wiz42fan

My 2002 LX470 is extremely bouncy. It appears the hydraulic system went bad. Is it possible to convert to a basic shock system. A new hydraulic system is too costly.

hankinid

Same year Land Cruiser torsion bars and coil springs will bolt right in...as will the new shock's you'll need.

Steve

ransley

I swapped out my springs and TBs on my LX with ones from a LC, but I want to keep the AHC system. I have a SLEE AHC bypass switch, and while I ride in HI mode e ride is like butter.
However, when he rig in in NORMAL setting, the ride is very bouncy on he new springs and the TNs sound like they're loose.
When I add weight to the back end, he bouncy ride is decreased.
Any suggestions...

hankinid

I would call Christo at Slee Offload Tuesday morning.

Your new springs and TB's have a higher load rating than the LX stuff you removed. Your ride is bouncy as the AHC doesn't see any weight...the springs are taking all or most of it. You demonstrate the solution to the issue when you load up the back.

hth

ransley

Thx hankinid

hankinid

You're welcome.

AHC is still working fine on our '01 LX. Issue is 6-7 times a year we camp or road trip with tons of stuff and 2 dogs...sometimes I'll pull a rental tent-trailer or something to haul firewood. Solution for keeping the rear from sagging, I'm thinking, might be air bags. Inflated to 5 psi, you won't see a difference v. the OEM suspension. Adding more air to lift the back end once your fill it with stuff will get you back to unloaded height, and not strain the AHC. Price is right too, and apparently not too challenging to install.

Google "airbag installation series 100 LX470". First hit is a thread from Mud with step-by-step pics with Firestone bags. Link to Air-Lift bags on Mud here http://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/air-...nstall.487915/

jm641

I've never had an issue w my air suspension before ('03 LX), until yesterday, when out of the blue the rear end is in 'dropped' mode and it won't come out of it. I've tried manually changing the ride height, have started / restarted the vehicle hoping it would reset itself, etc but no luck. Any thoughts or ideas? As you might guess, the ride is very 'bouncy' and the vehicle is nearly unusable.

hankinid

The first things I would check would be fluid level and time / mileage since the last change of the AHC fluid. Note that if you have air in your AHC suspension, you are in trouble. AHC is all hydraulic.

I'd also change the fluid and go from there...2 cans at your local Toyota or Lexus dealer, $50 is a good deal.

If it were mine, I'd connect it to TIS / Techstream and read the AHC pressures v. normal.

The best discussion on AHC I've ever seen is here http://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/defi...-items.604577/ It's 17 pages. I read it a page or 2 per day and learned a ton. Reach out to ih8mud.com user paddo...he definitely knows his AHC stuff.

hth and post back what you find.

Steve

ExtremeLC

As stated in the previous posts, the AHC is a hydraulic system so any leaks or loss of pressure will cause the system to drop. Just like a hydraulic floor jack with worn seals or loss of fluid will be unable to maintain enough pressure to elevate. If you end up diagnosing a problem part, there are a few members (myself included) who may have some used components available for sale. If you don't care about adjustable suspension, the AHC to coil conversion is the least maintenance solution moving forward for future ownership.

hankinid

I should have pad more attention to the bolded info you posted. You may have a rear height sensor beginning to die or already dead. One sensor (on the driver's side) controls both wheel, which makes since since you have a straight axle in the rear. As usual, a number of threads on mud about disassembly and checking out the rear height sensor.

Avoid throwing parts at the AHC...unless you just cannot live without automatic leveling. The other choice, replacing it with Cruiser bars, springs, and shocks all around is cheaper and more or less an instant fix. Unloaded ride will be a bit stiffer than "comfort", and a bit softer than "sport" modes on the LX.


It does take time to install the Cruiser parts, but it's definitely not rocket science.