Newbie to Lift Kits

[Fancy Pants]

Looking to get a little direction from you fine folks. I've got a 2003 LX - daily driver. Prior owner had the air ride overridden so it would stay in high. Made all the adjustments to alignment and such. Hit a speed bump a few weeks ago and heard a thunk. Now it's stuck in N or stock height. Doesn't look great with wheels and tires rub a bit if cut hard in reverse. Appears that the accumulators are shot and will need to be replaced along with the shocks.
Figured it would probably be a good time just to switch to a conventional lift kit and suspension. I am not a mechanical guy and am fortunate to have a friend who is a Toyota mechanic who does my work on the side, so he will be doing the work. I don't do any serious off-roading - we have a lot of trails here in E TN, so I can ride around with the family.
So my question is regarding what is the best options for a lift and change. Economic and simple.

I found this kit on Rocky Road - LExus LX470 Lifts Kit: Old Man Emu Lexus LX470 Lift Kit

Is that all I'll need? What is the reason or advantage for adding the torsion bar?

Thanks for any help and apologize for what is probably the equivalent of a toddlers question.

 

[saucebox]

Lots to find out in search, but the short answer is that an AHC torsion bar isn't equipped to carry the weight of the truck alone. So you'd need stock LC torsion bars or something like the OME torsion bars to compensate for not having AHC carrying some of the weight.

Fastest way to answer your question is to give the guys at one of the vendors a call. Of course they sell the stuff, but they'll know all about how to set you up with the right springs, right shocks, etc. so you can get the best use out of your LX. Kurt or Bryce at Cruiser Outfitters would be the experts on OME, and Jason over at Trail Tailor is best for the Tough Dog stuff. Slee is in Colorado as well. Any of those three (and there are more than them, obviously) can help you short cut a ton of internet research. ACC is in Atlanta (I think?), and I've heard good things about them as well.

 

[gregnash]

Lots to find out in search, but the short answer is that an AHC torsion bar isn't equipped to carry the weight of the truck alone. So you'd need stock LC torsion bars or something like the OME torsion bars to compensate for not having AHC carrying some of the weight.

Fastest way to answer your question is to give the guys at one of the vendors a call. Of course they sell the stuff, but they'll know all about how to set you up with the right springs, right shocks, etc. so you can get the best use out of your LX. Kurt or Bryce at Cruiser Outfitters would be the experts on OME, and Jason over at Trail Tailor is best for the Tough Dog stuff. Slee is in Colorado as well. Any of those three (and there are more than them, obviously) can help you short cut a ton of internet research. ACC is in Atlanta (I think?), and I've heard good things about them as well.

Yup, second this...
Biggest thing you need to think about and contemplate at this point is "What do you plan to do with the truck?"
Think long and hard about this and what your goals for the near term future are and then if you plan to keep the truck indefinitely, what the long term future looks like. This will help guys like Kurt or Jason or Georg steer you in the right direction for what you need. All three are VERY active on these forums and not only talk the talk when it comes to cruisers, but walk the walk.

 

[suprarx7nut]

As somebody that's owned and driven a variety of 100's with different suspensions, consider this opinion: the "best" suspension system for mixed use is the AHC suspension you already have. Everything else is a marked downgrade. AHC sucks when it's broken, just like any other suspension, but when it's working well, it's wonderful. Variable ride height is amazing.

If you spend $4k+ on a really good set of remote reservoir shocks (Slee/Icon, etc...) and well-chosen springs you can get better off-road performance, but on road comfort will suffer. If you get something that's comfy and highway-oriented you'll suffer on washboards and you'll not be as lifted for the fun trails. AHC does both really well AND AHC provides the highway driving experience of a non-lifted truck (a good thing) and provides you with a 2-3" lift on demand (very good thing).

If you're looking at the $1-2k options I don't think the results are even close. A repaired AHC system will be better in 95-99% of use cases. The OME shocks/springs are not good for a rig without full armor. I'd strongly advise against it.

Pending what is needed (I'm guessing a set of globes and some sensor/spring adjustments) reviving AHC might also be your cheapest option. Don't be fooled by all the internet myths and erroneous repair estimates. AHC isn't a grenade waiting to go off once you address the basic maintenance of the system - most of which are cheap or free.

The only significant downside to AHC is that you (or your mechanic of choice) need to understand how AHC works. Once you really know how it works and what parts wear, I think it's easy to live with and enjoy the benefits of AHC.

 

[Kabanstva]

I liked the AHC and loved the damping setting adjustment as well as raising and lowering it, but can't really say it ever rode as good as some of you guys are claiming. I seriously think my Sienna rides better unless we are talking about hitting big pot holes or something, which an LX is better at with AHC. My LS430 rides FAR better than a stock LX. Maybe I am spoiled and my opinion of what rides good is different than others here.

 

[jLB]

I believe @suprarx7nut is correct on a couple of items:

A fully functional AHC system on an otherwise stock vehicle is hard to beat, especially for a daily driver with no plans of "serious off-roading" as the OP states. If you're willing to systematically troubleshoot the issue(s), or have a local shop that is willing to do so, this is probably the best course of action for a DD with your self described use case.​

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An OME kit (especially the OME shocks), on an otherwise stock vehicle, is more than likely going to be an extreme disappointment.​

The questions that I'd be asking:

Are you looking to repair/replace a malfunctioning hydraulic suspension, with a conventional suspension for "simplicity", and really don't care about a "lift"?​

​

Are you looking to replace your existing hydraulic suspension, with a conventional suspension, because you want the aesthetics of a "lift"?​

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Are you looking to replace your existing hydraulic suspension, with a conventional suspension, because you're exceeding the capacity of the existing system?​

​

In my experience, "lifting" a 100 series, if you want it done correctly, it is going to take more than just the basic OME kit.

With all of that being said, I'm pretty happy with my Tough Dog setup from @TRAIL TAILOR on my mostly stock LX470.

 

[suprarx7nut]

I liked the AHC and loved the damping setting adjustment as well as raising and lowering it, but can't really say it ever rode as good as some of you guys are claiming. I seriously think my Sienna rides better unless we are talking about hitting big pot holes or something, which an LX is better at with AHC. My LS430 rides FAR better than a stock LX. Maybe I am spoiled and my opinion of what rides good is different than others here.

If your Sienna rides smoother I wonder if your AHC was ever really up to spec. Have you experienced it with fresh globes and tuned pressures?

I don't doubt that an LS430 can ride as smooth or better, but that's not really the question here. The question here is what is the simplest path towards a comfortable ride in a 100 currently equipped with AHC. When people are making this decision, it's important for them to understand the significant comfort difference between AHC and a conventional system on this chassis.

I think the only time a conventional 100 suspension feels remotely as comfortable as AHC is if you're comparing it to a broken/untuned AHC system.

 

[Fancy Pants]

Some interesting replies here. I was happy with the ACH when it was working. However, I was under the impression that for the expense of repair and the probability of issues continuing to rise, perhaps it was better to switch to a conventional suspension and lift.
I do want the aesthetics of a lift. So basically an override switch was installed to keep the ACH from lowering at 15mph. So prior to the failure the ACH was always in high.
What would you guys estimate repairing the system might cost?
Would you do anything else to maintain the system if I'm keeping it in High?

 

[Biga27110]

I recently went from AHC to OME its stiffer because its more heavy duty. Unless your 65+ or have back problems it drives great and smooth. If the roads are bad its terrible but thats also true for AHC.

 

[suprarx7nut]

Some interesting replies here. I was happy with the ACH when it was working. However, I was under the impression that for the expense of repair and the probability of issues continuing to rise, perhaps it was better to switch to a conventional suspension and lift.
I do want the aesthetics of a lift. So basically an override switch was installed to keep the ACH from lowering at 15mph. So prior to the failure the ACH was always in high.
What would you guys estimate repairing the system might cost?
Would you do anything else to maintain the system if I'm keeping it in High?

System Repair: Perhaps free (if you just need to adjust torsion bars). You need to measure and test.

1. You need to check neutral pressures. For that you need techstream. See here: How-To: TechStream In 5 Minutes

2. Adjust torsion bars to get pressures in spec.

3. Replace rear springs if needed. If rear pressure is too high, it's normally just a worn out spring pair. Buy new OEM springs for OEM weight rigs, King springs for armored. If you want a lift, install a 30mm spacer to OEM springs (just over an inch lift). $75-$300.

4. Once pressures are verified and the heights are correct, do your graduation check in the reservoir. If the test reveals fewer than 7 graduations, buy a set of 4 new accumulators. $1000.

5. Enjoy your comfortable and capable ride.



The AHC system is not overly complicated, but it can be intimidating - especially if you read all the incorrect repair estimates online. All the info you need to maintain and repair it is on here. It's just a normal mechanical system with some pressurized air (globes/accumulators) and hydraulic fluid/pump/rams to supplement the mechanical parts.

AHC shocks (technically more of a ram) essentially last forever. You probably do not need to replace yours. They can fail, but it's rare. AHC springs and accumulators last as long as normal shocks and cost about as much (or less) when compared to the closest competitor shocks (Icon/Slee, etc..).

I recently went from AHC to OME its stiffer because its more heavy duty. Unless your 65+ or have back problems it drives great and smooth. If the roads are bad its terrible but thats also true for AHC.

If your AHC ride felt terrible on bad roads, you may not have had functional AHC. With functional AHC potholes, disrepaired roads and washboard county roads are laughably smooth in comparison to a traditional setup. It's not a subtle difference in my experience, it's pretty extreme.

I'm not sure about your specific experience, but I fear this is a big part of the attitude towards ditching AHC. I think many folks have a dysfunctional AHC system and then compare it to the traditional systems they install and think the traditional is similar or better than AHC. From there, they'll always post "I ditched AHC and now my car rides great" which can be really confusing to new owners. When in reality (I think), most those folks removing AHC probably just haven't experienced a functional AHC system. I've got an OEM suspension 99LC in great shape and an 06LX in "good" shape (lots of bad bushings still) so I drive them back to back on a regular basis. The 06LX with AHC is a totally different experience when it comes to suspension comfort. I think it's important for folks debating this decision to understand that they're removing a lot of functionality and comfort. Additionally, pending exactly you go about it, the traditional swap can be much more expensive.