Max Power

Do they not sell strut boots for these things? I can't find them anywhere.

I picked up some strut mounts but can't seem to find boots.

Did you guys re-use the boots on the stock struts?

oldskewel

iTrader: (1)

I think what you're talking about is called an "insulator" by lexus. I'm about to do all shocks on my '91 LS400 with 171k miles and original shocks this weekend. Here are the parts I'm using (2 of each):

KY341268 rear shock, KYB GR-2
KY341159 front shock, KYB GR-2
KYSM5178 rear mount, KYB
KYSM5176 front mount, KYB

48157-50010 Insulator, front
48331-50010 bumper, front

48257-50010 Insulator, upper, rear
48258-50010 Insulator, lower, rear
48341-50010 bumper, rear (actually not replacing these; I inspected all components before ordering - easy to do after jacking and removing each wheel - and these looked ~good as new, considering it's a bumper)

48674-50030 strut rod (bar) bushing (cushion), front

Max Power

Awesome, thanks! How much were the strut bar bushings?

oldskewel

iTrader: (1)

I'm not sure exactly what years that part number works for (at least 90-92, probably), and know they changed the design significantly for later years - so check what you need.

For that part #, list is $183.45, Park Place Lexus (my favorite) has them for $146.76 with free shipping. I was lucky and patient enough to find a club member who had bought some several years ago then changed cars and bought a pair for $175.

Lexus also sells just the rubber bushing part of that part. PN 48674-40051 = $39.35 at PPL. The Park Place Lexus guy told me (based only on the fact that they sell it separately) I should be able to somehow press out the old rubber and press in the new. Said if I could not, I could return it. But now that I have the new ones in hand, I can't see that it would be feasible to just buy the rubber part.

gtoden1

Its looks like they fit 90-94. Did you get all those from KBY's site? with there discount?

oldskewel

iTrader: (1)

I actually bought from about 5 different places, getting the best deal I could on each. Got some on ebay, some from amazon, some from Park Place Lexus. Just google for the part numbers and see what you find. The Park Place Lexus, with no tax and free shipping over $100, good service, real Lexus dealer, is tough to beat unless you get lucky finding a deal somewhere else.

The prices I paid for all the parts listed above, in order are (all are for one part, including shipping):
$47.50 ebay
$57.28 amazon
$42.00 amazon 3rd party
$44.00 amazon 3rd party
$35.47 ebay
$18.43 ebay
$26.90 PPL
$13.38 PPL
$87.50 CL member

All are Toyota genuine parts except the KYB struts and strut mounts.

Max Power

Sweet, thanks for all the info man!

Marklouis

oldskewell, please post the results of your install - Im also looking into the KYB GR2's over the Bilstein's because I want to stay close to OEM as possible. Im getting those "pops/bumbs" on rough roads in this cooler weather now and also Im changing out suspension shock components in a couple of weeks. and cant wait for the drive to Gatlinburg for Christmas and enjoy the improvement in comfort -

oldskewel

iTrader: (1)

Finished the install of everything yesterday. Some tips:

- careful if using the service manual. It tells you to remove a lot more parts than you really need to. Like tripling the amount of work.

- everything is pretty easy as long as you have an impact wrench and know a few tricks. Without the impact, I can see how some things could have been near showstoppers.

- for the rear shocks, you just need to remove the rear seat and can pry up the rear panel - no need to remove it or the driveshafts as described in the service manual.

- on the rear shock lower pivot bolt, the nut surface is serrated so it digs into the support. Impossible to loosen the nut, even with the air impact wrench. But ... easy to loosen the other side - the bolt head. Did not make sense until I had it apart and saw the serrated surface. When re-installing, you also notice the bumpiness as you torque it down, due to this. So loosen the bolt head, not the nut. The fronts are not like this - they're normal.

- on the rear link 14mm nut with the 5mm allen head bolt end, I first tried using the Allen wrench and 14mm wrench to loosen it with no luck. Was worried about breaking off the welded support. Ended up just using the impact wrench - solved it. If not for that, it could have been a problem.

- for all shocks, before releasing the spring compressors, make sure the shock pivot bolt opening is properly aligned with the shock mount screws (in a triangle).

- when removing and reinstalling the strut assembly, you need to move the suspension up and down a little to wiggle it out of there. If it seems like it won't fit, just wiggle the wheel up and down until it gets enough play to work its way where you want it to go. It will go.

- the front is easier than the rear, in terms of tightness of fit, so probably best to do that first.

- re-installing the nut on the ball joint on the UCA (front, both sides) was difficult because after a few turns, the ball joint would just spin. My solution: I used a 12 mm / 1.5 mm tap to clean up the threads on the nut. Then it would still spin, so I used a C-clamp that I held on there with my hand to keep some pressure on the ball joint, causing enough friction that the joint would not spin while I put the nut on.

- when I did the strut rod bushings, I first did the left side and torqued the 24mm nut down with the wheel in the air. Then when I was wrapping up the right side, I noticed the service manual said to torque that down with the wheels on the ground. So I finished up the right side and then re-torqued them both. So I loosened the left side and then torqued it. When I did this, I noticed (obvious now) that it relieved a twist that had been locked into the bushing. I think this is probably an important step that is easy to do wrong. Having that constant offset twist in there (if you torque with the car jacked up) will probably lead to premature wear, and maybe also affect the handling. This is an easy thing to do after the fact - just remove the splash shield and the 24 mm nuts are easily accessible - they can be loosened and re-torqued at any time, in case it might have been assembled wrong.

- I borrowed the spring compressor at Pep Boys. They have a sweet deal on that - you buy it for $50 and then return it within 5 days, getting a full refund. No strings.

- I bought all those parts listed above, expecting the install to be more difficult than it actually was, figuring I'd replace things when in doubt because I did not want to revisit things later. This was probably overkill, especially since things were a lot easier to do than I expected. This car has 171k miles on all this stuff. E.g., the strut mounts all basically looked fine. It's just a piece of rubber between two steel plates. If did not already have the new parts in hand I would not have felt bad putting the old ones back in. Also, the lower rear insulators (between the lower end of the spring and the shock) were probably good enough to reuse, as was one of the front insulators (boots).

- The GR-2s seem fine. KYB's sales pitch is that they are valved differently to account for the worn suspension components on an older car. I don't buy that. Probably they just need to be different from the Toyota part. It firmed up the ride, but in a very good way. The car seems more controlled than before, but still a smooth ride.

If anyone has any specific questions, ask now before I forget.

gtoden1

oldskewell, Thanks for the write up, that will help when I do mine.

Max Power

Awesome info man. I tackle mine in four days.

Max Power

I'll be doing the rear suspension next weekend. I hope it goes well. There isn't much documentation or any photos really!

Thanks again for the info!

JimsGX

Here you go... http://lextreme.com/ascon.html

This is for a air shock to strut conversion but it still applies for a strut to strut swap.

Max Power

Thank you Jim and Oldskewell.