Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Don't know what LJ you have? We'll explain how to tell the difference.
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Jimny
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Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by Jimny »

LJ10:

It has an Air cooled 2 cylinder engine.

The grille slots are horizontal.

On the cowl right in front of the windshield there is a vent that feeds air into the cab area and can be opened upward by a lever underneath the dash.





LJ20:
It has an Water cooled 2 cylinder engine.

The grille slots are perpendicular (straight up and down like an Willy's Jeep)

On the cowl in front of the windshield it has a slotted stationary vent that feeds air into the cab area.




LJ50:

It has an Water cooled 3 cylinder engine.
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Post by stevec »

It should be noted that some late LJ10's had the LJ20 style cowl, but the grille and engine are the two main differences.

Also, if you're looking under the hood, on the fender in front of the battery there is a VIN plate that shows the body and engine no. The engine no. on an LJ10 starts with "FB", and on the LJ20 it starts with "L50". Finally, the VIN is stamped into the frame rail on the passenger side (for LHD vehicles, driver's side for RHD's). It will start with LJ10 or LJ20.
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???

Post by chrisp »

I READ ON A WEB SITE THA SOME LATE MODEL OF LJ20 OR LJ10 CANT REMEMBER WHICH CAME WHIT A TWO STROKE ENGINE I DONT THINK WE GOT ANY IN CANADA BUT I THE GUY SOUND LIKE HE NEW WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT

ANY INFO WOULD BE FUN I AM VERY CURIUS ABOUT THAT TYPE OF INFORMATION
i finaly got my suzuki it a lj80 1981 still stock to te bone i have big plans for this winter to make it into a real trail but still streat legal rig
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Re: ???

Post by Suzy »

chrisp wrote:I READ ON A WEB SITE THA SOME LATE MODEL OF LJ20 OR LJ10 CANT REMEMBER WHICH CAME WHIT A TWO STROKE ENGINE I DONT THINK WE GOT ANY IN CANADA
The LJ10, LJ20 and the LJ50 are all two strokes and are indeed very rare in Canada. I only know of one LJ50 but have never seen it even though it is not far from here.

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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by braddy »

Hi there,I`m having a little trouble identifing my recently purchased suzuki!I believe it to be approx built 1976ish,it has a f8b suzuki alto motor in it,which is a 3cyl four stroke,800cc.Any comments would be of help,thanks
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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by Jimny »

Sounds like someone put an Alto engine into a LJ80, because I didn't think the Alto's came out till 1980 (maybe 1979). Do you live in the Netherlands by chance?

A 1976 could be a LJ50, or maybe even an SJ20 which is the same as an LJ80, but the LJ80's didn't come out till 1977, but could have been built in the last part of 1976 as well.

Netherlands has both the Suzuki Alto's and LJ80's, that's why I asked if that's where you live.

I hope I helped, and told you right, if not someone else will come along and help, my memory sucks so I could have told you wrong.


BTW: Welcome to the forums!
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stevec
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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by stevec »

Well, the first rule of LJ's is that if Jimny owned at at one point, it's an LJ20. Actually, I think the rule is that if it is an LJ20, then Jimny has owned it at one point! :wink: (how many different LJ's have you owned?)

Jimny is right, none of the LJ's ever came from the factory with a 3 cylinder, 4 stroke engine. LJ80's had the F8A engine, a 4 cylinder, 797cc four stroke engine, so that would be my first guess. If you look on the front of the right side (passenger side for US vehicles) framerail, you should find the VIN stamped into the framerail. Up until 1981, these VIN's were defined by the manufacturer, so LJ80's would be LJ80_xxxxxx, where the x's are the serial number, and the "_" could be a "V" if it was a hardtop.

Please update your profile with your location - if we know where you are from, it is much easier to identify your rig and answer your questions (i.e. there were lots of LJ50's sold in Australia, but none were officially imported to Canada; Australians, Brits, and Japanese drive on the wrong side of the road, so the steering wheel is on the other side on their vehicles)

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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between L

Post by chevy43 »

Were there left hand drive LJ10's?
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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between L

Post by Jimny »

Yes, there was quite a few of them, they were RHD before Suzuki decided that there were enough sales in the US to go ahead and make LHD LJ10's, there were more LHD LJ10's then RHD brought to the USA.
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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by 70-LJ10-RHD »

Hello I am new to the LJ10 site and I just purchased a '70 LJ10 right hand drive here in San Diego this week. Looking forward to learning more about the group and the following.. The LJ is a project but it is complete and included 2 spare motors, 2 spare transmissions, 1 spare transfer assembly and a few other mechanical components. A lot of work ahead I know but feel good about finding it.

Wiley
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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by stevec »

Welcome to the forums Wiley!
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Re: Here's what to look for to tell the difference between LJ's

Post by Demomike »

70-LJ10-RHD wrote: Wed Nov 25, 2020 9:12 pm Hello I am new to the LJ10 site and I just purchased a '70 LJ10 right hand drive here in San Diego this week. Looking forward to learning more about the group and the following.. The LJ is a project but it is complete and included 2 spare motors, 2 spare transmissions, 1 spare transfer assembly and a few other mechanical components. A lot of work ahead I know but feel good about finding it.

Wiley
Was that the one in Ramona?

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