tcmzodiac

I just bought this car. It has 121,528 miles and is up to date on all of the service schedule. No leaks no rust, interior is clean, the leather in very good condition, new tires, rotors, pads..most service records, including 100% Lexus service thru 68,000...

Theres a bit of paint touchup needed, but I do that sort of thing and enjoy it! Somewhat rare color I think..."Ebony Teal".

It has 100% of the options then available with the exception of chrome wheels...including air suspension.

It drives/rides like new...I paid $3700

Im aware that the air suspension is going to cause trouble...right now it works as it should. My question is...is there anything that I can do to prolong the life of the components?

To this end...is it better to drive on the "High" setting or the "Normal" setting..or no difference?

Any other tips? MANY MANY thanks in advance!!!!!

Terry

deanshark

I don't think there is anything you can do to prolong it except...don't use it. Always drive on "normal", the only time I use "high" on mine is if I'm driving on a dirt road with little bumps and dips. I work construction so mine comes in handy sometimes. The "sport" feature stiffens the struts to handle faster corners, but it's not a race car. I only used the sport a couple times and I didn't like it, it seemed like I didn't have any control. I've never had a problem with mine but I do know that when one of the struts blows, they're all coming off and getting coilovers for 2 reasons. 1) It's cheaper to switch all 4 struts then to buy one air strut. 2) It's cheaper to change over if one goes b/c something else will go in the future. I guess 2 reasons turn into 1 reason,.....cheaper.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

1-don't lower it
2-keep money saved for when the original ones die.

tcmzodiac

Thanks x 1000 you fellows for the replies.

I may have jinxed things by posting this thread...I now have suspension probs!!!!! Started 24 hours after ownership. Wow!

The car is leaning towards the drivers side. Both front and rear, drivers side, are lower than the other side.It feels safe to drive, the wheels are above the fender etc but, it isnt correct.

Could this be a leak in the lines that supply that side of the car or what?

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

from factory teh car leans to driver's side about 1/4-1/2", if its leaning more then that it's likely that its already starting to fail.

deanshark

With mine I don't notice any difference between each side. I misspoke in my last post when I said I never had a problem but there was one time I didn't turn it off before jacking up the front. After jacking it and then taking it off the jack stands on the drivers side the passenger side fell off the stand b/c it was leaning so much and then the whole car was sitting on the ground, I thought I blew the struts. What I did was put the switch to high, with the car running, for a minute. Shut it off for about 5 minutes and did it again. It was fine after that, leveled out perfect. Don't forget, if you ever jack the car up, make sure you turn it off first. The switch is in the trunk in the tool compartment on the left. I think it's the same on the 95.

tcmzodiac

Hmmmmm.......

I had taken it in for all the fluids to be changed etc...they had it up on the lift...the air sus switch was not turned off...when we lowered it to the ground, the air sus had to take a little time to pump it up again...and thats when I first noticed the sag. Could they have damaged it?

deanshark

It's totally possible, I don't have much experience with how everything works with the air suspension. Try setting it to high, let it fill with air, (usually takes 40 seconds) and then put it back to normal and it should settle to where it's supposed to be. Other then that, I don't know.
You say It feels safe to drive, the wheels are above the fender etc but, it isnt correct. Are you saying the wheels are up inside the fender? Does the tire hit the fender when you turn? If so, that's how mine was until I put it on "high".

tcmzodiac

The wheels clear the fenders, but it seems that the prob is a bit intermittent. Im 95% sure that Ill be buying the Strutmasters kit, and probably doing the install myself.

deanshark

If it's "intermittent" it might just be in your head (b/c you're not used to it) or the height sensors are bad but I wouldn't think that 2 on the same side would give you this problem intermittently at the same time. How low does it sit when you say it "leans"? Good idea to think about the Strutmasters kit.

tcmzodiac

It may be my head!
measured from the top of the tires, there is a tad over one inch diff between the two sides of the car. You can see that it's leaning towards the drivers side. Never rubs on the fender tho.