8o8s LX470 Build "Black Cat"

[x8o8drifter]

Sry @cruiserpatch but I'm kinda stealing your build thread layout cause its kinda what mine would have looked like anyway.

BUILD OVERVIEW

Original Purchase/Mods/QOL Upgrades
2000 LX470 - 323K miles when purchased in 2025
5x 265/75/16 Toyo Open Country A/T III OEM Lexus rims. Had to replace the small 245/75/16s and the OEM spare that was still on there. Those are 1" shorter than the stockers.
LIHAN USB C Bluetooth Adapter for Car Needed something cheap and dirty for now till I have to money to swap the HU properly.
WeatherTech Floor Mats Front and 2nd row only.
SEALIGHT LED Bulbs for Highs/Lows/Brake/Reverse.
Two Kayak roof mounts,

Maintenance/Repairs (since June. 2025)
Baselined and if not listed it was fine or already replaced by the PO
New TB/WP/Pulleys/Tensioner at 323K (unsure when the previous owner did it last)
New tensioner pulley.
New serp belt and idler pulley.
New fan clutch and fan bracket.
Heater tees done June 2025 (The ones on patch's site)
New hoses all around.
All new fluids. Oil/Coolant/Trans/Diffs/Brakes.
Grease knuckles/zerks
Go though TS and check/fix if needed the AHC pressures.
Use TS to turn off all the stuff I don't want/need on in the car like auto wheel tilt/auto mirror when reversing.


Mods I have planed
Remove the running boards.
Sliders (Not sure which ones or might just make them myself)
Victory 4x4 Skids
Front/Rear bumpers (Not sure which ones or might just make them myself)
Suspension (Plan to keep the AHC)
Bigger more aggressive tires.
Roof rack
Drawer system w/sleeping platform?
More???

How it looked when I bought it.
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New Shoes

 

[x8o8drifter]

Leaving this rock for just over a month this Sunday. (June 22nd 2025) Same day as the PPIHC.
I plan to put her through hell.
Going to drive all over the USA for almost a month.
Plan is to start in MI and go camping w/ my bud and his brother for the entire week of the 4th.
To the UP.
Badlands NP
Yellowstone NP
Grand Teton NP
Ft Collins to surprise my brother.
Rocky Mtn NP (brother tipped me off to this one.
Pikes Peak. (Road to summit was closed because they were doing work on the visitor center and needed parking for the construction vehicles.)
Vegas/Hoover Dam. (Been to Vegas a BUNCH but dad/stepmom never would go to the dam, they'd rather go shopping/gambling)
Rachel Nevada and the Little A'le' Inn. (Yes nerd)
Death Valley NP
Hung out in Vegas for two nights since friends live there.
Grand Canyon. (Was planning the north rim but wildfires and the north visitor center burning down made me go to the south one.
White Sands NP
Meteor Crater
V.L.A (Very Large Array.) Think SETI and all the Sat Dishes (Radio Telescopes)
New Orleans - Café du Monde Toups' Meatery IYKYK
All the way down to Key West.
Up along the Atlantic to Daytona.
Drop off some stuff at a friends house in western VA.
Then back to MI.
These are just the main places. I did of course be stop at places along the way.

(And back. Even though nature tried to derail my plans with a tsunami.)
Will slowly update post with pics.

 

[excessive]

Sounds like an epic adventure, hope to see lots of pics of the LX!

 

[x8o8drifter]

Sounds like an epic adventure, hope to see lots of pics of the LX!

Friends letting me steal his DLSR for the trip, so I plan to actually take pics for once in my life.

 

[x8o8drifter]

(And back. Even though nature tried to derail my plans with a tsunami.)

So we did the timing belt/WP before we left.
Nothing weird on the coolant side. Changed out the heater T's at the same time.
And new heads/highs and a new key. Thanks @suprarx7nut
View album 8132
So before the road trip we did a night of dispersed camping in/around Oscoda.
Found out my friend didn't torque down the crank pully. AFTER I had already drove it almost 200 miles. It threw a CEL and TS showed it was a misfire 1-3 times on all cylinders at the beginning of startup and that jogged his memory.
So he tightened it back down as much as he could considering we had no torque wrench.
Went to Harrisville State Park for one night. (Eastern side of the mitten. (Michigan)
Found this amazing place to eat in the town of Harrisville called Teresa's Diner.
Then we drove across the state to Muskegon State Park for two nights.
Then back to his house near MIS.
Route before road trip.

Then after we got back. I was able to kinda rest a day or two.
This is when we changed the oil/coolant/diff fluids. Also sent my oil to Blackstone to get analyzed.
F/R diffs looked old but ok. Center looked like it was maybe changed every other for the F/R.
Left Tuesday night after my friend got home from work cause he left the 10mm hex to remove the front diff drain at work.
This time he tightened it down to spec like it should be. No problems since.
Then off on my adventure!
All the pics.
View album 8130This was the order I kinda did things.
From his house to the UP.
Badlands National Park SD.
Yellowstone National Park MT side starting.
And then the ABS module died...
Grand Teton National Park WY.
Ft Collins to surprise my brother.
Rocky Mtn National Park (brother tipped me off to this one).
Vegas/Hoover Dam. (Been to Vegas a BUNCH but dad/stepmom never would go to the dam, they'd rather go shopping/gambling)
Rachel Nevada and the Little A'le' Inn. (Yes nerd)
Death Valley National Park CA.
Hung out in Vegas for two nights since friends live there.
Grand Canyon National Park AZ. (Was planning the north rim but wildfires and the north visitor center burning down made me go to the south one.
White Sands National Park NM.
Meteor Crater AZ.
V.L.A (Very Large Array.) Think SETI and all the Sat Dishes (Radio Telescopes)
New Orleans - Toups' Meatery IYKYK
Drop off some stuff at a friends house in western VA.
Then back to MI.
This was mostly the route.

After I got back, rested a day and we went off for our last camping trip to Old Orchard Park in Oscoda off Foote Dam Pond for two nights.
Also he had me put two kayak racks on my LX just incase we needed it.
Route to Old Orchard Camping
View album 8133
And he and his brother recorded this stupid crap...


Mileage before and after the trip. Would say I broke her in. 10k in just under a month.
Oil analysis also came back when I was on the trip. Knew nothing about the old oil.
It was 5W-30 and the only thing that was high was the iron content. But they also told me that totally could have been because it was old/driving hard/towed things. If it doesn't get better with me now keeping track of how long its in there, then it might be something to look into.
Everything else was spot on. No gas/water. All metals normal.

And if anyone wants the data point, I averaged 16.39mpg on the trip. Worst was 12.54 best was 17.65.
The only think not stock is the slightly taller/slightly skinnier tires.
Regular or premium it did not care. Didn't affect mileage or drivability.
Same thing with non-ethanol gas. The tiny bump you will see in mileage does not outweigh the cost increase.
E100 (pure ethanol) uses about 1/3 more fuel to do the same job as straight gas.
So with E10 you only maybe lose 0.03mpg.
And with it usually being about the same price (if not 10ish cents cheaper) as premium.
Not worth it to me (in my use case). I'll just run regular for now.

The "The Bandlands Trading Post/Conoco" right outside the north side of Badlands NP is where I got that 12.54 tank from.
Filled from almost empty so the previous tank had little to do with it.
No speeding, hardly any dirt roads. Most of the tank done under 55. No idling or sitting in traffic.
So not sure how that would work unless you up the ethanol content, but my next lowest was 14.12.
Considering how much they price gouged (.50gal avg) and people reporting all kinds of shenanigans at their pumps, go get gas somewhere else if your around there.

Some other fun and weird stuff I saw.
RF Hotrod when putting gas day one.
Sweet MR2 (SW20) And yes it was stick too.
Kolby's 80 series from Matts Off Road
Some dude walking down the freeway in Vegas... We weren't even stopped for more than like 5-10 minutes at that point and hadn't been going slow before than either.
The weirdest one was the hoodless Civic at SeaTac when I was flying home.
View album 8134

OH yeah, she has her nickname now.
Black Cat
And this is why.
1st: On my way though SD to Badlands, I'm doing the speed limit in the slow lane.
VW R32 with a pop tune flies past me doing at least 100. Speed limit is 80.
Less than a 1/2 mile up the road a cop drives off after him and pulls him over.
I was a sheriff. XD

2nd: SD or WY don't remember. Again doing my thing, going the speed limit in the slow lane on the right.
Get passed by a semi with a trailer and hes gone. Does get back in the right but is going fast AF.
10 minutes later hes been pulled over by a highway cop.

3rd: Somewhere in Utah. Cybertruck runs a red after passing me. He had more than enough time/room to stop. Like not even slaming the brakes room/time.
Coming through that intersection right about that time? Yep, a cop.

4th and IMO the best one: In AZ. Kia Forte. Tailgating me. Nobody around us and hasn't been for miles now, left/passing lane is wide open.
Close enough where I cant even see his full hood.
He does this for like another 5 minutes.
Then guns it past me.
As his front door is about the same as my hood, I hear a muffled boop.
He immediately starts to fall back. Metal and liquid going all over the road from under his car.

5th and final one: In TX.
Ram 2500 driving 60 in a 75 on the freeway. Nothing bad. Doing the minimum and in the slow lane.
So I signal, pass him, signal back, pull back into the slow lane. Not close to him to cut him off either. He starts tailgating me.
Like the Kia, lots of opportunities to pass me if he want's.
Up ahead... a large highway cone slightly off and in the road.
Nobody next to me or going to be near me when I get there.
Turn a tiny bit at the last second to miss it.
He nails it with the right front of his truck.
At least he backed off after that.

 

[x8o8drifter]

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