AHC and aftermarket rear springs and torsion bars combo (3 Viewers)

[harshjay]

Hi,

I have spent several hours reading through pages and pages of AHC/techstream/torsion bar/sensor adjusts/cross leveling/rear spring....etc.

My head hurts.

I have not bought a techstream cable/dongle, and I only have Mac's. So, I may buy the cable/dongle, and run an environment in my mac, but then I need an old version of lousy windows....may just use my work computer, it's a stupid pc

I am likely at the pressure limits, as with all the gear in, and myself, I get the non compliant H mode, and the random dash reading not lining up with actual vehicle heights.

I have flushed out the fluid, it was dirty. I have a film of grime in the expansion/reservoir. I would really need to just replace it to get it all out, is that a thing? would that trigger some secret low mode lockout baloney?

I bought suspension to swap in before I got in and drove this....I really like the comfort of the AHC. I need the clearance H provides off road though, and in N my tires hit my fenders on full squish...bump stops? or just adjust the sensor to increase it a smidge?

Here is my unanswered question;

Would putting in my stiffer Sway-Away torsion bars, and my OME 2863 rear springs, be an ok thing to do? It would reduce the AHC system pressure, no?

I still have a Victory front bumper, and rear with swing out carrying 80 Litres of fluid, to install, so it is going to get heavier.

I read and searched for two full days before writing this....I currently have twenty tabs open that I have been reading through.

Thanks in advance!

 

[suprarx7nut]

Hi,

I have spent several hours reading through pages and pages of AHC/techstream/torsion bar/sensor adjusts/cross leveling/rear spring....etc.

My head hurts.

1. I have not bought a techstream cable/dongle, and I only have Mac's. So, I may buy the cable/dongle, and run an environment in my mac, but then I need an old version of lousy windows....may just use my work computer, it's a stupid pc

2. I am likely at the pressure limits, as with all the gear in, and myself, I get the non compliant H mode, and the random dash reading not lining up with actual vehicle heights.

3. I have flushed out the fluid, it was dirty. I have a film of grime in the expansion/reservoir. I would really need to just replace it to get it all out, is that a thing? would that trigger some secret low mode lockout baloney?

4. I bought suspension to swap in before I got in and drove this....I really like the comfort of the AHC. I need the clearance H provides off road though, and in N my tires hit my fenders on full squish...bump stops? or just adjust the sensor to increase it a smidge?

Here is my unanswered question;

5. Would putting in my stiffer Sway-Away torsion bars, and my OME 2863 rear springs, be an ok thing to do? It would reduce the AHC system pressure, no?

6. I still have a Victory front bumper, and rear with swing out carrying 80 Litres of fluid, to install, so it is going to get heavier.

I read and searched for two full days before writing this....I currently have twenty tabs open that I have been reading through.

Thanks in advance!

Numbered topics in your post to stay organized.

1. You do not need an old version of windows. Use the Techstream in 5 minutes method with the virtual PC. It is an entirely self-contained operating system with Techstream pre-installed. Use any computer you have with Windows - old or new.

2. Yeah, probably time to adjust.

3. Old fluid that's very poorly maintained can build a gel-like substance. That substance can cause all kinds of problems, but most notably it'll prevent hte pump from doing its thing. Have to get that old nasty fluid out. Flushing is good. Do it thoroughly and often, but try to keep the reservoir full at all times. I think it's reasonable to flush 6+ liters. Buy fluid from McGeorge. Lots of dealers charge silly amounts for it. It should be ~$16-20 per liter at most.

4. What size wheels/tires?

5. Those rear springs are probably way overkill. King springs and 30mm spacers will support a lot of extra weight. The OME springs (any of them, really) are skipping 3 or 4 steps and you're likely to overshoot by a mile, IMO.

6. How heavy are these? AHC can handle most any weight you can throw at it, but lighter armor lets AHC do its thing more readily. Any chance the bumpers are aluminum?

Have you seen my video on this topic? Have you read the ABCs of AHC thread? Those two things alone should get you well on the way to understanding how this system works.

Be wary of most the holder AHC threads. If it's not written by Paddo, uHu or IndroCruise and it's older than a few years, chances are it's less helpful than the more recent stuff.

 

[harshjay]

Numbered topics in your post to stay organized.

1. You do not need an old version of windows. Use the Techstream in 5 minutes method with the virtual PC. It is an entirely self-contained operating system with Techstream pre-installed. Use any computer you have with Windows - old or new.

2. Yeah, probably time to adjust.

3. Old fluid that's very poorly maintained can build a gel-like substance. That substance can cause all kinds of problems, but most notably it'll prevent hte pump from doing its thing. Have to get that old nasty fluid out. Flushing is good. Do it thoroughly and often, but try to keep the reservoir full at all times. I think it's reasonable to flush 6+ liters. Buy fluid from McGeorge. Lots of dealers charge silly amounts for it. It should be ~$16-20 per liter at most.

4. What size wheels/tires?

5. Those rear springs are probably way overkill. King springs and 30mm spacers will support a lot of extra weight. The OME springs (any of them, really) are skipping 3 or 4 steps and you're likely to overshoot by a mile, IMO.

6. How heavy are these? AHC can handle most any weight you can throw at it, but lighter armor lets AHC do its thing more readily. Any chance the bumpers are aluminum?

Have you seen my video on this topic? Have you read the ABCs of AHC thread? Those two things alone should get you well on the way to understanding how this system works.

Be wary of most the holder AHC threads. If it's not written by Paddo, uHu or IndroCruise and it's older than a few years, chances are it's less helpful than the more recent stuff.

4. 18" wheel, 31" overall tire

5. so too stiff, not worth trying out? out of the four springs OME sells, these are the third stiffest. swapping coils isn't that much trouble..or is it?

6. both are steel, so an extra 120'ish of steel, plus the 160 lbs of fluid on the rear swing out, maybe some top rack accessories

I tried looking for your video, but was having a hard time just scrolling through your post titles..any chance you have a link to this?

If I wanted to pull out the reservoir, and clean the grime out of the bottom, just disconnect battery, and be mindful of fluid lines..like say a brake reservoir, and all should be well. I had read about a low fluid protect mode, that would require special restore procedure if tank hit's bottom...anything to know?

I will have to follow and read all your post now, thanks for making 4000.....there goes my nights.

Man my last ride was a Mitsubishi Delica, so got worked on lots...but at least it was all still mechanical in nature...all these electronical whiz bangs are extra trouble

 

[Jerzywerzy5]

Springs designed for static suspensions will take too much weight off ahc. It will likely ride terrible and you will lose height adjustment.
You should not be rubbing with a 31 inch tire. Plenty of vehicles including mine run 35x12.5 on ahc.
You first need to see pressures then make the adjustments to torsion bars and/or sensors.

 

[bamabrock]

For an AHC system, you've got to know the pressures before doing anything to it.

 

[harshjay]

Springs designed for static suspensions will take too much weight off ahc. It will likely ride terrible and you will lose height adjustment.
You should not be rubbing with a 31 inch tire. Plenty of vehicles including mine run 35x12.5 on ahc.
You first need to see pressures then make the adjustments to torsion bars and/or sensors.

The rub is on the fender, due to offset of wheel.

in Low, the fender sits on tire sidewall. As the kids say, #slammered

 

[suprarx7nut]

4. 18" wheel, 31" overall tire

5. so too stiff, not worth trying out? out of the four springs OME sells, these are the third stiffest. swapping coils isn't that much trouble..or is it?

6. both are steel, so an extra 120'ish of steel, plus the 160 lbs of fluid on the rear swing out, maybe some top rack accessories

I tried looking for your video, but was having a hard time just scrolling through your post titles..any chance you have a link to this?

If I wanted to pull out the reservoir, and clean the grime out of the bottom, just disconnect battery, and be mindful of fluid lines..like say a brake reservoir, and all should be well. I had read about a low fluid protect mode, that would require special restore procedure if tank hit's bottom...anything to know?

I will have to follow and read all your post now, thanks for making 4000.....there goes my nights.

Man my last ride was a Mitsubishi Delica, so got worked on lots...but at least it was all still mechanical in nature...all these electronical whiz bangs are extra trouble

4. Something is wrong if you have 31s and have any tire rub/contact (AHC or not). 33" tires should clear. If 31's are hitting something you've got some terrible offsets or something else modified. That's worth learning because it indicates to me a potential for some big suspension issues (again, beyond AHC).

5. Way too stiff. AHC and static are completely different. Using stock non-AHC springs is usually too much. The stiffer OME stuff is just further in the wrong direction. 100% not worth trying, IMO.

6. That's a lot of weight. Sway away might be good, I'm unfamiliar with their spring rates. I'd try King springs or LC non-AHC springs.

Pulling out reservoir: yeah, it's similar to a brake system. Similar fluid, pump and lines. You can get a lot of fluid moved even if you leave the reservoir intact. Get a turkey baster or suction blub with tube. You can suck out a lot of fluid that way. Only use Toyota AHC fluid. Nothing else.

I've never dealt with the low fluid situation. You should get techstream running regardless. I wouldn't worry about it. I am not aware of any persistent lock out that would continue to prevent function once fluid is restored.

Sorry about the 4000 posts. Boring day job in front of a PC and an enthusiasm for learning and sharing leads to a lot of posts.

Here's the video:

AHC Info

Note: AHC services are now offered at the Air Down Gear Up shop in Frederick, CO. The owner of YotaMD, Andy, is also a co-owner of ADGU and happy to provide some of the common AHC-related tasks you may be interested in. See the link here for details...

www.yotamd.com

 

[ktmracer01]

I agree with everything @suprarx7nut and @bamabrock mentioned.

Even if you don't want to run techstream on your personal computer, you can buy a scanguage, but... techstream will be much more useful in the long term.

I'm running sway-away torsion bars, king springs, and 30mm spacers on my LX470 with AHC. It runs smoothly when I have all of my gear loaded up (approx. 300-500lbs). A little stiff when it's not loaded and just me in the rig.

with AHC, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to flush the fluid. It seems to be a regular oversight for most original owners and it's very easy to do if you watch the videos other members have posted and the write up's other guys have done.

 

[suprarx7nut]

I agree with everything @suprarx7nut and @bamabrock mentioned.

Even if you don't want to run techstream on your personal computer, you can buy a scanguage, but... techstream will be much more useful in the long term.

I'm running sway-away torsion bars, king springs, and 30mm spacers on my LX470 with AHC. It runs smoothly when I have all of my gear loaded up (approx. 300-500lbs). A little stiff when it's not loaded and just me in the rig.

with AHC, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to flush the fluid. It seems to be a regular oversight for most original owners and it's very easy to do if you watch the videos other members have posted and the write up's other guys have done.

The real dumbfounding part of that whole equation is that the DEALERS constantly refuse to perform flushes. Mind-boggling.

 

[ktmracer01]

The real dumbfounding part of that whole equation is that the DEALERS constantly refuse to perform flushes. Mind-boggling.

Agreed. when @Eltestro was having issues with his AHC, they were going to charge him a stupid amount of money just to do a flush.

 

[Eltestro]

Yep, I got on the phone with one of their techs and he said $740 JUST to flush the system. I kindly told him to please not do anything else. Got out of there as soon as I could.

 

[suprarx7nut]

Yep, I got on the phone with one of their techs and he said $740 JUST to flush the system. I kindly told him to please not do anything else. Got out of there as soon as I could.

I'm starting to offer services on AHC. If I could charge $740 for a thorough AHC flush I'd be fat and happy doing AHC flushes for just about the rest of my days, haha.

At least they gave you a number. Lots of dealers simply turn it away at any cost.

 

[Eltestro]

I'm starting to offer services on AHC. If I could charge $740 for a thorough AHC flush I'd be fat and happy doing AHC flushes for just about the rest of my days, haha.

At least they gave you a number. Lots of dealers simply turn it away at any cost.

Right!? How about we open a shop based solely around diagnosing and fixing AHC. I think it'd be extremely successful!

 

[ktmracer01]

Right!? How about we open a shop based solely around diagnosing and fixing AHC. I think it'd be extremely successful!

Sounds good to me! Suspension work all day. Modify and bastardize.

 

[suprarx7nut]

Right!? How about we open a shop based solely around diagnosing and fixing AHC. I think it'd be extremely successful!

Already done!

AHC Service in the ADGU Workshop just North of Denver!

As of 2021, we offer AHC inspections as well as AHC adjustment/maintenance/repair services of the 100 series Land Cruiser and LX470! Two categories of offerings: 1. Inspection and recommendation ($250 flat rate, 60-90 minutes) We learn about your current situation and any future plans and then...

store.airdowngearup.com

 

[Eltestro]

Already done!

AHC Service in the ADGU Workshop just North of Denver!

As of 2021, we offer AHC inspections as well as AHC adjustment/maintenance/repair services of the 100 series Land Cruiser and LX470! Two categories of offerings: 1. Inspection and recommendation ($250 flat rate, 60-90 minutes) We learn about your current situation and any future plans and then...

store.airdowngearup.com

AWESOME! Seriously.

 

[FxFormat]

Post some pics of your truck, I can put 31” tires on a Rav4 without rub. You got some jacked up wheels if 31 rubs on a land cruiser.

 

[harshjay]

Post some pics of your truck, I can put 31” tires on a Rav4 without rub. You got some jacked up wheels if 31 rubs on a land cruiser.

my bad.

275/70r18 so around 33.2 overall. And, the rub is only only on a hard bump, and it is just kissing the fender, it has worn the paint down. Adjusting the sensor up a 1/4" would probably have it resolved.. or add some bump stop?

 

[harshjay]

I agree with everything @suprarx7nut and @bamabrock mentioned.

Even if you don't want to run techstream on your personal computer, you can buy a scanguage, but... techstream will be much more useful in the long term.

I'm running sway-away torsion bars, king springs, and 30mm spacers on my LX470 with AHC. It runs smoothly when I have all of my gear loaded up (approx. 300-500lbs). A little stiff when it's not loaded and just me in the rig.

with AHC, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to flush the fluid. It seems to be a regular oversight for most original owners and it's very easy to do if you watch the videos other members have posted and the write up's other guys have done.

This is great. So I will happily look to these springs and spacers, as your proven set up seems to be working well for you.

This was my first road trip, we just got the rig this year. It will spend most of it's time in city, as it is actually the wife's. She wanted it to look 'cool' so we got her tires/bumper/rack (we get 2-4 weeks of trip a year camping).

When I just encountered the non compliant height selection, it was the first time anyone has looked at the fluid in this. The AHC was never touched once by previous owner. 60k miles on odo, all service records, all city driven.

I did a flush in a parts store parking lot on the trip. Pulled out fluid from reservoir in Low, refilled, pulled 6 oz from all acc + accum. It was no longer suspension fluid colour for sure. The bottom of the reservoir has a deposited film, so I will pull it off completely and wash out.

 

[harshjay]

4. Something is wrong if you have 31s and have any tire rub/contact (AHC or not). 33" tires should clear. If 31's are hitting something you've got some terrible offsets or something else modified. That's worth learning because it indicates to me a potential for some big suspension issues (again, beyond AHC).

5. Way too stiff. AHC and static are completely different. Using stock non-AHC springs is usually too much. The stiffer OME stuff is just further in the wrong direction. 100% not worth trying, IMO.

6. That's a lot of weight. Sway away might be good, I'm unfamiliar with their spring rates. I'd try King springs or LC non-AHC springs.

Pulling out reservoir: yeah, it's similar to a brake system. Similar fluid, pump and lines. You can get a lot of fluid moved even if you leave the reservoir intact. Get a turkey baster or suction blub with tube. You can suck out a lot of fluid that way. Only use Toyota AHC fluid. Nothing else.

I've never dealt with the low fluid situation. You should get techstream running regardless. I wouldn't worry about it. I am not aware of any persistent lock out that would continue to prevent function once fluid is restored.

Sorry about the 4000 posts. Boring day job in front of a PC and an enthusiasm for learning and sharing leads to a lot of posts.

Here's the video:

AHC Info

Note: AHC services are now offered at the Air Down Gear Up shop in Frederick, CO. The owner of YotaMD, Andy, is also a co-owner of ADGU and happy to provide some of the common AHC-related tasks you may be interested in. See the link here for details...

www.yotamd.com

Thanks a lot, this is great. I am just watching the video right now...but had to stop to write this..how did you get Ray Romano to do the narration?

Kidding.

I have seen King Springs come up now, and they offer a raised coil, that is supposedly 30-40mm.. would that be the ticket, and no spacer needed then?