Intro - 2003 LC100 (1 Viewer)

[kailuairon]

Good evening all. Last month, I bought my first Land Cruiser, a stock 2003 with 172k miles. I've had several Toyota 4x4s in the past (86 pickup, 94 4Runner, 02 Tundra) and love the LC despite the issues detailed below. I got it (relatively) cheap b/c of the stuff below, but won't know if I got a deal until I can resolve them.

I spent the last few weekends cleaning it - years of food and drink residue in/on the seats, carpet, interior panels, center console. Took out the seats, carpet, inner panels and thoroughly cleaned everything. Detailed the exterior.

I need to tackle the "real" issues - mostly minor, but a couple of more concerning ones that I've been reading up on and waiting on delivery of parts/tools.

1. Radio reception is poor. It's OK if I'm in an area with strong FM signal, anything less and there's a lot of static. This may/may not be related to the power antenna that doesn't reliably extend 100%. I can usually get it to full height by hitting the UP button 1-3 times.
2. Navigation doesn't work. Just shows a blue screen and 'no map data' if I touch the screen. I'm thinking about getting LC & LX470 Tesla Style Screen Radio Upgrade with Climate Control, so maybe it doesn't matter?
3. Ceiling-mounted DVD player and center console changer don't work. Actually, the DVD player might work as it boots up, but it 'ate' one of our DVDs and the eject button doesn't work. I also don't have a remote control for it. I may buy one off ebay. I think the center console changer is toast. I was thinking of removing it for more storage, but read somewhere that other systems go through it or rely on it for electrical? Need to do more research.
4. Some of the speakers are blown. A call to Crutchfield is on my long-term to-do list, but I need to prioritize my purchases due to limited funds.
5. Front leather is in poor shape - lots of cracks although no tears yet.
6. Rusting on the upper tailgate pinch seam. I read up on this and sealed the 3rd brake light. Consensus is that repairing the sheet metal isn't worth it. I'll probably clean up the rust as best as I can and paint inside and out with POR 15 + topcoat.
7. CEL - P0441, P0442, P0446. PO recently replaced hoses, purge valves, charcoal canister, and gas cap, all w/OEM. I pulled the canister, rechecked the hoses at the canister and engine, verified that the valves open and close/seal. Waiting for a smoke tester from Amazon and a VCX Nano + Techstream so I can troubleshoot. I don't know what the exact sequence of operation of the ]valve at the canister is, but I put my DMM in parallel w/the valve, started the LC, and no voltage after 15 minutes of idling. I'm hoping w/Techstream, I can force a signal to the valve to open. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but this doesn't seem to affect power or fuel consumption, so I might put this on the back burner and take care of other stuff first. We don't do emissions tests in Hawaii so no issue there.
8. About two weeks ago, the VSC TRAC and TRAC OFF light came on. I didn't have time to troubleshoot so I reset and it was OK until Friday morning. Both lights on plus a non-stop beep. I needed to get to work, so I shut it down and took the wife's car. When I got home that night, the lights stayed off and I haven't seen them since.
9. Most concerning. About a week ago, the engine died on me. After 50/50 city/highway driving for an hour, I took an offramp and as I slowed to ~15 mph before I turned into a parking lot, the engine died. I lost power steering and braking and almost hit a wall. Luckily, I was able to quickly shift into N and start it again, but it scared the bejezus out of the wife! I should note that occasionally, the LC had trouble starting in the past. Maybe 1 of 10-15 starts will fail and the engine struggles to start on a second attempt and takes 5-10 seconds to start. I also noticed that occasionally, when I put it into reverse, the RPMs drop to concerning levels, about 400 RPM or so, before it picks up again. Plugs look OK, air cleaner is fine. I removed and cleaned the throttle body and MAF. TB was really dirty. It seems to run better, but I'm not familiar enough with the vehicle to know for sure. Crossing fingers that takes care of it.

Anyway, between the 60+ hours of work and family, I only have time for my 'hobby' on the weekends and will check back in next Saturday. Thanks in advance to anyone who can offer any insight or advice about any of my issues! I really appreciate it and I look forward to next weekend when I can come back to this website and hopefully find some answers! Thanks and stay safe!