I am dying inside currently. I know nothing of cars. But ran across a 2001 LX 470 with 110k miles and in good shape. Paid 7k...Texas car, single owner no rust. The only issue was the suspension was a mess. My buddy volunteered to fix it for 300 plus parts and I agreed. First mistake!!! He abandoned the system and put a strutmaster conversion kit on, came with Gabriel shocks. he tried cranking torsion bar to fix front height to factory. Obviously failed now that I have learned 10000 lessons too late on here. So now my car is sitting as I wait on the SLEE OME torsion bar to arrive. then hopefully can get it at factory height for now. I wanted a newer land cruiser to mod for off-road in a year or 2. Now I’m curious if it is impossible to assess the original suspension now that it has been abandoned but left in place. I hope it is functional and not an awful ride with OME bar and Gabriel shocks. Will know soon enough. Is it better to try to go back to original hydraulic suspension someday soon or just reassess my spring and shock situation.... this site is amazing by the way. Now to try to figure out what to do with that god awful navigation screen in the dash.
DEVASTATED I JUST FOUND THIS GROUP!!! (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter rambler114
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Search AHC delete threads, at this point you should probably do the full delete. Many people, self included, run OME springs with stock shocks. Stock shocks from toyota in all honesty are better than your gabriels, imho. There are also many threads on NAV screen for you to check out....thank your lucky stars you stumbled onto ih8mud.
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atnolan94
I'm Your Huckleberry
Yeah theres no going back once its ripped out. But the good news is generally if its not just an issue of a fluid flush, AHC repairs will cost more than a conversion. I agree with the above. OEM toyota LC shocks, OME torsion bars and coils.
If the shocks alone were removed and kept on hand, why not reinstall shocks and re-address the system? The common failure is a globe set. That's under $1,000 and less work than the conversion. You'd have to have 2 or 3 things fail simultaneously to get close to the cost of a conversion, wouldn't you? Assuming DIY labor, I think you'd have to have globes, a sensor and the pump all fail at the same time to surpass the cost of a proper conversion.
@rambler114 : Bummer someone installed that system. Good on you for addressing it correctly, either through reinstating AHC or going for a proper conventional. TONS of owners delete AHC without knowing exactly what was wrong or how to install a proper conventional system. I think we get new threads twice a week of people that deleted or bought a car that was previously deleted and are trying to clean up the mess that's been created. Frustratingly, the simplest and cheapest path may have been fixing the AHC system to begin with, but as you may know that system is often diagnosed incorrectly and paying top dollar dealer prices for the commonly guessed components can rack up a scary (albeit often wrong) repair estimate.
Good luck either way! The 100 is an awesome platform with or without AHC.
Wow... rust free, 110K miles, and only $7K? You have no idea how good a deal you got. Congrats! If it's as in as good a condition as one would imagine when you hear 110K miles and no rust, it likely should have sold for at least double that. Keep that car at all costs and don't be afraid to spend the money to fix things the right way if you want a car you can drive for the next decade (or two).
The AHC system rode beautifully and worked well off-road for most people, but was a bit complicated if it wasn't working perfectly (as you found out from your buddy's attempt to help) and wasn't as conducive to modifications for those looking for extra lifts and bigger wheels. Given where you are, it's probably more complicated to put it back then just finish the removal - certainly would require a mechanic with more knowledge of the AHC system. Long term, the non-AHC suspension will give you more flexibility and still rides pretty damn well. The OEM shocks, TBs, and springs are terrific if you will be doing mostly city driving and moderate off roading (most people). If you want to lift this 2" and/or load it up with a bunch of heavy bumpers, sliders, drawers, and camping equipment, you'll want to get longer springs and stiffer TBs, other wise it will squat low.
The AHC system rode beautifully and worked well off-road for most people, but was a bit complicated if it wasn't working perfectly (as you found out from your buddy's attempt to help) and wasn't as conducive to modifications for those looking for extra lifts and bigger wheels. Given where you are, it's probably more complicated to put it back then just finish the removal - certainly would require a mechanic with more knowledge of the AHC system. Long term, the non-AHC suspension will give you more flexibility and still rides pretty damn well. The OEM shocks, TBs, and springs are terrific if you will be doing mostly city driving and moderate off roading (most people). If you want to lift this 2" and/or load it up with a bunch of heavy bumpers, sliders, drawers, and camping equipment, you'll want to get longer springs and stiffer TBs, other wise it will squat low.
ramangain
Clarksonian disciple
If your buddy still has the parts he took out, and he left in the AHC hard lines, then you can probably reinstall, fill/bleed with proper fluid, and then diagnose what else needs fixing.
BEST way to know is to post a picture of everything that was removed re: AHC and post that picture on here.
BEST way to know is to post a picture of everything that was removed re: AHC and post that picture on here.
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Post some pics please. Did you verify no mileage rollback?
- Thread starter
- #9
Was a 1 owner car. This plastic surgeon only used it for his road trip car. Literally offered it to me just to clear room in garage for his new Maserati. Insane that the original title he gave me came with the original sale receipt for 86k in 2001 at dealership. No mile rollback. Besides the driver seat leather I’d like to try to replace it has a bit of door bang and a few scuffs I do not mind. And obviously find a local DFW. person to help with the nav screen refresh. I’ll post engine pics and underneath in a bit. It’s all really clean
- Thread starter
- #11
Haha as you can see the front is literally as low as possible. OME torsion arrives Tuesday. Can not wait to actually drive it
ramangain
Clarksonian disciple
Torsion bars. Then alignment. As a sanity check, make sure the outboard CV isn't cockeyed in terms of angle when setting ride height, or you'll be hastening your countdown to replacing them.
