Builds "Rednexus" - 2007 GX470 Build and Fabrication Thread (5 Viewers)

[Rednexus]

One great thing about sleeping in the rig is that it's super easy to run out for an evening, get some camp time, then wake up, have camp coffee, and be home by 8 AM the next day. Especially if you live in an area with tons of public land within 35 minutes like I do.

Will take my son next weekend.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

One great thing about sleeping in the rig is that it's super easy to run out for an evening, get some camp time, then wake up, have camp coffee, and be home by 8 AM the next day. Especially if you live in an area with tons of public land within 35 minutes like I do.

Will take my son next weekend.
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Must be nice living 35 minutes away…enjoy.

I also enjoy sleeping inside the rig. It’s more comfortable, quiet, safe…

 

[Rednexus]

Must be nice living 35 minutes away…enjoy.

I also enjoy sleeping inside the rig. It’s more comfortable, quiet, safe…

Lots of awesome public land around here, but I still find myself driving 900 miles one way every year or two to get to the big mountains .

The original impetus for getting a sleeping platform was camping with one of my friends who slept in a camper shell. He was ready to go in 15 minutes, I had 45 minutes of breaking camp and then still had to air-dry my tent at home.

 

[CarGuyCarl]

Jealous of how close you are to easy camping.

Sleeping inside is definitely the best choice. It's so comfy and definitely feels more secure than in a tent. Idk if you did it, but I really need to do that mod where you can open the hatch from the inside.

 

[Rednexus]

I did the inner latch mod last year I think. Came out a bit janky, but does work! Used a lawn mower pull cord.

PS - don't sleep next to your keys. You might roll over on to them and hit the panic button in the middle of the night...

 

[CarGuyCarl]

Great point! I usually put the keys in a rear door pocket or third row cupholder lol

I really don't wanna be that guy especially if camping in a campground or with friends

 

[Rednexus]

Great point! I usually put the keys in a rear door pocket or third row cupholder lol

I really don't wanna be that guy especially if camping in a campground or with friends

Yup that was me. I suppose I can blame a few beers and camping at 11,500 ft when not-quite-acclimated . Now I've taken to hanging them on the coat hook on the 2nd row grab handle, but managed to drop them down between the sleeping platform and the door card (hard to fish out when half-asleep.....). I'll probably put a dedicated hook for them somewhere in the back.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

Just when I thought my Power Stop saga was over! Maybe the 1-star Google Review I gave them coupled with a photo of my tire covered with brake fluid from their POS hose actually did something. Regardless, it looks like I wasn't the only person they were selling junk parts to. Hopefully others will have their hoses replaced prior to losing their brakes.

They'll be getting a $250 invoice from yours truly for my personal labor in replacing the hoses. Ironman paid me before, I'm betting powerStop will tooI might also throw in the receipts for the new OEM Toyota hoses I replaced them with.
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Red,

Are you happy with the Toyota oem brake lines?

I have the same new Toyota oem brake lines with new GX460 calipers and rotors, and the pedal feels a little soft.

I was wondering if the ss lines make any difference in how the pedal feels compared to brand new Toyota oem rubber lines.

And good luck with the Power Stop refunds.

I was looking at other brands of ss brake lines

 

[LRDV8R]

Funny how this topic has come up at this time. Hopefully this provides some helpful information...

I put 460 calipers, EBC brake pads, SS lines on my 470. Bled the system, etc. This was all done about 10 months ago. Last night driving back from the local group meet, I noticed that my brake pedal felt soft. I thought this the other day as well. At this stage I haven't found any mechanical failures, but I believe I may need to bleed the lines again. I've read in a few places that several people have had success with a second bleed procedure. This most likely is more of an issue with air vs a SS brake line. I'm not convinced it's the lines that help so much as the air bleed. Having said that I am a fan of SS lines. The protection is worth it alone if you're wheeling.

 

[Rednexus]

I definitely noticed the pedal feel was softer with the OEM lines, and honestly it didn't seem to stop quite as well. Putting on EBC Green brake pads rectified that problem, and it stops much better than before, and has a firmer "bite" which makes the pedal feel better. But, the EBCs squeal at low speeds which is annoying, so they are not a perfect option. I did install MetalTech extended SS lines from the rear body to the rear axle, and they are M-USA and waaaaaaaay nicer than the crappy PowerStop lines were. Much more flexible and just nicer made overall. In hindsight, I would have gone with a non-PowerStop SS brake line option, such as StopTech or YotaMafia, which are honestly about the same price as OEM Toyota. I just went with OEM Toyota as they were cheap from Partsouq and I knew they would last for 15+ years.

@LRDV8R , I would suggest a re-bleed. When I replaced my SS lines with OEM Toyota I ended up having to re-bled them. I had bleed the brakes probably 3-5 times before on this rig a never had an issue, so I don't know what I got wrong when I re-did the lines. There were maybe 2-3 tiny bubbles in the PS rear caliper. This time I splurged for a Motive Power Bleeder, which was a good investment and let me bleed them solo, as opposed to Mrs. Rednexus having to operate the pedal (which she has done too many times).

 

[HomersCanyonero]

Interesting…so the soft brake pedal feel…is from either air bubbles in the lines (needing to re-bleed) or from less aggressive brake pads.

I do have fairly less aggressive Akebono ceramic pads because they don’t warp my rotors as easily as the ones that grab too much (mainly the Lexus oem brake pads)

The rubber lines only make a difference if they are old and bulging?

 

[Rednexus]

Interesting…so the soft brake pedal feel…is from either air bubbles in the lines (needing to re-bleed) or from less aggressive brake pads.

I do have fairly less aggressive Akebono ceramic pads because they don’t warp my rotors as easily as the ones that grab too much (mainly the Lexus oem brake pads)

The rubber lines only make a difference if they are old and bulging?

I think so....with the caveat that I re-bled my brakes and had 33s put on within 2 days of each other. They definitely stopped better after re-bleeding, but whatever benefits there were quickly disappeared with heavier tires. Its hard to say if I would have had a poor pedal feel with 33s and SS lines with OEM-style pads, but I now have good pedal feel with the OEM rubber lines and EBC pads. Maybe pedal feel would be awesome with the EBC pads and SS lines, but my comparison is not 100% apples to apples.

I'd just re-bleed and see how it feels.

 

[Rednexus]

It finally happened. Display started acting funky last night, and is either weird lines or totally black today. Multiple attempts at the reset button and a battery disconnect have not rectified it. I'm betting the digitizer is toast. Luckily, the HVAC still works, and Android Auto works too! I went ahead and ordered a new PX6. I'm betting my old one is around 5 years old.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

It finally happened. Display started acting funky last night, and is either weird lines or totally black today. Multiple attempts at the reset button and a battery disconnect have not rectified it. I'm betting the digitizer is toast. Luckily, the HVAC still works, and Android Auto works too! I went ahead and ordered a new PX6. I'm betting my old one is around 5 years old.
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That’s sucks that it only lasted 5 years.

 

[Rednexus]

That’s sucks that it only lasted 5 years.

Not unexpected for a Chineseium tablet. It was useful enough that I'm replacing it, but there also aren't any other options for nav rigs that provide Android Auto, GPS mapping apps for wheeling, and OBD2 monitoring.

 

[LRDV8R]

Toyota Landcruiser Land Cruiser Prado 120 J120 / Lexus GX470 GX 470 (2

Brand Name: TEyes Din: One Din Certification: CE Certification: EAC Display Size: 9" Operating System: Android Digital Media Format: Mp3 Digital Media Format: Mp4 Digital Media Format: WMA Digital Media Format: JPEG Special Feature: Wifi Function Special Feature: Support Steering Wheel Control...

www.teyes.com.au

This is what I have.

I should note the only issue I currently have is that when you adjust the temp it's either hot or cold. I believe this was due to me attempting to update the wrong thing and then not doing the install correctly again. I'm going to be taking the dash apart soon to try to fix it and add some other goodies

 

[LRDV8R]

Interesting…so the soft brake pedal feel…is from either air bubbles in the lines (needing to re-bleed) or from less aggressive brake pads.

I do have fairly less aggressive Akebono ceramic pads because they don’t warp my rotors as easily as the ones that grab too much (mainly the Lexus oem brake pads)

The rubber lines only make a difference if they are old and bulging?

Just a follow up...I've been doing some research on my own braking system and at the very least my accumulator needs to be replaced. My pump is coming on every time i push the pedal (should be more in the 3-5 range). Since mine has 280k+ miles and no history of replacement, I'm going to at least replace the motor and accumulator. I may just replace the entire assembly given the age and skip trying to play my luck.

If you want to check if this is your issue, turn the key to the on position (don't need to start the engine), let the pump prime the system. Then press the brakes as if you were doing a normal stop to see when the pump kicks back on. If it's coming on every press, your accumulator is most likely bad.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

Just a follow up...I've been doing some research on my own braking system and at the very least my accumulator needs to be replaced. My pump is coming on every time i push the pedal (should be more in the 3-5 range). Since mine has 280k+ miles and no history of replacement, I'm going to at least replace the motor and accumulator. I may just replace the entire assembly given the age and skip trying to play my luck.

If you want to check if this is your issue, turn the key to the on position (don't need to start the engine), let the pump prime the system. Then press the brakes as if you were doing a normal stop to see when the pump kicks back on. If it's coming on every press, your accumulator is most likely bad.

I haven’t really heard the accumulator make noises, but I’ll check when I get home later today.

 

[Rednexus]

280k is pretty good! The booster assembly failure is definitely on my radar. It seems less common on the GX than the 100, but does happen. I'm only at 185k but will likely proactively replace mine somewhere north of 200k.

 

[HomersCanyonero]

I did the test…turn key to on, accumulator primes, press the brakes after it finished priming…

Pump does not kick on

Pressed brakes a few more times and it’s all good.

Knock on wood it stays good!

I changed the brake fluid when installed the factory new GX460 calipers and rotors. Replaced hard and soft lines with Toyota oem brake lines.

Center rear brake lines are the MetalTech SS extended brake lines. Akebono ceramic brake pads.

I’m starting to wonder if the GX460 calipers might not be the perfect fit after all.