My AHC failed (1 Viewer)

[bloc]

Make sure they install a group 27 and not the smaller group 24 or 35. They will bolt in but not have the same reserve capacity.

To answer the complication question though, you might have to cycle the ignition a couple times before it starts, and in rare instances have to re-center the steering electronically (less sure on that last part) but it’s pretty straightforward. 10mm combination wrench and 12mm wrench or socket/ratchet.

 

[TeCKis300]

My '09 seems looks fine in regards to the two lines. There's about 3/4" of clearance.

Coming from underneath the chassis forward of the rear axle, one can stick their phone up to take a video and see pretty clearly if there's an issue.

I would say this a manufacturing/production defect and try to call out Lexus on it to see if they'll cover some of the cost. I know it'll be tuff for something well past warranty but can't hurt to try. With production defects as these, they generally affect certain production batches. Wonder if over time we'll be able to better identify those.

 

[Reckless]

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.

Reminds me of my LX470. Had similar problem at 115k miles. Lucky for me Slee offered ARB kit which I switched out. I planned to do same thing with LX570 but they don't offer a kit. $2k is not too bad every 50-100k miles IMO. But after numerous issues with LX470 AHC I wanted to be extra careful. i worry when AHC parts get rusty with large mileage how many issues it will start giving. Might want to spray fluid film before winter months to protect the lines.

 

[hickuptruck]

Reminds me of my LX470. Had similar problem at 115k miles. Lucky for me Slee offered ARB kit which I switched out. I planned to do same thing with LX570 but they don't offer a kit. $2k is not too bad every 50-100k miles IMO. But after numerous issues with LX470 AHC I wanted to be extra careful. i worry when AHC parts get rusty with large mileage how many issues it will start giving. Might want to spray fluid film before winter months to protect the lines.

AHC delete is available for LX570. Its been documented in this forum.

 

[Reckless]

It wasnt available when I was in the market. It doesnt sound like many people have succesfully done it.

 

[Mixelplix]

Anyone know how these lines are flared? Since I live in the rust belt I'll be doing this some day.

I'm wondering if I could double flare come copper-nickel line to prevent it from happening again?

 

[13LXNJ]

I had a similar issue, leak from near the driver's side rear. Lost fluid and the vehicle was stuck in low. It happened while I was driving slowly offroad so I noticed right away when the fluid hit the exhaust and was smoking. I pulled the AHC fuse to save the pump and drove it the 100 miles back home in low rider mode . Initially, I thought the leak was coming from the top of the shock but eventually found it to be two lines that crossed too close and wore a hole in one. I bent the bracket that held the lines further apart, replaced the two lines and bleed the system again with new fluid. Been good as new for the last year.

Here is the parts schematics, highlighted lines below. Where they cross circled in red is where I found the pin-sized hole.

View attachment 2335828

Here are all the parts and part numbers I used, removing the muffler provided lots of room under the vehicle and I replaced all the gaskets which I think are single use:

Part Number	Part Name	Price	Quantity	Total
49164-60023	Hose Suspension Con	260.87	1	260.87
48997-60010	Tube Height Control	66.85	1	66.85
48942-60020	Gasket Height Control	2.64	1	2.64
44327-30040	GASKET, PRESSURE PORT	2.64	1	2.71
08886-81221	Suspension Fluid	13.81	7	96.67
Muffler parts:
17451-0D140	Converter & Pipe Gasket	30.72	1	30.72
90917-A6003	Intermediate Pipe Gasket	12.26	1	12.26
90917-06093	Tailpipe Gasket	14.36	1	14.36

The rubbing location was about 5 inches from where the line attaches to the top of the shock.
View attachment 2335839

I have a 2013 LX 570 (NJ based) with approx 87000 miles. I just went through the same AHC issue with a rusted line that was smoking as I was on my way to a family vacation. I paid $2400 (almost all in labor) after replacing 3 height control tubes (48997-60010, 48998-60010, and 4899-60010) which they claim were rusted. They started me at $4,020 and worked with me on the price. I had to remind them that they never recommended or changed the AHC fluid during my 60,000 maintenance service. Apparently it didn't matter. The shop foreman stated " I should never have to change the fluid since it sealed"?. I am not joking. I never miss the maintenance on this truck since I want to keep it for another 100,000 miles(or more). Things like this experience make me think twice.

 

[razzyrazz]

I had 2 rusted height control tubes last year in the same area on the truck. Something about those tubes makes them very prone to rust. All the others have zero rust. Very minimal rust on the rest of the truck. Lexus wanted close to 1500 to replace them. I took the part numbers from their quote and bought the tubes online for around 300 total. Their parts charge was close to 600. Took it to a highly rated independent shop and they replaced both and filled up AHC fluid which I provided. Charged me another 300. 700 total cost including fluid. Not hard to replace the tubes with proper tools and a lift. Unfortunately both lexus service centers around here know even less about AHC than I do from reading the forums, so paying dealer premium for anything AHC related isn't worth it in my case.

 

[elibutton]

mine just failed tonight. I saw a leak on the driver side rear. now it is stuck in low and will not adjust, got the warning light. Is it okay to drive ot the dealer?
or should I tow it?

 

[2008LX]

mine just failed tonight. I saw a leak on the driver side rear. now it is stuck in low and will not adjust, got the warning light. Is it okay to drive ot the dealer?
or should I tow it?

Earlier in the thread someone mentions pulling the fuse and driving it 100 miles in low mode. Not even sure if pulling the fuse is necessary if you just turn the system off. Maybe someone else can chime in about that. I have AAA and my dealership is probably a 30 minute drive on the highway so I had mine towed when this happened to me.

 

[razzyrazz]

mine just failed tonight. I saw a leak on the driver side rear. now it is stuck in low and will not adjust, got the warning light. Is it okay to drive ot the dealer?
or should I tow it?

Same general location as my leak was. Wonder if its the same tubes.

 

[grinchy]

mine just failed tonight. I saw a leak on the driver side rear. now it is stuck in low and will not adjust, got the warning light. Is it okay to drive ot the dealer?
or should I tow it?

you can drive it. if the pump keeps trying to pressurize the lines you will need to pull the fuse. drive safely . . .

 

[NoClue]

The line that pops is on the driver side above the exhaust. What causes it to corrode is the heat wrap retains moisture, and slowly eats away at the line itself. Here's a pic of a line that I've changed with the heat wrap peeled away :

Edit : When I do change them out, I remove the heat shrink on the new line and coat the lines with either fluid film or cosmoline, and apply copper anti-sieze to the new line's threaded fittings.

 

[elibutton]

Here's an update to my recent post about my LX570 leaking hydraulic fluid near the back driver's side tire - - Well I just got a call from my Lexus dealer - I'll try to repeat what he said - "there are 2 pipes that connect in the assembly, and there's a permament fitting there where it's connected and that is where it is leaking - - so the entire assembly needs to be replaced". That part costs $800.

The exhaust needs to be lowered to do this job = 4 hours of labor. So total bill is around $1,700. My 2013 LX570 has 100,800 miles on it and I am quite taken back that this popped up as an issue and broke down that early. I don't possess any do-it-yourself-mechanical-skills, so that means I'm at the mercy of the bill(s).

 

[2008LX]

Here's an update to my recent post about my LX570 leaking hydraulic fluid near the back driver's side tire - - Well I just got a call from my Lexus dealer - I'll try to repeat what he said - "there are 2 pipes that connect in the assembly, and there's a permament fitting there where it's connected and that is where it is leaking - - so the entire assembly needs to be replaced". That part costs $800.

The exhaust needs to be lowered to do this job = 4 hours of labor. So total bill is around $1,700. My 2013 LX570 has 100,800 miles on it and I am quite taken back that this popped up as an issue and broke down that early. I don't possess any do-it-yourself-mechanical-skills, so that means I'm at the mercy of the bill(s).

Mine was about $1,900+ so similar to yours. It sucks.

 

[elibutton]

you can drive it. if the pump keeps trying to pressurize the lines you will need to pull the fuse. drive safely . . .

Thank you for the feedback. I ended up driving it to the dealer - about 13 miles away - mostly highway - kept it around 65, and it did just fine. Someone mentioned it could be a rough ride but it handled normal - couldn't tell, even though I was in "Low" the entire time. Thank you.

 

[razzyrazz]

Mine was 500 in labor at local indy shop plus a little over 300 by buying the 2 tubes online. Dealership quote was around 1500. I just used their quote for the part numbers.

 

[NoClue]

I never have to remove the exhaust to replace lines. Just sayin'

 

[tincan45]

The line that pops is on the driver side above the exhaust. What causes it to corrode is the heat wrap retains moisture, and slowly eats away at the line itself. Here's a pic of a line that I've changed with the heat wrap peeled away :

View attachment 2518917


Edit : When I do change them out, I remove the heat shrink on the new line and coat the lines with either fluid film or cosmoline, and apply copper anti-sieze to the new line's threaded fittings.

Thanks for posting this picture. All too often we see people considering North East LX purchases posting with title "Too much rust?" This is exactly why you need to be leery buying an LX with any significant level of rust. These lines are the first to go for some reason. Probably because they are extremely high pressure and they can't use more rust resistant metals (pure speculation).

Sorry you had to deal with this. You might want to crawl around and make sure there are no other trouble spots lurking. I'd also like to see the overall rust on the undercarriage if you could snap a few pics. Would be great reference material.

 

[g1701gst]

I have only done a line replacement once and removing the exhaust gave me much-needed room to work. Accessing this area (Drivers side in front of the rear tire, inside frame rail) behind a heat shield would be challenging with the exhaust still in place. With the exhaust in place, I am sure it wouldn't be possible to use a torque wrench on many of those fittings.