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In the summer I have some massive plans. 1st is definitely the exhaust, rear sway bar brackets and rear sway bar, then maybe coilovers. The way I’ve always done it, is the Highlander gets the fun bits first (suspension/exhaust/etc) where the RX gets the quality of life mods first, then those get migrated to the Highlander later.
Now they’re both up to snuff in that department, so I’ve got a Torsen T2 LSD from an 99-00 RX300 to try on my Highlander, if it fits the CV axles correctly then the RX350 is next.
These headers are made by Weapon R for the 2011-2015 Toyota Sienna FWD. The front header is supposedly a bolt-on affair, but the rear header requires a custom exhaust to bolt up, so that’s a great excuse to make a different y-pipe or an x-pipe to fit it.
There’s also cast headers avail from Frankenstein Motorworks for 2GR-swap MR2s. Not sure how well these would play with an RX’s engine bay but they’re dyno-proven and track-tested to be durable and provide good gains. These were what I was thinking of originally, but the WR headers showed up locally at too good of a price to pass, talk about total coincidence.
I wish we had a front diff option! The U660 6-speed auto trans has one though.
Why not install the front ring gear to the Torsen & install it in the front? Works great in the front of a rs foci as well as a 8.8 in a foxbody.......
The front diff is a lot different in our cars compared to the back, it's even different than the one in the 06-12 RAV4's U151 (Ours is a lot beefier). I think it even has a different ratio too than the back somehow.
In other news, I unboxed my Torsen T2 LSD today and tried to fit in some open diff shafts, they will NOT fit! Just throwing that out there for the 2004-2009 RX330/350 guys - LSD WILL NOT FIT YOUR STOCK CV SHAFTS!!!! If you have a 2001-2003 RX300 you can throw on some 1999-2000 CV shafts, if you have a 04-09 you could "downgrade" to 99-03 RX knuckles, control arms, ABS sensors and 99-00 CV axles but that would be a massive downgrade as you're forced to run the smaller press-in PITA wheel bearings, the smaller parking brake and you lose the ability to put on 3rd gen RX / 2nd gen HL rear brakes. I know this as I swapped my 2002 Highlander to the 2004-2007 rear end setup for the larger brakes and to refresh my entire rear suspension.
You'll need to make a bracket and have a slide hammer handy to get these side shafts out. Three medium-effort pulls should be sufficient! They are meant to be removed this way according to TIS, the open diffs require removal of internal snap rings which necessitates front cover removal for access. The LSD is easier to work with!
1999-2000 RX300 diff shaft (Left) compared to 2001-2003 RX300 / 2001-2003 Highlander (Right). The 99-00 has a larger bolt spacing in general, but if you had an LSD it has a 20mm shaft instead of 19mm and slightly different splines so it (the open diff shaft) won't work. The 2001-2003 Highlander and 2004-2007 Highlander / 2004-2009 RX have the same spline profile and dimensions for the open diffs, so I still have my 2001-2003 Highlander diff working perfectly with 2004-2007 Highlander rear CV axles when I did the rear end "refresh".
The RX is running smoothly these days, but there are some concerns I have. In the last 6000km (2000km before my oil change), I have noticed the oil is getting unusually dark on the dipstick and there is what appears to be metal shavings. Soon, I am going to do an oil change and do an oil analysis on my engine oil and transmission fluid, which is also appearing a little darker than my Highlander normally does with noticeably more metal shavings on the magnetic drain plug. I ordered a MAHLE OS32373 oil pan gasket as I am also going to be dropping my replacement pan for its first time after the oil change. This gasket looks a lot nicer than the Fel-Pro and is US-made too. I'm a little nervous to have another look inside after two years to check up on the sludge situation! Stay tuned for lots of pics and updates!
Hopefully I won't have to use the spare engine and transmission I have lying around sooner than later! On a positive note, the oil filters that are coming out have progressively looked better.
Dark is engine oil, slightly brown/pink is trans fluid after four drain and fills and a trans filter change over the months
I also spent a bit of time to look inside my spare 2GR-FE. I pulled a valve cover off and inside was a bit of a milkshake, but nothing too bad at all. I've seen engines at my friend's Infiniti dealer with substantially worse headgasket issues run so I believe this engine can definitely be saved to continue on! The camshafts looked great and there was no noticeable wear up top at all. I will eventually be pulling the heads off to take a deeper look inside down the road, but so far I have no doubts that this 2GR will live on in either my RX350 or the Highlander one day. As for my spare U151F transmission, that thing is an absolute gem and is ready to go in whenever!
The engine needed a throttle body and upper intake plenum, so I got those from the junkyard
Me and my friend made block off plates for the throttle body and exhaust! Works like a charm!
A little bit of milkshake as seen on the bottom left corner, at least there's no sludge though! LOL!
Added 3rd gen RX350 chrome-plated door lock strikers to my RX350. These are a direct fit and are a lot more corrosion resistant, while having a nice plastic cover! Neat and basically free upgrade from the junkyard
Seriously improved the enjoyment of RX350's brakes by swapping out the 10.5" factory brake booster for a 10" one from a 2013-2018 RAV4, and a master cylinder from a 2011-2016 Scion TC. Like the power steering, this was one of the BEST mods to the car. If I could do it again, I would have used the same Scion master cylinder with a 10" booster from a 2007-2011 NA-made Camry or 2008-2012 Avalon, but the RAV4 one worked fine. This made driving the RX a LOT more enjoyable! Much firmer brake feel with more feedback and a lot easier to modulate - strong, immediate pedal! I also needed a 3rd gen RX master cylinder reservoir to fit the more modern style Advics master cylinder that comes on the newer Scion TC and 3rd gen RX. Bonus points as it took over a pound of weight off the front of the car, and now the booster can be removed and installed without the cowl coming off - as it's 0.5" smaller! Can't do THAT on a RAV or Camry even with the 10" booster!
Installed Denso Designer wiper blades on my RX! These take the same inserts as the original wipers that are still on our 3rd gen (2014) RX350! These blades have a nice sleek look, and hold tighter against the windshield; giving you a clean wipe with less chance of streaks.
DENSO 1603126 (Driver) | Toyota refill: 85214-0T050 DENSO 1603122 (Passenger) | Toyota refill: 85214-0T040
I also ordered 1999-2000 Lexus RX300 CV axles to fit my Torsen T2 limited slip diff I want to install! All I need to do now is mate these axles to the 2004-2009 RX (Japan-spec) ones, paint the diff and throw it in! Stay tuned for that! First 2nd gen with a Torsen maybe?
I also ordered a few other goodies for the RX. These haven't arrived yet as they're still in shipping, but I will update when I install them all
3rd gen (2010-2015) RX350 subframe cover: The 2nd gen RX has the same part number for the subframe as a 3rd gen, and even for the Highlander! So I ordered two of these (one for my RX, and one for my Highlander) in the pursuit of some slightly improved hwy aerodynamics and for some extra protection from the elements. These covers hold up well, have good coverage and don't block serviceability to the transfer case, transmission and engine, so I believe they're the best ones we can get!
16" rear wiper: 3rd gen RX 16" rear wiper vs the 14" that comes on our 2nd gens. I test-fit the 3rd gen one on my RX and it fits and provides more coverage without looking weird! So now, I'll be able to share inserts front AND rear between both RXs! Major plus!
OEM GR Corolla 10mm rear spacers: I'm against the idea of spacers and I think you should just buy the right wheels in the first place, but I have some excuses as to why I got these
#1: I lost about 2mm at the back from converting to the IS350 310x18mm rear rotors, so I want to gain some of that back
#2: The RX's rear fenders are super bulged out compared to the Highlander as well, so they look sunken in even with my 18x8" wheels with a 30mm offset
#3: I want to keep a squared setup with my tire/wheels for simplicity and just in case I get a flat tire
#4: Unlike a lot of aftermarket crap, these spacers are hub-centric, have no built-in studs to fail, and are super over-engineered! They have two M8x1.25 holes to remove from the rotor if they rust on, and even mount to the rotor itself with a M8x1.25 bolt if you want! Cool!
#5: I want to eventually switch from 245s to 255s, and the clearance was already surprisingly close to the rear strut, so gaining some space back there would be appreciated
That's all for now!
Last edited by MattRX; Mar 7, 2024 at 05:22 PM.
Reason: Grammar
I dropped the oil pan and confirmed that my oil cooler gasket is leaking for sure. I’ll definitely replace that o-ring (90301-67004) when I'm already in there to install my Weapon R Sienna headers. Thankfully, I could see that there was visibly a lot less sludge than when I first got the car, and the oil pickup is spotless as it should be. I chased the threads for the drain plug on my aftermarket oil pan while I was there. Thread size is M12 x 1.25. Smooth as buttah now.
Sadly, that’s where the good news ends. I saw a pretty massive aluminum chunk suspended in the pan when I dropped it amongst some other “glitter” and on the magnetic plug itself. Overall, the oil itself was pretty dark for only having 6000km on it. Once again, the filter had some sludge in it but less than the previous oil change. I also did my transmission fluid at the same time. It was also kind of dark and there was a good amount of metal on the magnetic plug. I saw a grey tinge in the fluid when it initially came out of the pan. I collected samples of both fluids to send them out to get analyzed.
OH NO~!
Oil filter score: SNAFU
Engine oil drain plug - a lot more debris than the other 2GR-FE and the 1MZ-FE in the fleet
Trans drain plug. A lot more gunk than the Highlander despite smooth and fast shifts. Although the 4-speed trans just shifts like crap in every car I've tried
March 20th, 2024
- Dropped off my oil samples for an analysis (Will update post when results come back)
- Installed some cool front door reflectors! These replace the plastic plug that covers the screw to remove the front door handle. PN: 81580-V1040
April 6th, 2024
It was an early Christmas for me as a lot of parts finally arrived from the US! One of those being the GR Corolla spacers. Not surprisingly, GR Corolla spacers will need longer studs, even longer than the 2016+ RX ones. I got the OEM GR Corolla rear ones for the back (90942-02098) and will let you know how fitment goes. The studs are 49mm long instead of 41mm for the stock studs. These spacers are super quality like I expected! Sadly the hole that mounts it to the rotor didn’t line up (wasn’t banking on that anyway), but these are a great buy for budget high quality 10mm spacers! Hoping to get them on the back soon once I have the time.
Added a 3rd gen RX front subframe cover / splash shield and created some reproductions of the expensive original mounting clips. Planning to upload the design to Thingyverse so everyone can print these clips instead of paying 20 EACH for them! (No knock-offs exist)
May 8th, 2024
Picked up my x-pipe locally for the RX (Magnaflow 10791). I was planning on getting one custom made but this was just too cheap to pass up. Now all I need to do is install the headers and get a front pipe made along with the rest of the exhaust pipes!
May 28th, 2024
Finally added the fourth horn note to the car. Delco Remy “D” / Super low note to complete the A, C and F notes that I installed a while back. Unlike my Highlander, I didn’t want to crowd the grille area as much so I mounted this horn where the original alarm horn is mounted behind the air box and near the brake booster.
I used a Toyota horn connector housing and long wire plus a piggyback spade terminal on the other end so this horn can act as the alarm horn in an emergency, as well as blast even if the horn relay fails due to it being run off power from one of the original horn plugs (the other plug is sent to the relay). That super low note blasts at 310 hz and really completes the “train” sound that was missing from the setup!
The setup
Make sure to clock the bracket properly, or else it'll contact the brake booster! Although, you may have to be lucky enough to find a Delco Remy horn with an adjustable bracket! Some factory config ones may have it in the right spot
It really resonates well in this area!
June 14th, 2024
MAJOR score today! I’ve been looking for one of these for over two years! OE power steering cooler off of a 1st gen Toyota Highlander. These are very hard to find as it needs to be from both a 4-cylinder and tow package. A rare combo! I installed one of these on my V6 Highlander a few years ago and have been searching for a spare ever since I bought my RX350. The 04-09 RX aftermarket PS cooler from Rockauto is an option, except for the fact that it doesn’t come with the friggin' mounting brackets! These Highlander P/S cooler brackets should come in handy to mount the new aftermarket one to my RX! I plan on modelling these brackets so that anyone can just buy the cooler off RA and make their own brackets.
That's it for now! It looks like I've got my work cut out for me and I will update this post as I complete more projects and get my oil analysis results back. I have to install those GR Corolla 10mm rear spacers, my power steering cooler and get my double din headunit in there. Some longer term goals are still the same: adding an 8" subwoofer, the Weapon R headers + exhaust + fix oil cooler o-ring leak and getting a few more batches of my custom rear sway bar brackets made plus a custom big rear sway bar itself (either 22mm or 24mm 2-way adjustable) made for the RX - and of course the Torsen limited slip diff, refurbishing rear subframe and its bushings, and coilovers!
How hard was the bank 1 metal cooler pipe to do? I know you have to remove the ps pump but did you have to remove the lines to go with it as well?
Best to remove the hard line (hi-pressure line).....I needed to change the p/s pump anyhow at the time....Will add, Don't go cheap when you need to replace the p/s pump........3 pumps later...
Best to remove the hard line (hi-pressure line).....I needed to change the p/s pump anyhow at the time....Will add, Don't go cheap when you need to replace the p/s pump........3 pumps later...
my ps pump is fine. I didn't realize/ pay attention that my line was the upgraded one but still rubber when I was working on my ps pump and rack. It busted way back in 2010
I would definitely take the hard line off, and I deleted the bracket that holds the line to the car, as it just makes removing / reinstalling it harder and isn't required to hold the line in place. I think it's easier to just take the whole pump off and then reinstall pump (two bolts are MUCH easier to install w/o all the lines in way) then reinstall steering idle-up sensor and lines.
I also took off the upper dogbone engine mount to gain more clearance to get down in there
I would definitely take the hard line off, and I deleted the bracket that holds the line to the car, as it just makes removing / reinstalling it harder and isn't required to hold the line in place. I think it's easier to just take the whole pump off and then reinstall pump (two bolts are MUCH easier to install w/o all the lines in way) then reinstall steering idle-up sensor and lines.
I also took off the upper dogbone engine mount to gain more clearance to get down in there
just did this today and yeah I did not put that pesky bracket back on. Took me forever as my high pressure line was really on there tight. Absolutely no way to remove the line without taking the water pump completely out imo. I tried for about 30 minutes and then just removed the whole thing off. Wonder why I didn't do it in the first place
Scored a pair of four OEM LED courtesy door light assemblies from a 4th gen RX350 F-Sport locally for dirt cheap. Higher trim newer Lexus cars got these, and they fit some older models without issue (like my Highlander), but on my RX I had to do a bit of trimming of the white plastic shield. These assemblies use two bright-white 3528 / PLCC2 chips to illuminate vs. a T10 peanut bulb. I had an LED Chinese one before for an IS250/IS350 which worked fine, but it was just way too bright! Plus, OEM parts that are serviceable is a plus! You can easily solder in new chips on these if they fail, but by that time I may be 80 yrs old!
PN: 81230-50070 x2
October 11th, 2024
Unable to resist the urge any longer, I temporarily transferred the Highlander's custom rear sway bar brackets I made and the Addco 2109 22mm rear sway bar onto my RX. HOLY smokes, she just got a lot spicier! I am still wondering why I didn't do this earlier, as the Highlander is down for the time being. Sorry, spare tire - you're going to have to sit this one out for now! The handling isn't quite on par with the Highlander (Not surprised), but it is close, and it has one thing that the Highlander lacks - and that's some POWAH!
December 11th, 2024
Installed a STABILUS 3B048761 lift support. It's a 1" taller universal gas strut I found for my RX, as I found myself occasionally banging my head on the hood. This was a much-appreciated cheap and quick upgrade!
For the first time in over a year, I got a CEL on my RX. It was for the bank 1 upstream sensor (sensor 1). I used a DENSO 2349049 which is for bank 2 sensor 1 and it has been working perfectly. The sensor I pulled off was a no-name cheapo which explains its short life
As my Highlander sits, waiting for the frame rails to be repaired - I had to make a tough decision. Wait for it to be fixed and put the Torsen T2 limited slip in it that I got it for, or throw it into my RX350. The fact that the open diff is leaking like crazy on my RX and how it's already snowing here, I decided to take the plunge and throw the LSD into the RX350 instead, deciding to look for another for the Highlander.
In post # 126 & # 127 here:
^ I wrongly state that you need to combine the inner side of the 2nd gen RX CV axle with the outer side of the 99-00 1st gen RX CV axle, well what if I told you I was probably WRONG?!
This is HUGE if that's the case! No more Frankensteined axle ends for the LSD swap! We know based on the previous post that the open diff shafts (Same for RX300 and RX330/350) won't fit the LSD's splines, but we do know the 99-00 RX300 CV shafts will! In 2004 starting with the RX330, the rear CV axles became one piece, but still shared the same overall length as the RX300, as I proved in my 2002 Highlander by converting it to the 04-09 RX's rear setup, but still keeping the stock 01-03 Highlander open diff. I unknowingly thought I had to buy the 04+ axles, but I probably could have just reused the stock ones.
What I didn't realize at the time as it was dark and I was tired, was that I didn't properly secure the pre 04+ axle to the post 04+ setup so I thought it didn't fit. Now that I have one of the Highlander's 2014 Venza rear knuckles (Same as 08-13 Highlander and 09 RX350 - but fitment identical to 04-08 RX) in the basement, I test fit the 99-00 RX300 CV axle and it was a PERFECT FIT! The ABS tone ring, axle nut fitment, splines and bearing all fit together like a glove. I am honestly shocked how I didn't realize this sooner, but now this is a viable upgrade for all 2004-2009 non-hybrid AWD RXs! It's also great news for us RX owners too as we can use the Dorman 917537 tone ring to replace our rear rings instead of having to replace an otherwise perfect OEM axle. It also means I am probably going to be the first 2nd gen RX owner (at least documented) to have a rear Torsen LSD on their car!
BEEFY! The RX300 axle is 28.4mm thick! That's 3mm thicker than a 2nd gen RX rear CV axle which sits at 1" or 25.4mm!
Tone ring has the exact ID, OD and teeth count!! WOW
99-00 RX300, 01-03 RX300 and 01-03 Highlanders have a "ring" / seal here to protect the tone ring, this is absent on the 2nd gen RX completely! The funny part is that it STILL seemingly fits perfectly with this here! If it causes issues, I can easily remove it later
1st gen RX (99-03 300) hub, what the cars that came with these LSDs would have
2nd gen RX - cotter pin looks up PERFECTLY! Make sure to use the older style axle nut which is a 30mm 6-point vs. 30mm 12-point and is not staked (more info about this later)
RX300 seems to have a few less splines near the start, but it still has full engagement
Fits 2nd gen rear wheel bearing / hub perfectly fine
With that, it was time to start restoring the LSD and getting this sucker ready for the RX350
Parts I bought (These apply to the open diff too):
90311-35032 x2 (Side shaft seal)
90311-38068 (Pinion seal)
90179-18020 (Pinion nut)
90930-03129 (Differential cover breather)
90521-28004 x2 (Side shaft retainer ring, part for open 01-03 diff is - 90520-22012)
90080-10086 x8 (Differential cover bolts, but any M10-1.25x25mm flange bolts can be used)
90341-18040 (24mm hex drain plug w/ large magnet)
90341-A0002 (24mm hex fill plug)
90179-A0005 x2 (Differential mount flag nut - from 14+ HL, it's half the price and works just as well as the stock one)
Over the past few days, I spent time cleaning and prepping it. By Dec 6th, the LSD had been completely resealed, scaled and stripped of all rust. I then started the painting process. First, it got two coats of corroseal
To get to these seals from behind, you're going to have to pull the side shafts off. Unlike the open diff, the LSD's side shafts must be pulled off with a slide hammer according to the factory manual!
I used a piece of scrap steel lying around. 115mm center to center bolt pattern w/ 10mm holes to fit the M10 studs of the side shaft, and a big 16mm hole in the middle for the slide hammer to fit! Then WALLOP away!
Lisle 56750 seal puller makes short work of these guys! Be careful as those suckers FLY when they pop out! They're rusted in a bit!
You're going to have to carefully tap these guys in after cleaning the surface of any dirt & rust. I used emery cloth. I used a 63mm / 2.5" adapter in my ball joint kit to get this sucker in, but I'm sure a big enough impact socket would work too. Grease the crap out of it so it slides in like butter!
Next: the pinion seal! Loosen the massive 24mm nut after unstaking it from the pinion shaft using a punch. It's torqued to 80 ft lbs so expect a fight! After loosening the nut, you're going to need a gear puller to get the pinion flange off of the splines
This one was a BUGGER to get in! Tighter fit vs. the side shaft seals, and I had to do a lot more cleaning as the surface was a lot more rusted. This guy needed a 70mm / 2.75" adapter from my ball joint kit, so a bit bigger than the side shafts. Pound the snot out of it until it sits nice and recessed & flush, you'll notice the seal will bottom out when you're done like the side shafts. Don't forget to reinstall the oil slinger underneath before you do this!
LOOKIN' GOOD! These side shafts and the pinion flange are getting the same paint treatment as the diff, as you can see, I want to keep this car for a long time!
It's nearing Christmas and I'm going to give my RX a Merry Christmas Torsen soon!
Just finished painting the 99-00 RX300 cv axles, diff flange, side shafts, drain & fill plugs and the first half of the diff today! The rear diff cover got four coats of high temp engine enamel. Everything else received two thin coats of corroseal except the axles, and one thick coat of rust paint
Not bad for a rattle can job!
Those same 2nd gen RX rear wheel bearings I had from the junkyard happened to be the perfect ballast to help me paint those axles! Since they were new, the inner joint was tight enough to hold the entire axle up vertically. Make sure to mask off the tone ring so you don't get paint all over it
You've got to paint these GSP cv axles. They fit nicely, work well and are cheap - but they come without any sort of protection whatsoever!
You'll also need the 99-03 RX300 / 01-03 Highlander rear CV axle nuts, nut retainer and cotter pin. My CV axles came with the nuts, but did not come with the spindle nut retainer or cotter pin which was annoying to say the least. I had sold my original 01-03 axles so I had to track these down again. Due to the outrageous price of the stock axle nut retainers and lack of aftermarket support for them, I will be repainting the stock ones
Axle nut: 90178-22001 x2 (30mm M22-1.5 6-point nut)
Axle nut retainer: 43525-20030 x2 (43525-20040 & 42428-42010 may work too)
Cotter pin: 90252-03014 (It's just a 5/32" diameter 1.5" length cotter pin, may as well just get a 304 stainless steel one instead)
Nut, retainer and cotter pin as described above
All that's left to do is wait a bit, flip the diff around, paint the other side, reseal the cover and then throw it into the car!! Stay tuned!
