Builds Lexie/Land Bruiser Restoration Thread

[dwh13]

Some of you may know by now that I bought a seemingly nice '03 LX back in December that turned out to need some serious work. I always wanted a project car to learn to wrench on, since I'd never done much beyond brakes and oil changes. I definitely got what I asked for, and have spent way too much time and money on this thing, but I've learned so much doing it. I couldn't have done half of these things without y'alls help, and figured the least I could do is outline what I've done so far with a build thread. Enjoy!

As I found her. Initial inspection seemed good, so I hooked up my VW to the back and hauled it home.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Sagging rear wiper - really easy fix

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I bought this in December of 2017, so it had been a year almost to the day. No evidence of synthetic oil being used. Needed channel locks to yank this off.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Completely torn C/V boots

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New C/V joints.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Not terrible, but not great either.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

A little metallic silver paint, and...

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Good as new! Also used some leather dye on the transfer case boot.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New center caps, since it was missing most of them.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Rear liftgate struts were busted, along with the hood

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Good as new!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

 

[dwh13]

New gear oil for the diffs and transfer case

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018
• 2

So gross but so satisfying to change out.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

My AHC switch wouldn't put the truck into High. I tore it apart and saw the contact was corroded. Cleaning did no good, so I replaced the switch.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

The seat belts were disgusting. I hung them outside the door and pressure washed them, good as new.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Every single speaker needed to be refoamed. In my hand is what was left of one of the speakers.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Snapped two wheel studs trying to change the rear brakes. Major PITA.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New rear brakes.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Nasty old brake fluid. Who knows when it was last changed.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New clock spring from Amazon. It lasted a month.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I was so excited to test my new clock spring that I backed right into my DD Volkswagen

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

 

[dwh13]

So my VGRS actuator died right after having the steering recall done, and the dealer hit me with a $3,600 estimate. I refused, and called Lexus corporate. The next day, my truck was repaired for free.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New chrome bezel around the shift plate

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

She's coming along

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Cracked exhaust manifold replaced. No more ticking!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

A bit embarrassing, but my GPS never worked due to a "DVD door open" error message. I had no idea this thing was under the seat! I thought it meant the CD/DVD drive in the armrest, which was closed!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Once I closed it, I had navigation!

Updated the maps

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New dead pedal - the old one was broken and the PO tried to glue it back together.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018
• 2

Replaced the amazon clock spring after a month with a used OEM one.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

It had been a while since I saw no warning lights!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I noticed after washing my truck that the PS floorboard was wet, so I snaked the sunroof drains with weed whacker line.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Seeping valve cover gaskets

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

A peek inside

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Valve covers back on! No leaks in 8,000 miles! I was really nervous I'd kinked a corner on the re-install - it's really hard to keep the gaskets in place as you put them back on.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New, flexible valve cover gasket next to the burnt up, crispy gasket.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Fresh grease in the driveshafts/u-joints

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Crusty AHC fluid. Another "who knows when this was last done" thing

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Restoring the headlights with a wet sand/clear coat

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Not bad!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New GROM aux input install

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Installed a GROM aux input. Wish I'd just done bluetooth to avoid all the cables, but it works flawlessly.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

 

[dwh13]

New button bulbs...sometimes it's the little things

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I never got any airflow by my feet, so they were always freezing in the winter. Pushed on that carpet flap (thanks to a Mud tip), and...

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

A vent appears!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New heater T's

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I know how much y'all love old heater T pics

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I was hesitant to yank the running boards, but it really does look 100% cleaner without them and I haven't missed them once.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Trimming the mud flaps

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Trimmed the mud flaps down

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Much cleaner

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New AHC accumulators! Ordered these repurposed Citroen spheres from Pleiades in the UK

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Her first off road excursion

At Broken Nut off road park in Jefferson, SC

• dwh13
• Apr 14, 2018

My power seat controls never worked right, so I broke them apart, cleaned out some broken bits of plastic, and now everything works

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Well, except for the lumbar motor. The switch tested fine, and I don't care enough to replace the motor at $300, so I just shoved a towel in there

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Recurring code. I just dump a can of Seafoam and clear the code. Only happened three times so far.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New free AHC pump due to a mix-up at the shop! The old one started wailing randomly and wouldn't come out of Low.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I've been fighting this message since the beginning. Replaced the compressor, but finally realized I've got a leak at the condenser. A few pumps of refrigerant every few thousand miles keeps it at bay

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New rear cupholder - my old one was broken to pieces.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New steering rack bushings - the biggest PITA job I've ever done, but what an improvement! And much cheaper than a $1,000 rack

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

 

[dwh13]

5 new Cooper Discoverer AT3's for our cross country trip!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Cheap OBDII reader from Amazon - what a cool little gadget!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Cleaned the MAF sensor and throttle body, trying to eke out those last few MPGs

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

New keys cut

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Did a little R&R to the skid plate

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

She made it! We spent a week crossing the Alpine Loop in Colorado, thanks to a Mud member's suggestion. Here she is at the top of the Engineer Pass.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Engineer Pass, Alpine Loop, CO

• dwh13
• Jul 30, 2018

Dat articulation

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

After a 6,000 mile road trip, she earned/desperately needed a deep clean for the carpets.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Waxed the wood trim.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Upgraded to the Gen 4 nav computer

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Now that I've got 5 good tires, the spare needed to go into rotation, but was all rusty from a life under the truck.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

So I decided to plasti-dip them anthracite. Really pleased with how they turned out.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Before and after!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018
• 1

 

[dwh13]

I don't even know what happened, but my window moulding looked terrible

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Since I had some black plasti-dip left over from the wheels, I used that to repaint the trim.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

So much better!

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Close up.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

Crusty wipers

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

I couldn't get them off for anything, so I painted the windshield wipers in situ

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

The rear wipers had the same oxidation as the fronts

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

A little rattle can black and some clear coat fixed it right up.

• dwh13
• Aug 9, 2018

 

[dchilds]

Awesome work! I'm a ways behind you - your tale is inspiration.

 

[dwh13]

Awesome work! I'm a ways behind you - your tale is inspiration.

Thanks! Don’t give up on yours. At this point, I’ve spent more on repairs than what I originally paid for it, but I have no regrets.

 

[bozncsurf]

Wow - really enjoyed the thread. Feel like I actually learned something as well!

Awesome documentation

 

[saucebox]

Man, this is nice!

What do you get out of the Gen4 nav computer, or why did you switch?

 

[2000_land_cruiser]

Nice work !!! Its so nice to see all these coming back to life!

 

[allan man]

Great job! ( Liked ) the cold feet in the winter...me too until one day i peeked and saw the carpet was in the way!

 

[CA2GA]

This is really helpful. I'm inspired to triangulating my window trim. Where in Georgia are you?

 

[CA2GA]

This is really helpful. I'm inspired to triangulating my window trim. Where in Georgia are you?

Not sure how paint got autocorrected to triangulating!

 

[dwh13]

Man, this is nice!

What do you get out of the Gen4 nav computer, or why did you switch?

It really just lets you update the maps to 2016 and gives a little bit more modern looking interface - nothing crazy, but we found the car's nav useful enough in the mountains of Colorado where we couldn't use cell phone navigation that I decided to upgrade it. The Gen 3 system only has updates through 2013. Plus, Gen 3 systems sell for more on eBay for some reason, so I'm hoping to make a few bucks back.

 

[dwh13]

This is really helpful. I'm inspired to triangulating my window trim. Where in Georgia are you?

Glad you enjoyed it! If your window trim looks ratty, definitely give the plasti-dip a try! You might not even have to spend all the time covering the truck up like I did - any overspray wiped right off with a cloth. I could probably do it over again in 30 minutes if I had to.

Btw, not in Georgia, but close - Charleston, SC

 

[dwh13]

Great job! ( Liked ) the cold feet in the winter...me too until one day i peeked and saw the carpet was in the way!

Thanks! And yeah, I was convinced it was some kind of broken servo motor in the dash somewhere and that I'd have to take the whole thing apart and replace something expensive. But I randomly came across a thread where the guy was like nah, just push in on the carpet and voila! Cheapest mod to date

 

[bentonrover]

Awesome job sir

 

[D21FJ60]

Looks great

 

[yotasavg]

Nice job, following along!