Okay this is a "possible" solution, but I will let everyone know by Wednesday if it worked. By "assembly" I mean the entire coilover (Strut, mounts, bearings, coil, etc).

So - as a bunch of people have learned, the front struts, when they finally go, there's no good option to replace them. Yes - you can just buy the strut, but that's assuming that all your bearings, mounts, and your coil spring are okay AND you're willing to pay the extra labor to compress the coil to swap out the struts.

That's $1000 or more in parts and another few hours of labor. One shop quoted me $2200 since they were going to buy the parts from the nearest dealer (which would have been ridiculous).Struts do NOT cost $2200 to replace. Parts alone shouldn't run much more than $200 for the set, but here we are.

I live in NY state (Buffalo) - as you may know, we have harsh winters where salt is liberally placed all over the roads. I can't speak to how strong my bearings and mounts are - they likely need replacing.


But I found a solution that Toyota seems to have forgotten to link in their compatibility charts.

The 2011 Scion tC. This is a 2 door coupe, but much of the front end is similar to the Avensis/HS250h/Sai (and others).

So I looked, and not only is there a widely available assembly available (aftermarket, and from Toyota/KYB), but the assembly cost is very affordable.

I compared the HS diagram with the 2011 tC diagram. They're identical, part-for-part - the entire assembly. I talked to my mechanic and he did the research and he agrees with one exception - there is a single mounting plate that isn't present in the HS, but it's there in the tC...BUT - it's not related to the spring, so it's easily removed.

I know there are some discussions about the struts, and with those of us who still drive an HS (or happened to grab one recently - props to those who got one of those 34000 KM ones still available in Japan) - this will hopefully be helpful and will save you from buying $1000 in parts PLUS assembly labor.

OH -and remember to place your stabilizer links. They're probably rust-welded on, and changing out your struts is always a good time to change out your links.


EDIT: The 2012 Prius V assembly will also work - in case someone hasn't compatibility coded them properly.

 

That is great to know. If I replace the fronts I may get the KYB front struts only instead of OEM which costs almost 3 to 4 times as much! I did the rear shocks a few years ago with OEM.

 

I need to install both front struts. Did your 2011 Scion tC strut assembly fit the HS250H? The garage that installed my struts one year ago says they’re leaking. Oily around the top. Just out of warranty 😡 and Lexus dealership won’t replace them for free.

 

WNYhs250h - can you further identify the mounting plate that is the difference between the Scion/Prius strut assembly and the HS? Do you have a part number? Or maybe post a diagram identifying the plate?

 

Sorry I just got it done today...but it was successful!!!

 

I'm on mobile now so I can't look everything up but i just picked up my car with the 2011 scion tc struts. All went well!

The strut mounts to three parts of the car:

- steering knuckle

- upper strut mount

- stabilizer link

these three parts are actually identical catalog parts between the hs250h, the 2011 scion tc, and the 2012 Prius V.

 

Great news! Did you get KYB struts? Did you get the struts only and have the shop re-use your old strut mounts, springs, etc? Meaning just replace your old front struts with the new ones only.
Did they have to replace the stabilizer/sway bar link? Often they are rusted and have to be cut off.

 

I got the entire KYB assembly (Struts, mounts, springs, all pre-assembled). The shops around me all wanted to charge too much to take apart/replace just the shock part of the assembly, so I was gunning ONLY for a solution that involved replacing the whole strut assembly.

The Scion TC (2011) assembly set not only cost less than the individual shocks (unassembled), but labor was a hell of a lot less. And it was KYB - so it's as close to OEM and high quality as I'll get without getting some custom racing set that I would never, ever need in this car.

I got separate Moog sway bar links - I probably didn't need them, but you never know if the bushings are all weak/torn apart until you take them off, then you at the very least need new bushings (which cost damn near what an sway bar link costs alone - kind of insane for a piece of what I assume is rubber sandwiched between washers).

It was a fantastic solution, and the car rides great.

 

You’ve had the KYB front struts assembly on for a couple years now, can you please provide an update on how they are working now? Also looking for a replacement for the rear shocks.

 

Why bother looking for rear shock OEM substitues when you can get the real thing for about $45 each from an online Lexus dealer?
Suspension Shock Absorber (Left, Right, Rear)
Part Number: 4853075032

https://parts.prestigelexus.com/p/Le...RoCf3cQAvD_BwE

 

I would avoid KYB quickstruts. Apparently the upper mount tends to loosen and wears quickly. My car was no exception on the drivers' side strut. I'd get a groaning noise when doing tight turns. A better quality strut mount wouldn't have had this issue.

With that said, unfortunately someone hit me in a parking lot. They hit my passenger side front, bent the axle, broke the strut, screwed up the fender, door, and bumper. The repair would have hit $7200, which is more than Insurance wanted to cover, so they paid me out $10k to total it and I'm now looking for another car.

It was a good run.

 

Sadly, what you are going through is becoming an all too common for these vehicles. Spare parts, particularly body parts, are becoming unavailable from all sources. Just last month, my Insurance Company had a meeting with us, they told us that with the lack of spares for the HS250h, if our vehicle were to be involved in a collision, they would not be repairing it. It would be declared a total loss due to the lack of parts. The time of the HS250h is rapidly approaching sunset.

 

Thank you for the link regarding the rear shocks. I’ve Contacted the posted dealer after placing the order and the parts person said they have thousands of orders to fill and will send me an email when they get to it. Also noted only 2 people are able to do this job. I’m now trying other sources, another Lexus dealer informed me this shock is considered Hazmat and cannot be shipped in the USA! Dealers in my area have none in stock..probably back order the product. Thanks for your help.

 

Many parts for the HS250h, including used body parts (and aftermarket suspension), are available from Japan. They sold a lot of HS250h in Japan between the years 2009-2012. And so that last of that batch have now reached ten years in age and are being scrapped or exported.

Between 2013-2017 they sold an updated model, and then cancelled the type. Those parts are less likely to be compatible with the USA model.

For what it's worth... Here is just a search for "パネル" (panel)
https://buyee.jp/item/search/query/A...nslationType=1