FJ40 Rebuild

spent some more time wiring last weekend and have everything just about done now. every knob and control on the dash is in and working (minus the windshield washer, but only because i dont have a washer to hook up). the hardest part was definitely the hazard switch/turn signal switch/brake switch. i tried to wire it up according to the service manual, but it didnt work. i searched on the internet and found only one other suggested way of wiring it, which got me closer, but still didnt work right. i tried all kinds of combinations of wires - some didnt work at all, some gave me dim or intermittent blinkers, some gave me blinkers but only when the brakes were off, brakes lights that were on constantly, or setups that only worked when the key was off. i finally started from scratch, bypassed the harness, and took one wire at a time. i even got michaleen out there to help test wires with the multimeter. we worked through it until we had a set up that worked, then i started integrating the harness back in. when i was done, i had it set up to use the provided harness wires, the stock hazard switch, turn signal switch, and brake switch, and no additional parts (such as extra relays).



in the meantime, i needed to finish up wiring the headlights. i decided to put each light and each high/low beam on a seperate relay. all i needed to do was find a good place to mount the relays. after being inspired by my dad's slick overflow tank bracket, i made up some brackets out of sheet metal that i could mount using the bolts that hold the front bib in place.



with the relays mounted on the brackets



whole thing mounted to the cruiser. i think they turned out pretty nice.




now that all of the under dash wiring was complete, the next thing to do was to turn to the steering. i need to weld the steering column to the lower firewall support, so i needed to mock it all up to get the right position for the steering wheel. here is the steering wheel in place, ready to measure. i am going hiking this weekend, but hopefully i can get the steering wrapped up next week. after that, i just need to run the brake lines and bolt a bunch of stuff back on and she will be ready to go (well, at least ready to gingerly back out of the garage under her own power).