I Just wanted to say hello and thanks for all of the great info on this forum! I feel that I have made a good purchase of a 1997 lx 450 ,71000 miles , fr and rr lockers, based on the posts that i have read here.
I Drove the truck for 40 miles or so on the couple of test drives I took, crawled underneath to check for leaks , dings and other signs of abuse and neglect.
To allow for slippage, I took the truck to a gravel parking lot to test the 3 locking diffs. I dug up all of the previous maint. records I could find by contacting lexus and toyota dealers. I paid 19k.
The truck is due for a 60k service and wheel bearing repack. No history what so ever of this ever being done. I am also getting an engine flush and replacing dino with synth.
The entire 60k, wheel bearing repack, engine flush, replace with synth will be around 1000.00.
I asked the dealer if I could watch them perform this service and he said it would be ok. Is that kind of anal? Has anyone ever watched the mechanic service their truck before?. I am looking at it like a one day maintenance seminar so that I can learn how to do some of the maintenance my self, like repacking the wheel bearings and birfs, chassis lube , diff oil change and brake pad replacement. I am going to take some digital photos of the process. Is there any part of the 60k service that anyone would like me to try to photograph?
I will do some moderate wheeling with this rig mostly highway miles say 90%. Some beach driving and logging trails. My next task is to improve break over and departure angles.
I know most folks here like the OME lifts and I tried to search through old posts to find out how the soft 2.5 inch lift rides compared to lexus stock ride, but I had no luck finding any info. Does anyone here have OME 2.5 lift and how does it compare with stock ride comfort.
My wife is hesitant about getting any mods done since we did her 94 4 runner rear end. ( Long story short-2nd gen 4 runner had notorious rear end sag and we got heavy duty springs to correct . The ride was harsh but it looked ohhh so cool.) 8)
I will also look into getting 33's at that time. This seems like the most practical all around set up for my purposes. Also will correct speedo with new gear. Any body do anykind of wheeling like i mentioned?
Thanks for imparting your knowledge and wisdom.
I Drove the truck for 40 miles or so on the couple of test drives I took, crawled underneath to check for leaks , dings and other signs of abuse and neglect.
To allow for slippage, I took the truck to a gravel parking lot to test the 3 locking diffs. I dug up all of the previous maint. records I could find by contacting lexus and toyota dealers. I paid 19k.
The truck is due for a 60k service and wheel bearing repack. No history what so ever of this ever being done. I am also getting an engine flush and replacing dino with synth.
The entire 60k, wheel bearing repack, engine flush, replace with synth will be around 1000.00.
I asked the dealer if I could watch them perform this service and he said it would be ok. Is that kind of anal? Has anyone ever watched the mechanic service their truck before?. I am looking at it like a one day maintenance seminar so that I can learn how to do some of the maintenance my self, like repacking the wheel bearings and birfs, chassis lube , diff oil change and brake pad replacement. I am going to take some digital photos of the process. Is there any part of the 60k service that anyone would like me to try to photograph?
I will do some moderate wheeling with this rig mostly highway miles say 90%. Some beach driving and logging trails. My next task is to improve break over and departure angles.
I know most folks here like the OME lifts and I tried to search through old posts to find out how the soft 2.5 inch lift rides compared to lexus stock ride, but I had no luck finding any info. Does anyone here have OME 2.5 lift and how does it compare with stock ride comfort.
My wife is hesitant about getting any mods done since we did her 94 4 runner rear end. ( Long story short-2nd gen 4 runner had notorious rear end sag and we got heavy duty springs to correct . The ride was harsh but it looked ohhh so cool.) 8)
I will also look into getting 33's at that time. This seems like the most practical all around set up for my purposes. Also will correct speedo with new gear. Any body do anykind of wheeling like i mentioned?
Thanks for imparting your knowledge and wisdom.