Gecko-Overland

We've been a bit busy on other projects recently but slowly the old BJ40 is making progress. Some lovely green epoxy primer and a glimpse of the eventual blue topcoat...albeit premature, we couldn't resist putting a finish color on the hood to see how it was going to look!

Before we can get started on our list of axle upgrades, we need to first take care of the basics! Full inspection, new seals, bearings and gaskets all round.

Coming soon will be:

✅ Custom Gecko-Overland Axle Breather System
✅ Custom Gecko-Overland Rear Disc Conversion Kit
✅ U-Bolt Reversal update
✅ Finished in U-Pol Raptor paint






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Today marks a milestone in bringing this old girl back to life! Freshly sandblasted, primed and Raptor topcoated, the Gecko team is pretty happy to get the chassis out of its build frame, assembled, and install the engine and drivetrain. Looks sensational, cant wait to get the tub on soon.






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There we have it! We have certainly come a long way from a pile of lifeless parts and bolts. The Gecko Overland treatment has transformed this motor into an adventure ready companion for our better than new chassis.






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With the old, worn components finally in the trash we could take a deeper look inside the powerplant.

Following a deep clean we fitted a new full gasket kit, injectors, glow plugs, thermostat housing, crank oil seals and more. With a fresh paint job, the outcome was amazing. Stay tuned for the next engine post to check out the end results!


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What test had the whole shop watching the engine whilst biting their nails??

Comment below, a clue can be found in the photos!


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Some areas of the chassis were beyond repair. We got the guys from our sister company, Ocean Gecko, who have a team more used to working on ships! They patterned and bent new sections and welded them in. Note the shapes on the spliced section to retain strength and decrease weld stress.


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With the chassis supported in the jig to Toyota measurements, a pattern and CAD file was generated to get new channel inserts waterjet cut. Originally Toyota made with 2 short inserts per side that left a large portion unboxed; we decided to improve on this with full length inserts running the entirety of the chassis. Result...a much stiffer chassis with less stress on the original steel.


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Sandblasting....slowly piecing together the vehicles past history of repairs. Not really sure if you can actually call them repairs, some of them are shockingly bad. Other areas have steel plate wastage from corrosion, that will require cutting away portions and replacing with new steel.


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Stripped of all fittings, lumps of body filler and paint....what an absolute mess....this is a big job to get this girl back into shape. We're left wondering how it managed to do the drive across the country to actually get here! Next will be a full sandblast and assessment; its a good job our sister company knows a thing or two about steel ship repairs!

New roof being vacuumed with foam core which will make it way lighter and stronger with better insulation than the original.....so much better than most of the aftermarket roofs available. Looking forward to being able to fit this when the rest of the project catches up with the composite team!

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Work has started on fabricating a new roof. The old one is toast and destined for the garbage bin after we've used it make a new mould. The new roof will be much stronger, lighter and better insulated using more modern glass cloths, resin and foam that weren't available when this puppy rolled of the production line.

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