exceptional off-roading performance made possible by its impressive 224mm ground clearance (700mm wading depth). The more recent models came with an extra fuel tank and a CRAWL off-road system for extreme off-roaders.
On the highway, the FJ Cruiser is kind of a mixed bag. Its curb weight translates to good performance, but it's a disadvantage when it comes to speed as it takes more than 15 seconds to accelerate to the quarter mile. In terms of comfort, the FJ Cruiser ticks off all the boxes thanks to its independent front suspension and rear coil-sprung suspension.
3 Safety Features
The FJ Cruiser doesn't make the list of ANCAP's safety rating, but other Toyota brands like Prado are on the list. This explains the structural difference between these two units. Nonetheless, the FJ was not left behind since it came equipped with front and side airbags plus additional curtain bags to protect all passengers.
Safety is also enhanced by a reverse camera, front head restraints, electronic stability and traction control, ABS, brake assist, and brake force distribution.
2 Towing Capacity
This off-road monster had a towing capacity of 5,000 pounds, short of tow ratings for today’s trucks. This is because the FJ is lighter. Even so, the Cruiser's pulling capacity remains decent, as can be explained by the number of FJ Cruisers fitted with tow bars.
For better off-road capabilities, the FJ Cruiser was fitted with a 4WD system, unlike other soft-roaders that come with an AWD system. Plenty of FJ Cruisers up for sale came with a dual battery feature, a handy feature when going camping.
1 FJ Cruiser Common Issues
Toyotas are famous for their durability and reliability. The FJ Cruiser is no different since it was built based on the already proven Prado platform. There are no severe problems with the Cruiser, but Toyota did issue several recalls to fix problems like cracks at the B-pillar caused by opening the doors.
Other recalls were for wrongly-wired airbag sensors, fuel breather bolted closely to the Cruiser's exhaust, and the 2013 FJ Cruisers built within 3 weeks (for steering column flaw checkup). Being an off-roader, the Cruiser is prone to fixable problems like stone chips, cladding under the body, and scraped bumpers.