Jim_Chow

I suspect not a direct swap. I know for sure on the landcruiser, the 98-02 grilles and rear tail lights are incompatible w/ 03-05 ones. One guy on another forum did change the grille on his LC, but he also had to change the little plastic trim strips below the grille. If you change all of this, I'm confident it will fit, but you'd probably have to get those plastic pieces custom painted since most parts come primed black.

Usually with the windshield installation, even if the installer uses OEM glass, the trick is that the windshield is riveted with 4 rivetrs on either side. As far as I know, this is the only vehicle like this, and most installers are unaware of it. If they don't install it properly, the mouldings won't seat correctly, resulting in major wind noise and possible water leaks. One glass shop scratched and bent up the body around the windshield to one guy's 100 on another board. I'm getting my windshield replaced again..had one replaced almost exactly one year ago (both OEM, same dealer). The dealer did a great job last time, unfortunately, a rock about 1" from the bottom edge center was all it took to generate a 15" crack. Previous windshield was cracked by a rock about 1" from the passenger side vertical edge, generating a 1.5' long crack. From my two experiences, the LX windshield, if struck by a good-sized rock 1" from the edge, will generate a crack 100% of the time. Price of the lexus windshield rose from $680 last year to $980 this year...that's glass only! Trim, rain sensing tape, rivets, and labor are extra! $1380 total is the estimate! Luckily, insurance will pay for it. :) Anyways, glad your problem is solved. I'd find it hard to believe a 1-2 yr old car would have a new windshield unless it was driven extensively on 2-lane highways. Mine is a dedicated road-trip car, hence it spends most of the time on the interstate or highways, very little city driving other than grocery errands on the weekend.

Only problem I've heard of the weathertech's is for the front mats, the heel of one's shoe wears through easily. I have the nifty mats. They only come w/ the rear cutouts for the 3rd row seats and now cutouts for the anchors. I just used a utility knife and cut a U-shape for the center anchor. I also installed some brass grommets in the corners to allow use of the D-rings to lash down the dog's kennel. I like the nifty mats up front since they have a "carpet like" feel w/ deep bucket to catch water/dirt, yet can be hosed off and are acid/chemical resistant. Their second row mat is kind of small. I've seen OEM rubber mats that cover more area. For all but the driver's mat, I threw the nifty's on top of the OEM carpeted mats which are over the bare carpet.

I wouldn't bother w/ the OEM rack. Get a real rack like the AO rack: http://www.sleeoffroad.com/products/produc...fracks_main.htm

I've heard stories of K&N's leaking dust into the engines, also that there's no noticeable improvement in air flow. I only use OEM filters. I've only used OEM filters on my 86 4runners...21 years and 205K mi later, no issues. On the 3rd gen 4runners and taco's, the air mass sensor changed to a wire-type. The oiled filters would gum them up, causing the vehicle to do weird stuff like stall on freeway onramps, etc. Do it at your own risk. FWIW, Toyota has gone from the cyclonic air filter on the Australian turbo diesel LC79's to the rectangular type found on the current LC/LX for the new 4.5L twin turbo diesel, so they must have confidence in the rectangular OEM filter. Besides, OEM filters aren't expensive...only $22 for OEM toyota landcruiser filters on discount. It's just like the premium vs. regular gas argument. If you aren't willing to spend the few extra bucks for premium, you shouldn't be driving a car that recommends premium. Ditto w/ OEM air filters.

I thought the headlights on the 98-02's differ from the '03+ ones in one mounting tab. Not positive, though.

That's similar to what I did...6 near stops from 60->10mph, then 10 min cool down, then I drove maybe 5 mi up the Sky Island Highway (climbs from 2500 ft to 9000 ft in 28 mi), which was about 1500 ft up, then did the twisty turns at 40/50mph slowing to about 10mph, then did 5 more near stops from 60->10 on the flats at the bottom. Pads were smoking afterwards! I drove about 20 min home w/o stopping, parked the car in the garage w/o brakes (tranny in P only), let it sit overnight.

$4K is steep! I would also do the H20 pump at 90K mi since it's behind the t-belt (the pumps typically last about 120K mi, but if it leaks then, you'll have to perform all the same labor to remove the nearer new belt just to access the pump). I wonder if they didn't torque the front calipers to 90 ft-lbs (will cause steering to shake while braking if loose), or forgot to install parts like the c-clip (CV boot will pull loose, spew grease all over, CV joint ruined). I would complain to lexus corporate and have a different dealer do the work. Which board was it on where I heard most of the dealers in the Tri-state area sucked? When I installed my rotors/pads a month ago, I discovered the toyota tech who did the bearing repack 3K mi ago overtorqued the outer axle locknut (the big 54mm nut) and didn't install the plate washers that go w/ the two bolts that hold the calipers on! I searched all local dealers (none available, special order only), finally located 4 of them in the next state and had them express mailed overnight. This is why I don't trust people working on my rig. I plan to have my t-belt and H20 pump done at 90k mi (currently at 61K...got a long way to go considering I only put on 11K mi in 1.5 yrs)

Xenondepot H1's. The bulbs are rebased so the focal point occurs at the focal point of the halogen projector, which is at a different spot than with a HID projector. The other option is to retrofit a HID projector (> $1K)... illusion lighting in So. CA does this. Virtually all of us w/ HID's use the xenondepot kit. I measured 4x more light (2x brighter) than the stock halogen bulbs using a photographic ambient light meter 1 m in front of the headlights (meter measures in 0.1 stop increments).

There are two kinds of lights on the boards. One is the long ones you see from the side that light to top surface. Another are small round ones on the bottom that illuminate the ground. I presume the $75 bulb is for the long, top ones? $25 for installation isn't bad. The manual shows that the bulbs are just as long as you see in the lights, but the impression I get is you might have to remove the running board to change the bulb. My dealer charges a minimum 0.5 hrs to do anything, so that would be $47.50 in labor vs. $25 for your dealer. I would go w/ sliders painted to match the vehicle on the tube part and black on the flat part. They will actually protect the vehicle body if you offroad, but no whiz-bang look like the OEM boards. http://www.sleeoffroad.com/products/UZJ_sliders_main.htm (P/N SOF1061)

How much does your dealer charge for the replacement bulb alone? I was thinking of ditching the running boards and installing sliders after the lights die.

Need to change the plugs already? I know on the GX's and LX's V8, the plugs are iridium, recommended changing interval is 120K miles. The 4runner V6 doesn't have iridium plugs, changing interval is something like 30K or 60K mi. Check if your 4runner has the iridium plugs. If so, you're just wasting money changing them this soon. I was under the impression that all the made-in-Japan 2UZ V8's come w/ iridium plugs from the factory. Not sure about domestic-made V8's for the Tundra/Sequoia, though. That said, I'll probably change the plugs on my LX around 90k mi for good measure (maybe better fuel economy than letting the plugs degrade at 120K mi?).

Under the hood, drivers side front corner. If you apply 12v to the connectors using a second battery, you won't lose your nav settings. This is what I did. Just make sure you don't short the jump cables. I use a mil-spec Odyssey PC1700 MJT full metal jack glass mat battery (no liquid, completely sealed). They are used by law enforcement and on firetrucks.

Do you mean the DRL's? You have to cut a wire at the DRL relay in the engine compartment and run wires through the firewall to a switch to enable/disable manually.

I replaced all 4 rotors w/ A.R.T. slotted & cryogenically frozen rotors and pads w/ Porterfield R4s carbon/kevlar pads over the labor day weekend ($750 for the rotors + pads, $80 for new OEM anti-squeal shims, $0 labor). Just replacing the pads is easy...hardest part is pushing the pistons back in. Before I bought my vehicle, it had been only dealer serviced by the PO. They replaced the front pads at 49K mi w/o turning the rotors, and a warp developed soon thereafter and progressively got worse over the next 10K mi (still safe, but annoying considering this is a $70K vehicle and my two other cars, which are either new or where I rebuilt the brake systems, don't do this). Anyways, one thing I discovered is I couldn't get the front pads out w/o pulling the rotor off. Reason is, the outer anti-squeal plates have two sets of "prongs" which stick into the hollow interior of the pistons to prevent the pads from moving around. There's a middle anti-squeal plate onto which you put disk brake grease (special high temp graphite grease) and then there's the pad. The dealer used this yellow stuff (I think the spray on junk) that sticks like a cushioned adhesive, meaning the pad would not slide out. You should be able to pull out the pad and middle anti-squeal plate (the one w/ the slots in it) as one unit, but mine wouldn't budge. After I removed the front calipers (need a 12mm socket to remove the brake hose bracket, then 17mm deep 6 pt socket to remove the caliper [torque is 90 ft-lbs]), I pulled out all the shims/pads and used a scraper (the type used to prep floors for tile) to scrape the yellow gunk off. For the front, one piston is smaller than the other, and the prongs are designed to fit this way. For the rears, you just remove the caliper itself, NOT the torque plate. The caliper is the one that uses the two 14mm bolts (you might need a open-ended wrench to keep the other side of the bolt from turning when loosening it). Torque is only 20 ft-lbs. Don't confuse this with the 2 bolts that mount the base of the rear caliper unit to the car (that's called the torque plate...17mm socket, 76 ft-lbs). Do not remove any of the hoses. Just remove the little metal clip in the bracket just to the rear of the axle so you can rest the caliper on the axle as you change the pads. Use as pair of pliers and jiggle it since there's dirt and junk...don't pull straight back or the pliers might slip and hit you in the face...almost knocked my teeth out the first time I did this! You will also need high temp disc brake grease on the shims. If you buy new OEM shims (recommended if you live where the road is salted), it comes w/ a pack of grease. Like the fronts, you put the special grease only on both sides of the middle (slotted) anti-squeal shim. Hint: I buy my parts from Toyota and tell them it's a '03 Landcruiser...the brake parts are the same as with the LX, just cost less. For the rear, the outer shim (the solid one) is asymmetical w/ the inner one. The inner pad has this little metal clip you install on one end only, so the solid shim is designed to clear this clip. Make sure you bed in new pads properly. For the best performance, it's best to replace the pads and rotors together. After my bedding process, the front pads were literally smokin'!

Try looking at the cat converter shields. They are famous for rattling, especially on the earlier LX/LC's. The quick & dirty fix is to wrap a stainless hose clamp around them.

Make sure you are not turning, as this will bind up the drivetrain. Drive straight for a while to relieve drivetrain stress, then stop and try to disengage the CDL. The other way (if you turned) is to reverse in the same way to undo the turn. The drivetrain binds up because when you turn, the front and rear axles want to turn at a different rate since the front travels more distance (think of how a big-rig makes a huge, sweeping turn for the front wheels while the wheels at the rear of the trailer travel a short distance). However, the locked center diff forces both front and rear axles/driveshafts to turn at the same rate. These two opposing forces build up pressure in the drivetrain. This pressure does not allow the center diff to unlock until you relieve the pressure. If you drive straight on the dirt shoulder, it helps a lot since the dirt will allow the tires to spin at slightly different rates to relieve pressure. The worst is driving on high traction surfaces w/ the center diff locked.

Check the fuses (one for each low beam lamp, IIRC) in the big fuse box behind the battery. There's a fuse puller included in that box. Somehow, I would think it unlikely that both fuses would blow, but checking the fuses is the easiest.

For #8, you thread the nut back on the bolt just a little (until the outer face of the nut is flush with the end of the bolt; it's to protect the threads on the bolt when you whack it w/ the brass bar and to prevent the cone washers from flying across the garage when they break loose). You need to use a brass bar since it's softer than the bolt; otherwise, you could damage it. You need to whack the bolt w/ the bar and sledge to loosen the cone washers. They are very stubborn and, by design, cannot be removed even if you lose all 6 nuts. The big factory manual specifies to use a brass bar and to thread the nuts back on as I described. The Toyota front hub design has lots of redundancy for maximum reliability. The snap rings keeps on the 4wd flange on the axle, but the 6 bolts and cone washers are a second line of defense. Even if you lost the drive flange, you'd just lose 4wd up front. The wheel would NOT fall off since (1) it's held on by the caliper and (2) it's held on by the axle nuts and backed up by the staked lock washer. The new design used in the GX/4runner only utilizes a single sealed bearing..not as durable over the long run, but less maintenance in the short run (first 100k mi). After that, you'll have to change the bearing or suffer from a loose sealed bearing, which will affect the steering. With the needle bearing system on the LX470 and earlier toyotas, you have to repack every 50K mi or so (manual specs 30K mi, but that's if you offroad all the time, drive through water, etc.). The trend for toyota seems to be less maintenance over the first 100K mi, but after that, it's more difficult to do oneself and maintenance costs are higher since you have to replace the entire front bearing and the part it's pressed into at the dealer ($$$) rather than to repack the same old bearings w/ $3 of grease, two $20 oil seals, two $3 lock washers, and two $1 gaskets, and some elbow grease.

Funny that you ask. I just replaced all 4 rotors on my '03 w/ A.R.T. (applied rotor technologies) slotted, cryogenically frozen rotors w/ carbon/kevlar pads last weekend. :-) This is the procedure off the top of my head: Tools you'll need: - 54mm 6 point socket (2 1/8") SST - torque wrench 25-100 lbs - torque wrench 25-240 in-lbs - thick brass bar (at least 1/2" thick) - 17mm deep socket, plus 12mm and 14mm sockets - breaker bar (I use 18") - impact wrench (optional) - large, flat bladed screwdriver - smaller flat bladed screwdriver - normal hammer - heavy hammer (i use a 2 lb sledge) - snap ring pliers (I use the Craftsman ones w/ red handles, easy) - spring scale, 9-20 lb range (scale for weighing fish, I got a decent aluminum/stainless one from Bass Pro Shops) - bearing packer (if repacking grease) Parts: - drive flange gaskets (2) - lock washers (2) - inner oil seal (2, optional if you are repacking your bearings) - multi-purpose, non-moly NLGI 2 wheel bearing grease (same kind used in there now if not repacking inner bearing) - brake cleaner (spray) Steps: 1) Jack up car on stands 2) Remove front wheel center caps, front wheels 3) Remove front brake hose bracket 4) Remove brake caliper mounting bolts (17mm deep, non-deep won't work, IIRC), remove brake caliper (do not disconnect the hose; I just rest it on a 5 gal bucket turned upsidedown) 5) Use smaller screwdriver and hammer and remove dust cap 6) Use snap ring pliers and remove snap ring 7) Remove 6 nuts for the 4wd drive flange. 8) Thread nuts back on so the end is flush w/ the end of the bolt. Use brass bar and whack w/ sledge until the cone washer unseats. Do this on each bolt. Now you can remove the drive flange and flange gasket. 9) Use 54mm SST and remove outer axle locknut. 10) Use large screwdrive and/or hammer and bend back the tabs on the lockwasher if needed, remove lock washer. 11) Use 54mm SST to remove inner axle lock nut 12) Grab rotor w/ both hands and gently lift outward w/o dragging the ABS speed sensor ring on the spindle. Keep one thumb covering the claw washer (so the outer bearing doesn't fall on the floor). 13) Turn one wheel upside down and Place hub/rotor UPSIDE DOWN inside the wheel. You can use the wheel as a work surface instead of a vice. Remove 6 bolts holding the rotor to the hub. 14) Install new rotor, torque to 54 ft-lbs (might be 57 ft-lbs, can't quite remember) 15) If repacking the inner bearing, do it now (I use large pliers to rip out the inner oil seal on the back side of the hub. Clean old grease, repack w/ new grease, install bearing. Use a stack of wood or seal driver and hammer to hammer in the seal, making sure you don't damage the ABS speed sensor ring. Put grease on the rubber lip of the inner bearing seal. 16) Add grease to the outer bearing, put claw washer on top. Slide rotor/hub assembly onto spindle, careful about the ABS ring. 17) Install inner axle nut. Use 54mm SST and tighten to 43 ft-lbs. Turn rotor back and forth a few times to work in the grease. 18) Retighten nut to 43 ft-lbs. Now loosen the nut until you can turn it w/ your fingers. Retighten to 35-57 in-lbs. (yes, INCH pounds!) 19) Slide on a new lock washer over the inner nut, thread on outer lock nut. Torque to 47 ft-lbs. 20) Use the spring scale and put it on the wheel lug at 12 o'clock and pull tangentially in the direction of rotation. The scale should read from 9.5-20 lbs. If not, take it all apart, put in more grease in the outer bearing, retorque until it meets spec. 21) Use large screwdriver w/ hammer and stake the lock washer. 22) Install new flange gasket. Install 4wd flange w/ 6 bolts/washers/cone washers. Torque to 25 ft-lbs 23) Install snap ring. Careful, these come in 6 thicknesses, so you CANNOT mix up the rings from both sides. The manual calls for installing new rings, but if you have snap ring pliers, you can reuse them. 24) Install dust cap (put grease around seal) 25) Install brake caliper. Torque bolts to 90 ft-lbs 26) Install brake hose bracket bolt. FSM says to torque to 24 ft-lbs, but one of mine snapped at that torque. I'd recommend no more than 20 ft-lbs. 27) Mount the wheel, torque lug nuts to 97 ft-lbs. Install center caps. You are now done! To change pads, remove the inner spring clip, the anti-rattle spring, the two pad retainers. The pad and inner shim together can be pulled out unless the dealer used some kind of adhesive on the middle shim. In this case, you'd have to remove the pads when the caliper is off since the outer shim has these metal tabs that snap into the inside of the pistons and prevent them from sliding around. Like the rear shims, you also apply disc brake grease to the inner shim, both sides. Make sure none get on the braking surfaces. For rear rotors, it's easy: 1) Jack up rear, put stands under rear axle. 2) Remove center caps, rear wheels. 3) Make sure e-brake if off. Use pliers to jiggle and remove soft brake hose to hard line metal U-tab. 4) Remove brake torque plate mounting bolts (the 2 bigger ones). Move caliper out of the way (I put it on the axle..won't fall) 5) Pull off rotor. While you're at it, inspect the e-brake drum shoes. Min thickness is 1mm, new is like 4mm. 6) Push on new rotor. 7) Reinstall caliper/torque plate. Torque to 76 ft-lbs. 8) Reinstall brake hose tab 9) Reinstall wheel, torque to 97 ft-lbs. To change the pads, you need to remove the two smaller caliper mounting bolts. Use special disc brake grease on both sides of the middle shim (the one w/ the slots). Reinstall caliper, torque caliper bolts to 20 ft-lbs. TIPS: 1) DO NOT mix up parts between the left and right sides of the vehicle, especially the bearings and snap rings! The bearings wear to that specific race and the snap rings for each side are chosen so there's a max amount of play between the ring and flange. Those rings come in 6 thicknesses in hundredths of a inch differences. 2) Turn the AHC button to OFF before you jack up the car. I had to start it up and press on the brake pedal to get the pistons to retract enough to accommodate the new rotors/pads, and if the AHC weren't off, the AHC would try to level off the car...can be dangerous. 3) I buy the parts from the Toyota dealer. I use the Landcruiser and the same year as the LX (in my case, I spec the '03 LC). The brake pads, anti-squeal shims, rotors, everything are the same as the lexus parts, just less expensive. 4) Give the rotors a blast of brake cleaner to make sure there's no grease residue from your hands.

Sitting more upright is better than reclined back...less pressure on the lower spine, especially on long drives.

I'd just leave the top alone. A quality urethane/clear coat like what lexus uses should stand up to the elements for 20 yrs. If you spray a bedliner on top, the black color will turn the car into an oven. Better to do nothing, IMHO. Or have it detailed once a year, including the top.

Thanks! I forgot what I had written. :-) My view is even if you elect not to do the work yourself, having the factory manuals combined with some auto knowledge goes a long way in determining if the SM really knows his stuff and/or if their price is a rip-off or why the price is high (like when changing front rotors due to the intense labor). BTW, techs often know short-cuts that can save hours of labor, but Toyota always charges by the book. For example, on my old 4Runner, the book said 10 hrs labor to change the timing chain since it recommends pulling the head/head gasket, dropping the entire oil pan, etc. The short-cut (just dropping the two front bolts of the oil pan that hold the timing cover on and keeping careful track of the sprocket teeth w/ the chain means you don't have to do what the book says). The result is it takes about 4 hrs of work. Still, the dealer will charge for 10 hrs labor, not 4 hrs.

Is there any power going to the car at all when you put the key and turn it to "on?" If not, is the battery/ground making good connection? I remember when I bought my rig CPO, I noticed the + terminal was really loose. Check for corrosion on the terminals, too.

Hmmm could be. I know when the button is pressed and the indicator in the panel lights, I can feel all wheels pulling in a tight turn. ?????? When off, it corners normally... That's your center diff lock binding the drivetrain. The reason is when you turn, the front wheels cover a longer distance than the rear wheels (think of a big-rig making a tight corner). The CDL forces both front and rear driveshafts to turn at the same speed, which means the front/rear axles will turn at the same speed. This means the front and rear wheels want to cover the same distance over ground, but they can't since you are turning. The result is, some other part of the drivetrain (usually your transfer case) takes up the pressure or the wheels chirp/skid (if on dirt). If the tires can't slip like when on dirt/snow, the drivetrain takes up the stress. This can damage your drivetrain. This is also why it's sometimes difficult to shift from 4wd low to high or vice versa if the CDL was engaged and you turned. The way to relieve the stress on the drivetrain is to do the opposite (drive in reverse while turning).