The Perfect Ride

And you know who/what sits at the intersection of classic & functional? Cool, that’s who. Legendary, that’s what.

Bandies are old enough (the 1st generation came out in 1962) that your dad could have driven one to school… except that your dad didn’t know they existed, because Toyota put them on a top-secret mission in Brazil. Their mission? To traverse the sun-scorched dirt & cobblestone roads of the Brazilian hinterlands daily while carrying up to 6 tons of burly payload & 6 sweaty farmers/miners.

Honestly, there are few things on this planet as alluring as a classic, highly functional vehicle. It’s an exclusive club and Bandies are in it (they’re the mysterious guy in the back with shades & a ‘stache & a suit that no one knows or dares to question).

We originally called this section “they’re like Tonka Toys,” but our friend Ramiro convinced us otherwise.

Really, though: is there a more perfect platform for a modern-day restoration than a rugged-but-gorgeous, all-steel, non-digital, diesel-fueled jeep or pick-up truck? Something with classic, universally-appealing looks, 4-wheel drive, and timeless, no-nonsense mechanics? It’s not like leaf springs are ever going to go out of style.

While Bandies will never be as comfortable as a modern-day SUV (even FJCO builds, which start at $160k, don’t likely approach the basic comfort level of a 2023 Wrangler), comfort is actually one of the easiest things to upgrade during a restoration. Add some cushy new seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, a center console/arm rest/lock box, and rear doors for your passengers, and you’ve just updated your creature comfort level exponentially for relatively little. Want to take comfort up to the next level? How about an A/C, heater, defroster, USB chargers, and power windows & locks? Or maybe you decide you’d like to upgrade those trusty leaf springs after all (our choice: the Old Man Emu 2.5” kit)?

Safety is another easily upgradable category. While older, all-steel vehicles will never be as safe as modern passenger vehicles, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a whole lot you can do to make your ride safer—including avoiding the Autobahn. Adding front disc brakes is a highly recommendable start, but there are also LED headlights and brake lights, power steering (if it doesn’t already have it; most of our base models do), and 3-point seatbelts to consider (some of our base models come with this feature, as well). Other easy upgrades for more peace of mind: back-up cameras, wider tires, larger mirrors, and an alarm system.

On the accessory & customization fronts, your budget is the only limit. Want to turn a 2-door into a 4-door? A 3-door? That can be done, and it may be more affordable than you think. How about turning a hard top into a soft top? It can be done.

Of course, anything in the du jour off-road package (brush guard + winch + snorkel + auxiliary lights + suspension lift + lockers + bigger tires, etc.) is an easy add-on, either during the restoration process or afterwards. Roof racks & ladders, baggage carriers, bike racks, rooftop tents, and countless other overland features are relatively straight-forward, as well. Custom sunroofs (sometimes referred to as “safari roofs”) are becoming more common on Bandies in Brazil. Or maybe a surround sound system? If you can dream (& afford) it, it can be done.

In terms of performance, you have options as well. Under the hood, you’ll find plenty of space for turbinating, intercooling, air compressing, and other improvements.

One of the best things about owning a Bandy is that it provides you, the owner, with a nearly unlimited platform on which to improvise, improve, and express yourself—whether today or 10 years from now. And while you’re waiting for your budget to catch up with your ambitions, you can take pleasure in driving a beautiful, simplistic, highly functional classic 4x4.

Ever pulled up to a bar on a bald eagle? Because that’s what parking a Bandy in public can feel like at times. Except that Bandies actually sound more like a pack of wolves with thunderbolts for feet. As you cut the diesel inflow to your epic 300-series engine and exit your vehicle, surely fresh off an impressive parking job, young wide-eyed children will point & stare, grandfathers will tip their heads approvingly, and executive types will pretend to look away as they hurry into their “latest-thing” Wrangler/Discovery4/RAV4 or, better yet, kit-lifted pick-up truck.

A classic’s a classic, man. And an exotic is an exotic. Bandies are both; they’re timeless, they're beautiful, and they’re appealing. They turned heads 50 years ago and will continue to turn heads 50 years from now. We know this because…

We’d like to begin by calling Wikipedia to the stand, specifically the page on Planned Obsolescence:

In the United States, automotive design reached a turning point in 1924 when the American national automobile market began reaching saturation. To maintain unit sales, General Motors head Alfred P. Sloan Jr. suggested annual model-year design changes to convince car owners that they needed to buy a new replacement each year, an idea borrowed from the bicycle industry, though the concept is often misattributed to Sloan. Critics called his strategy "planned obsolescence". Sloan preferred the term "dynamic obsolescence".

Thank you, Wikipedia Planned Obsolescence page. One further question: what about the Toyota Bandeirantes?

When Japanese vehicles with longer lifespans entered the American market in the 1960s and 1970s, American carmakers were forced to respond by building more durable products.

The Bandeirante was designed to last for decades, and it has. In over 40 years of production, Toyota upgraded the Bandy engine 4 times (with the final upgrade instigated by a looming federal emissions regulation). It upgraded transmissions just twice. It partially upgraded the steering & brake systems in the 35th year of production. It changed the headlights in the second half of 1989. The suspension, built for maximum tonnage, never changed.

The Bandeirante became a legend because it was perfect for its application. Not even FJ40’s or BJ40’s (notoriously robust vehicles that also stood the test of time) can claim a target demographic as fiercely demanding and dependent upon performance over an extended time as the Bandy. FJs and BJs were catch-all trucks, built in Japan and marketed globally to developed & developing countries alike. Bandies were built specifically for one group of workers: farmers and miners in the vast and isolated Brazilian outback. Their public promise was “to help owners make returns on their investments for decades to come.”

Think about that for a second. Then think about it again. Because that’s what the term “a well-built automobile” used to mean.

Wanna start a conversation at your next off-road meet? Or maybe be the talk of the meet? Get a Bandeirante.

According to the Toyota Global archives (a great read, by the way), just 103,650 Bandeirantes were produced. Total. Over 40 years. Compare this to over 1,000,000 FJ40 + BJ40 Land Cruisers on the planet, or the 100,000,000,000,000 Jeep Wranglers produced (we made that figure up; but Wranglers do sell 100,000 units every 4-5 months), and you get an idea of just how truly rare and unique Bandies really are.

There’s also this: of all the Bandies out there roaming the planet, we’d be willing to bet that less than 30 of them are currently in the U.S.. That’s an average of 3/5 Bandies per state.

The chances of someone owning (or knowing someone who owns) a legit 1962-2001 Brazilian Land Cruiser at that next meetup are miniscule. But if the stars happen to align, you can thank us later for introducing you to your new best bud.

It’s our humble opinion that a well-restored Bandy provides you with just about everything you need (except for a drink holder. Maybe.), and nothing that you don’t (except for the snorkel. Maybe.)

While to some degree, this statement applies to all classic automobiles (not all old automobiles—they’re called classics for a reason), the J40- series vehicles have always epitomized the “less is more” approach within the industry. What they lack in creature comforts & modern safety features they make up with thoughtful engineering and utilitarian design.

Bandies take the “everything you need” axiom a step closer to modern reality than their J40 brethren due to their ability to go 75mph (or more; but we don’t recommend it) down the asphalt on the same rustic, no-frills platform that lets us ford large streams & steamroll small trees (and make roadside repairs afterwards).

When simple is thoughtful it’s beautiful. When it’s functional it’s a revelation.

Sure, they’re probably not going to go toe-to-toe with the S&P 500 over the long haul, but the value of any J40 series vehicle isn’t going to fall off of a cliff like that of, say, a 2023 Jeep Wrangler, either. In fact, depending on where you call home, when you bought it, and when you’re reading this, its not out of the question that a well-cared for J40 series vehicle could appreciate more than your house over the next decade.

We’ll start with FJ40s. While the market has cooled in recent years relative to a decade ago, FJs continue to fetch vastly larger sums on average than they did during their production years. In 1962, FJ40s left U.S. dealerships for a hair under $3,000 (the equivalent of about $29,603 in 2022). Today, FJs in original mint condition routinely fetch $60,000, with the world-record payment of $137,500 coming in 2015, and the all-time record for a J40 series vehicle ($176,000 for an original 1981 FJ43) taking place in 2018.

Bandeirantes are still relatively unknown in the US, but the meteoric rise in their values both domestically (within Brazil) and abroad strongly mimic that of the FJ40 in the U.S., to the point that today a mint condition 50-year old Bandy routinely fetches upwards of 250 monthly minimum wages (a commonly used metric in Brazil), compared to just 62 such wages in the 1960s.

Each year since The Bandy Co has actively tracked the market, the average price of Toyota Bandeirantes has gone up dramatically both in Brazil and overseas. Consider that prior to 2019, no Bandy in the history of the internet had sold for more than $40,000, yet 3 successive years of record-breaking sales online established new market values to the point that restored Bandeirante exports were starting at $80,000. When a restored 2-door ‘93 BL3 sold at auction in Arizona for $110,000 in 2022, it became just the latest Bandy to raise the bar.

Earlier today, I personally completed a list of non-financial assets, including a trove of pricey photography, filmmaking, communications, and outdoor-related equipment. Of the 100 or so items that I tracked, only two were worth more today than they were the day I bought them: my home in Dallas, Texas and my 1989 Toyota Bandeirante.

On a practical level, any car that stands the test of time without dropping off a cliff depreciation-wise is a solid investment, but the J40 vehicles sit atop the list, and Bandeirantes are the fastest risers.

We’ve driven quite a few classic 4x4’s in our day, and while each undoubtedly have their own unique pros, cons, and charms, we’d be lying if we said Bandies didn’t stand head & shoulders above their peers in some very crucial, objective ways.

They’re taller, more rugged, and more capable than CJs, YJs, TJs & JKs. They’re more reliable than Defenders & Broncos. They’re torquier & rarer (by a ratio of at least 1:10 worldwide) than FJ40s and BJ40s. And they’re way better-looking (& more fuel-efficient) than Hummers.

Notably, later-generation Bandies (1989-01) are also more “modern” (disc brakes! 5-spd transmission!) than the classics just mentioned, simultaneously capable of keeping up with 21st century traffic on the highway while outperforming just about any classic in terms of off-road capability.

They’re diesel, a blast to drive, appreciating rapidly overseas, and were built to “maximize profits for their owners”.

If you want a classic 4x4, it’s hard to beat a Toyota. If you want to truly stand apart, you get one with a legendary Mercedes-Benz diesel engine.

THEY PULL YOU INTO THE DRIVING EXPERIENCE. We should premise this by saying that we love to go places. Roadtrips, fieldtrips, trips to the convenience store (but not to the mall. We’re not insane). The further, the better, of course, and generally speaking, the lonelier the road, the merrier we are.

Truth is, Bandies are “cars” for people like us. If you don’t love the act of going places, you

the act of holding the wheel, left elbow resting gently out the window, right foot pressed firmly against the accelerator, eyes on the open road ahead, wind blowing in your face, your mind a million miles away, you should do everything possible to not buy a Bandeirante.

They’re like tiny houses for people who love to drive. The logic behind why & how a smaller space can somehow inspire humans to “live” better is strange at first glance, yet easy to sympathize with in light of the similarly spartan experience imparted by driving Bandies & other J40 series vehicles.

If you enjoy doing other things while driving, you should do everything possible to not buy a Bandeirante. Having a billion blinking lights on your dash might help you , but it . Similarly, driving 80mph with the electric windows up and A/C on (you can put one of those in, by the way, but it won’t be the same thing) doesn’t bring you closer to nature. Driving a Bandy puts parameters on your ability as a driver. It may have been born in a different country, but it’s still a member of the Land Cruiser family, and it lives up to its name. It will change the way you get from Point A to Point B, we guarantee.

To the vast majority of human beings, automobiles are 4-wheeled necessities that get us from Point A to Point B and back again.

Bandies are loud, unwieldly, non-aerodynamic, and smell like diesel. They frequently don’t fit in garages or covered parking areas. Parallel parking will have never been more difficult. They are arguably among the most difficult ways to get from Point A to Point B and back again.

Yet every trip behind the wheel of a Bandy feels like an adventure.

For some of us, that’s the only reason that really matters.