Builds Lexie/Land Bruiser Restoration Thread (2 Viewers)

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It’s about a 5 hour trip from Charleston. Yeah definitely let me know next time y’all go up!

As MongooseGA said a few of us ATL LC/LX owners usually meet up once a month for a trail ride. You are more than welcome to join us anytime. There is a North Ga Mountain Trail Ride thread in the Trips/Trails Forum toward the bottom of the main forum page. Check there every once in a while and it will have our trail ride meeting info.
 
My fiancé and I took the old girl on a 20 hour round trip voyage this weekend from Charleston to Myrtle Beach to the Outer Banks and back. Other than throwing P0420 and P0430 codes a few times, she didn't miss a beat! Not bad for a 280k mile rig.






 
I also couldn't stand looking at my mud-stained plasti dip anymore. It looked great when I first put it on, but after one trip through mud, I realized nothing I tried cleaned them off.

Here's what they looked like after my best attempt at cleaning:


I bought some wheel paint from Home Depot that I saw recommended on here, but when I applied it, it was much lighter than I was expecting. Great match to OEM, but I wanted darker...


Since I already had the wheels off and prepped for paint, I had to find something in a hurry. I rode around to every auto store in town to find enough cans of Duplicolor Graphite spray paint. I'm really happy with the result - they have that slick glossy finish I missed from the plasti dip and that will make them much easier to clean. I also had them rebalanced to move the wheel weights to the inside.

 
Great build, thanks for sharing! What paint from Home Depot did you use? Im looking for something close to the OEM color.
 
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I also couldn't stand looking at my mud-stained plasti dip anymore. It looked great when I first put it on, but after one trip through mud, I realized nothing I tried cleaned them off.

Here's what they looked like after my best attempt at cleaning:


I bought some wheel paint from Home Depot that I saw recommended on here, but when I applied it, it was much lighter than I was expecting. Great match to OEM, but I wanted darker...


Since I already had the wheels off and prepped for paint, I had to find something in a hurry. I rode around to every auto store in town to find enough cans of Duplicolor Graphite spray paint. I'm really happy with the result - they have that slick glossy finish I missed from the plasti dip and that will make them much easier to clean. I also had them rebalanced to move the wheel weights to the inside.

Looks great.

How did you keep the Lexus emblem on the center cap from getting painted (how or did you mask it) ?
 
hey buddy, you have any side shots of that gray to see how it looks on the car, I need a spray on my wheels badly and considering stock color or this duplicolor graphite
Sure thing - here's just a quick one I took afterwards. Haven't had a chance to take a decent pic with her cleaned up yet

 
Looks great.

How did you keep the Lexus emblem on the center cap from getting painted (how or did you mask it) ?
Super easy, they're just held on by tabs. Use a screwdriver on the back to push out the tabs and it'll come right off.
 




I KNOW, y'all are having a spasm at hooking up a garden hose to the cooling system, but it was in there for maybe 30 seconds, and was immediately flushed with a gallon of coolant. She's withstood much worse abuse :rolleyes:

By the way, I used this video from ChrisFix to flush it. Awesome step by step video for novice wrenchers like me.





Thanks @CloudCity for the grille! Another awesome Mudder to work with if y'all get the chance!


Do you still have your old grille? My inner hood release bracket is busted on mine and I have been looking for a replacement.
 
I like your headliner storage. Is that just a mesh net secured to the handles or do you have some sort of support/bracketry in there, too?

Kudos for getting your fiancee to drive as well. I took mine out to some trails last month and had a blast teaching her how to drive off road. Definitely a departure from the norm. Idk, there's something really gratifying about being able to use your own vehicle to teach/impress your significant other.
 
I like your headliner storage. Is that just a mesh net secured to the handles or do you have some sort of support/bracketry in there, too?

Looks like just mesh kinda tied to the handles? Blue Ridge Overland sells this if you're looking for something "plug and play." Kinda pricey IMO but I haven't found a 100 specific one anywhere else. I'll probably grab one at some point.
 
I like your headliner storage. Is that just a mesh net secured to the handles or do you have some sort of support/bracketry in there, too?

Kudos for getting your fiancee to drive as well. I took mine out to some trails last month and had a blast teaching her how to drive off road. Definitely a departure from the norm. Idk, there's something really gratifying about being able to use your own vehicle to teach/impress your significant other.
Yep it's just hung up there with the clips that came with it, attached to the second and third row grab handles. $15 on Amazon.
Link
 
It's been a big week for Lexie. Her big repair was a new a/c compressor. I had it done at a local independent shop so no pictures of that.

Backed out of the garage before the door was all the way up - cracked the garage door, but the only thing that happened to the rig was it broke off my washer nozzle.

This weekend's project: Replace the tie rod ends and cracked steering rack boots.

Old vs. new - the boot on the old one was trashed, and the ball joint was very loose.

Old vs. new rack boot - it was split between every pleat.

Done! Really simple job.

The passenger side was a bear though. I think I beat on the thread end of the TRE too much and mushroomed it into the steering knuckle. After 4 hours, no amount of beating on the knuckle, pickle forks, or PB blaster would budge it. Ended up taking it to a local tire shop to let the pros handle it. $45 well spent.
 
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Google “OTC ball joint and tie rod puller,” for the next time you have to separate ball joints. You can usually rent them at your local auto parts store ( o’reilly’s) but I eventually bought my own set. Makes the job much easier.
 

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