Scored 2007 LC w/174K AHC

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Looks like the boot is leaking on the bad side of the clamp indicating a tear- (hope not) have you wiped away and inspected? Strange for the outer boot to fail since it's a plastic material not prone to splitting vs the inner being rubber. If it's not torn and leaking, crimp it and see what happens.

Looks like the engine oil staining/leak is migrating from above the gasket.

The other portion of your punch list seems pretty nominal- reasonably corrected. As long as you got good mechanical platform you've got a nice one.
 
Can't wait to check it out on Saturday! I've always felt that color is BY FAR the most beautiful color a car can be, 100 series or otherwise.

All joking and small talk aside, whenever the time comes to sell your 2001 I'll pay whatever you want for it :clap:
 
It's a great feeling when a plan works out as planned, so congrats. I'm curious to what the title issues are.
 
Looks like the boot is leaking on the bad side of the clamp indicating a tear- (hope not) have you wiped away and inspected? Strange for the outer boot to fail since it's a plastic material not prone to splitting vs the inner being rubber. If it's not torn and leaking, crimp it and see what happens.

Looks like the engine oil staining/leak is migrating from above the gasket.

The other portion of your punch list seems pretty nominal- reasonably corrected. As long as you got good mechanical platform you've got a nice one.
It's been so long since I've done a boot job, but I didn't recall any plastic HUM... I've really not looked it over yet (cold today), other than both side leaking at same point. That point does appear to be on inside so re-clamping won't help. Good eye my friend.

I've not seen where both side start leaking at same time. So wonder if anyone else has?

I suspect it has to do environment, vibration and/or stance. I find it fun playing detective on a warm evening in the garages..so can't wait for warmer weather, to further explore this mystery.

Here's the DS:
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Oil leak:
I've never seen the oil pan or transmission pan leak at this spot, and only drive side.. HUM... So I do agree from clues it's most likely from somewhere else. If I'm lucky it's spillage, oil filter seal or loose head cover bolts would be easy stuff fix. Once I get engine cover and #1 & #2 under shielding off, I'll get a better look. I'll take hundreds of picture during inspection, to zoom and inspect further. Zooming in on my PC for inspection is so cool, an a great aid to my eyes. After review of pictures, I'll wash, then inspect and then degrease. Then watch for reappearance of leaks or lack their of.

This does look like the easiest restoration project mechanical I've done. Really just a base-line form preliminary inspection indication.

I always count on servicing wheel bearing including pulling knuckle to clean/inspect axle bushing & bearing, this one's no exception at this point. With Boot kits & seal, $350

I'll flush all fluid, ~$300-+

I've got a good sets of 18" & 16" wheel & tires, I'll use for road test. $0.00

My stock of Leatherique, cleaners, wax, polish, pads and compound are good. ~$80.00

I've gotten this stuff down and have all the tools now. I could do mechanical stuff in 7 days & detail in 7. But no, I get months of enjoyment as I'm so slow.

No tools for body dings or spray paint, so depends on level of perfection $??.??.

I'll be looking for bumper this year with good paint for both my rigs. Hope to find some more deals on 100's, as I hunt.
 
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Care to detail how you detail with specific products? Pun intended.
 
Yeah the Toyota cv re boot kit has two different types of boot materials. The inner boot is a thick heavy rubber composite, and the outer boot is a thinner plasticized composite, the two are very different.
 
It's a great feeling when a plan works out as planned, so congrats. I'm curious to what the title issues are.
Thanks.

Well first off the ad lack detail, and had very few pictures which I could not see much in them, and there was no VIN. It was like pulling teeth to get VIN from PO and communication was spotty (poor). I had just run into similar seller out LV, NV. that is trying to pass of a very high mileage as low. Anyway, after weeks just to get to this point I set up a inspection. With the drive being 260 round trip I asked my son to help convoy it back. I pulled a car fax at this time, something I generally do after the deal is cut. But with distance, poor communication & reluctance to give VIN I thought I'd spend the extra now. I found a mileage roll back notation and entry. Then just as I was getting on the HWY to head up the mountain to inspect & buy, I get a follow-up answer to my question on clean title in hand. PO said it's a certificate of title, and can't find title. I'm not sure what is the deal so I asked for text with picture of it, as I turn around and call off the trip.

So on inspecting the title I find it has one name listed as owner and not the seller whom I'm dealing with. That's not the bad part. The seller has singed and owner signature is on it too but no notary. Additionally I suspect by the way it's signed it is forgery, and it was. Additionally It's from a state that issues titles with liens noted on it, and it has a lien. Third unlike Colorado the issuing state requires the signature be notarized which it was not, nor could it now be do too two signature (forgery).

Ok at this point who wouldn't walk from this deal. Harboring the VIN, out of state title, no notary, forgery, mileage roll back alert, poor communication and long distance transaction dealing with two states.

Well at this point the deal was good enough I took time too VET the info. First mileage roll back didn't look right, so I tracked down the Dealer and found they made a mistake. Which I requested they submitted to car fax the correction, they did.

Second I deducted they forgery was not criminal, I was technically correct all thought it was done without permission and made title useless.

Third I spoke with the various state departments to learn what would have to be done to correct and transfer title.

Each State warned me do not do the deal with the lien on the title. That these deals go bad most of the time, and almost never go through the first time even when they don't go bad.

I came up with a game plan and gave seller specific instruction on what would need to be done, how and with whom. Basic two plans one called for getting lien remove, which I suspected wouldn't happen and it did not. They other with me payoff the lien, which I've done.

Without getting into the personal affairs of the seller & owner both told me don't give the other money. But in the end I got them both to agree each gets some money, and I'm working with each independently. This finally got things moving.

The steps completed:
Get duplicate title clean of signatures.
Get all parties to agree on procedure that be will followed, in writing documenting everything.
Inspect vehicle, title & registration and take possession of all with singed agreement from seller.
Give seller deposit.
Getting title, bill of sale, vehicle power of attorney and specific performance agreement signed & notarized by owner (named on title).
Pay off lien at bank giving specific instruction for whom & how release of lien letter shall be delivered.

Next steps:
Waiting on release of lien letter to be received from bank by all parties.
Make finally payment to seller & owner.
Transfer title.

I'm contemplating my options on how to title now.

Care to detail how you detail with specific products? Pun intended.
Body trim polishing & correcting compounds

Yeah the Toyota cv re boot kit has two different types of boot materials. The inner boot is a thick heavy rubber composite, and the outer boot is a thinner plasticized composite, the two are very different.
Interesting.
 
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Yeah the Toyota cv re boot kit has two different types of boot materials. The inner boot is a thick heavy rubber composite, and the outer boot is a thinner plasticized composite, the two are very different.
I can't remember, was this the same spot your boots were ripping?
 
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I just found something cool, which may explain leaky boots

I knew the vehicle had been at the Dealer for some shock(s) replacement. I've now found the receipt in the glove box. Apparently the front shocks were leaking and fluid was low. From what @PADDO has said; they will leak a bit but don't generally need replacing. Regardless with level low the front end tends to dip and rises with every stop and changes in angle of vehicle. This rig came from the mountains, roads changing angle often, and temp do drop very low.

Perhaps the boots were getting a real working as AHC keep rising & lowering in very cold weather for some time. When shocks were replaced boots most likely looked good. But sometime later started to seep. With the inner tire tread wearing slightly, it is very possible a sign the AHC is not set-up properly. This would increase angle on boot(s) beyond what they're design for during normal driving.

So I'll see when I pull the wheel bearing how they look and if they may have contributed. But I think low AHC fluid is leading cause of both side going at same time. The tire balance, bearing chatter, wide gap on snap ring may have been minor contributing factors, will see how they look later.

What is also really cool, is PO had all fluid with exception of transmission flushed 15K miles ago.... NICE.....
 
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Must of been a good deal on the cruiser to go thru all that bs with the title.
 
Must of been a good deal on the cruiser to go thru all that bs with the title.
It was, and even more difficult than I've stated. But a win for each party involved.

I'll be happy once I've perfect the title, as I'm still at risk. But I feel now my risk would be additional time before title merchantable, if something was to go wrong. But I've strong legal documentation and everyone's happy.
 
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Holy cow that is some effort you have had to take and still have more to do. I would never have been able to pull this off because I hate paperwork, let alone trying to get others to do paperwork. Hope it ends well for you.
 
I just found something cool, which may explain leaky boots

I knew the vehicle had been at the Dealer for some shock(s) replacement. I've now found the receipt in the glove box. Apparently the front shocks were leaking and fluid was low. From what @PADDO has said; they will leak a bit but don't generally need replacing. Regardless with level low the front end tends to dip and rises with every stop and changes in angle of vehicle. This rig came from the mountains, roads changing angle often, and temp do drop very low.

Perhaps the boots were getting a real working as AHC keep rising & lowering in very cold weather for some time. When shocks were replaced boots most likely looked good. But sometime later started to seep. With the inner tire tread wearing slightly, it is very possible a sign the AHC is not set-up properly. This would increase angle on boot(s) beyond what they're design for during normal driving.

So I'll see when I pull the wheel bearing how they look and if they may have contributed. But I think low AHC fluid is leading cause of both side going at same time. The tire balance, bearing chatter, wide gap on snap ring may have been minor contributing factors, will see how they look later....
You're right @2001LC in that these "shocks" rarely need changing as leakage/weeping is almost always caused by high neutral pressures and exasperated by old low viscosity fluid - lack of basic PM and system understanding. Seemingly if you roll into a dealership with an AHC vehicle and rough/uncomfortable ride the canned answer is too often "new shocks" when the root problem may we'll be due to high pressures, old fluid or gas in system. I also wonder if the mechanics changing out "AHC shocks" go to the trouble of fully pre charging them with fluid and expelling out the air prior to installation, the system design doesn't really encourage proper purging if you change these out.
 
@PADDO I finally got the software load for my (new to me) MINI-VCI J2534. Now I need to learn how to use and read all the data. Any suggestion of learning aids is appreciated.

All three LX I had last year (my first experience with AHC) had low AHC fluid and were high mileage rigs (215, 267 & 299k miles). I flushed them according to your easy to follow instructions, THANKS! All had signs that front drive shafts had been replaced. Also all needed ball joint boots, either upper each side or lower each side but not both. Which I felt was from improper service of wheel bearing and or AHC. AHC constantly going up & down and improper angle during normal drive just worn out boots IMHO.

I'd sure like your opinion here:

Do you think the low fluid (constant up and down of height), old fluid and improper set-up (stance & pressure) of AHC systems would cause early failure of these CV boots at the points I'm seeing?

It's been about 15K miles since Dealer replaced fronts & flushed AHC. So do you think the system self purged the air (assuming Dealer did improperly) by now?

Do you think I should re-flush AHC fluid, and should I do anything special in this case (new fronts)?

BTW: Ride seem ok for what little I've driven. Front end height looks a little high (minimal stink bug). I have over 10 gradation from high to low. As noted above, snow tires are wearing on inside just a bit.
 
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I really loved what you did to that LX. Can't wait to see this one shine!
Thanks. That Golden Pearl 01LX just keep looking better the more I worked it.
 
Guys what's the best way to tell if shocks a gone on a AHC system. Are the shocks not expensive like the 100 series landcruiser ones.
 
just out of curiosity, what snow tires did the PO have on it?
Funny same as Whitelady had!
"18 Land Cruiser wheels I pulled off.
130.JPG

I put on 18" Tundra wheel(s):
Rear PS.JPG


Guys what's the best way to tell if shocks a gone on a AHC system. Are the shocks not expensive like the 100 series landcruiser ones.
@PADDO can best answer this.

A shop recommended to PO that he replace shocks on whitelady as they report leaks on two fronts and age on rears at ~200K miles. PADDO had me flush and they were fine.

The PO on this 07 paid Dealer $175 (list $215) per front shock plus flush $195 and labor $544 for a total of $833.50 plus tax and shop fees.

I found on three LX (215K, 267K & 299K miles on clock) I purchased last year, that all had factory parts sill in/on AHC including shocks. They just needed flushing and proper set up. Only parts needed was 1 can of AHC fluid and rubber caps for bleeders for each rig.
 
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@PADDO I finally got the software load for my (new to me) MINI-VCI J2534. Now I need to learn how to use and read all the data. Any suggestion of learning aids is appreciated.

All three LX I had last year (my first experience with AHC) had low AHC fluid and were high mileage rigs (215, 267 & 299k miles). I flushed them according to your easy to follow instructions, THANKS! All had signs that front drive shafts had been replaced. Also all needed ball joint boots, either upper each side or lower each side but not both. Which I felt was from improper service of wheel bearing and or AHC. AHC constantly going up & down and improper angle during normal drive just worn out boots IMHO.

I'd sure like your opinion here:

Do you think the low fluid (constant up and down of height), old fluid and improper set-up (stance & pressure) of AHC systems would cause early failure of these CV boots at the points I'm seeing?

It's been about 15K miles since Dealer replaced fronts & flushed AHC. So do you think the system self purged the air (assuming Dealer did improperly) by now?

Do you think I should re-flush AHC fluid, and should I do anything special in this case (new fronts)?

BTW: Ride seem ok for what little I've driven. Front end height looks a little high (minimal stink bug). I have over 7 gradation from high to low. As noted above, snow tires are wearing on inside just a bit.
Probably the best way to familiarize yourself with Techstream is to systematically go through all available ECU tabs and see what test, diagnostics and utility functions are available. Take notes when you strike something you think will be valuable now or in the future. I don't believe you can do any irreparable or significant damage like screw up an ECU reflash with the cloned VCI and cracked Techstream as the interface simply isn't that sophisticated. But in areas like ABS/VSC ECU when you do a zero point recal by clearing the "memory" you are clearly warned to ensure you're on dead flat ground, no vehicle movement etc before proceeding so you shouldn't accidentally muff a setting up.
The low AHC fluid levels you're seeing in your high mileage trucks is most likely attributed to diminished charges [in the absence of an obvious external leak] in the four damper accumulators and the height accumulator and not receiving a periodic fluid change with associated level re set. As the damper spheres/globes/accumulators loose charge over the years the decrease in nitrogen pressure/volume is taken up by more fluid being forced into the sphere body. The result is basically less "gas spring" resulting in diminished damping and a gradually lowering fluid level in the reservoir.
Re CV boot damage and the AHC N height hunting. Firstly it's normal for the system to do little leveling self corrections and re stabilize itself. By little I'm thinking maybe .25 to .5 inch max. Hard to estimate when you're in the drivers seat, you'd need to have Techstream hooked up and monitor the height sensor feedback to put real numbers on the degree of movement. I think as long as the suspension system articulates through its normal range then I have trouble seeing this impact and prematurely wear out the boots like caked on mud and other abrasives. That's not to say that an outrageously high duty cycle won't impact the pumps motor for example. If the vehicle is randomly hunting through its full Low to High height range and not settling at a consistent N height for driving then that will obviously have a negative impact on your alignment.
If the replacement shocks were fitted dry then you'd expect that the resulting free air in the system would well and truly be entrained as microscopic bubbles in the fluid after 15k miles. These bubbles might eventually work themselves out somewhat but it's by far best to just avoid as much as practically possible introducing bulk air into any hydraulic system when its opened up. If you crack each bleeder and just drain off an once or so you should get some indication if you have any bulk air bubbles or foaming as the microscopic bubbles expand when the fluid pressure is reduced to atmospheric. If your ride is OK then you probably don't need to do anything too drastic at this time, just get your pressures and heights set up and go from there.
 

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