LC100 Heavy Duty springs Rear (V8, IFS, Hydraulic)

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

R

RPW

Joined
Apr 4, 2016
Threads
1
Messages
4
Location
The Netherlands
Hi There,

I am new here, live in The Netherlands and have a LC100 V8, pretty similiar to the LX470 I guess. It is a 2000 one and I have had it for 10 years now.

I still have the standard Hydraulic suspension and like the ride. I do mild off-roading with it, mostly travelling off-road througout Europe. Have a winch and snorkel fitted, that's it.

On these trips I sometimes have the problem that the indicator says that my truck is overloaded, and therefore will not go up or down anymore.

Can I solve this problem by just replacing the coils on the back with more heavy duty ones? (the stock ones are really thin).

Or will this damage the hydraulic system?

I replaced the 'hydraulic bulbs' about 25.000 km's ago, so these are in good working order.

I might switch to 'normal' suspension in the future but not until the system is really damaged...


Thanks a lot for your input!


Peter
 
Sounds like you either need to recover lost load carrying capacity or possibly gain some beyond the design capability. First step I'd recommend is to ensure your AHC fluid is not old and gassy, so if you don't know when the last fluid exchange and bleed was its worth doing this and starting from a good baseline. Next is to understand what your neutral hydraulic pressures are. You'll need Techstream (Toyota diagnostic software - or a hydraulic pressure gauge and fittings) to do this check. With new damper globes your initial target pressures will be 6.9MPa front and between 5.6 and 6.7 rear. In your case the lower the rear pressure the better. Front pressures are lowered/raised by adjusting the torsion bars but the rear isn't adjustable and therefore needs new standard AHC coils with preferably 30mm spacers installed too to further lower the pressure or you might consider going to the Australian made King KTRS-79 springs which are standard height but have a higher load rating. I suppose air lift bags like Firestone 4124 or the AirLift 1000 series might also be a good option if you only need occasional additional load capacity. First steps though are to ensure your hydraulic fluid is healthy and well bled and your neutral pressures are optimized.
 
Thanks Paddo, sound advice!

The fluid was changed when the last bulbs were replaced, so about 25K km's ago...

I will have the pressures checked but suppose they are correct...

So additional load capacity is needed, so I think the higher load rating coils are the way to go, unless this will not 'kill' the system (I do not know why, but just asking). So keep on stock height and just go for springs with the same height but higher load rating. The front is ok, I just have a Warn M8000 winch with the Taubenreuter kit, so not much additiobal weight.

Thanks again.
 
The KTRS 79s are a pretty standard instal in Australia for those who want a bit of an increase in capacity whilst retaining all the benefits of the AHC system. Regarding your neutral pressures I wouldn't assume they are correct, but maybe your dealer and overall maintenance support is better than here in the US where, unfortunately, fluid exchanges and neutral pressure monitoring/adjustment is generally neglected.
 
And as a fellow Dutchie I would concur with Paddo that your maintenance support will probably not have great AHC monitoring/maintenance. I am curious to be proven wrong though as I have not been greatly impressed by any of the "specialists" as regards to full, in-depth knowledge of our 100's. This is partially understandable as the 100's are somewhat rare and gasoline versions even more so (most are the 4.2 diesel).
 
RPW said:
Hi feddomw, any idea who has the gear and knowledge to to the pressure check in NL?
Click to expand...

Any garage with Techstream should be able to do it, but whether they know how to do it and a adjust torsion bars accordingly is another matter...... I need to do this myself actually so I am also looking for someplace.

The general consensus of the one "specialist" I met with was basically: "AHC is terrible, rip out and replace with "normal" suspension".
That attitude is one I don't agree with, especially when the system is in perfect working order. It also reveals an attitude about maintenance which I don' t like.
 
RPW said:
Hi feddomw, any idea who has the gear and knowledge to to the pressure check in NL?
Click to expand...
See if you can locate someone with an iCarSoft i905 scanner. I'm aware of people who've successfully used it to read AHC heights and pressures. Worth checking out if you don't wish to go down the Techstream path, noting the initial purchase cost and subscriptions for the Toyota approved package v the pirated copies and the installation vagaries associated with them.
 
Just order the TechStream yourself, both of you. It's hardly more work to connect and install than a new printer.
Really, if you plan on running ahc, it's a must-have item. Just by checking the parameters of the ahc system, you can solve most ahc problems without any hassle, or ignorant t0yota techie.
 
I was looking at the eBay cable from another thread. 60 bucks if I recall. I just need to score a cheap old XP laptop as I understand it.
 
Just ordered. Will give feedback.
 
PADDO or uHu: should I get the techstream and cable running and working, can either of you point me in the right direction for adjusting if need be?

The PDF/FAQ for adjusting TB's says it's for non-AHC... So I am bit lost on how to do it with AHC. Both as regards procedure (which steps) and how to calibrate the height sensors.
 
  • Like
Reactions: uHu
@feddomw, yep too easy. As soon as you get your Techstream running pm me (or @uHu) an image of your AHC data list screen shot (raised from L to N) along with your center cap center to fender bottom measurements at all four corners.
Do this all the time ;)
 
Thanks, very cool, will do! My OCD has kicked in and I now seem to see a noticeable drop in the front end. Like an old hot rod: ass up, nose down.
 
Quick update: still waiting on the Cable+software.
@PADDO/uHu: I will happily send you the info via PM as soon as I have it set up, but I was thinking, how about we do it here to save you some future effort? This could become the TB thread for 100's WITH AHC.
 
I have the cable! I did a quick test run today and got my AHC pressures, but I just realised that my car is running on fumes. Seeing as how I can fill it up with 150 liters (OEM Sub-tank), surely that will impact my pressures and I was not in the vehicle either. That's 250kg's missing to impact pressures.

Will update tomorrow, as well as measure center caps to bottom fenders measurements. Do you need these to the mm exactly? Should I break out the spirit level as I measure up from the center caps?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom