Builds jsig's lx470 build (1 Viewer)

[jsigone]

After hunting for a long long time, and fund became good. I had a few options to pick from local here in socal. Quite amazing since I always figured I'd be flying somewhere to purchase it. I found a decent clean copy in OC. It's a 2001 LX in vapor blue with more silver then blue, the 2nd owner had it since 2004 with 32k miles, 1st owner was likely a lease. Truck has 184k when I got it, clean exterior for having hand me down to his kids. Only one corner was missing some paint, one small door ding. T-belt done at 125k of the 184k, so will get a 1-2 years before i have to do that

No rust under the truck, pure cali car, tow hitch wasn't even rusted from use. Interior was OK to good, typical wear on drivers side bolsters and arm rest. Rubberized lexus floor mats over the factory carpet mats. Complete with 3rd row (wife's requirement). Husky rubber mat on cargo area.

The bad....long time oil leak and power steering res leak. I asked how long it's been leaking and he could date it but said 1qt every 6 months. Since his kids are in college, the truck didn't get much use anymore. From what I can track down, it looks like the oil was from the passenger side valve cover. and the PS res hoses. But lots of cleaning. Hope it's not the rear main seal, gamble... I'll have to take out the skid plates and go at it from there. The other bad was the street tires are near bald in the front. I planned to get new one s anyways but still a bargaining chip, the 5th was a AT tire that has likely been down there for a decade. Stock speakers have ZERO bass, those kids were blasting music LOL. Tested the ctr diff lock, but the dash light would not come on when engaged. I can hear the whirling sound, confirm tighter handling. We cut a deal at $8k for the truck and drove it home.

Next day took it a to the DIY car wash stalls and gave it a decent bath and tried to wash the undercage a bit and around the PS resi with simplegreen and light pressure. Stayed away from watering connectors.

Stock when I got her

Modifications:

Armor:
White Knuckle Offroad Slider

Suspension:
AHC - died at 203k, would stay in limp mode
Fox 2.0 Shocks, 100series front, 105 series rear (2.5" extended)
OME 860 med 2.5" lift springs
Sway A Way Torsion bars
Trail Tailor Diff Drop kit
Rear is 23", front is 21.5" droop is 57mm

Tires/Wheels:
275/70-18 BFG KO2 (33s)
Bronze Method Roost +18 offset

Drivetrain:
stock for now

Electrical:
Rigid Industries 50231H D2 cubes, Highlow driving - not installed
DDM HID kit with 35w bulbs, 5000k color, OEM housing - Installed
Kenwood DDX774BH headunit - installed
Polk DB6502 Component speakers 6.5", front -installed
Polk DB6522 2-way speakers 6.5", rear -installed
Pioneer NDBC8 back up camera - uninstalled
Kenwood XR900-5 way amp - installed
Kicker CompC 10" sub - installed

Interior:
removed 3rd row
Artic 45 cooler
Craftman Mech Tool box

Exterior:
Yakima Mega Warrior basket - Installed as needed on trips, save those MPG in city

Recovery:
tow stap, 30k rated
hi-light 48" jack
Smittybilt Receiver with D ring Shackle
Shovel


Maintenance:
2017 Drove it 184k new to me
-Oil Changes every 5-6k, Valvolin Full Syn High Mileage
-Valve cover Gaskets to stop leak, bolts were hand tight over time 185k
-NGK spark plugs 185k
2018
-Brake Booster failure at 199k, replace booster subassembly
-DIY Rebuilt Brake Master cyc w/ OEM kit 199k
-Sealed AGM battery from autozone, 24F size 199k
-AHC Failure 200k, replaced w/ above suspension specs
-Heater hose Tee replacement w/ galv steel from Amazon 205k
2019
-Fan bracket failure 208k, didn't like sub freezing temps 500miles from home
-Water pump and t-belt kits 208k

 

[CappyKD]

Nice pickup, Congrats and welcome to Mud.

 

[1999WhitePearl]

Looks great! You could save some cash and change the front/rear diff and transfer case fluid yourself. Pretty easy job. There's a great write up in the 100 faq thread.

 

[jsigone]

I installed the DDM hid kit today. Install was straight cut after drilling a hole into the rear cap. Rtv seal to finish. Headlight adjustment too way longer then the bulb install. Beam was justified left and about 10 o clock and up while driving, after a few stops and tunes I got it a bit better. The cut off is nice but did the Toyota/lexus engineer try to put some distance projectors features into the low beam? Each light has two spot lights above the cut off. Lowering them any further would bring the light cut angle too steep to the ground. Am if forever going to be blinding cars and people walking on the side walks or peeping into 2nd story home windows? It got late so I stopped trying to center the spot beams. The HID kit is a very nice upgrade over the halogen h1 bulbs.

 

[bassmasterP]

Nice ride. Eager to see how your rig transforms.

Do you have any comparison pics of the HID vs stock?

 

[New2UZJ100]

After hunting for a long long time, and fund became good. I had a few options to pick from local here in socal. Quite amazing since I always figured I'd be flying somewhere to purchase it. I found a decent clean copy in OC. It's a 2001 LX in vapor blue with more silver then blue, the 2nd owner had it since 2004 with 32k miles, 1st owner was likely a lease. Truck has 184k when I got it, clean exterior for having hand me down to his kids. Only one corner was missing some paint, one small door ding. T-belt done at 125k of the 184k, so will get a 1-2 years before i have to do that

No rust under the truck, pure cali car, tow hitch wasn't even rusted from use. Interior was OK to good, typical wear on drivers side bolsters and arm rest. Rubberized lexus floor mats over the factory carpet mats. Complete with 3rd row (wife's requirement). Husky rubber mat on cargo area.

The bad....long time oil leak and power steering res leak. I asked how long it's been leaking and he could date it but said 1qt every 6 months. Since his kids are in college, the truck didn't get much use anymore. From what I can track down, it looks like the oil was from the passenger side valve cover. and the PS res hoses. But lots of cleaning. Hope it's not the rear main seal, gamble... I'll have to take out the skid plates and go at it from there. The other bad was the street tires are near bald in the front. I planned to get new one s anyways but still a bargaining chip, the 5th was a AT tire that has likely been down there for a decade. Stock speakers have ZERO bass, those kids were blasting music LOL. Tested the ctr diff lock, but the dash light would not come on when engaged. I can hear the whirling sound, confirm tighter handling. We cut a deal at $8k for the truck and drove it home.

I have $12k to play with so now i have some money for some tires and stuff. DMV was $400

Next day took it a to the DIY car wash stalls and gave it a decent bath and tried to wash the undercage a bit and around the PS resi with simplegreen and light pressure. Stayed away from watering connectors.

At night I noticed an interesting beam pattern, Not sure what is causing it or how to align the 4 dots closer to the cut off. Any help here?

Some parts came in over the weekend.

kenwood DDX774BH $275
trim plastic $28
Metra Wiring $15
Beck Arnley 201-1788 for the transfer case sensor , hope it fixed the Diff dash light $13
27mm combo wrench $7
DDM tuning 35watt 5k HID $45
Philips 9005 high beam bulbs, one was burnt out $18 ----Installed
Dome overhead LED bulbs for cargo and door lighting $11 ----Installed
Rubber hoses for power steering resi 3/8 and 5/8 ID $40 (napa was expensive on the 5/8s)

Wheels and tire combo --to order this week
Valve cover gaskets OEM --to order this week
4 or 5 channel Amp (will bypass OEM amp since it's 8ohm) ---Order in Aug
Speakers all around To match Amp may get a small pre fabbed sub box---Order in Aug
White knuckle sliders ---to order this week, long lead time part
Roof rack...leaning on gamiviti expo++ ---Order when ever
Build raised storage box for the rear cargo but only driver side.

Once I get the caked gunk cleaned off, I'll take it to a local shop for them to inspect. may have them do the drivetrain fluids while under there.

Can't wait to see how this tunes out! I too just got my first 2000 LX with 175K, very similar to yours, in great shape, one owner, all records. I have put about 200 miles on it so still getting adjusted to it. I have several dash lights out and for the most part don't care but would like the diff-lock to eliminate. Please do a quick recap of the difficulty replacing yours when you get to it. Good Luck, Enjoy!!!

 

[DJCloz]

congrats! I had my cousin look at this truck, but It had too many leaks for his taste. it was a clean truck overall though. I like that color. I'm glad you talked him down a little bit. I think the AHC wasn't working on that one? Time for a lift?

 

[DirtDawg]

I installed the DDM hid kit today. Install was straight cut after drilling a hole into the rear cap. Rtv seal to finish. Headlight adjustment too way longer then the bulb install. Beam was justified left and about 10 o clock and up while driving, after a few stops and tunes I got it a bit better. The cut off is nice but did the Toyota/lexus engineer try to put some distance projectors features into the low beam? Each light has two spot lights above the cut off. Lowering them any further would bring the light cut angle too steep to the ground. Am if forever going to be blinding cars and people walking on the side walks or peeping into 2nd story home windows? It got late so I stopped trying to center the spot beams. The HID kit is a very nice upgrade over the halogen h1 bulbs.

The light spots you are experiencing are what most on this forum call "squirrel finders". When doing an HID upgrade, many swap in a clear lens and cover the extra holes with alum tape to remove the squirrel finders. The main issue here is that these projectors were designed for halogen bulbs, not HID. Many people, including myself, perform a retrofit to maximize output and clarity. More info here (located in the FAQ): LX Headlight Upgrade Database

 

[jsigone]

congrats! I had my cousin look at this truck, but It had too many leaks for his taste. it was a clean truck overall though. I like that color. I'm glad you talked him down a little bit. I think the AHC wasn't working on that one? Time for a lift?

Yah they had it up for a bit, I was surprised it survived the weekend. Clean truck minus the leak. I hope my gamble pays off to their let it leak philosophy.

ACH seems fine for now, had 8-9 grades on the resi when I checked it. If it goes I'll put a lift on it. I'd rather put coilover on my EVO though so hoping the AHC holds out.


DirtyDawg....do I add tape inside the projector or they in the clear corners? How do you remove the clear corners? I can only see the one top screw but something is retaining it from the bottom.

 

[DirtDawg]

DirtyDawg....do I add tape inside the projector or they in the clear corners? How do you remove the clear corners? I can only see the one top screw but something is retaining it from the bottom.

Read the thread I linked, should give you all the info you need.

 

[jsigone]

Thanks I found it in the #2 upgrade. those lens are pretty cheap so might do that since i have to get that far into the assembly.

 

[jsigone]

EEEK White knuckle sliders ordered with diamond plate for the rear so my kids feet don't fall through. Not sure the lead time but should be worth it. Wonder how much my wife will bitch when I remove the side steps this weekend

Found a referb'd Kenwood Excelon XR900-5 on crutchfield for half of normal price. Small package so should fit were the OEM amp is with some mod to the mounting plate. Not sure if I'll run a sub, but at least I have an option for a slim box
60 W x 4 RMS Watts per channel @ 4 ohms, 1% THD+N
400 W x 1 RMS Watts per channel @ 4 ohms, 1% THD+N

 

[caslim]

You won't be disappointed with the WK sliders. I love mine.

 

[bamabrock]

Thanks I found it in the #2 upgrade. those lens are pretty cheap so might do that since i have to get that far into the assembly.

I've got a new set I'm not going to use I'll sell at half off if you go that route. I changed projectors in mine instead.

 

[jsigone]

Pretty busy weekend

-Fresh oil change, castrol synthetic high milage 5-30 and M1 filter
-installed yellow fog bulbs from Nokya, have the same on my EVO and love them. I do still need to polish/clean the hazy light housing
-Installed new valve cover gasket, those spark plug rings sucked getting out. I found that nearly every bolt was hand loose or worse when removing them. SO Fair assesment that I found the oil leak. Added black RVT just in case
-Installed new spark plugs, LPS didn't have denso so I got NGK iridiums. Man what a difference. I don't know how long the old Denso were in there for but the truck feels like it has a power band now. Feels so much smoother. I hope it also improves the gas mileage some if I can keep my foot off the gas HAHA

took more time to clean the darn valve cover gaskets then install the new parts. Oh well

at least the inside looked better then outside

 

[jsigone]

new shoes came in earlier this week from 4wheelparts.com (in store) with full alignment and tire warranty. A bit different, Got matte bronze methods 18x9 +18 with 275/70s Tires are bit poking out over fender but not as bad as other setups I've seen. I'll see how it flexes and rubs in the desert later this yr. I'm loving the more aggressive stance plus the traction over the well used bald tires the previous owner left on there.

 

[jsigone]

we had some fun on the local mountains here in San Diego. Truck did awesome!!! 25psi all around on the AHC was very plush vs what I remember with Kings on my FJ Cruiser. Took my two kids, 2 & 4 and they had a blast!!

 

[jsigone]

white knuckle slider arrived. Awesome piece of work!! I opted for the lower 10degree angle and they look nice

coated them with etching primer and duplicolor bed armor rattle can spray

 

[4Beast]

Looking good, you've made a lot of progress!

 

[scwill]

Im usually a fan of stock rims but I dig the bronze rims you have.