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I have a no nav with AHC... I tried to avoid buying an AHC rig but now I'm glad that I did.
AHC just get rid (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Fairgame
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- ahc ahc failure
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I recall that you never checked pressures, right?
And the failure was simply a refusal to go into H or stay in N. Both easily remedied for free by performing the 5 minute pressure check and adjust.
Remind me if I got that wrong.
There's a difference between "That system doesn't work very well" and "I neglected my car and it eventually had a fault after 15 years."
The OP being in a potentially remote part of Africa is an entirely different deal than the other 99% of mud that live in suburbia USA doing weekend outings within nearly constant cell service. If you're truly going out into zero-modern-human-civilization-territory for weeks at a time, perhaps the rare AHC concern is legitimate. For the other 99.95% of people it's a non-issue, IMO.
We already had this conversation. Explain to me why my AHC reservoir all of a sudden went empty driving at highway speeds without a single leak. How could I ever trust a system like that again? Not to mention the dozens of trucks my brother always gets in service on a tow truck because of failed ahc components. I had a factory weight 116k mile vehicle that was 8 years old when the system started crapping out on me. Fluid was always changed per FSM. I have a full stack of receipts to prove it.I recall that you never checked pressures, right?
And the failure was simply a refusal to go into H or stay in N. Both easily remedied for free by performing the 5 minute pressure check and adjust.
Remind me if I got that wrong.
There's a difference between "That system doesn't work very well" and "I neglected my car and it eventually had a fault after 15 years."
The OP being in a potentially remote part of Africa is an entirely different deal than the other 99% of mud that live in suburbia USA doing weekend outings within nearly constant cell service. If you're truly going out into zero-modern-human-civilization-territory for weeks at a time, perhaps the rare AHC concern is legitimate. For the other 99.95% of people it's a non-issue, IMO.
Hot take, OP. Sounds like you figured out some secrets nobody else has thought of and grasped the full image of the AHC in the process.
It didn't. It's not like engine oil or coolant that has anywhere else to leak in to. Ahc is a closed system, there's nowhere else for fluid to go but out. It doesn't get burned up anywhere. So, if your reservoir was empty for any reason, it's because the fluid leaked out. Whether from high pressure, or pinholes, or a loose bleed nut. But, I can promise you, AHC is not such a bad system that it overrules the physical potential of creating or destroying matter.
Also, don't you live in the rust belt? I wouldn't be surprised if air from your tires leaks out of your wheels.
AHC is a fantastic system. I don't know what your specific issues stemmed from, but it sounds like you experienced an outlier situation.
It didn't. It's not like engine oil or coolant that has anywhere else to leak in to. Ahc is a closed system, there's nowhere else for fluid to go but out. It doesn't get burned up anywhere. So, if your reservoir was empty for any reason, it's because the fluid leaked out. Whether from high pressure, or pinholes, or a loose bleed nut. But, I can promise you, AHC is not such a bad system that it overrules the physical potential of creating or destroying matter.
Also, don't you live in the rust belt? I wouldn't be surprised if air from your tires leaks out of your wheels.
AHC is a fantastic system. I don't know what your specific issues stemmed from, but it sounds like you experienced an outlier situation.
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You and I did, yes. But there are 100+ people that are going to read your comment here and they have no clue that you never checked pressure... And then had what was likely an over pressure incident. Fluid changes are not pressure check and adjustments so that's not really relevant.
Anytime your story comes up I think you owe it to the readers to state very plainly "I experienced what was likely a pressure related fault after never having checked pressure."
Isn't the goal to spread helpful information?
A system like that you say?
Like... The hydraulic steering? Or the far more complicated ABS brake system?
It's just a hydraulic pump and a few sensors and valves.
I knew the AHC fanboys are gonna come out of the woodwork sooner or later with the rust comments. My car is completely rust free and dry as a bone underneath. Like every vehicle I own either from a southern state it’s entire life or always winter stored. And I have a winter beater so none of these vehicle have seen any salt. So where is this ahc fluid going again? Look at the pics and tell me how rusty my rust bucket is.
These photos definitely show all parts of the AHC system.
Ok pressure this pressure that. You’re still beating around the bush when I ask where did an entire reservoir of ahc fluid go when there was no leak. And after topping off it was back to normal and never happened again. I was 1,300 miles away from home…..what if I wasn’t such a nerd and didn’t have a spare can of ahc fluid like I imagine 99% of people wouldn’t at the time. Then what are you doing?
Yeah no s*** that was when I purchased the vehicle to show it has zero rust
Not sure what the comment is aimed at achieving. Did you want me to post a picture of every ahc component to prove my point all was dry? You guys are ridiculous. Like I would rip out a system if it worked well for me. Of course not.
Well, there ya go, you don't need to worry about AHC anymore.
But (to your credit) a beautifully clean underside of a vehicle isn't going to serve as irrefutable evidence that a hydraulic suspension system is a piece of garbage. As you said yourself, the fluid isn't going to go nowhere. So I guess we're both a little lost.
Of course nobody knows where your fluid went, haha. That's not an AHC-specific phenomenon. We can't remote-diagnose an after the fact a leak from any system. Engine oil, AHC, brakes, steering, trans, diff, transfer case, windshield fluid, coolant, R134, etc...
Perhaps a fluid change occurred and they underfilled. Perhaps there was a temporary leak (seems unlikely, but who knows).
If you're a little low on fluid and then go into extra high, you could definitely run the reservoir empty. The volume in the reservoir changes a lot in normal use.
We understand you experienced a fault on the go. That's a bummer. Obviously the fluid didn't magically disappear. Either it was underfilled or there was a leak. The end.
Yeah I never had any issues with it when I bought the LX. Cycled through all height settings flawlessly and you can feel a drastic difference in ride quality when you played with the damper dial. I always preferred the comfort mode so I kept it in that setting most of the time. I’m not here to start s*** just stating facts. And the fact was we did a full two days of offroading at HIH and on my drive up north to grand junction the vehicle just started riding as of something horribly wrong. We pulled over, checked for leaks, there were none. We noticed reservoir is empty and topped it off and things went back to normal. I put several more thousand miles on it after that and fluid level remained unchanged and things kept looking dry underneath. So to this day that’s the biggest mystery to me. Like I said my current suspension feels every bit as good or better than my ahc did for ride quality. It’s no mercedes sedan by any means. Every toyota 4X4 I’ve been in still has a jittery and trucky ride and it’s something I’ve just come to accept.
I share these thoughts as someone who ditched AHC because I thought it was the right move for me, and have since built the entire suspension on my truck.
Not to jump on you, but that alone tells me your system was not in good shape. It doesn't matter what bolt on suspension you're running, nothing available short of an extremely high end set of custom parts is going to ride as nicely as a properly sorted AHC system. I say this with nearly $5k worth of shocks (just the shocks) on my own truck, plus every piece of suspension/ bushing having been replaced. It's comfy. It rides great. I have 1 million degrees of adjustability to match my exact application. It's still not comparable to a healthy AHC system. It should be as smooth as any Mercedes. I also own a mechanically restored 560sel, I'm familiar with smooth German land yachts.
Your fluid could have leaked out. Not finding a leak does not mean there's not a leak. Pinhole leaks can atomize and you'll never see a sign. Magic, most likely, did not occur. I would put $5 the change in quality you felt after HIH were the diaphragm(s) rupturing in the globes, allowing them to fill with the fluid you would have otherwise had in your reservoir.
On this side of my own equation, I'd love a cream puff 100, WITH AHC.
Not to jump on you, but that alone tells me your system was not in good shape. It doesn't matter what bolt on suspension you're running, nothing available short of an extremely high end set of custom parts is going to ride as nicely as a properly sorted AHC system. I say this with nearly $5k worth of shocks (just the shocks) on my own truck, plus every piece of suspension/ bushing having been replaced. It's comfy. It rides great. I have 1 million degrees of adjustability to match my exact application. It's still not comparable to a healthy AHC system. It should be as smooth as any Mercedes. I also own a mechanically restored 560sel, I'm familiar with smooth German land yachts.
Your fluid could have leaked out. Not finding a leak does not mean there's not a leak. Pinhole leaks can atomize and you'll never see a sign. Magic, most likely, did not occur. I would put $5 the change in quality you felt after HIH were the diaphragm(s) rupturing in the globes, allowing them to fill with the fluid you would have otherwise had in your reservoir.
On this side of my own equation, I'd love a cream puff 100, WITH AHC.
This was my thought on reasoning for low reservoir. When the globes go bad they take more fluid and I’d think one globe could empty the res due to lost volume from the diaphragm rupturing. I’m now curious how much fluid one ruptured globe could consume. This is literally what I’m dealing with now on mine. But somebody also cranked up the drivers TB so I know the pressures are off as well. I figuired it may be due to one or the other or both. I’m waiting on a cable so I can scan this with my scanner and check pressures. I have a near empty reservoir but no leaks and a crap ride but no lights and it is all working. Got new globes ready to go in this week.
That new globe feel is just so good. Not to sign you up for it but yours might be a more interesting case for cutting one open than the other thread I found on here. I would assume that secondary cavity is probably all caved in, and accounting for the additional fluid consumption (decreased reservoir fluid level)?
Yes I’m stoked to get that ride back. It’s something I have been putting off too long. I am down to to some exploring on these old globes. I was going to do the pen test to see if I can get a measurement between the globes. Now I want to get a fluid measurement.
PS - I miss my Golden Pearl. One of the greatest LX colors ever produced
TexLexican
SILVER Star
Just replaced all 4 of mine and the ride is awesome! Still need to adjust the torsion bars.
You can not bypass the AHC.
It's either in and used or you have to replace everything, ie 4x shocks, 2x springs, 2x torsion bars, removing globes, hydraulic lines, pump etc.
My LX has now 306,000km on the clock and still running AHC with a set of different rear
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Updated my post as I mentioned shocks which are still original.
Thanks IndroCruise for pointing this out.
Thanks IndroCruise for pointing this out.
