My AHC failed (1 Viewer)

[2008LX]

I have an '08 LX570 with 137k miles. Only owned it about a year; bought with 125k miles. Right after I bought it I had the 120k service done including the AHC service.

Couple days ago I noticed a lot of oil/liquid in the driveway under the driver rear tire area. No AHC light on the dash and the car was at normal height. Took it to my local independent mechanic and he said it was the AHC system and advised I take it to Lexus as it was beyond his expertise. On the way home from the mechanic the AHC dash light came on. By the next day the truck was sitting all the way down.

Lexus offered to come get it but I didn't want it driven in that condition so I called AAA to tow it to the dealer. Funny thing happened next. When the AAA guy pulled my LX onto the flatbed, the AAA truck bed had a catastrophic hydraulic fluid failure spilling gallons and gallons of red hydraulic fluid onto the street. Maybe my LX's hydraulic issues are contagious!

Anyway the LX is at the dealer now. Im hoping its something small like a rusted line or failed bolt somewhere. But realistically I'm expecting this to be really expensive.

Just thought I would share my experience since the reliability of the AHC is a frequent topic here. Overall it seems like a reliable system but my experience is obviously not good. I had it inspected at a Lexus dealer prior to purchase and it got a clean bill of health. Im also a little miffed since I had the recommended service done on the system fairly recently and no issues were noted at that time either.

Wish me luck on a cheap fix! Anyone else had a failure like this?

 

[LivEviL]

Ugh, good luck man.

 

[1world1love]

I have an '08 LX570 with 137k miles. Only owned it about a year; bought with 125k miles. Right after I bought it I had the 120k service done including the AHC service.

Couple days ago I noticed a lot of oil/liquid in the driveway under the driver rear tire area. No AHC light on the dash and the car was at normal height. Took it to my local independent mechanic and he said it was the AHC system and advised I take it to Lexus as it was beyond his expertise. On the way home from the mechanic the AHC dash light came on. By the next day the truck was sitting all the way down.

Lexus offered to come get it but I didn't want it driven in that condition so I called AAA to tow it to the dealer. Funny thing happened next. When the AAA guy pulled my LX onto the flatbed, the AAA truck bed had a catastrophic hydraulic fluid failure spilling gallons and gallons of red hydraulic fluid onto the street. Maybe my LX's hydraulic issues are contagious!

Anyway the LX is at the dealer now. Im hoping its something small like a rusted line or failed bolt somewhere. But realistically I'm expecting this to be really expensive.

Just thought I would share my experience since the reliability of the AHC is a frequent topic here. Overall it seems like a reliable system but my experience is obviously not good. I had it inspected at a Lexus dealer prior to purchase and it got a clean bill of health. Im also a little miffed since I had the recommended service done on the system fairly recently and no issues were noted at that time either.

Wish me luck on a cheap fix! Anyone else had a failure like this?

So you’ve driven 12k miles since the AHC flush? Have you ever noticed any fluid, ever so slight, in your normal parking areas?

 

[Phalen302]

Keep us posted. Most likely a leak due to age/rust of the pipes vs complete failure.

 

[TeCKis300]

Curios what this will turn out to be.

The main reservoir is behind the passenger side rear tire. Much of the accumulators and subsystems are along the two frame rails.

At the driver side rear tire, is minimal componentry. Just the AHC line there and the AHC shock/hydraulic piston. About $250 per (EDIT $250 per front, $80 per rear). They'll have to replace and bleed the fluid of course.

It's rare but there's been rear shock leaks. No outright gushers like this so the jury is still out to what it is.

Hopefully they didn't fill the system with some other fluid when they serviced it last? What color was the fluid on the ground?

Funny story with the flatbed!

 

[2008LX]

So you’ve driven 12k miles since the AHC flush? Have you ever noticed any fluid, ever so slight, in your normal parking areas?

Nope. Never noticed any leaking at all. I never use the system intentionally. It only kicks in when I'm at a stoplight on a slope. Honestly I wish it just had regular springs since I never plan to offroad it.

 

[2008LX]

Curios what this will turn out to be.

The main reservoir is behind the passenger side rear tire. Much of the accumulators and subsystems are along the two frame rails.

At the driver side rear tire, is minimal componentry. Just the AHC line there and the AHC shock/hydraulic piston. About $250 per. They'll have to replace and bleed the fluid of course.

It's rare but there's been rear shock leaks. No outright gushers like this so the jury is still out to what it is.

Hopefully they didn't fill the system with some other fluid when they serviced it last? What color was the fluid on the ground?

Funny story with the flatbed!

The liquid was yellow/light brown. I would hope it was the correct fluid but it seems like even the dealership service techs know very little about the system which is kind of annoying. They should have knowledge of all components on the vehicles they sell especially a flagship model like the LX, even if they are a little more rare.

 

[1world1love]

Yeah, you would think. My experience has been the same, but they see so few of these for anything more than normal service. I think most of the techs are pretty capable, but some go many years without doing an AHC repair.

 

[TeCKis300]

Correction, fronts are ~$250 per. Rears are far cheaper at ~$80 per.

Light yellow/brown isn't too far off. It's a lightweight mineral oil based fluid. Pretty clear when new with a pink hue.

Hopefully they didn't put brake fluid in there which has happened before.

 

[nwfl4runner]

you got rust?

 

[2008LX]

you got rust?

Some for sure but its by no means a rust bucket. I had it checked out underneath prior to purchase and all was well. My indy mechanic has also never mentioned troubling rust and actually complimented its condition for the age. I think it was originally in New York when new and I live in Ohio so a rusted component is certainly a possibility.

 

[hickuptruck]

Two bucks says its a rusted rear line. Seen a couple of those myself in the midwest of early LX570s. The rear areas get all the salt and crud spray and tend to corrode faster.

 

[ryanCA]

Sorry to hear!

Keep us posted

 

[bloc]

Two bucks says its a rusted rear line. Seen a couple of those myself in the midwest of early LX570s. The rear areas get all the salt and crud spray and tend to corrode faster.

That could also explain the sudden leak nature of this, vs dash lights and not acting right before leaks or any other outside symptoms.

 

[fro20fow]

inspections @ the dealer don’t mean much as they generally check basics like sunroof and radio functionality. You might want to ask them if they even inspect the undercarriage and if so what are they checking. I’m guessing rust was most likely the cause as well. In one way shape or form rust can cause smalls things to deteriorate allowing dirt or metal to get into systems causing trouble.

 

[2008LX]

Just got the video diagnostic from Lexus. They identified the rear driver side shock and the hydraulic line running to it as the culprit. He didn't say in the video how it happened so I will ask that when he calls.

He also said the car wouldn't start at first and the battery tested as failing. I have never once had an issue with the battery so that was a surprise.

 

[Docboy]

Just got the video diagnostic from Lexus. They identified the rear driver side shock and the hydraulic line running to it as the culprit. He didn't say in the video how it happened so I will ask that when he calls.

He also said the car wouldn't start at first and the battery tested as failing. I have never once had an issue with the battery so that was a surprise.

The battery failure sounds suspicious. Dealership trying to drum up extra business during covid times?

 

[turbo8]

You're lucky it wasn't the driver side rear shock line! That was a pain to remove.

 

[TeCKis300]

Battery may have been drawn down by the AHC pump trying to maintain pressure without sufficient fluid in the system.

 

[2008LX]

I'm definitely replacing the battery myself. If it even needs to be replaced. I'll have it tested at AUTOZONE when I get the car back.