Top five hates and likes with the Lexus badged Toyota Landcruiser THE LX470

I purchased one of the cheapest clear title, running and almost rust free 100 series Toyota Landcruiser. The catch is, I had to settle for a Lexus LX470. This SUV has the Toyota 4.7L 2UZ-FE V8. Several of these engines have reached one million miles. This one has 327,000 at the time of this publication.
For the first six months I spent lots of time being a shade-tree mechanic but... I did make time for fun.
in this video...
Like:
Engine, the 2UZFE
Extremely Fun, off-road and ORV
Landcruiser and Toyota Community
Series 100 Landcruiser values are increasing
Rugged and overbuilt
Bonus: Tailgate and Third Row
Hate:
Suspension - Automatic Height Control or AHC
Climate control and infotainment system
Motor driven accessories are failing
Plastic cooling system parts fail
Center caps or wheel hubs - finding wheels is a pain
Toyota, Landcruiser, Lexus, LX470, ORV, Overlanding, Offroad, Maintenance, Repairs, Modified, Lifted, Mudding, Climbing, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
(c) Andrew Kapp (video and content)

[@richienell]

Hello Sir, I appreciate the video and taking the time to make it. I would like to share my thoughts and experiences as well as it relates to the info you have provided. I have owned LXs and LCs for actually 25 years next month, and nothing but LX/LCs. My first was a 1992 Land Cruiser in March of 1996. 12 more LX/LCs later and as of today my family drives six LXs (four being LX470s) and one LC. My wife and I just got back home from a 400+ mile trip as well in our '06 LX with 283K miles. I appreciate your opinions and have zero problem with opinions even if mine are different. Regarding starting.....I agree LXs are very reliable at starting. Starters need replacing at like every 250-300k miles (from experience). LX community.....Agree. These vehicles certainly get noticed and waved at everytime. Value....no doubt they are going up. Rugged....no doubt and the only vehicle I would use to ride in woods every day with my job as timberland manager. Not a weekend offroad vehicle for me. It is an every day in the woods rugged piece of work with 426k on the clock. For the negative.....AHC (Active Height Control, btw)...It can be a pain if you know nothing about it just like anything else. But in general, repairing/replacing the AHC issues is normally cheaper than replacing with conventional suspension, IF you can't replace shocks and springs yourself. The facts are based on again, many years of experience, is that the hydraulic rams, "shocks" RARELY ever fail even after 20 years. The nitrogen globes are what wears out and causes the AHC system to not work properly. And when that happens they are very easy to replace. Price wise..you can get four globes for $700 (I did it). After very easy labor in your driveway, the AHC is good as new. I do get the possibility of having an issue with it way off the grid somewhere but failure is rare. No idea what you mean by chopping the body. Navigation display......not sure what negatives could be other than strictly personal preference but the '03-07 screens are extremely reliable. No way I would pay for any other option to replace that. As you say it works great. I totally agree, all of mine. Seat controls.....the 80 series LXs, of which I have two, are known for the plastic gears in seat controls going out. But I have personally never had on issue with any of my 100 series LXs. Pretty darn reliable as well. My steering columns work fine as well but I have heard that being a problem for some, like you say. Plastic parts around engine......The only plastic part that comes to mind that need attention paid are the two "heater Ts". They are located at the rear of engine next to firewall as you point out. But what I think is important to mention is that every single one of those $12/each Ts ever made will last 15 years with no failure, as will the plastic radiator. Been there, done that many times over many hundreds of thousands of miles. And no other plastic parts even come to mind that need regular mainatenace to live. Center caps.....correct, petty... actually it doesn't count as number 5 because those are Tundra wheels. Haa. (which I have on my LC with zero center caps). And finally, the split tailgate is THE reason to buy a LX/LC and not a GX. P.S. My LX/LC herd has 232k, 283k, 328k, 360k, 369k, 426k and 490k miles on them. Again, thanks for taking the time to educate others, it is appreciated Sir.

[@andysautoadventure9380]

You are AWESOME!!!! Than you for sharing! This has been such a cool community to become part of! On top of that... the folks in the community are KIND! Just like you were in your comments! Thank you!!!

[@Doeasy2023]

I have a 2000lx with 220k. I know it’s so much fun to talk about this car and fix it because it has a wonderful ride. I replaced the suspension with pressure shocks and turn the original bars to keep the front up. The alternator, muffler, antenna and radiator are new too. But after 20 years I don’t see any corrosion under my car. That’s my dinosaur. Lol

[@leenestle]

The real nightmare (IMO) is on the other size of the engine from the AHC.......the brake master cylinder is like $2k just for the part + labor to replace. These are great trucks, feel like mines just a baby at 205k.

[@dheins57]

Just got mine with 255k luckily the last owner recently replaced that $2200 brake booster 😅

[@kenbina]

Good clip! I don't think the gripe about the worn plastics in the engine bay is petty. That's a major problem in my book as it could cause serious damage to critical components (I'm looking at you, BMW... For Pete's Sake!). Glad there wasn't any harm done to your truck. Looks like you got to it just in time. 👊😎

[@Nyteblayd98]

subscriber number 172 loved the energy keep it up.

[@andysautoadventure9380]

Thank you!!! Way more effort than I expected to creat a channel but it’s fun, none the less!

[@davidwilcox3812]

The wheels are from a 2010 tundra

[@nigelknight1435]

I have one in white like your, but in OZ they come with a reverse camera and a fridge in the centre console which is bigger than the one you have in the US because we don't get the 2 front arm rests. Regarding wheels, I have picked up a few sets over the years from people selling them from the 200 series Landcruisers they have come with goods tyres because they were new but were being sold because the 200 series owners wanted chrome shiny wheels.

[@andysautoadventure9380]

Ohhhhhh! Perfect! Thanks for the tip!

[@ozzie3056]

Wow 326k 🤯. I just purchased a 2005 with 158k miles on it. Mainly for weekends and occasional trips . Happy to see itll make it that far.

[@MR__JUSTIN]

Happy for you! Let me guess... $17k?

[@ozzie3056]

@@MR__JUSTIN no 7,300. Had all sorts of maintenance problems. Suspension was bouncy (globes) , check engine light on(02 sensor). Both cv axles need replacing. Drive shaft needed greasing it was making loud thumps. Speakers rattled. I resealed them with the kits they make. The transfer case lever is seized up. Oh and rack and pinion boots need to be changed. While I was at it I did all transfer case fluids. Changed heater T's they were so brittle they fell apart when replacing. Also did hood struts lol. When I finish I should be around 10,500 to 11k into it. Might be worth the 17k. The car had zero rust and looks great even the seats aren't torn and still look amazing.

[@MR__JUSTIN]

@@ozzie3056 wow, tons of TLC! Sounds like you enjoy wrenching, great find. It'll be worth the money and effort for sure

[@justingoss3475]

@@ozzie3056 Just put new Globes or "Spheres" on my 2000 LX470, just under $700, all in, shipped to me from the UK to Texas in LESS THAN 36 HOURS! Could not believe it. Ordered them from Pleiades Sphere across the pond. When I told them I got them at my door in Texas less than 36 hours after shipment they said it's crazy how that happens, even though I may have the record, because it sometimes takes longer to ship their products to Scotland than it does to the US. Very happy with them, only 1000 miles on them but they are EXTREMELY solid, and I can't imagine they won't last for years. Either way you slice it, it's about 1/2 the price of the OME delete, assuming your AHC shocks aren't rusted through, and the ride quality is unbelievable compared to the pogo stick ride when I bought it. I just want to be clear that I'm not knocking OME, Old Man Emu, Products because they're great in my book, I'm just stating that giving up on the AHC System immediately might not be the best, easiest or even the cheapest route. ALSO, I had the same thumps and went through all the proper procedures to grease all shafts, haha, with the proper lube, haha, and the "thump', "clunk", "thunk" came right back. It ended up being mostly due to my front diff moving up and down about 1/2-3/4" every time I shifted from R to D, D to R, letting off throttle then getting back on it on the highway or from a complete stop. Get you some bushings, bushes, whatever you wanna call 'em and you'll be well on your way to getting rid of the thunk. I'm still a big fan of properly greasing the prop shafts, haha, though.

[@ozzie3056]

@@justingoss3475 can you show me what bushings your talking about? Also I replaced my globes unfortunately it did not solve my issue. I'm gonna buy tech stream and start checking off 1 by 1 all that can be wrong. There's a list on ih8mud. Probably should've gone that route before spending 1k on globes lol. I did flush the system with ahc fluid from Toyota many times.

[@motorcitygrassman30]

good vid! I am very close to buying a 05 lx470, very clean michigan truck. Better than average rusk situation for a northern vehicle. Interior is mint9.0 , exterior 7.5. 254K miles. Runs and rives like a new truck. Have all the service records, but it is due for TB/WP change and a few other misc. things. Seller is asking 12,900. I think that's a bit high. I like it a lot more at 10K, what do you think?

[@andysautoadventure9380]

Hey there! Thanks for watching. I’d agree with the price you suggested! On the flip side, finding clean examples with complete records is becoming increasingly rare. I’d suggest having a Toyota or Lexus mechanic go through the LX thoroughly. It might turn out that the asking price is a great deal (if it’s in great mechanical condition). I’m really happy with mine! I have no regrets but, it is an older truck so it does require some “love and money” every now and again. Have fun!!! They are great vehicles!!!

[@davidwayne9982]

Love the vid- and the Lexus-- but it is apeeve of mine-- it's NOT A DAMN CAR-- it's a truck.. get over it.. other than that- great review!!!

[@kellstat]

Your wheels are not stock. Think they may be tundra or other lexus wheels? Probably the wrong offset? Check and see if they even handle the weight ratings for a lx...

[@andysautoadventure9380]

Exactly! They are off of a tundra. I got them because the original wheels were flashy and didn’t look good (in my opinion) I kept them though and I may end up powder coating them black.