RX330 Air Suspension problem - solved
11-23-18, 08:27 AM
#16
Driver School Candidate
Join Date: Nov 2018
Location: Uk
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My Lexus 2004 RX 300 has become as bumpy as hell and if I do height ajust it will not go in low but if I put high only back goes up and some sides none go up any advise
01-06-21, 07:25 AM
#18
Driver School Candidate
Hi there
I have the RX300 2005 and have a similar issue where the left passenger side (UK) was not holding height on both front and rear during the drive and when parked. I ordered and changed the front left as it was hissing and obviously leaking air. I restarted the car after removing and reconnecting battery terminals. Initially, it was good with all four suspensions standing in Neutral. But as the engine idled I notice the rear left would still drop intermittently forcing the compressor to kick in and level the car. Whilst driving, the rear left would also drop which meant it bounced really hard on bumps and uneven road surfaces. Then at traffic lights, the pump would kick in to reraise the dropped side in alignment with the height of the other 3 shocks.
I want to buy a replacement air strut for the left rear but cannot be certain whether it is a problem with the air shock or with the entire air suspension set up. I will be really gutted if the problem persists after installing the replacement. Because in the case of the rear suspension I cannot hear any hissing sound however when parked it lowers to the groud leaving the remaining sides upstanding.
Any help?
I have the RX300 2005 and have a similar issue where the left passenger side (UK) was not holding height on both front and rear during the drive and when parked. I ordered and changed the front left as it was hissing and obviously leaking air. I restarted the car after removing and reconnecting battery terminals. Initially, it was good with all four suspensions standing in Neutral. But as the engine idled I notice the rear left would still drop intermittently forcing the compressor to kick in and level the car. Whilst driving, the rear left would also drop which meant it bounced really hard on bumps and uneven road surfaces. Then at traffic lights, the pump would kick in to reraise the dropped side in alignment with the height of the other 3 shocks.
I want to buy a replacement air strut for the left rear but cannot be certain whether it is a problem with the air shock or with the entire air suspension set up. I will be really gutted if the problem persists after installing the replacement. Because in the case of the rear suspension I cannot hear any hissing sound however when parked it lowers to the groud leaving the remaining sides upstanding.
Any help?
01-06-21, 07:55 AM
#19
polley.
I've gone through my hole suspension from ECU to sensors.
If I may lead you on a path.
To diagnose where the fault is there is a few questions.
Does the car go down quickly or over night?
Does it go down on one corner only or all four corners?
Does the pump run continually? If not, how often?
From these it's possible to start looking in the right places.
Could be a height sensor, ECU, pump, solenoid or strut.
Post what you know and I'll try to help.
Don't Don't Don't buy Lexus unless you're a millionaire. I know a good supplier I've used for years.
I've gone through my hole suspension from ECU to sensors.
If I may lead you on a path.
To diagnose where the fault is there is a few questions.
Does the car go down quickly or over night?
Does it go down on one corner only or all four corners?
Does the pump run continually? If not, how often?
From these it's possible to start looking in the right places.
Could be a height sensor, ECU, pump, solenoid or strut.
Post what you know and I'll try to help.
Don't Don't Don't buy Lexus unless you're a millionaire. I know a good supplier I've used for years.
The following users liked this post:
Margate330 (01-06-21)
01-06-21, 08:36 AM
#20
Driver School Candidate
Hey DINGUS,
PLEASE HAVE A LOOK AT WHAT I KNOW SO FARIN RESPONSES BELOW
PLEASE HAVE A LOOK AT WHAT I KNOW SO FARIN RESPONSES BELOW
polley.
I've gone through my hole suspension from ECU to sensors.
If I may lead you on a path.
To diagnose where the fault is there is a few questions.
Does the car go down quickly or over night? YES DEFINITELY. TOPS 5MINS
Does it go down on one corner only or all four corners? ONE CORNER ONLY
Does the pump run continually? If not, how often? NO, IT ONLY KICKS IN WHEN I START THE ENGINE THEN STARTS TO LIFT THE DROPPED PART
From these it's possible to start looking in the right places.
Could be a height sensor, ECU, pump, solenoid or strut.
Post what you know and I'll try to help.
Don't Don't Don't buy Lexus unless you're a millionaire. I know a good supplier I've used for years.
I've gone through my hole suspension from ECU to sensors.
If I may lead you on a path.
To diagnose where the fault is there is a few questions.
Does the car go down quickly or over night? YES DEFINITELY. TOPS 5MINS
Does it go down on one corner only or all four corners? ONE CORNER ONLY
Does the pump run continually? If not, how often? NO, IT ONLY KICKS IN WHEN I START THE ENGINE THEN STARTS TO LIFT THE DROPPED PART
From these it's possible to start looking in the right places.
Could be a height sensor, ECU, pump, solenoid or strut.
Post what you know and I'll try to help.
Don't Don't Don't buy Lexus unless you're a millionaire. I know a good supplier I've used for years.
01-06-21, 08:55 AM
#21
OK, that says it's not the ECU (My opinion). Shame as you can get these for £30 ish on a bidding site. Also easy changed.
The fact it tries to inflate on start says it's unlightly to be the ECU.
Now to further diagnose.
When it kicks in does it fully inflate? Indicated by the green light on the dash stops flashing.
If the light does stop flashing can you select 'high' using the switch in front of the gear lever? You shouldn't be able to select low unless there is a fault latched in the ECU.
Or does the green light continue to flash without changing to the new selected height?
If at anytime you try starting and the pump won't kick in, you will need to do an engine start over and over to reset the ECU. I think it's about 8 resarts. (Trick I got from a Lexus mechanic)
The fact it tries to inflate on start says it's unlightly to be the ECU.
Now to further diagnose.
When it kicks in does it fully inflate? Indicated by the green light on the dash stops flashing.
If the light does stop flashing can you select 'high' using the switch in front of the gear lever? You shouldn't be able to select low unless there is a fault latched in the ECU.
Or does the green light continue to flash without changing to the new selected height?
If at anytime you try starting and the pump won't kick in, you will need to do an engine start over and over to reset the ECU. I think it's about 8 resarts. (Trick I got from a Lexus mechanic)
01-07-21, 02:03 AM
#22
Driver School Candidate
Hi Dingus
Yes it fully inflates with the height selector not blinking and staying on neutral.
I can select high which takes a little longer to fully inflate. This time the light blinks until its fully inflated
I can also select low which is the quickest also with lights blinking till fully deflated.
If the suspension is in the high position it reverts to neutral automatically when I hit say 25 ...30 ish mph...
Yes it fully inflates with the height selector not blinking and staying on neutral.
I can select high which takes a little longer to fully inflate. This time the light blinks until its fully inflated
I can also select low which is the quickest also with lights blinking till fully deflated.
If the suspension is in the high position it reverts to neutral automatically when I hit say 25 ...30 ish mph...
01-07-21, 03:00 AM
#23
Hi again polley.
The fact you can select different heights tells us the height sensor is working. Shame as this would have been easier and less expensive to change.
So, in my humble opinion, this points to the suspension strut. These are prone to leaks from the air chamber at the top. Lexus use crap steel on these.
You didn't say if it was front or back, but both are similar to change.
On the front there is a drop link and on the back a torsion bar. disconnect this first, as they have a LOT of tension in them, which you can offset by adjusting the height of the car while you undo the nut. Personally I cut the droplink and renew it. You can get them for about £12 from EB but I use local motor suppliers for around £20/30.
There is a connection for the air pipe. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the little tool to disconnect the pipe. It's a bugger to disconnect it without the tool. Last tool I bought was £3.45. Click here to see it Tool.
The rest is simple, but a word of caution. There are 2 massive bolts at the bottom of the strut. These will need an extension bar on your socket bar to achieve enough force to undo them. My bar is 4ft long. Even using heat they won't move. Use a bar.
I'm not advertising. I don't get a kickback in any way from these guys. I've bought three second hand struts from them in the last 6 month and all were in good nick. Almost new. click here to see them Car parts.
I negotiated a price of £300 for each.
Hope this helps.
The fact you can select different heights tells us the height sensor is working. Shame as this would have been easier and less expensive to change.
So, in my humble opinion, this points to the suspension strut. These are prone to leaks from the air chamber at the top. Lexus use crap steel on these.
You didn't say if it was front or back, but both are similar to change.
On the front there is a drop link and on the back a torsion bar. disconnect this first, as they have a LOT of tension in them, which you can offset by adjusting the height of the car while you undo the nut. Personally I cut the droplink and renew it. You can get them for about £12 from EB but I use local motor suppliers for around £20/30.
There is a connection for the air pipe. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the little tool to disconnect the pipe. It's a bugger to disconnect it without the tool. Last tool I bought was £3.45. Click here to see it Tool.
The rest is simple, but a word of caution. There are 2 massive bolts at the bottom of the strut. These will need an extension bar on your socket bar to achieve enough force to undo them. My bar is 4ft long. Even using heat they won't move. Use a bar.
I'm not advertising. I don't get a kickback in any way from these guys. I've bought three second hand struts from them in the last 6 month and all were in good nick. Almost new. click here to see them Car parts.
I negotiated a price of £300 for each.
Hope this helps.
The following 2 users liked this post by Dingus:
Margate330 (01-07-21),
MARTINMKHS (07-01-22)
01-07-21, 07:36 AM
#24
Driver School Candidate
Dingus,
Many thanks for helping to drill down to the issue.Quite coincidental to note that I used the same supplier previously for the front left air shock as well. I will give them a try to see if I can get hold of a replacement.
Cheers.
Many thanks for helping to drill down to the issue.Quite coincidental to note that I used the same supplier previously for the front left air shock as well. I will give them a try to see if I can get hold of a replacement.
Cheers.
Hi again polley.
The fact you can select different heights tells us the height sensor is working. Shame as this would have been easier and less expensive to change.
So, in my humble opinion, this points to the suspension strut. These are prone to leaks from the air chamber at the top. Lexus use crap steel on these.
You didn't say if it was front or back, but both are similar to change.
On the front there is a drop link and on the back a torsion bar. disconnect this first, as they have a LOT of tension in them, which you can offset by adjusting the height of the car while you undo the nut. Personally I cut the droplink and renew it. You can get them for about £12 from EB but I use local motor suppliers for around £20/30.
There is a connection for the air pipe. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the little tool to disconnect the pipe. It's a bugger to disconnect it without the tool. Last tool I bought was £3.45. Click here to see it Tool.
The rest is simple, but a word of caution. There are 2 massive bolts at the bottom of the strut. These will need an extension bar on your socket bar to achieve enough force to undo them. My bar is 4ft long. Even using heat they won't move. Use a bar.
I'm not advertising. I don't get a kickback in any way from these guys. I've bought three second-hand struts from them in the last 6 months and all were in good nick. Almost new. Click here to see them Car parts.
I negotiated a price of £300 for each.
Hope this helps.
The fact you can select different heights tells us the height sensor is working. Shame as this would have been easier and less expensive to change.
So, in my humble opinion, this points to the suspension strut. These are prone to leaks from the air chamber at the top. Lexus use crap steel on these.
You didn't say if it was front or back, but both are similar to change.
On the front there is a drop link and on the back a torsion bar. disconnect this first, as they have a LOT of tension in them, which you can offset by adjusting the height of the car while you undo the nut. Personally I cut the droplink and renew it. You can get them for about £12 from EB but I use local motor suppliers for around £20/30.
There is a connection for the air pipe. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the little tool to disconnect the pipe. It's a bugger to disconnect it without the tool. Last tool I bought was £3.45. Click here to see it Tool.
The rest is simple, but a word of caution. There are 2 massive bolts at the bottom of the strut. These will need an extension bar on your socket bar to achieve enough force to undo them. My bar is 4ft long. Even using heat they won't move. Use a bar.
I'm not advertising. I don't get a kickback in any way from these guys. I've bought three second-hand struts from them in the last 6 months and all were in good nick. Almost new. Click here to see them Car parts.
I negotiated a price of £300 for each.
Hope this helps.
01-07-21, 07:56 AM
#25
Lexus Test Driver
Hi again polley.
The fact you can select different heights tells us the height sensor is working. Shame as this would have been easier and less expensive to change.
So, in my humble opinion, this points to the suspension strut. These are prone to leaks from the air chamber at the top. Lexus use crap steel on these.
You didn't say if it was front or back, but both are similar to change.
On the front there is a drop link and on the back a torsion bar. disconnect this first, as they have a LOT of tension in them, which you can offset by adjusting the height of the car while you undo the nut. Personally I cut the droplink and renew it. You can get them for about £12 from EB but I use local motor suppliers for around £20/30.
There is a connection for the air pipe. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the little tool to disconnect the pipe. It's a bugger to disconnect it without the tool. Last tool I bought was £3.45. Click here to see it Tool.
The rest is simple, but a word of caution. There are 2 massive bolts at the bottom of the strut. These will need an extension bar on your socket bar to achieve enough force to undo them. My bar is 4ft long. Even using heat they won't move. Use a bar.
I'm not advertising. I don't get a kickback in any way from these guys. I've bought three second hand struts from them in the last 6 month and all were in good nick. Almost new. click here to see them Car parts.
I negotiated a price of £300 for each.
Hope this helps.
The fact you can select different heights tells us the height sensor is working. Shame as this would have been easier and less expensive to change.
So, in my humble opinion, this points to the suspension strut. These are prone to leaks from the air chamber at the top. Lexus use crap steel on these.
You didn't say if it was front or back, but both are similar to change.
On the front there is a drop link and on the back a torsion bar. disconnect this first, as they have a LOT of tension in them, which you can offset by adjusting the height of the car while you undo the nut. Personally I cut the droplink and renew it. You can get them for about £12 from EB but I use local motor suppliers for around £20/30.
There is a connection for the air pipe. I would HIGHLY recommend you get the little tool to disconnect the pipe. It's a bugger to disconnect it without the tool. Last tool I bought was £3.45. Click here to see it Tool.
The rest is simple, but a word of caution. There are 2 massive bolts at the bottom of the strut. These will need an extension bar on your socket bar to achieve enough force to undo them. My bar is 4ft long. Even using heat they won't move. Use a bar.
I'm not advertising. I don't get a kickback in any way from these guys. I've bought three second hand struts from them in the last 6 month and all were in good nick. Almost new. click here to see them Car parts.
I negotiated a price of £300 for each.
Hope this helps.
Wow, sounds like you know this system well and you've gone in deep with repairs more than you wanted.
So glad I don't have the air struts just more stuff to break and worry about... lol
01-07-21, 05:53 PM
#26
Pole Position
LOL......As well as me also, even thou I looked at a couple thou. Kinda seems like more of the earlier ones had most had the air ride vs the later gen2's.......
05-13-23, 09:43 AM
#28
1st Gear
Join Date: May 2023
Location: Essex
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Air suspension problem
I have a 2005 lexus rx300 in Europe, I converted the air suspension to normal shock absorbers with spring. I have now changed the system back to the air suspension system with one of the suspension being brand new.
After all works was done, turned on the car and i could not hear the sound of the air suspension compressor pump and the car just remained all low and not moving up. I have tried taking off the battery terminals for 15 minutes but no change. I wish to find out if there's anything I need to do to get the system working again please.
thanks
After all works was done, turned on the car and i could not hear the sound of the air suspension compressor pump and the car just remained all low and not moving up. I have tried taking off the battery terminals for 15 minutes but no change. I wish to find out if there's anything I need to do to get the system working again please.
thanks
05-14-23, 01:50 AM
#29
Hi Martin. I only received this post resently.
You don't need any special tools. If you are capable of DIY at this level then you'll have what's needed.
For the Lexus parts I just Googled companies and checked their feedback.
You don't need any special tools. If you are capable of DIY at this level then you'll have what's needed.
For the Lexus parts I just Googled companies and checked their feedback.
05-14-23, 02:11 AM
#30
Hi Nubs.
Using the height switch lower the suspension. You should see a green light on the dash start to flash until the selected height is reached. If it doesn't flash the ECU is in a protect mode. It enters this when too many failed attempts have occured.
When it's at it's lowest (if it wasn't already) select N or H.
At this point you can start your diagnosis.
If there has been a number of failed attempts, the ECU may put it into a freeze and the pump won't run. I found if you start the car then stop it repeatedly for 5 (I think it's 5. It was a while ago) it resets the ECU, and the pump will run.
Things that cause it to fail. Blown pump fuse. Faulty solinoid. Faulty pump.
With the solinoid and pump you can (I did) short the solenoid connections. (Be careful as it has a lot of juice)
So what causes the ECU to stop running the pump: (The ECU is located under the right hand dash)
One of the height sensors being faulty. Indicated by one of the corners not raising. These sensors are around £120/160 but are easily repared if you prefer to do so.
I can run you through how to do this.
Using the height switch lower the suspension. You should see a green light on the dash start to flash until the selected height is reached. If it doesn't flash the ECU is in a protect mode. It enters this when too many failed attempts have occured.
When it's at it's lowest (if it wasn't already) select N or H.
At this point you can start your diagnosis.
If there has been a number of failed attempts, the ECU may put it into a freeze and the pump won't run. I found if you start the car then stop it repeatedly for 5 (I think it's 5. It was a while ago) it resets the ECU, and the pump will run.
Things that cause it to fail. Blown pump fuse. Faulty solinoid. Faulty pump.
With the solinoid and pump you can (I did) short the solenoid connections. (Be careful as it has a lot of juice)
So what causes the ECU to stop running the pump: (The ECU is located under the right hand dash)
One of the height sensors being faulty. Indicated by one of the corners not raising. These sensors are around £120/160 but are easily repared if you prefer to do so.
I can run you through how to do this.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
JAndersson
LS - 1st and 2nd Gen (1990-2000)
6
10-12-09 02:19 PM
330, adjustable, air, air suspension, aire, bag, de, height, lexus, performance, problem, problems, rx, rx330, solution, suspension
