6 means at least one globe is dead. Might be all of them. Start sourcing a full set. Common wear item that's only meant to last a decade or so.
01 LX 470 - AHC 'Off' - No raise or lower
- Thread starter tyl3rd
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Thread starter
- #22
Figured as much reading through other threads. I guess now is the time to decide to spend 800 on new globes or do an AHC delete. Part of me wants to keep AHC but my shocks aren’t in great shape and those are pretty expensive as well
What do you mean about the shocks? Unless they're rusting in half, those are usually lifetime components. The globes are the "shocks".
A "good" AHC delete is a lot more expensive than $800 (closer to 2-3k in parts) and much more labor than a globe change and AHC check up. Takes a lot more than worn globes to make an AHC delete reasonable, imo.
- Thread starter
- #24
They look like a they might be a little leaky and have some cracking going on, I’ll grab a picture in a bit.
Since I’ve never ridden with a fully functional AHC, you think it would ride better than the nitro gas iron man kit, or similar? Labor is definitely easier on the globes vs full delete, and generally I’d like to not see another AHC die but just thinking for potential longer term maintenance
Pictures would be helpful. If you've never checked and adjusted pressures, they're probably just over-pressurized on a regular basis and seeping oil, which is normal. They can leak to a failure level, but it's far more common to simply be over-pressure. Easy fix.
AHC vs Ironman or virtually any other lift kit has been discussed aplenty. In short, AHC is far more comfortable than any other suspension setup you can buy off the rack for a 100. IMO, it's not even close. There are some higher priced setups that can yield better off road performance or sport driving with a static lift, but the on road handling and comfort usually suffers. Highway driving with a lift is also an objectively negative thing. Increased drag, body roll for a given spring rate (IE comfort), rollover likelihood, etc... Great for trails when you need clearance. Not great for paved roads. That's one of the primary benefits of AHC. Al the benefits of a lift when you want it (which is very rarely for even the most hardcore "overlanders") and no lift when you're driving in the other 99.5% of circumstances where a lift is detrimental.
AHC maintenance is easy if you're comfortable connecting Techstream or another capable data reader. The actual hands on maintenance of AHC is pretty easy and rarely needed. Globes need replacement every decade or so. Sensors can be a liability at high mileages, but are easily replaced and spare used ones are usually free from people that already removed their AHC. Pumps last forever and might need a cleaning (costs you a couple o-rings). Pump motors seem to last forever, but are ~$200 if you need to buy a new one. For many years, the forum was filled with AHC hate from people that didn't know what they were doing with it or that had ridiculous estimates from repair shops and dealers that didn't know what they were doing. There's a visible shift in mentality on here and on the facebook groups in recent years now that it's been documented how to address all the common pain points. Turns out they're not that painful and it's not that hard. It's just a unique system that nearly no shops care to learn which has led to unnecessary repairs, poor customer experiences and on-road failures. If you perform very basic maintenance it's a system that's no more likely to fail than the primary braking system in a 100.
- Thread starter
- #26
Thanks so much for your input. PO put some awful 20inch wheels with MTs on this thing so objectively it rides like total s***, I’m gonna get some less aggressive tires and smaller wheels and reassess ride quality and determine how long I wait out the current globes. Thanks again!
- Thread starter
- #27
New accumulators are here, got the system bled and the rears changed out no problem. The front ones however aren't budging, the 36mm wrench is slipping, hit it with some pb blaster but i'm afraid i'm going to warp the metal. Any ideas on alternative ways to remove the accumulators in the front? (I already removed the one running board mount thats in the way for them)
Yes, Hammer and chisel. The steel bulb is very thick. You can dremel a little notch or just pound on it with a chisel to get a little groove going. Then turn it with the chisel by the bulb.
Obviously don't cut straight through, but you can carve into the steel enough to get yourself a little shelf to use the chisel to spin the thing off that way.
- Thread starter
- #29
ALL DONE! - WOW! I can't believe how smooth this thing is now, just floats across the road 14+ graduation movements during testing. I got her all mounted up on OE 16" LC wheels and 285/75/16 WildPeak AT3's. She was sitting on 285/50/20 Atturo Mud tires before.
Thank you everyone for all the help in getting here.
To date:
Inner, outer tie rods
Upper and lower control arms
rack and pinion
cv axle oil seal
o2 sensor
exhaust reroute (was slapping the frame in the back)
timing belt
water pump
cam seals
valve cover gasket
exhaust leak (welded flex pipe)
CEL bulb replaced (po removed)
ahc fluid
ahc sensors
ahc accumulators
quite the journey, but I think we're solid for now, sans a few bushings
Thank you everyone for all the help in getting here.
To date:
Inner, outer tie rods
Upper and lower control arms
rack and pinion
cv axle oil seal
o2 sensor
exhaust reroute (was slapping the frame in the back)
timing belt
water pump
cam seals
valve cover gasket
exhaust leak (welded flex pipe)
CEL bulb replaced (po removed)
ahc fluid
ahc sensors
ahc accumulators
quite the journey, but I think we're solid for now, sans a few bushings
Last edited:
Odd problem here,
The other day After getting stuck up to the running boards in sand at the lake. I spent the next two days powerwashing sand, gravel, and dirt out of everywhere from the underside of the LX (along with a quick blast through the engine bay avoiding electrical components as much as possible) and now my VGRS light is constant on with a slight misalignment from center and the car will not go into “Hi” mode. The system will flash the high twice before staying in N. The AHC “off” button works and any changes between the “Lo” and “N” setting function normally, just not “HI”, thus leading me to believe it’s not likely broken. Any ideas why it still partially works?
The other day After getting stuck up to the running boards in sand at the lake. I spent the next two days powerwashing sand, gravel, and dirt out of everywhere from the underside of the LX (along with a quick blast through the engine bay avoiding electrical components as much as possible) and now my VGRS light is constant on with a slight misalignment from center and the car will not go into “Hi” mode. The system will flash the high twice before staying in N. The AHC “off” button works and any changes between the “Lo” and “N” setting function normally, just not “HI”, thus leading me to believe it’s not likely broken. Any ideas why it still partially works?