Toyota FJ Cruiser Problems

The petrol V6 engine in an FJ Cruiser is a fairly conventional piece of equipment and shouldn’t represent too much of a problem for a mechanic with decent experience. Poor starting can be caused by any number of things but will usually come down to a fault with either the ignition or fuel system.

An engine that takes two attempts to start can often be suffering from poor fuel pressure, so a check of the pump and filters would be a good place to start. But a slack ignition system can also cause the same symptoms. If the problem is a relatively new one, it’s possible that you might have unwittingly bought a tankful of old or contaminated fuel. Start with the basics, including a mechanic that knows their way around this engine.

Hi Rebecca, generally 100,000km isn’t a concern on rugged off-road vehicles like Toyota’s retro-cool FJ Cruiser, as this has been spread out over five years now and most people will rack up at least 20,000km per-year. The crucial aspect to this is whether the FJ has a full service history (major services happen every 80,000km and 100k kilometres), and whether the bulk of those kilometres were done around town in stop-start driving, or on longer trips which cause less strain on mechanical parts. In most cases parts won’t simply start falling off once you hit 200,000km and a well looked-after FJ should be able to reach over 300,000km before major components will need to be reconditioned. As to the value I have seen sub-100,000km-old examples listed as low as $32,000 and some as high as $45,000 so it will come down to the individual FJ’s history. I would definitely have a look at the prices around Australia as you might find bargains a short road-trip away.

It's a different situation as the FJ is a global model but you should probably move even more quickly as Toyota Australia will have to confirm soon on its final orders. FJ owners generally have made an emotional choice so it's unlikely the used-car values will be dropping soon.

Don't get too carried away with the VIN number, as the build date is always stamped on the firewall on a special plate and cannot be altered or disguised.

Our understanding is that the government grant you refer to is not available on a novated lease, so you should go back and check that. Generally carmakers do not void the entire new vehicle warranty when an LPG system is installed, but they do exclude from the warranty any part of the car affected by the installation. That means the engine, the fuel system, etc. is not covered, but the warranty remains in place for the rest of the car. LPG systems are generally covered by a warranty that covers the system itself and its components, and there are also a number of insurance companies offering LPG warranty packages, which specifically cover potential engine damage, for people concerned about premature engine failure. Your LPG installer can give you the warranty information relating to the system you are planning to install. With reference to the FJ Cruiser, the LPG system manufacturers maintain a list of vehicles that should not be converted to LPG and the FJ Cruiser is not on that list.