cityfed

Hello, I am new to this forum however I am not new to owning a Lexus LX 470. Yesterday I replaced my front two accumulators and the job was so easy that it pains me people pay a dealer to do this. My Lx 470 is a 2006 and the previous owner acutally took this off raod for its intended use, but that resulted in needing a few items fixed. I purchased my accumulators from Ebay and would love to share the companies name. I have zero affiliation with thses guys and they are in Japan. I paid exactly $479 for both front accunulators which came sealed in a toyota box and are 100% OEM parts. I placed my order and was provided a tracking number in a few hours, my parts arrived in Birmingham AL in 5 days. The guys on Ebay are k5com if they do not have the accumulators listed simply send them a email and ask when they will have more. My truck drives like it is new and all for $479, please feel free to email me if you have any questions.

najam

Hi everybody, i am new to this forum and i need some expert advice
I have a 2000 LX470 with 157k miles on it, runs great but recently noted a problem with the rear shocks. It feels bumpy or rough like there are no shock absorbers at the rear. I have been driving the truck like normal use i mean no offroading no towing no heavy loads on the truck.
I would appreciate an advice
Thanks

hankinid

Several possibilities...

AHC fluid needs to be faithfully changed every 60K, more often if you do a lot of off-road driving. Toyota AHC fluid should be the only fluid added to the AHC system. If you're prone to diy, it's about a 30 minute job.

You may need new shocks, and/or new rear springs.

Best thing I can suggest is to take the truck to a Lexus or Toyota dealer pr good independent shop, ask them to connect your truck to TechStream, and read the AHC pressures on all 4 corners. That should pinpoint where your issues are. I ask for a printout of before and after results for my service records. Lexus here in Boise charges $125 to read the pressures.

OT, but still related to AHC, if the front pressures read low, the torsion bars can be tightened a bit to bring the pressures into the normal range.

hth

Steve

najam

Thanks Hankinid
Will give it a try and post the results asap

hankinid

You are welcome.

The basic test for the AHC system is to lower the truck and mark the fluid level on the side of the tank with a grease pencil or piece of tape.

Then raise the truck to the high position...you should see at least 8 graduations (the small marks on the side of the tank) of difference between the high and low positions. Less than 8...further investigation is needed.

Prior to taking it to a dealer or good indy shop, be aware that the person who started this necro thread was not aware of terminology...

The "accumulator" is the thing that distributes AHC pressure as required to the 4 corners of the truck...you'll see a bunch of tubing and wiring leading to and from it. Your truck only has one accumulator.

The round ***** on each corner of the truck are "actuators".

FAR more info on the 100 series tech forum on ih8mud.com, including instructions on how to flush and refill the AHC system.

hth and let us know what's found.

Steve

najam

Hi steve
Regarding the AHC test you were talking about, well i just noticed the hydraulic level in my trucks reservoir is way above the max mark...! Could that be a problem...? Havnt done the test though.

hankinid

Level of fluid higher than MAX is not an issue, until or unless it overflows and covers your inner fender with oil. If it's higher than the graduations when you drop if to LOW to check it, siphon enough out so you're within range of the graduations.

The only other issue is that AHC fluid is not cheap.

You'll need about 1-1/2 cans for a flush and fill. I think it's not a bad idea to pull the reservoir off the pump, toss in some naptha or gasoline and shake it around to remove any additional crap.

Testing it yourself takes about 5 minutes max.

Steve

najam

Yeah thts wht i thought, to bring it withinn the max min range and then measure the graduations. I will try it and let u know.
Well steve just to clarify:
1. Why is the problem on my truck at the rear shocks only, i mean whn i go about a speed breaker the fronts go ok and get off well and smooth and when it comes to the rear the climb is ok but getting off the speed breaker gives a bump or a bounce....feels like the rear end of the truck hit a pothole....!
2. Is it becoz the spheres have ruptured that the fluid level in the reservoir is way too high than the max mark....?

hankinid

1. No idea until you flush the system with new fluid and check the difference in reservoir height from Low to High.

2. If the rubber diaphragm that separates fluid from compressed nitrogen in the actuator ruptures, you'll see a decrease in fluid in the reservoir as the fluid displaces the nitrogen in the sphere over time.

Your homework, which I suggested earlier today, is get on ih8mud.com, go to the 100-series forum, and search (top of the page on the right side) for something along the lines of "ahc issues"...

No way to diagnose your truck's issues without checking pressures at a dealer or good indy shop.

najam

Steve
I did the bleeding of all 4 accumulators and then added new fluid, only after bleeding i saw the old fluid was thick as honey, well it did improve the AHC operation but when i did the AHC test and counted the graduations its less than 7. �� my shocks are in good condition and AHC operates perfectly
I have been through ih8mud and i think my next plan would be to change the accumulators or spheres.
Pls advise
Thnx

hankinid

At this point, I'd take the truck to a dealer or good independent repair shop, as the issue could also be in the accumulator or a sticky height sensor, among other things.

Steve

najam

Steve
I got my suspension back, I replaced the rear accumulators, did the bleeding and took the truck for a test drive and it was perfect, feels like driving a new LX.

Here in Dubai, U.A.E, I found japanese and american parts for the LX, so i went for the japanese 1's although my truck is american specs. I was adviced about this by my local dealer.
Thanks steve for sharing your experience.

hankinid

Najam, you're very welcome.

I would have picked the Japanese parts in a second...the LX and Land Cruiser are still made in Japan, with 100% Japanese parts.

About how long did it take to change both globes??

Steve

najam

Steve it took me 2 hours from removing, replacing, bleeding and testing.

hankinid

Awesome and fast work, Najam. If I were you, I might consider setting myself with TechStream on a laptop.

Steve