Toyota frame site?

GPster · September 03, 2004, 05:43:12 PM

The "King" mentioned in another forum about an '85 or so Toyota truck frame under a Mercedes. Any on have a good idea how to get some pictures or drawings and dimensions of such a frame? I'm not above going to the Mall parking lot with a tape measure but it might be a little easier if I knew before hand what to crawl under (a rock?). My jeepster is such a minimal body I feel that I could put it on a moving chassis easier than build it the way I started. Did any of these Toyota trucks have automatics? I'm of half a mind that if I found a runner I'd use the engine,transmission, floor, firewall, steering column, pedals and linkage and slide it all back on the frame till the front wheel set in the fenders correctly. Then modify the frame and driveshaft to give me the jeepster wheelbase. As soon as the truck can move uder it's own power I want to get the jeepster back in the garage. "Best of The WEB" gave me 1099 sites for Toyota Trucks and I wondered if you guys had an easier way. GPster

SKR8PN · September 03, 2004, 07:13:20 PM

GPster........THAT idea sounds like a LOT of work to me............
AND that comes from a guy that has a CUSTOM frame under a 1938 Dodge pickup!!!
I have never seen your Jeepster yet,BUT,I would use the ORIGINAL frame IF I could...........It is a heck of lot LESS work.....................TRUST me!

GPster · September 03, 2004, 07:46:54 PM

Quote from: "SKR8PN"GPster........THAT idea sounds like a LOT of work to me............
AND that comes from a guy that has a CUSTOM frame under a 1938 Dodge pickup!!!
I have never seen your Jeepster yet,BUT,I would use the ORIGINAL frame IF I could...........It is a heck of lot LESS work.....................TRUST me!

I know about the work (because I'm putting that truck cab on that car chassis) but the stock frame is a "top-hat" constructed with no bottom in it. It is now a rolling chassis with Vega steered 7"dropped tube axel with early Ford spindles and brakes and a Mustang 8" rear and mounts for a 350/350 that I have. Over the years there has been a change as to what I would be able to drive now that I can again. I'm just trying to keep an open mind as this vehicle will probably get no further than my ownership and I'd like to have something that is at least practical for me. Thanks for the concern but the agreement with my wife was that my Ranger pick-up would not be a project. GPster

enjenjo · September 04, 2004, 12:12:41 AM

The Toyota frame is real similar in shape to a 41 to 48 Chevy frame, but the wheelbase is about 4" shorter in the extra cab model. frame is the same from about 80 to 85, and they came with automatic trans.

They are so similar in shape to a 41 to 48 Chevy, I have seen one installed under a 46 two door sedan, with absolutely no cutting of the floor, anfter streching it 4" ahead of the rear springs, and flipping the torsion bar adjusters for floor clearance.

This is one of the few frame swaps I would reccommend.

In the case of your Jeepster, you don't have much floor left, so you could mount the body where you want, and make the floor to fit the frame. It would also be an easy frame to shorten if needed. Beware the rust worm in Ohio trucks, they are a fully boxed frame, and hold all the junk inside, western frames are a better choice.

GPster · September 04, 2004, 11:03:34 AM

Quote from: "enjenjo"Beware the rust worm in Ohio trucks, they are a fully boxed frame, and hold all the junk inside, western frames are a better choice.

That is the reason I am thinking this way. When I bought the Jeepster I was not dismayed that there was no floor to the body. I was not all that concerned with the bottom of the frame because it almost looked like water had gotten in the rails and when freezin had pushed the bottom loose. I really have gotten disturbed looking at the "Top Hat" construction of the '53 Chevy car frame under my truck cab and saw how bad the side rails of it have gotten. It gets depressing looking at the things I thought I could fix and realize that the only Jeepster is my name on this board. Thanks for the reminder about the rust. My vision is not all that good up-side down and backwards ( my welding either). May have somebody else look at the next one. GPster

GPster · September 04, 2004, 05:44:48 PM

This is good,I'm talking to myself. Probably back to square one. Happened to look at one of those Toyota trucks today. The newer style of leaf springs is ssssooooo longgg behind the axel I would have to put a Bustle on the back of the spare tire to hide the shackles. Oh well, I'll just add that information to my file. GPster

Carps · September 06, 2004, 07:03:04 AM

Quote from: "GPster"This is good,I'm talking to myself. Probably back to square one. Happened to look at one of those Toyota trucks today. The newer style of leaf springs is ssssooooo longgg behind the axel I would have to put a Bustle on the back of the spare tire to hide the shackles. Oh well, I'll just add that information to my file. GPster

It's not to hard to shorten the springs and remove the daggy bit of chassis that's hangin out the back.

Shouldn't even be too hard to convert to coil overs.

GPster · September 06, 2004, 08:46:49 AM

It's not to hard to shorten the springs and remove the daggy bit of chassis that's hangin out the back.

Shouldn't even be too hard to convert to coil overs.[/quote] It's strange where these bits of reality come from. Thanks for reminding me. Ive saw the same ugly problem with the car chassis and I'd slid the spring foreward and re-arranged the leaves so that the front of the springa makes a hell of a set af traction bars (like I'd need them with a 6 and closed drive shaft). I'm on the hunt again. OR I might look at an early Suzuki 4X4 with leaf springs in the front. That way I could use my 7" dropped tube axel and It would have the right bolt pattern on the rear wheels to match the '40 Ford on the front. I know you can make disc/drum brakes work together. How about drum/disc? One of my problems is there is so much grass that need cut . flowers that need tended and "dog poop" that needs picked up between my back door and my garage. By the time I get there I forget what I was going to do. Even worse than that,The Jeepster is behind the garage and I have to walk around the16' x 27' hole in the ground that is going to be a pond. My computor is in the living room and my coffee pot is before I get to the back yard. Incase anyone wonders where I find so much time to ask dumb question on this site. GPster

Bib_Overalls · September 06, 2004, 10:40:46 AM

As I recall Jeepster frames are pretty simple. Parallel side rails and simple crossmembers. The sort of thing any competent welder can replicate fron rectangular tubing. You should be able to get a Mustang II crossmember that will work and you can run a Ford 8" rear with coil overs out back.

In this case it may be easier to build a chassis. And no worries about rust.

As I recall, Willy-Overland ony built the original Jeepsters for three years, 48 t0 50, and they were always a little rare. If you have one you are lucky.

Kaiser Jeep and American Motors built a second generation Jeepster from 66 to 73. In my mind, they don't have the same "charm" as the earlier version but they are still good rodding material.

You are lucky to have one of either series, even if the floor is missing.

GPster · September 06, 2004, 11:08:18 AM

Quote from: "Bib_Overalls"As I recall Jeepster frames are pretty simple. .

Yes pretty simple but not like anything else in the Jeep line. They have "Top Hat" constructed frame rail like early Chevy and an independent front suspension that is similar to '40s Studebaker that has a single traverse leaf spring that does the suspending. There is so little of this thing left that matches I'm just exploring posibilities that are probably 4 cylinder powered and suspension with a narrow enough tread width to keep the wheels under the fenders. Basically I'm just gather ideas and an eye for the problems involved. I should be working on the truck. The car show and Cruise night that will be up the block will be in the middle of October. I'd like to join the party (Crash the Party would be a poor choice of words) But then my priorities change by the minute. GPster

Flipper · September 06, 2004, 11:43:30 AM

Does anybody have pictures of a toyota frame? Anybody know the basic dimensions? This Mercedes is a fairly narrow car.

GPster · September 06, 2004, 01:04:01 PM

Quote from: "Flipper"Does anybody have pictures of a toyota frame? Anybody know the basic dimensions? This Mercedes is a fairly narrow car.

You started this. I'm just trying to keep it going. Maybe Carps would have them roll one over and take pictures of it. Some of us build junk because we think it's cheaper. The biggest outlay I have in building these cars is this computor. But it makes it more fun than anything I've ever built before. GPster

enjenjo · September 06, 2004, 01:34:56 PM

The Toyota frame is about 34 inches at the firewall, and gets wider out to about 42 inches at the rear axle. From memory, I may be off an inch or so.

Flipper · September 06, 2004, 02:18:45 PM

Quote from: "enjenjo"The Toyota frame is about 34 inches at the firewall, and gets wider out to about 42 inches at the rear axle. From memory, I may be off an inch or so.

That does sound interesting. I'm gonna go hit the car lots and see if I can find one to look at. (I have a '91 toy, but it is stored at my dad's house ...250 miles away.

GPster · September 06, 2004, 06:08:31 PM

I thought at one time that Motor Manuals used to supply tread width with their alignment specs but I just looked and they're not there. The wheelbase is though. Maybe they have it in the Chilton Manuals that you can look at at the library. Or maybe a body shop that does frame alignments has that kind of information. This is the kind of tricks of the trade that I was hoping to get in addition to S10 steering boxes are in front of the spindles and are hard to hide under some early fenders. Sometimes I'm not the only one that has trouble understanding me. GPster