Sweet , sounds like some common failure points have already been fixed . Cooling system maintained, valve cover leak sealed up...all signs that someone took care of the rig. Hopefully no hidden gremlins .
Looking at 05 LX but not sure about frame rust
- Thread starter dgamby
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- #22
Or at least not too many. As you mentioned the AHC will be an important one to check.
Thats a good 7/10 condition. That surface rust in the front cross member can be easily addressed with rotary wire brush then finished off with paint.
Whoa whoa whoa how did you use the Lexus service history? I've been finding that the drivers.lexus.com site has been acting wonky for the past two months, and I can't add a VIN to check service history at all.
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- #25
Maybe I got lucky. I just made an account at the Lexus site and then added a car with the vin and clicked around till I found service history.
Thanks. I made a new account and it worked.
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- #27
Glad you got it sorted!
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- #28
A little bit of a hail mary here. The truck looks good according to the mechanic but is throwing an open circuit in center lock dif code (C1340) not sure if this should terrify me, or no sweat since I'm not planning to go offroad anytime soon? If it weren't for that I'd be full speed ahead.
Any thoughts? I'm doing research through the forum now, but am on a bit of a clock on making this decision.
Any thoughts? I'm doing research through the forum now, but am on a bit of a clock on making this decision.
I'm not sure the exact fix for this but I feel like I've seen a few threads that mention it and it may be as easy as replacing one of the sensors on transfer case.
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- #30
Thanks. I'm not worried about it too much at the moment. It isn't an active check engine light or anything like that, just a code the mechanic pulled when he plugged into the truck. That and the rain-sensing wipers have a fault. I think I can live with that!
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- #31
I just wanted to say thanks for everyone who weighed in on the decision. I'm moving forward with purchasing the truck and am mostly excited and a hair nervous.
One last question, I don't know if the heater T's have been replaced, if they haven't, is that important enough that I should try to fix that before driving it 10 hours back to where I live?
One last question, I don't know if the heater T's have been replaced, if they haven't, is that important enough that I should try to fix that before driving it 10 hours back to where I live?
People on these forums are paranoid about heater ts but its up to you. it's never a bad idea to maintain parts that can wear out ,break, and leave you stranded .
Maybe just a visual inspection of the Ts will help make the decision.
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- #33
The paranoia may be having an effect on me! The mechanic who looked over the car was reluctant to lay hands on them lest he knock something loose on a car neither of us owned yet, but he said when parts like that go they tend to discolor and these looked ok. But I hadn't seen anyone on these forums talk about the T's being discolored before they gave up the ghost!
Lol the paranoia will run deep the more you read the forums , just need to put logic ahead of forums .
The reality is they probably need to be replaced at some point . I got rear ended so hard at a red light one of my tees broke lol so it doesn't take much i guess.
Couple ways of thinking about it , if you break down is that going to leave you stranded or could you get a tow . Do you have the time to deal with that . Or should you just replace it for peace of mind ..
It's definetly a wear item that should be replaced but hard to say how urgent that is not knowing the history of the vehicle .
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- #35
All fair points. I think I will at least travel with the T's. Since, I am flying down I would probably need to ask a shop to do it for me, instead of me trying to do it in a grocery store parking lot or something.
What rust? All my lifetime SoCal 4Runners in my sig line look the same underneath.
This has been my reliability experience with our '06 LX mall queen that we bought (bought out a friend's lease) in '09 with 25k miles...now has 143k miles...
Failed and replaced, or failing now: SAIP failure, on our 3rd alternator as of a year ago, replaced lightly-leaking readiator 3 yrs ago, starter motor as of this week, mechanic says main seal starting to go but I see barely any oil leaking. One or two stuck brake calipers replaced.
PM replacements completed: timing belt and related stuff, rebooted CV's, heater t's when we did radiator, rubber boots over UCA ball joints Replaced the AHC "shocks" as they were leaking per my pricey boutique mechanic, whom I divorced after that fleecing.
This has been my reliability experience with our '06 LX mall queen that we bought (bought out a friend's lease) in '09 with 25k miles...now has 143k miles...
Failed and replaced, or failing now: SAIP failure, on our 3rd alternator as of a year ago, replaced lightly-leaking readiator 3 yrs ago, starter motor as of this week, mechanic says main seal starting to go but I see barely any oil leaking. One or two stuck brake calipers replaced.
PM replacements completed: timing belt and related stuff, rebooted CV's, heater t's when we did radiator, rubber boots over UCA ball joints Replaced the AHC "shocks" as they were leaking per my pricey boutique mechanic, whom I divorced after that fleecing.
- Thread starter
- #37
Thanks for weighing in on the rust. Sounds like you've had more than your share for what is heralded as a very durable truck. Several of the things you've mentioned have been addressed by the previous owner but I'm definitely keeping a repair budget as I know there will always be something. Thanks for sharing your experience. Hopefully, you can go repair-free for a while!