is it worth it?

[markxime]

good day!!

I am looking to purchase an 03 lx470, it has 118t miles, alot of service records and seems to be well taken care of there is only one problem tho

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...06551042&Log=0

the cars aircon(front and back) is blowing hot air. the compressor seems to be turning on but still very hot air.

my questions are

1) what could be the possible causes?
2) how much to get fixed?
3) is the car a good deal?
4) any one familiar with this car?(from a member here?)

thank you in advance

 

[e9999]

welcome!
the a/c issue could be as simple as insufficient refrigerant, which could be as simple to fix as adding some every so often if it's a very slow leak. Easy to do. Or could mean there is a major leak that will require some fixing and then a full recharge. Or it could be a bad compressor, or a bad connection, etc etc. But pretty easy to troubleshoot usually. If I had to budget I would guess somewhere between $0 and $1K to fix, and not a deal breaker for me. Should be fixable. Worst case scenario: open the windows...
Check and see if the timing belt was done or that's another $1K or so.

 

[markxime]

welcome!
the a/c issue could be as simple as insufficient refrigerant, which could be as simple to fix as adding some every so often if it's a very slow leak. Easy to do. Or could mean there is a major leak that will require some fixing and then a full recharge. Or it could be a bad compressor, or a bad connection, etc etc. But pretty easy to troubleshoot usually. If I had to budget I would guess somewhere between $0 and $1K to fix, and not a deal breaker for me. Should be fixable. Worst case scenario: open the windows...
Check and see if the timing belt was done or that's another $1K or so.

one on the things i like about the car is all that the serviced records were very complete, timing belts, fluids etc. everything was followed according to dealer mileage/time specification.

dealer gave me a small discount for the ac to make it a "as is" condition making the ac fix a win/ lose situation.
opening the windows are no problem if it was only me riding, but with my wife, 10 yr old and an up coming baby wouldn't be a good idea

thanks.

 

[e9999]

Really, there is not much we can say from here.
But if all the services were done by the book then it's hopefully in overall good mechanical shape assuming no major rust, no accident, no flooding etc and with comparatively low mileage for a cruiser's expected life. You can tell a lot by just looking at the thing, though, and with a bit of reading beforehand you could assess the situation pretty accurately in person, even without being an expert.
No idea about the price being good without seeing it, of course, but that does not seem to be too outrageous at first glance if it's in good shape, at least for the SW. Of course, a dealer will try for high at first. I will say though that the a/c not working is an issue you can claim is worth more than just a small discount. You could press the matter on that since that might turn a lot of people off. And you can state that it must be pretty bad if they haven't fixed it themselves...
Also, ask here and see if there isn't a cruiserhead nearby that might be willing to have a look at it with or for you for a nice dinner or something...
Good luck!

 

[bucfl]

Not a bad price. I noticed rust on the hitch. Take a closer look under body and check for no rust bubbles on paint.

 

[n55luvr]

Looks like it lived it's entire life in the rust belt. Definitely poke around underneath. Also has accident on the carfax. Price seems really low too. Good for you if it's in decent shape.

On the a/c usually when there is a complete loss of refrigerant the compressor will not turn on. Safety feature to preserve life of compressor. So it's odd that you are hearing / feeling the comp kick on but still getting hot air. Did you try the 'max cold' setting and still get hot air? My buddy's LX was blowing hot air unless on max cold setting. Turned out to be a clogged temp sensor / tube which I think was located below the steerring wheel, near where the driver's right knee would be.

The LC we bought few months back had leaky ac lines due to rust. Was an easy fix and ran me about $500 to replace the rear ac lines with oem parts plus refill. Has been on every day since and blows ice cold air now.

 

[Junglejack]

This is one of those times where it would be money well spent to have it taken to either a Toyotacentric independent shop or a dealer to have a PPI preformed. And while doing so, ask that they take pictures of the underside when on the lift. A/C could well be low freon.

 

[GregLCA]

good day!!

I am looking to purchase an 03 lx470, it has 118t miles, alot of service records and seems to be well taken care of there is only one problem tho

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-s...06551042&Log=0

the cars aircon(front and back) is blowing hot air. the compressor seems to be turning on but still very hot air.

my questions are

1) what could be the possible causes?
2) how much to get fixed?
3) is the car a good deal?
4) any one familiar with this car?(from a member here?)

thank you in advance

A common failure is that the rear AC lines rot out (assuming you have rear A/C as an option on that particular vehicle) and then the entire system loses refrigerant. The rear lines are a total PITA to replace with the factory hardlines and it's around $1000 to do it.... I wish someone would do a DIY on how to replace with a flexible "barrier hose" type retrofit (HINT HINT HINT) My 2001LC just had the rear A/C capped off to deal with the leaking lines and a recharge of the system fixed it. My OCD wishes that I could get the rear A/C working again because it bugs me to know that it's disabled... but in reality the truck stays nice and cool even without it.

The only other warning I'd give you is to check that center console to see if that version had the integrated HVAC controls in the screen or not. If you have any dreams of adding an aftermarket stereo in the future, you will learn that it's all but impossible. Caveat Emptor!!

-G

 

[markxime]

thanks so much for the replies
taking a look at it again if all is good then new,to me, lx470 it is.

just praying right now that the a/c is just a low and no major problems..

 

[markxime]

A common failure is that the rear AC lines rot out (assuming you have rear A/C as an option on that particular vehicle) and then the entire system loses refrigerant. The rear lines are a total PITA to replace with the factory hardlines and it's around $1000 to do it.... I wish someone would do a DIY on how to replace with a flexible "barrier hose" type retrofit (HINT HINT HINT) My 2001LC just had the rear A/C capped off to deal with the leaking lines and a recharge of the system fixed it. My OCD wishes that I could get the rear A/C working again because it bugs me to know that it's disabled... but in reality the truck stays nice and cool even without it.

The only other warning I'd give you is to check that center console to see if that version had the integrated HVAC controls in the screen or not. If you have any dreams of adding an aftermarket stereo in the future, you will learn that it's all but impossible. Caveat Emptor!!

-G

it has the rear a/c option. is capping the rear a/c reversible or a permanent thing? is it a diy project or a shop project?

thanks in advance

 

[markxime]

Looks like it lived it's entire life in the rust belt. Definitely poke around underneath. Also has accident on the carfax. Price seems really low too. Good for you if it's in decent shape.

On the a/c usually when there is a complete loss of refrigerant the compressor will not turn on. Safety feature to preserve life of compressor. So it's odd that you are hearing / feeling the comp kick on but still getting hot air. Did you try the 'max cold' setting and still get hot air? My buddy's LX was blowing hot air unless on max cold setting. Turned out to be a clogged temp sensor / tube which I think was located below the steerring wheel, near where the driver's right knee would be.

The LC we bought few months back had leaky ac lines due to rust. Was an easy fix and ran me about $500 to replace the rear ac lines with oem parts plus refill. Has been on every day since and blows ice cold air now.

yup it was on "max cold" setting will check on the lines/tube your saying. still hoping it will just be a minor job.

the underside of the car seemed to rust proofed no rust below. the accident according to the dealer was a minor bumper damage.

again, thank you all and appreciate the replies will update and post pics as soon as get it...

 

[GregLCA]

it has the rear a/c option. is capping the rear a/c reversible or a permanent thing? is it a diy project or a shop project?

thanks in advance

The shop that did mine just cut the line inside the PS wheelwell and crimped/brazed it shut. I suppose it's reversible, but I'm not paying the factory prices for the new hardline!! I hear that the body had to be unbolted from the frame to get the new line installed, so labor ends up being fortune also.... that's why I said that a flexible barrier hose (as a retrofit) would be a much smarter solution..... I just don't have the time (or interest) to figure it all out!!

-G

 

[SWUtah]

It's a Toyota Dealer have them fix it before you buy it and let them keep the littl discount they were giving you. If the dealer does the work it should be guaranteed.

 

[markxime]

The shop that did mine just cut the line inside the PS wheelwell and crimped/brazed it shut. I suppose it's reversible, but I'm not paying the factory prices for the new hardline!! I hear that the body had to be unbolted from the frame to get the new line installed, so labor ends up being fortune also.... that's why I said that a flexible barrier hose (as a retrofit) would be a much smarter solution..... I just don't have the time (or interest) to figure it all out!!

-G

oh ok yeah i hope someone finds a fix for it. most likely will just have it cut also it that is the only problem. i have the time and interest but not the knowledge and skills to do the fix on these.

 

[PADDO]

It's a Toyota Dealer have them fix it before you buy it and let them keep the littl discount they were giving you. If the dealer does the work it should be guaranteed.

^^ this. There's a very good chance this Toyota dealer knows exactly what's wrong and the cost to repair and would prefer to offer you a little sweetener coin to not have to deal with it. That said, if you love the vehicle and everything else falls into place I wouldn't let this be a show stopper. If it's just low refrigerant due to the common corrosion failure point well that can be fixed or the rear ac isolated inexpensively. But I'd work the dealer full repair angle on their dime and time in the first instance.

Working properly the front ac in these trucks has plenty capacity to remove heat energy and the rear blowing chilled air also isn't that critical to cabin comfort imo. I spent a lot of time on the road yesterday, outside air temp readings in the 102 to 106 range, with the front ac set at 72 we were plenty comfortable and didn't have any need to turn the rear ac on.

 

[GregLCA]

^^ this. There's a very good chance this Toyota dealer knows exactly what's wrong and the cost to repair and would prefer to offer you a little sweetener coin to not have to deal with it. That said, if you love the vehicle and everything else falls into place I wouldn't let this be a show stopper. If it's just low refrigerant due to the common corrosion failure point well that can be fixed or the rear ac isolated inexpensively. But I'd work the dealer full repair angle on their dime and time in the first instance.

Working properly the front ac in these trucks has plenty capacity to remove heat energy and the rear blowing chilled air also isn't that critical to cabin comfort imo. I spent a lot of time on the road yesterday, outside air temp readings in the 102 to 106 range, with the front ac set at 72 we were plenty comfortable and didn't have any need to turn the rear ac on.

TRUE.

I think the rear A/C is really only a dealbreaker if you have the 3rd Row seats installed and actually carry people back there.


-G

 

[markxime]

toyota is treating it as an "as is" car they wont do anything to it, ive been trying to make them fix it. but still a no go.


hhmmm you think it is a deal breaker? i will definitely be putting people in the back. that is one of my main needs reasons for this car.

 

[GregLCA]

toyota is treating it as an "as is" car they wont do anything to it, ive been trying to make them fix it. but still a no go.


hhmmm you think it is a deal breaker? i will definitely be putting people in the back. that is one of my main needs reasons for this car.

Does this one have the motorized rear popout windows? I don't know if those are standard equipment on all LC/LX models but they help vent out heat if you have any of the other windows open. I use mine all the time to quickly cool the interior and purge stale hot air.

You can do a dark window tint as a way to compensate for the A/C, but there aren't many days in New England where its TRULY so hot that the 3rd row passengers would be miserable. I wouldn't NOT buy the vehicle for that reason alone... but make sure the deal you get reflects those repair costs later on.


-G

 

[cap80]

Fwiw we've had a couple weeks of 90+ days and my kids even then ask me to turn the rear off pretty quickly. There is almost always one of them in the third row. The front AC cools the cabin pretty quickly. Probably worth seeing if they will diagnose the problem though so you have a cost idea going forward.

 

[n55luvr]

toyota is treating it as an "as is" car they wont do anything to it, ive been trying to make them fix it. but still a no go.


hhmmm you think it is a deal breaker? i will definitely be putting people in the back. that is one of my main needs reasons for this car.

See that's the scary thing right there. If it was a simple line replacement they would have done it already or would have used the cost of the known repair to negotiate with you.

Can you take it to another Toyota dealer to have them do a multi point inspection? With specific focus on AC system?