The classic Toyota FJ Land Cruiser is a bona fide collector 4X4, and values have continued to rise each year for the past decade. The classic FJ is a capable and fun all-terrain vehicle, but it is severely lacking in creature comforts. The word “basic” comes to mind.
In the same vein but with modern technology and stle, you just might catch a future collector 4X4 before it takes off in value with the Pick of the Day, a 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser.
The FJ Cruiser was a project planned in secret by Toyota’s product planner Dave Danzer; Yoshi Inaba, the vice-president of sales and operations; and the head of the Japanese automaker, Akio Toyoda. They hired designer Bill Chergosky to spearhead the development of an off-road vehicle they called the Rugged Youth Utility (RYU), which was aimed directly at young buyers who were not typically Toyota customers.
The vehicle was based on the Toyota 4Runner as its base with retro/modern bodywork in the style of the classic FJ. The FJ Cruiser was first shown as a concept car in January 2003 at the Detroit North American Auto Show. The debut was a huge success, and Toyota launched the full production model of the FJ Cruiser two years later, again at the Detroit auto show.
This FJ Cruiser is offered on ClassicCars.com by a dealer in Kentwood, Michigan, and is described as a “very low-mileage 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser with just over 45k miles and in exceptional condition both inside and out.”
The FJ is finished in Sun Fusion yellow over a black interior and is highly optioned, quite far from basic. Options include the Convenience Package that includes keyless entry, cruise control, power mirrors with image light, rear parking sonar, privacy glass, rear wiper and daytime running lights. It also has Upgrade Package No. 2, which consists of A-Trac, rear differential lock, multi-info display on dash with an exterior temp gauge, compass and incline-o-meter, 17-inch alloy wheels, 6 disc CD, D-pillar speakers, 400W inverter, multi-function leather steering wheel, silver tone shift lever, rear subwoofer and color-keyed door trim inserts.
The pictures for the listing depict an SUV in very nice condition with only a couple of paint chips and a well-preserved interior. These FJ Cruisers are capable off-road vehicles and are in many ways the equal of a Land Rover Defender, but in a more reliable and better-built package.
It seems like I am not the only one who thinks so as the prices of these vehicles is on the rise, and current values reflect that. And while you might not think that 45,000 is “very low mileage,” most of these FJ Cruisers routinely have north of 100k at this point, making this one of the lower mileage ones around.
The asking price for this FJ Cruiser is a reasonable $29,900 and I would guess that this example is destined to increase in value during the next few years, especially because it is one of the rare examples that has not been modified in any way.
To view this vehicle on ClassicCars.com, see Pick of the Day.
