Just got the news from Lexus dealer that the bouncy ride in the LX470 was caused by contamination in the hydraulic fluid in the automatic height control. The contamination ruined the seals in the accumulators and hydraulic oil went into the struts where the nitrogen gas is supposed to be. Dealer recommendation: New accumulators $2,200, hydraulic fluid $100 and labor about $900. Total cost $3,200. This same dealer flushed the hydraulic system 2 years ago. He said the oil that they flushed out must have been contaminated. The did not offer to do an oil test to see if the current oil was contaminated. Our LX470 is a '99 with 120,000 miles on it. This solution is too pricey.
I think we will replace the suspension with a non automatic height control suspension for a toyota land cruiser. I am guessing the cost will be around $1,600 to $2,000.
Hope that helps.
