The LCN Story

 
 
 

The Land Cruiser Nation

by Gregory Overton


Many years ago, the idea of owning a vintage 4x4 started to percolate in my head!  I considered  Bronco’s, Jeeps, Scouts, Series II and III Land Rovers and about that time I saw an FJ45 Troopy pictured in a Serengeti-like landscape sitting alongside a new Land Cruiser on cover of the 1993 Land Cruiser Sales Brochure. When I saw the old Land Cruiser it hit me, “That’s what I want!”. I knew nothing about them and didn’t recall having ever seen one in person so I started searching.


Months later, I located a Sky Blue 1978 FJ40 in Cheyenne WY. It belonged to Ollie and Gertrude, an elderly couple and I bought it. We flat towed it home and I got to work cleaning it up. It was very solid with only 38,000 miles on the truck. Very minimal rust but the paint was pretty faded and I was in a hurry to make it look like new again. $10,000 later, mission accomplished! Today, I probably would have left the FJ40 primarily “as found”.


A couple years later I spotted another FJ40 in pretty darn good shape, so I bought it. Then another and another! About that time I began building a website called Heartland Land Cruisers. HLC was purely informational and I tried to aggregate information of value for other Land Cruiser fans. Back then, we had the Land Cruiser Mailing List, Specter Off Road, TLC 4x4, Cool Cruisers and the Toyota Land Cruiser Association and that was about it.


Eventually, Heartland Land Cruisers evolved into Land Cruiser Nation and what was once a rather overlooked old 4x4 has become one of the more sought after vintage trucks around. I’ve been immersed in restorations, appraisals, consignments, vehicle acquisition, FJ40 parts and product development for over 25 years now and I never seem to get tired of it. Land Cruisers all have their unique quirks and personalities. No two have been alike.


As many auto enthusiasts will tell you, the “thill” is in the hunt! We love to search for those elusive survivors and barn finds. But another great benefit of my passion are the people I meet. Fellow Land Cruiser lovers are some of the finest people I’ve had the pleasure of knowing and many have become great friends.


Over the years I have become a big fan of unrestored survivors. There’s something about a vehicle that has it’s history written all over. These vehicle catapult you into the past. If you have a Land Cruiser you want to sell or if looking for one to buy or perhaps you just have questions or something to share, feel free to pick up the phone and give me a call at 515-864-1275 or email me at overton@aol.com. I always love to chew the fat about these old trucks.