2005 Ls430 Air Suspension Struts

[Bcraigbct]

I was told by the dealer that I had leaking LF and RR struts. My car is equipped with the Air Suspension. The prices for these struts is atronomical (About $1800.00 each installed).

I just bought this car and really love it but WOW!!!

I've tried searching the internet for Salvage struts and found one for $600. I haven't ordered it yet.

Does anybody out there have any ideas or advice for this newbie? It would sure be appreciated.

Bill

[1990LS400]

Go with new OEM struts. When installed by a Lexus dealer you will get a one year warranty. Who knows what condition a used strut is in or how long it will last ... and who is going to install a used strut for you?

[2ton]

Struts should be replaced in pairs for front or rear of the vehicle. Get another mechanic's opinion on condition of struts/options for replacement, and preferably not from the Lexus dealer's mechanic.

Leaking strut? I would get under the car and see what's going on before doing anything. You could clean all struts like new and see if struts actually leak.

Food for thought.

[Ancdmd]

Sign up for clublexus.com discount at Sewell Lexus parts online and the shocks are about $900 with the discount

[Bcraigbct]

Thanks, Adam and Dale and whatever the other guys name is...

In the meantime, do any of you know of or have opinions on the advisability of going with a conversion kit to non air struts? I've found one on the internet for about $1300.00 that allegedly includes new struts and all the necessary conversion hardware, etc. They claim "if you can do a brake job, you can install the conversion kit".

Sure sounds appealing considering the fact I've had 2 air struts fail and the car only has 71K miles. Regular struts are about $100 or less. Beats even the discounted great deal from Sewell and for sure beats the $1800 the dealer wants.

[Ancdmd]

From what I've read staying with OEM parts for the shocks/steel springs setup is the best way to go. There's a wealth of info on clublexus.com and probably here about this conversion, should find some threads with a couple searches.

[jainla]

+1 with not doing used struts. If new is $900 and used is $600 it's a no brainer. Parts.com also has them for ~$900 but I'm sure the shipping is steep.

My mechanic said last year that one of my front ones was leaking oil; I've procrastinated but I think before the end of the summer I'm going to just shell out the $1800 and replace them. Labor to replace the struts is minimal; I think my guy quoted me 2 hours.

There have been stories about aftermarket companies but the only one (Arnott) has a bad reputation and stocks nothing for the LS430; you'd think with all the cars in this segment with air suspensions someone would fill the gap.

Replacing all the air struts with OEM parts is interesting; but I fear the labor involved might make it prohibitively expensive. Reviews of the other kits vary.

All that said; this is (usually) the only pricey gotcha with these cars and if it means I get another 4-5 years out of the car I think it's worth it.

[RhythmS_LS]

I wouldn't even consider buying used Air Struts, if you really want to keep the Air Suspension System it is going to cost you $$$$$$$ you are going to have to replace all of the air struts eventually, once you have one leak the others will soon follow. Here is something else to consider, once you have a leak the air system itself is compromised and you will take on moisture so you will have to change out the dyer bottle as well. The compressor was not built to run overtime, so when you have a leak the compressor will start to work harder than it should, once it starts making noise its days are numbered so you will have to replace that as well.....So all in all you are looking at constantly replacing parts unless you just go ahead and replace almost the entire system......That is something to consider.

The other option is to replace the Air Struts with Coilovers and completely eliminated the cycle of destruction that is taking place within your Air Suspension System. There are many Coilover kits to choose from: Strutmasters, Megan Racing, BC Racing, Tein, Ect.....

I replaced mine with BC Racing BR Coilovers and so far I am happy, it lowered my car by about an inch or so from the OEM height and the ride isn't bad it is a stiffer suspension and handles a little better plus I have the option to even lower it more and stiffen up the suspension if I want, I haven't tried that yet, but the option is there..Right now it drives like the Sport Mode with better handling.

Hope this helps

[Hagar]

Sorry to ressurect an old thread, but I think this is important for Air strut owners.

I think Lexus LS430 air struts get a bad rap. Mine in a 04 seem fine and have been checked recently by Lexus. And lexus noted my concern and reassured me that in his 15 years as service manager, they have never replaced any LS430 air struts. (could be they were so crazy expensive, nobody did replace them)

Another friend of mine (certified toyota mechanic with 20 plus years experiance said the same thing though)

But in case you need to replace your air struts, here;s a link to a solution. I found this at clublexus forum - Ebay link for rebuilding service

https://redirect.viglink.com/?format=go&jsonp=vglnk_149574231428815&key=e0a79085f9323d512d045d9f88bd811e&libId=j34ubyll01000azq000MA7dw4qcvs&loc=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.clublexus.com%2Fforums%2Fls-3rd-gen-2001-2006%2F847504-2002-ls430-air-strut-question.html&v=1&out=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fitm%2FLexus-LS430-XF40-2004-2006-Front-OEM-REBUILD-Suspension-Air-Spring-Bag-Strut%2F201916746619%3F&ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.clublexus.com%2Fforums%2Fls-3rd-gen-2001-2006-158%2F&title=2002 Ls430 air strut question - ClubLexus - Lexus Forum Discussion&txt=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fitm%2FLexus-LS430-...%2F201916746619%3F&loAsUuid=j34ubyzd-6a9a4109-7826-428b-a3a9-d8cff37b3f6d

Good Luck