LX470 Noob (1 Viewer)

[tsimich]

Just picked up an ‘01 Lexus LX470! The AHC seems to be shot. Was planning on a lift instead of trying to fix AHC. Opinion?

2.5 or 3” lift and bigger tires. I’ll be searching the forum to find examples I like! Knock out the general maintenance, and then eventually some armor!

 

[ramangain]

Welcome.

Get Techstream pronto. Read the threads about connecting to your rig to get connected. Then read the threads about AHC maintenance etc.

THEN lob your questions like mortars

 

[LCtoLX]

Welcome to MUD and congrats on your LX470.

Is she stuck in L? Our son is “borrowing” my wife’s recent DD, a 2001 LX470 and recently complained about the AHC not working properly. It wouldn’t go from N to H. Would try but would give up after about a minute. I checked the fluid level and it looked fine. Took it to a trusted friend/mechanic and after some time he told me that after adding fluid and doing a bleed, all was well. As it turned out, the level “looked” ok. But I was judging the level by what I could see from the outside of the reservoir. As it turned out, the plastic was stained (dark) and it appeared to be full, but it wasn’t.

Good luck with your troubleshooting efforts. Although getting rid of AHC is a route some take, some of us like it and in my case, was able to dodge a bullet.

 

[suprarx7nut]

It's rare that removing AHC makes sense. Get Techstream running first and we can help advise from there.

Welcome!

 

[95Fantasma80]

Tech Stream, adjusting torsion bars, new rear springs, new ahc fluid.

Probably under $400 and I'm sure you'd be able to get back into spec and enjoy that amazing system if no leaks and accumulators in good shape. You can also try 30mm spacers to bring back to life the rear springs which is cheaper then rear springs.

You just want to make sure you don't have rusted out lines with leaks, or shot accumulators which brings up your cost ... but if it's something simple like springs, torsion bar, and fluid.. you'd be crazy rip out AHC and dump 1-2k for a less capable system.

Here are the benefits of that fully active suspension:

 

[95Fantasma80]

Link to Tech Stream i bought:

Amazon product ASIN B07BCNPDDG

 

[92LXAZ]

Agree with the above, highly unlikely it's shot with those low miles.

 

[ls6]

Try out the AHC before you chuck it, its pretty nice when sorted.

After you get the techstream cable mentioned above use these threads:

How-To: TechStream In 5 Minutes

Getting Techstream up and running can be a bit of a pain. Hopefully this helps someone get started quickly. Step 1: Purchase an OBD-II / Mini-VCI interface. - I have sold out of my cables and supply chains are back in order, so no reason to purchase more. Anything like this will work: Mini-VCI...

forum.ih8mud.com

The ABCs of AHC - How to Measure, Flush, and Adjust all in one place

I initially put this in the Definitive list of AHC maintenance items thread, but at almost 800 posts long and growing, it's going to get buried and the thread itself is very unwieldy. In an attempt to make as focused a summary as possible, I present "The ABCs of AHC." It's intended as a...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[SoAZ100]

Sooo, are you going to tell us how you came across your LX? There's has to be a story behind such a low mileage 2001. Granny's garage?

 

[Spacemunki289]

You're sitting at barely over 100k, I'm at 200k and the AHC is still running strong. I know of systems at 300k that are still fully viable. You've got to give it a shot, it's worth the monetary risk. An AHC flush alone is a very low cost solution (3L fluid = $90, tools for flush = around $30, 1 hour of your time max in work) and will likely get you up and running. Mine rode well at purchase (jet black fluid sadly, still hurts to think about it), and after a flush it was a completely different vehicle. Link to a good flush video below.

youtube.com/watch?v=2Q_8j7Pj0vU