I’m not going to name any names, but someone took a perfectly good 1972 Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser, chopped it up, and fabricated a matching trailer. What emerged from the lab is a tractor-like, parade-ready mishmash that Dr. Frankenstein would be proud to drive. And it’s for sale for $124,000 at Gateway Classic Cars in O’Fallon, Illinois, just east of St. Louis.
The good news is that it’s clean, framed with a steel roll cage, and painted in the same royal blue as the one in the Kansas City Royals logo. Even better news is that it has four 49-inch Super Swamper IROK tires on the vehicle-formerly-known-as-Land Cruiser and four more on the trailer. Strangely, perhaps, those enormous tires swallow the 17-inch Raceline Beadlock wheels. The tires alone retail for at least $300 each, so these are some burly rounds of rubber.
When it was born, the ’72 Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser was powered by an inline-six 3.9-liter engine that made 125 horsepower. As built, the Land Cruiser has always had a classic profile I’ll miss when it exits the U.S. market after this year. For the Land Cruiser behemoth pictured above, the six-cylinder was swapped out for a small-block 350-horsepower LS1 V8 accompanied by a Turbo 400 transmission. Other goodies include Dana 60 axles, Atlas two-speed transfer case, and ARB air-locking differentials in the front and rear.
This vehicle has the distinction of being the chariot for the Kansas City Royals in 2015 and Kansas City Chiefs in 2020 during their championship celebrations. If it can carry a bunch of football players, I would imagine it’s a pretty sturdy vehicle. No mention of a stepladder or running boards, so bring your own stepladder, because this thing is tall. I’m thinking I could detach the trailer and roll around on Texas ranchland, catching air on the hills, squashing any rattlesnake that crosses my path and it will be high enough off the ground to avoid any errant fangs anyway.
Basically, it’s ready now to either go mudding and rock climbing, or you can throw it in the garage until you’re ready for your next neighborhood parade.
Got a tip? Send the writer a note: Kristin.shaw@thedrive.com