Hello everyone. Just bought 2010 GX. Found out its leaning on one side. Checked under driver side door removed the plate, it was full of mud and kdss accumulator assembly is all corroded n leaking. Heard it is an expensive fix. Any suggestions..

 

You may want to look through this thread.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gx-...-problems.html

 

Thanks for the info. Is it possible to get rid of kdss. Get some aftermarket swaybars?

 

I have seen a small few on GXOR do this but lean on full details and parts

 

Hi all,

I had an intermittent KDSS light going on and off, with a deteriorated ride quality. I knew I had slight leakage on my front shock going in, but the dealer has managed to quote me over 9000 usd in repairs somehow. Ive asked for part/stock numbers to try and source them myself, but this is the closest to a description ive gotten from them. Any advice/help with specific part numbers would be much appreciated.

Now, for a side note. The vehicle went in for a regular 136k check + maintenance, and none of these issues were found/pointed out. I am barely at 138k, and suddenly theyve managed to diagnose all of these issues. Is it possible for these parts to deteriorate so quickly/ for them to have missed it during my prior visit ? Also, does anyone have experience/costs with getting these jobs done outside of the dealer at a third party garage ?

Feeling a bit overwhelmed, so i would greatly appreciate any assistance/ your opinions the matter.

 

If the same place that gave you the repair quote did your inspection, then yes. There is a problem there.
Shocks and Vbelts usually don't go from good to bad in 2K miles.
Can you turn a wrench? The vbelt and Bulb are pretty easy to do.
The water pump and shocks are harder, but still do-able for a home mechanic.
The KDSS stuff I would get a second opinion on if you are not comfortable doing any work yourself, but it's going to be relatively expensive to have fixed if the accumulator needs to be replaced.

 

Thank you. Yes, it was the same place - told me the car was in good shape 2k miles ago, and i havent taken it offroad or done anything but highway cruise it since. I plan on doing the belt, bulb and water pump myself, should be able to even if the pump will be a bit difficult. I'm trying to see if my AUL warranty might cover some of it ( long shot) but i was just shocked to see KDSS go from good to bad so quickly in a little more than a month. If the warranty doesnt cover any of it, ill take it to a local place and get a second opinion.

 

Was this a dealer quoting prices? If you do the water pump, the labor on the belt should be free since it has to come off anyways.

What's the underside of the car look like as far as rust? If it has been a Massachusetts car its whole life, you might have a lot of rust issues depending on how Mass treats their roads in the winter. Depending on how bad the rest of the car is, you might not want to sink a ton of money into it.

I will say that the prices you quoted seem like straight dealer prices for parts and labor. Try and get a second opinion from another shop, look for a independent Lexus mechanic or a Japanese specialist. Don't tell them what you've already been quoted, get a clean slate opinion and go form there.

 

It's actually a southern VA car through and through, only came to MA a couple of months ago. It's frame is solid, and I haven't got anything more than a bit of surface rust. I plan on taking the car to another independent shop tomorrow, but my usual mechanic seems to not want anything to do with the accumulator assembly citing a lack of experience with kdss in general. Hoping I can find someone with toyota/lexus experience in the local area tomorrow.

 

here are the kdss bits, you can check this thread for other common items!

[KDSS]
PN: 48007-60023 or 48007-60020 / front cylinder
PN: 48886-60032 / rear cylinder
PN: 08886-01805 / fluid
PN: 48006-60031 / Actuator

 

Thank you very much!

 

IMO those prices are astronomical. I just replaced my radiator, upper and lower hoses, thermostat and housing and water pump for $300 in parts from RockAuto and Indy mechanic for $300 in labor. Like another poster stated the Vbelt should have no labor charge as your paying for it twice with the water pump labor. Shocks for the base model can be purchased online for under $400 for all 4 and it’s not a hard job to do at all so labor should be minimal. The only issue I don’t know enough about is the KDSS accumulator, but I can tell you EBay or salvage yards would be my first stop. Not sure about the labor on the KDSS repair either. I am pretty confident that if you call and shop around you could take care of everything for 1/3 of the total Stealership price. I’m In Massachusetts as well and live in the North Shore where there are plenty qualified Indy shops.

 

KDSS allows for FULL articulation off-road and MAXIMUM anti-roll bar on-road. All automatically. Vehicles without this system must use a "balanced" anti-roll bar that is essentially a compromise between on and off road manners. KDSS allows for the 'best of both worlds' - full anti-roll bar off when off-roading. And maximum anti-roll bar when on pavement.

You Tube

 

Is there an aftermarket way to program the active roll control to add more rear swaybar stiffness? My 2012 GX with the coil spring suspension has a tremendous amount of understeer built in and I was wondering if there was a way to get a more neutral balance with just some simple programming. Thanks!

 

Are all the bushings in good shape? You can definitely replace them with neoprene bushing to make them more stiff. The rear sway bar bushings can be relatively easy to replace and it does stiff up quite a bit.