Jeep update
The 'tactical nuclear option' it is
Shit happens, as they say. And sometimes, a lot of it happens in the same place. This has certainly been the case with the FJ40 since the start of the expedition. It overheated on the first day, and after a valve adjustment we were able to make it to Labuan Bajo in Flores, onto the ferry to Sulawesi, and ultimately into Makassar at the end of May. Here it spent the next six weeks being tweaked for the rest of the journey, hopefully dealing with the underlying cause of the overheating (it barely managed to hobble through the final long driving section from Bira to Makassar) while I explored the prehistoric Maros cave art with a member of the Makassar archaeology team. After some family time back on Lombok, and with hopes high, I set off on July 12th anticipating an uneventful drive to Sengkang, the ancient capital of the Bugis people.
Alas, ‘uneventful’ has been rather sparse on the driving days of the trip so far. Stuck in traffic in the town of Maros, just outside of Makassar, the engine temperature crept upward into the red zone. Finally, I heard the telltale ‘POP’ of a hose in the cooling system, and saw steam rising from the front of the engine. Pulling over to the side, I cursed myself for bringing a 50 year-old vehicle on a long road trip.
After texting my mechanic back in Makassar, I settled in to wait for the tow truck to show up. Over the next couple of hours I made some new friends — a group of 11 year-old boys who were understandably fascinated by the spectacle of a large blond dude broken down on the side of the road in their neighborhood. I bought them some drinks from the shop I had stopped in front of, and we talked about their lives, school, football (Manchester United in particular), and how I had gotten there from Lombok. Good fun and great kids.
The next few days would be spent texting with the mechanic about possible fixes to the jeep. After trying everything possible with the ancient engine, he finally told me that his only remaining recommendation was to replace it. It might be possible to fix the original, if we could find the parts in the secondhand marketplace (the original model F engine was discontinued in 1975) and we were willing to spend quite a lot of time and money on trial-and-error experimentation. Not an attractive option, given all of the delays so far. One alternative was to put a second-generation 2F engine in, which was manufactured from 1975-1988 and is still supported by Toyota, making parts much easier to find.
Another alternative was to buy a new vehicle — what I referred to as the ‘strategic nuclear option’ in conversations — but it would need to be a real 4x4 because of the upcoming travel routes I have planned. This wasn’t my first choice. I’m still hoping to make the trip in the FJ40, so I decided to give a thumbs-up to the ‘tactical nuclear option’ and replace the engine. Not quite the same vehicle I set out in from Lombok, but certainly closer to it than making the rest of the trip in a HiLux or Fortuner. Luckily there was a like-new, fully renovated 2F engine available in Makassar, and I transferred the money to the mechanic and waited for news.
Now, nearly a month after blowing up in Maros, and with some additional part replacements to accommodate the new engine — a larger radiator, an extra fan, a more powerful battery, etc. — I’m on the road again. I’m posting this from Lake Matano (a 16-hour, two-day drive northeast of Makassar), so it’s made it this far and is running very well. The engine seems positively peppy, in fact, with noticeably more power and no hint of overheating (the temperature gauge has stayed below the 1/4 line, even in the notorious stop-and-go of Maros traffic). Now, far beyond the sprawl of greater Makassar in the south, it’s truly a pleasure to drive — I’m cautiously optimistic that it will make it all the way to Halmahera…🤞
"Tactical nuclear option" 🤣👍🏻
Good luck!