n00b here, LX450 question(s)

[The Abbot]

Picked it up today... halp!

I'm picking up a '96 LX450 on Tuesday, and just wanted to get some advice from other cruiser enthusiasts on what to be aware of/look out for.

Problems I've found so far on the thing-
-181k on the odometer
-Brake + Airbag warning lights are on
-AC no workey
-Battery (1 yr old) wont hold a charge if the beast sits still for a day or two.


What else should I check out on it? I've already been lurking and found a wealth of info on things like the head gasket issue and some potential AC problems, this place is amazing... Looking forward to mining the info here for future mods and whatnot.

The cruiser in question runs like a song, no missing/lag in the shifting or engine, stock engine feels about right power wise for an inline six lugging a tank around.

 

[mikesean76]

Advice

You'll probably get beat up from the "salty" members for not reading the FAQ's or Rookie threads at the top of the Forum, or if you have, not mentioning it in the thread. Just remember details when making a post. Use the search feature in the forum-it works well and there's someone else that has had the same problem.
You'll spend hours just searching and reading the threads. I have even heard the wife say "i h8mud.com".
I think the airbad light comes on when the battery load gets too low-something to do with reserving power i believe. Happend to me too-just had the mechanic reset the OBD.
Welcome

 

[The Abbot]

Thanks!

I read the FAQ's and clicked the links in the stickies pertaining to newbies and "thinking of buying an 80" threads, nothing of much help there. As far as jaded old farts on the forum, as long as they give good advice relevant to the info I'm looking for, then they can "beat me up" all they want....


...but be warned, my kung fu is strong.

 

[nicholas]

Welcome

I have even heard the wife say "i h8mud.com".

My H8's MUD with a passion! She always refers to it as "my stupid mud site." However, those feelings of anger turned into feelings of gratitude when the cruiser performed flawlessly while running for over 26 hours straight (non-stop except for fuel stops) through a nasty whiteout blizzard in NE/WY/UT last winter.

You will find that MUD and the 80 section in particular is generally very civil and members are always more than willing to help you out as long as you are respectful of their time and do as much as you can to solve problems on your own first.

 

[hawaiicruz]

Welcome to the addiction

 

[retrofive]

You'll be fine Welcome!

.... and remember the natives get restless without pics!!

oh and buy a star

 

[canman]

Welcome - this could be the start of an addiction that only lots of money can cure
Here goes my 2 cents.
Before I picked mine up, I test drove it, and I believe there was some error code showing on the radio/CD player display when the CD button was pressed. I arranged to have the veh inspected by the local Lexus dealer, and they told me the CD changer was busted. I used this fact along with some other minor issues to slightly lower the asking price. After signing the papers, and on my way home I stuck some CD's I had brought with me into the changer for the hell of it, and to my surprise the CD changer worked fine and has to this day two years later (I think the display shows an error code if you press the CD button and there are no CD's loaded). Some other things to check, leaking knuckles which you probably have already read about. I fixed mine using all new Toyota parts incl new bearing/ bronze bushings a year after I had purchased it. I believe the parts alone were CAN$800.00 -$1000.00. Something else you might want to check is for cracking at the exhaust Y-pipe where the two manifold pipes come together.

Lets see some pics!

 

[The Abbot]

Thanks for the advice so far, keep it coming!

The vehicle is being sold by some farmers as a favor to their daughter. (Their daughter lives even further out in BFE than they do, I guess... which is bad, because they themselves live somewhere that gets very little traffic passing by.)

It has been sitting near the road since August, when I opened the hood to jump it for a test drive I discovered two birds nests in the engine compartment

It started right away once the cables were applied, and drove like a vehicle 10 years its junior. My main concern within the engine compartment itself is some slight weeping around the valve cover that has probably occurred slowly over the years, nothing major. I doubt the thing has been used very heavily off road, it was driven mainly in Dallas and I couldn't see anything underneath to indicate that it has ever been scraped/banged on anything solid. All the belts, hoses, etc are in good shape, nothing else besides the weeping valve cover to indicate that it has had anything burn, overheat, gush fluid, etc.

I'll post pics of before + after getting it detailed once I pick it up. (P.S.- I'm paying $4500 for it, the owners absolutely wouldn't go any lower... they were trying for $10k last August, but have since grown weary of it being a wildlife habitat and decided to drop down incrementally to the price I got it for.)

Was $4500 too high? Or did I find a good deal?

 

[jvazquez53]

Bienvenido!!! = Welcome!!! As soon as possible, pictures!

 

[Daisy 53]

Price sounds good. Is it locked?
Come on up to ABQ and we will go out and break it in

Daisy

 

[The Abbot]

I'm from ABQ originally, moved down to the southeastern part of the state almost three years ago. I make regular trips there, so I will DEFINITELY take you up that offer, Ms. Daisy from the moment I saw it, I immediately thought about putting it through the paces in the dead hooker garden. (Inside joke)

 

[Beowulf]

I immediately thought about putting it through the paces in the dead hooker garden. (Inside joke)

We sometimes go to the Rio Puerco area that is north of the dead hooker garden (you're sick!)

Ms. Daisy

It is Mr. Daisy.

-B-

 

[Beowulf]

Problems I've found so far on the thing-
-181k on the odometer
-Brake + Airbag warning lights are on
-AC no workey
-Battery (1 yr old) wont hold a charge if the beast sits still for a day or two.

Can't do anything about the odometer.

The Brake light can be several things; low brake fluid, e-brake on, or (more likely) a bad MC cap. They frequently go bad and you can get one cheap from Cruiserdan at American Toyota in ABQ.

I can't help with the airbag indicator lamp. There is a way to run diagnostics on the airbag system. You'll need the FSM.

Non-working A/C can be a lot of things. Mine didn't work when I bought it at 95k. Replaced the belt and it has worked perfectly for the past 8 years. Check the simple stuff first.

If a 1yo battery won't hold a charge for 2 days then there is a problem with something in the electrical system. You'll need to isolate what is drawing the current. Use a DMM that measures current.

-B-

 

[Daisy 53]

Lol, thanks Mike!

The battery could use a good, solid charge to renew it. Might work, might not.
Worth a try though...

Daisy

 

[The Abbot]

Can't do anything about the odometer.

The Brake light can be several things; low brake fluid, e-brake on, or (more likely) a bad MC cap. They frequently go bad and you can get one cheap from Cruiserdan at American Toyota in ABQ.

I can't help with the airbag indicator lamp. There is a way to run diagnostics on the airbag system. You'll need the FSM.

Non-working A/C can be a lot of things. Mine didn't work when I bought it at 95k. Replaced the belt and it has worked perfectly for the past 8 years. Check the simple stuff first.

If a 1yo battery won't hold a charge for 2 days then there is a problem with something in the electrical system. You'll need to isolate what is drawing the current. Use a DMM that measures current.

-B-

The owner explained that the battery is in the shape its in because she would carry her daughter inside from the backseat and not close the door completely, thus leaving the dome light on overnight (she went through several batteries this way), but I find it hard to believe somebody could be THAT flakey, and I won't believe her story until I get my Fluke on every conductor and contact point I can reach without gutting the thing entirely.


I had no idea Cruiserdan lived in ABQ, I would *much* rather have him give it an inspection that the people @ the local yokel Toyota place in Hobbs.... Hopefully, he's a cheap date on the weekends

PS- I honestly don't know if it's locked or not, I had no idea that was an option until I found this forum

 

[The Abbot]

oh and buy a star

Star purchased... a small price to pay for the wealth of knowledge and hard work of the admins.

 

[Daisy 53]

Look for a rotary switch to the left of the steering column, will say diff lock on it.
If you have that, you are in business
As far as the battery dying from the dome light being on overnight, it can happen. The fix is to get some of George's LED dome lights, will take a long time to kill a battery with those!

Daisy

 

[The Abbot]

Wow, I just now poked around on ebay and other car sites for 80's and 450s, with similar mileage and condition, and came to the conclusion I am getting a helluva deal

(as long as it doesn't have a colony of Mogwai living under the seat, waiting for me to leave food in it overnight then I'm good )

Thanks for all the great info, everybody! I will keep you updated once I pick 'er up.

 

[Rusty]

I'm just working a deal on a '97 LX450, paying nearly twice the price but it only has 150k KM or 90K miles. Oddly enough the A/C is pooched on this machine too, and there is a bit of a clunk in what I'm hoping is the drive line when you shift into drive or reverse from park... at least I hope it's just u-joints!

 

[The Abbot]

Ok, so I got the LX today, and am both pleased and worried at the same time.

The Good:
-Carfax came back clean
-Runs perfectly
-Body/frame are in primo condition minus a flake of paint gone from the bumper
-Battery, starter, and alternator are all fine



The Bad:
-Oil seepage from valve cover area worse than I first though- not flowing, but theres *alot* of oil and crud around it

-Oil pressure indicator drops to the bottom of the chart whenever I slow down or come to a stop and idle

-passenger power seat won't slide forward or backward (searched and found the info I need on this one)

-Brake + Airbag lights are still on, even after allowing the battery to get a solid charge and doing the master cylinder sensor removal test I read about in another thread

- seems to go through coolant rather quickly (The reservoir was empty, but the radiator was full at time of pickup... I filled the reservoir to the "Full" line, and 60 miles later, it was back down near the low mark)

-No stock electronic dif locking

-battery charge gauge tends to stay rather high on the scale compared to other vehicles I've owned



I didn't take any pics because it was dark, rainy, and gloomy outside...wouldn't have been able to get decent shots, but I will DEFINITELY take and post some tomorrow, will also perform the tests I've found posted pertaining to the head gasket issue.