This 1965 is the Oldest Toyota Land Cruiser We Found For Sale

Vintage aside, a tidy exterior and a SBC swap make this old Land Cruiser FJ40 worth a look.

While the Toyota Land Cruiser has been being built since 1951, it wasn’t offered on our shores until 1957, when it was offered alongside the Toyopet Crown sedan. Even on the venerable Jeep’s home turf, the tough Toyota proved a big hit, and helped lay the groundwork for the brand’s huge presence here. That doesn’t mean that early examples of the Land Cruiser are easy to find, however. Far from it. Because we went looking for a 1950s example, and while our firm keyboard warrior status meant that condition wasn’t a factor, we still came up with nothing.

Given that the 25-year period surrounding imported iron has long since expired, we figured there’d be a fair crop of JDM versions running around. But nope. While there are plenty of 1968-and-up models available around the country, at least at the moment, examples earlier than that are pretty much unicorns. After checking all the usual suspects and then some, this fresh-looking 1965 FJ40 listed for sale in Los Angeles was the oldest one we could locate.