New to the GX470 scene (1 Viewer)

[waynegro]

Greetings,

I recently bought a 05 GX470 w 164k miles and I’m completely new to the GX470 offroad/overlanding scene. I already slapped a set of FN FX Pro wheels and a set of Cooper AT3 tires on it. Between the 0 offset and the more aggressive A/T tire it completely changed the look of the vehicle.

Over the last couple months I’ve done countless hours of research reading the forums and I still have some questions that seem like they could use a year ‘2020‘ updated response.

My 05 has Navi with the ML sound system. I want/need to interface my iphone with the vehicle. Whats the best upgrade as of now, all the threads on this seem to be a year plus dated and the verdict was out on the telsa screen. Is the Telsa screen holding up durability wise and have the bugs been worked out? What about the beat sonic mva-81? Anything else worth condemning? Seems like a legit solution to get BT interface.

I want to also start doing some preventative maintenance on this tank as well. It has a s***load of dealer records but I haven’t seen anything on trans/diff fluid changes or thermostat or anything suspension wise ect. I know this is a beast of a truck but as a possible all these things haven’t been changed by 164k? I am coming from German vehicle ownership and the car would’ve fallen apart twice over by now.

I’m legit excited about this Japanese tank of a SUV. Its not perfect but so far its pretty badass.

 

[IwantPrado]

Welcome, Wayne!
Don't be shy and please share photos of your tank!
I can't comment on the multimedia equipment as I still run the stock ML stereo (and never listen to it).
From preventative and routine maintenance standpoint, I highly recommend you baseline the GX (fluids, filters, drivetrain lube, etc.). Even though you can't compare Japanese car maintenance to German cars, Lexus still requires regular maintenance even though it won't show any signs of failure for much longer than the German car would (as you've noted above). That way you can start from clean slate and know everything is done according to your standards. Get a spread sheet going of the items, cost and dates for future reference. You may be pleasantly surprised that once you get the main items out of the way (timing belt, water pump, radiator, CV axles, brakes, stereo, etc.) how cheap it is to own and maintain this Toyota product. You will get lots of life and happy memories out of your 160+k mile GX.

 

[MrTorgue]

Greetings,

I recently bought a 05 GX470 w 164k miles and I’m completely new to the GX470 offroad/overlanding scene. I already slapped a set of FN FX Pro wheels and a set of Cooper AT3 tires on it. Between the 0 offset and the more aggressive A/T tire it completely changed the look of the vehicle.

Over the last couple months I’ve done countless hours of research reading the forums and I still have some questions that seem like they could use a year ‘2020‘ updated response.

My 05 has Navi with the ML sound system. I want/need to interface my iphone with the vehicle. Whats the best upgrade as of now, all the threads on this seem to be a year plus dated and the verdict was out on the telsa screen. Is the Telsa screen holding up durability wise and have the bugs been worked out? What about the beat sonic mva-81? Anything else worth condemning? Seems like a legit solution to get BT interface.

I want to also start doing some preventative maintenance on this tank as well. It has a s***load of dealer records but I haven’t seen anything on trans/diff fluid changes or thermostat or anything suspension wise ect. I know this is a beast of a truck but as a possible all these things haven’t been changed by 164k? I am coming from German vehicle ownership and the car would’ve fallen apart twice over by now.

I’m legit excited about this Japanese tank of a SUV. Its not perfect but so far its pretty badass.

As for your radio options you have a few. You could get a box that plugs in to the back of the factory unit to use carplay on the crummy nav screen or install one of these below like I did. Please keep in mind all of the options are essentially an Android radio and there are growing pains and features that partially or fractionally work. I wasn’t able to find an old school Kenwood/Alpine headunit like solution like in the old days. I literally just want carplay on a responsive screen.

It has wireless and wired carplay yes but the audio mic for the voice calling/siri that came with it is weak and there will occasionally be a hiccup with the wireless carplay feature. Overall I’m only partially satisfied. I really am not a fan of android so it’s a chore to use.

 

[waynegro]

That screen totally modernizes the interior and ins surprisingly not crazy expensive. So when you say some features partly work, do the main features reliably work? Such as: Streaming Bluetooth pandora music, podcasts, apple maps, phone calls, etc? How is the sound quality? Does the touch screen interface feedback and inputs work well? Do you think this platform will be supported for awhile? It still seems pretty unknown and obscure. It blows me away the these cars have such a cult following Andy have been out for 15+ years and there are not an abundance of aftermarket options.

 

[waynegro]

Welcome, Wayne!
Don't be shy and please share photos of your tank!
I can't comment on the multimedia equipment as I still run the stock ML stereo (and never listen to it).
From preventative and routine maintenance standpoint, I highly recommend you baseline the GX (fluids, filters, drivetrain lube, etc.). Even though you can't compare Japanese car maintenance to German cars, Lexus still requires regular maintenance even though it won't show any signs of failure for much longer than the German car would (as you've noted above). That way you can start from clean slate and know everything is done according to your standards. Get a spread sheet going of the items, cost and dates for future reference. You may be pleasantly surprised that once you get the main items out of the way (timing belt, water pump, radiator, CV axles, brakes, stereo, etc.) how cheap it is to own and maintain this Toyota product. You will get lots of life and happy memories out of your 160+k mile GX.

Thanks for the reply. I know the water pump and serpentine belt was done around 90k, but no record of timing belt at all. The PO said it was done around 120k so hopefully he is right. Am I right to think it most likely had to of been done by now or the motor would of grenaded by now? The secondary air pump was Donne already also.

 

[MrTorgue]

That screen totally modernizes the interior and ins surprisingly not crazy expensive. So when you say some features partly work, do the main features reliably work? Such as: Streaming Bluetooth pandora music, podcasts, apple maps, phone calls, etc? How is the sound quality? Does the touch screen interface feedback and inputs work well? Do you think this platform will be supported for awhile? It still seems pretty unknown and obscure. It blows me away the these cars have such a cult following Andy have been out for 15+ years and there are not an abundance of aftermarket options.

I’ll try and be as succinct and direct as I can.

1. All of the carplay functions work perfectly.
2. While you can use your phone’s hotspot to connect the radio to the internet and such you have to do it every time you turn on the vehicle. And by that I mean you have to turn the WiFi back on the radio and turn the phone’s hotspot off and on for the radio to connect again.
3. I don’t use pandora but I use iHeartRadio and the phone’s music playback both work perfectly.
4. I use Waze and not Apple Maps and it works brilliantly. (*see pic)
5. I haven’t been able to adjust to the dumb on screen HVAC controls. They’re abysmal.
6. Changing the volume is also abysmal with no knob. Thankfully my steering wheel volume buttons still work.
7. The touch screen is quite responsive and is of high quality. However...
8. ...the screen has the WORST GLARE EVER.
9. Does not display the current external temp.
10. You need to redneck science a backup camera solution since it doesn’t play nice with your factory camera natively.
11. It’s fairly easy to install.
12. The provided microphone for the voice commands (siri) / calls is atrocious. I haven’t figured out another solution yet.
13. Wireless carplay works intermittently and disconnects periodically during driving.

I’ll add more as I think of them. Here’s a few more pics. The bottom one with the glare, that’s 90% of the time it’ll look like that in the daylight. I’ve got a possible solution I’m working on...

 

[IwantPrado]

Thanks for the reply. I know the water pump and serpentine belt was done around 90k, but no record of timing belt at all. The PO said it was done around 120k so hopefully he is right. Am I right to think it most likely had to of been done by now or the motor would of grenaded by now? The secondary air pump was Donne already also.

Look up lexus maintenance records once you register on lexus website and enter your vin. Thats the only way to know when timing belt was done. Otherwise you're just guessing. I assume that with water pump and SAIS done, timing belt would have been taken care of. If it was done at 120k, you'd be ok for 10 years since then or 200-220k miles on yours.

 

[waynegro]

So the secondary air pump need to be done every 100k or so? Isn’t there a by pass kit that’s suppose to get around the issue? I looked up the service history through Lexus and that’s how I know the water pump and serpentine belt were done at 90k, I was surprised to see they did not have the timing belt done at the same time. If the PO is to be trusted, I’m guessing the timing belt was done at a Indy shop or another dealer where he bought the car from. For peace of mind I think I’m gonna have a shop check out the belt to see if it looks original or not or if there is a sticker anywhere.

 

[bugoutrig]

Thanks for the reply. I know the water pump and serpentine belt was done around 90k, but no record of timing belt at all. The PO said it was done around 120k so hopefully he is right. Am I right to think it most likely had to of been done by now or the motor would of grenaded by now? The secondary air pump was Donne already also.

i didn’t have that record either, but the previous owner said a mechanic friend did the water pump/timing belt when he had to change out the radiator (sketchy but I got a good deal lol). I would recommend just popping off the timing belt cover and taking a look at its condition. You’re looking for factory markings and stuff that would be worn off after 90k+ miles. I’ve heard that timing belts have sometimes lasted 300k miles and haven’t seen many threads of breakages. BUT that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to risk it. Checking behind the timing cover will give a bit of peace of mind/tell you how urgent getting it changed is.

 

[waynegro]

I’ll try and be as succinct and direct as I can.

1. All of the carplay functions work perfectly.
2. While you can use your phone’s hotspot to connect the radio to the internet and such you have to do it every time you turn on the vehicle. And by that I mean you have to turn the WiFi back on the radio and turn the phone’s hotspot off and on for the radio to connect again.
3. I don’t use pandora but I use iHeartRadio and the phone’s music playback both work perfectly.
4. I use Waze and not Apple Maps and it works brilliantly. (*see pic)
5. I haven’t been able to adjust to the dumb on screen HVAC controls. They’re abysmal.
6. Changing the volume is also abysmal with no knob. Thankfully my steering wheel volume buttons still work.
7. The touch screen is quite responsive and is of high quality. However...
8. ...the screen has the WORST GLARE EVER.
9. Does not display the current external temp.
10. You need to redneck science a backup camera solution since it doesn’t play nice with your factory camera natively.
11. It’s fairly easy to install.
12. The provided microphone for the voice commands (siri) / calls is atrocious. I haven’t figured out another solution yet.
13. Wireless carplay works intermittently and disconnects periodically during driving.

I’ll add more as I think of them. Here’s a few more pics. The bottom one with the glare, that’s 90% of the time it’ll look like that in the daylight. I’ve got a possible solution I’m working on...

View attachment 2445343

View attachment 2445342

View attachment 2445341

Side

Thanks for all the info. I’m really torn on this setup. What do you mean so when you say the wireless CarPlay drops off sometimes? Are you plugging your iPhone into the setup via a cord mostly? Also you said you have to use a hotspot to connect to the radio? So do you have to open a hotspot to use the iPhones features instead of just using its regular data? The constant glare is a buzzkill too. Thanks from the insight!

 

[waynegro]

i didn’t have that record either, but the previous owner said a mechanic friend did the water pump/timing belt when he had to change out the radiator (sketchy but I got a good deal lol). I would recommend just popping off the timing belt cover and taking a look at its condition. You’re looking for factory markings and stuff that would be worn off after 90k+ miles. I’ve heard that timing belts have sometimes lasted 300k miles and haven’t seen many threads of breakages. BUT that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to risk it. Checking behind the timing cover will give a bit of peace of mind/tell you how urgent getting it changed is.

That’s crazy some of these t belts last for 300k! Like you said I’m gonna take the cover off and see what the deal is, hopefully it looks newer. The vehicle runs pretty flawless so part of me just wants to roll it for a while and enjoy it. But I know it could probably use some new spark plugs, tstat, fluids, maybe some suspension work. I want to see how many miles I can get out of this tank. I’m gettin 17mpg so far. Not bad!

 

[MrTorgue]

Side

Thanks for all the info. I’m really torn on this setup. What do you mean so when you say the wireless CarPlay drops off sometimes? Are you plugging your iPhone into the setup via a cord mostly? Also you said you have to use a hotspot to connect to the radio? So do you have to open a hotspot to use the iPhones features instead of just using its regular data? The constant glare is a buzzkill too. Thanks from the insight!

You can either use the phone/android WiFi connection to run carplay OR use the wired connection. If we are running wireless sometimes it disconnects.

You do not need to use the phone’s hotspot to use any of the carplay apps if that’s your question.

The glare would be a deal breaker if I was in the market for a new radio. I hope my anti-glare solution works when I finish it.

 

[IwantPrado]

So the secondary air pump need to be done every 100k or so? Isn’t there a by pass kit that’s suppose to get around the issue? I looked up the service history through Lexus and that’s how I know the water pump and serpentine belt were done at 90k, I was surprised to see they did not have the timing belt done at the same time. If the PO is to be trusted, I’m guessing the timing belt was done at a Indy shop or another dealer where he bought the car from. For peace of mind I think I’m gonna have a shop check out the belt to see if it looks original or not or if there is a sticker anywhere.

Here's what I did with the SAIS when I was replacing the intake manifold gasket due to coolant leak. I've placed a breather filter on the pump to hopefully extend it's life as the system is working properly now. It it fails, the bypass may be the way to go, but then the truck may not pass emissions testing if one was needed.

 

[IwantPrado]

That’s crazy some of these t belts last for 300k! Like you said I’m gonna take the cover off and see what the deal is, hopefully it looks newer. The vehicle runs pretty flawless so part of me just wants to roll it for a while and enjoy it. But I know it could probably use some new spark plugs, tstat, fluids, maybe some suspension work. I want to see how many miles I can get out of this tank. I’m gettin 17mpg so far. Not bad!

Spark plugs are fairly easy. Here's my experience with this job: