2017 GX 460 for North Central Appalachia

[Bang Bang]

When I attempted to download GAPPS to the VLine, I lost my wireless connection and couldn’t get it back. I unplugged the main plug to the VLine for a minute or so and all is well. I also added a dedicated USB for the VLine as well as a few more. But I replaced the existing USB / Aux outlet and the the cigarette lighter socket all with USB's. I’ll take some pics tomorrow. But this is what I used in place of the USB / Aux port:

Amazon product ASIN B07G757Y2D

 

[Bang Bang]

Pics of where I installed my extra usb outlets. And just FYI, I'm replacing the round socket with the 2 USB ports in favor of this one so I have better charging and I can keep an eye on the battery.......

Amazon product ASIN B098SY1LPN

 

[r2m]

Pics of where I installed my extra usb outlets. And just FYI, I'm replacing the round socket with the 2 USB ports in favor of this one so I have better charging and I can keep an eye on the battery.......

Amazon product ASIN B098SY1LPN
View attachment 2882885
View attachment 2882882

I like the C USB socket. Most everything is moving in that direction, at least until the next "USB" comes out.

 

[Bang Bang]

I like the C USB socket. Most everything is moving in that direction, at least until the next "USB" comes out.

Yeah, that’s why I decided to go with that one. Putting one up front and one in the rear drawer set-up. Those are supposed to be here tomorrow.

 

[landsat6]

Tire/Wheel update

During the week of Thanksgiving I ordered a bunch of stuff that I have been researching and benefited from modest discounts.

• RSG rock sliders (w/ kickout, angled),
• CBI covert bumper, front and rear skid plates – the freight cost seemed absurd but calling in helped reduce this cost since they were able to get an updated/different freight quote.
• TRD Pro wheels, matte black - from Passport Toyota in MD
• BFG A/T KO2 265/70/17 (I ordered these from Tirerack after I knew the delivery date of the wheels)

Only the wheels and tires are in so far and I got them installed a few days before Christmas. Rubbing summary: I removed the bolts on the front wheel wells that were sticking out and replaced them with stainless steel screws that had smaller and smoother heads. There was a small amount of rubbing in a few places and I used a heat gun to take care of them, one at a time.

The spare won’t fit in its place, probably due to the Lexus hitch. The shop attempted to put it there, but only got it in a few inches – and left me with the result . I am keeping it in the back until I figure out what my options are and what I want to do – Probably remove the hitch and stuff it back in.

Before:

After:

They sent me home like this

 

[Bang Bang]

Damn! Talk about a horrible departure angle……..

 

[jdam]

I'm surprised a lot of people can't get a 265/70R17 into the well back there. I have the factory Lexus Class IV hitch and mine fits with a bit of room. Obviously tires have tolerances and variances from tire to tire, but to send you home with it dangling like that... lol. They should have at least offered to throw it in a bag and into the back for you.

 

[GrizzlyClint]

I'm surprised a lot of people can't get a 265/70R17 into the well back there. I have the factory Lexus Class IV hitch and mine fits with a bit of room. Obviously tires have tolerances and variances from tire to tire, but to send you home with it dangling like that... lol. They should have at least offered to throw it in a bag and into the back for you.

I’m a little worried my 265/70/17 Ridge Grapplers won’t fit under there or it’ll look like @landsat6’s in that pic.

 

[landsat6]

I think I could stuff it in if I were to deflate it more - I had to deflate down to 20 psi to get it out after the shop cranked it in. However, I didn’t know if touching or putting pressure on sway bar was a good idea - experts in the room? I’m fine with the TPMS warning if that’s the only negative. For now I have it wrapped like a db in the back.

 

[Banandalorian]

I think I could stuff it in if I were to deflate it more - I had to deflate down to 20 psi to get it out after the shop cranked it in. However, I didn’t know if touching or putting pressure on sway bar was a good idea - experts in the room? I’m fine with the TPMS warning if that’s the only negative. For now I have it wrapped like a db in the back.

I deflated my 265/70/17 Pirelli down to like 7psi and tried squishing it with a ratchet strap and it still wouldn't fit past the sway bar. I *might* be able to just smack it into place with a dead blow hammer or something, but A) it will probably still contact the bar and B) will need some tool to pry it back out if I ever need it.

 

[r2m]

I deflated my 265/70/17 Pirelli down to like 7psi and tried squishing it with a ratchet strap and it still wouldn't fit past the sway bar. I *might* be able to just smack it into place with a dead blow hammer or something, but A) it will probably still contact the bar and B) will need some tool to pry it back out if I ever need it.

After reading all the efforts everyone is doing to squeeze an oversized spare into the stock location, I just hope you all are also considering the effort and/or tools needed to pull it down and inflate it in case the need ever arises to use that spare.

 

[landsat6]

Agreed, @r2m

Does anyone have insight on the question if contact or pressure between the spare tire and the sway bar is a bad idea or may cause latent damage elsewhere under certain conditions? I'm not going to attempt to squeeze anything until I understand this, though searches don't reveal much or I just have poor search performance.

 

[Banandalorian]

After reading all the efforts everyone is doing to squeeze an oversized spare into the stock location, I just hope you all are also considering the effort and/or tools needed to pull it down and inflate it in case the need ever arises to use that spare.

That's why my spare lives in the garage or on the roof rack until I find a swing out or something.

 

[URJ150L]

Before kdss spacers I had my 265/70/17 wheel crammed in there. I had to lay on my back and use my knees to push on it, alternating from front to back while cranking it up into position… not ideal at all. I had the class 3 receiver and it barely fit.

In the nominal position, it was not contacting the sway bar, however there were rub marks where it had from time to time. I’m guessing that happened when off roading. When the axle droops, the sway bar moves up, contacting the spare and stopping any further droop.

After installing the spacers, I had plenty of room for the spare. It cranks right in and there’s probably a good inch plus of extra room between the sway bar.

 

[landsat6]

Rusty bolt replacement update

My GX seems too new to have rusty and corroded bolts in plain sight. I noticed the first batch when I installed the dash/rear camera (earlier post). To start, I ordered:

SCREW, HEX LOBULAR 9090148002
BACK DOOR STAY; BACK WINDOW STAY. 6896120140

I first replaced the hatch stays:

I coated with Fluid Film the bracket that holds the piston to the stay:

Next rusty part replacement - I noticed that a couple of the ~1.5-inch flange-type bolts that hold the back hatch glass were corroded when I was installing by dash/rear camera (see earlier post). Even though they are covered by plastic trim, I was concerned that the corrosion may spread. I provide a few photos below:

Photos of the corroded bolts (right is drivers side, left is passenger):

I replaced one at a time (left photo). And used antiseize (right photo).

During these stay and flange/‘lobular’ bolt replacements, I looked up into the seams of the rear fin/rear wiper assembly and saw signs of rusty bolts. There were not too bad and too many to reasonably replace, so I brushed them and coated them with Fluid Film. Some were worse than others. Here are a few photos:

Now I have a can of Fluid Film nearby whenever I do anything with GX.

 

[landsat6]

Rock Slider Install

I took off my running boards the first week after getting the GX (April 2021) and eventually ordered rock sliders during a Thanksgiving week GX shopping spree (Nov 2021). I went with RSG angled rock sliders with kickout based on appearance, price, and my fondness of the ‘RSG’ name since it is also the acronym of my grad school research group, the ‘Remote Sensing Group.’ I went with the cheaper steel option. I also googled for a coupon code and found a $100 discount.

I soon discovered that most of the bolt holes were filled with dirt and rust. Most of the time consumed by this project (or at least perceived time) was spent cleaning out these holes with wd40 and tap. The photo below shows a nominal hole bleeding out dirt and rust during one of the tap/wd40 spray-wash iterations. Depending on the torque needed to turn the tap, I turned only half to a couple threads before taking out and rinsing with wd40.

The sliders came in a cardboard box that was pretty torn up upon arrival at my door. They were pretty well wrapped, but had at least on ding/scratch on a corner - no big deal.

Dolly and scrap wood make solo installations a breeze:

Never can have enough antiseize, right?

I torqued down to the prescribed 24 ft lbs and this pressure slightly bent the supplied washers into the slider bolt holes. I appreciate some slop in bolt holes for ease of installation, but maybe this was too much.

After a week or so, I took the time to carefully trim the running boards. I watched the CBI slider video walkthrough for guidance on disassembling the running boards. I surveyed instagram photos of GX owners with RSG angled sliders for guidance on how much plastic to trim. Then I iteratively cut more off as needed (3x for the first side, 1-2x for the second side), each time reinstalling the plastic. It was not fun, but worth it for me. There is contact between the plastic and slider - this should be fine. Here are some photos of the finished product:

 

[r2m]

I have the exact same sliders on my rig! Love them! They stick out further than my old Metaltech so they are way more comfortable to stand on when opening/closing the RTT or my wife ingress/egress the vehicle. With the Metaltech's, I could only get my toes on the slider to stand, and I'm usually wearing sandals with no support, so with the RSG I get a lot more area of my foot to stand!
I also ordered grip tape:
Amazon product ASIN B01C68H8V2and taped them up for mud, rain, snow, etc. so they're not slippery when I'm on them.

This shows the Metaltech still bolted on and the new RSG on the ground waiting for install.

 

[landsat6]

Parts left from front bumper, skid plate, and suspension installation

Is any of this worth keeping or trying to sell?

1. Original front skid thing
2. a) brace for bumper part (I think); b) original UCA
3. Original front skid
4. Original coil overs and rear shocks
5. a) brace for bumper or running board; b) brace for bumper or running board; c) frame brace taken off for new skid; d) bumper standoff/spacer
6. a) inner bumper plastic; b) wheel well pastic

 

[r2m]

Parts left from front bumper, skid plate, and suspension installation

Is any of this worth keeping or trying to sell?

1. Original front skid thing
2. a) brace for bumper part (I think); b) original UCA
3. Original front skid
4. Original coil overs and rear shocks
5. a) brace for bumper or running board; b) brace for bumper or running board; c) frame brace taken off for new skid; d) bumper standoff/spacer
6. a) inner bumper plastic; b) wheel well pastic

Question: are you a "horder"?
My father-in-law would keep them.
I'd put them up for free to anyone who wants to stop by and get them. After a month or so, there will be an extra heavy trash can on the curb.