LS430 rear shock absorbers

NiceNige · July 11, 2016

Hi to all Lexus aficionados,

I'm a new member (was a member a couple of years back, but couldn't log in with my old sign on).

straight to the point- my MOT a couple of weeks ago gave me an advisory on my left rear shock absorber, there was a fine mist of oil on it though not leaking or dripping, in contrast to the right side which was dry. My local Lexus dealer who I haven't used yet (see below) quoted nearly £800 for the part and £200 for fitting, gulp! It is air suspension.

Does anyone know of any options? I do like to keep my LS430 perfect though, it's an 05 with 64,000 miles.

if I join as a gold member I assume the dealer will give me 10% discount?

second issue, the interior boot release doesn't work, the only way to open the boot is to stand with the key at the back and press the release mechanism to the right of the number plate - what could this fault be?

any help on these two issues would be greatly appreciated.

Note to readers.

My Lexus has just been imported back from NZ as I've just moved back to the UK. I bought it in the UK 4 years ago and shipped it out to NZ then. Why would I go through the expense of that - because it's the best car in the world. The trials and tribulations of dealing with customs and HMRC, is another very long story, they wanted VAT and duty on original purchase cost to me!!

Anyway, the excellence of the Lex was recently made clearer. In the last month I have also been running a brand new Merc S class 350d. Very smooth and economical, 43mpg, it cost about £65-70,000, but I prefer the ride and experience of my Lexus. A picture of it below, as I know we all love pictures - my wheels are body coloured, not everyone's choice I know, but it does look stunning.

oh, since I've been back in the UK, since end of April, I haven't seen a single LS400/430 on the road. That's amazing! I'm in the south near Southampton. And it been wonderful to drive her at more than 60mph (quite a lot more!) as the speed limit is strictly enforced and adhered to in NZ.

Nige

messi · July 11, 2016

Hi there

Thing I'd recommend is changing the suspension to coilovers which will cost around £600 and that's for all 4 I think, because if one air suspension is leaking now, it wont before the other one starts leaking. Okay so that ride may not be that smooth anymore, but you'd save alot of money, and another thing to do if it hasnt already been done is replace the radiator, as they can start to leak into the gearbox and then you'll need a new or refurbished gearbox.

And your lexus looks very nice, beautiful colour and the wheels suit it

Malc · July 11, 2016

Nigel, hi, welcome back. I do remember you getting your Lexus and going to NZ, didn't realise it was two years ago though.

You've come up against the fearsome air suspension debacle and I'm sorry for that. I know nothing of the practicalities of this but I'm sure someone will advise the options here, possibly ( but not with Lexus main dealer ) just changing all 4 legs to non-air and at a total possible cost of just the one air replacement too !.

In the time you've been away it seems to be the given advice that the radiator should also be changed at some near time to avoid ruining your gearbox ! There's threads on this.

Now, brand new Mercedes and economical 43mpg makes me chuckle a little with such amazing fuel economy being achieved at a capital cost of £70,000 ......... one could buy many many Ls430s and get normal comparatively uneconomic fuel economy and save loadsa dosh in capital spend ...... and I suspect Mercedes Main Dealer servicing costs too which I guess might be comparable to Lexus.

I've personally deferred my Ls600 purchase indefinitely, well until my own Mk3 passes on, which if I'm lucky might co-incide with me !

Good luck with the air stuff.

Malc

cruisermark · July 11, 2016

Hi

LS430 is a brilliant car - i know i have one!

The LS430 suspension is complicated business in the past a member had problems getting an independent to replace some suspension parts - they could not get the suspension to rise back up again because of some software or electrical glitch so really if you want piece of mind then the only route is take into the main dealer. If you want to save a bit of money on parts try getting a quote from Amayama.com - they will sell genuine parts at a discount

I have a feeling the the misting comment could be an over kill because the suspension is reasonably reliable with a limited number of total failures - suspension controllers are more common failures due to water ingress - mainly on the pre facelift 430.

I would take it to lexus and ask them to inspect the suspension and give an opinion - maybe even leave it and monitor it after cleaning it.

mine has 135K with no suspension problems.

Reference the interior boot release - make sure the key barrel is unlocked and not pushed in

ambermarine · July 11, 2016

Hi

Nige

The suspension issue can be resolved only by replacement of the unit that is leaking as they are sealed units and not repairable.

The boot release could be several fault lines .The Battery in your fob is weak the signal transmitter or receiver could be faulty ,or the release solenoid is sticking in the catch .

Take a look at the solenoid release on the catch first and go through the other fault lines until you find it.

If you feel you would like to dispense with the ongoing issues that occur with the air suspension you could convert to coil over springs.

Nice example by the way.

NiceNige · July 11, 2016

Thank you, wow you guys are right on to it, I am amazed how quickly everyone has given me helpful tips.

I think I will give this one a go and replace it, and If I get another, then consider coil over springs.

I'll check the solenoid

Nigel

NiceNige · July 11, 2016

2 hours ago, cruisermark said:

Hi

LS430 is a brilliant car - i know i have one!

The LS430 suspension is complicated business in the past a member had problems getting an independent to replace some suspension parts - they could not get the suspension to rise back up again because of some software or electrical glitch so really if you want piece of mind then the only route is take into the main dealer. If you want to save a bit of money on parts try getting a quote from Amayama.com - they will sell genuine parts at a discount

I have a feeling the the misting comment could be an over kill because the suspension is reasonably reliable with a limited number of total failures - suspension controllers are more common failures due to water ingress - mainly on the pre facelift 430.

I would take it to lexus and ask them to inspect the suspension and give an opinion - maybe even leave it and monitor it after cleaning it.

mine has 135K with no suspension problems.

Reference the interior boot release - make sure the key barrel is unlocked and not pushed in

Thank you, Cruisermark,

I will give it a second opinion and on the boot release, the key barrel is unlocked.

But I found our something new - one key fits the barrel but the other does not, and the cut looks exactly the same!

Nigel

2 hours ago, ambermarine said:

Hi

Nige

The suspension issue can be resolved only by replacement of the unit that is leaking as they are sealed units and not repairable.

The boot release could be several fault lines .The battery in your fob is weak the signal transmitter or receiver could be faulty ,or the release solenoid is sticking in the catch .

Take a look at the solenoid release on the catch first and go through the other fault lines until you find it.

If you feel you would like to dispense with the ongoing issues that occur with the air suspension you could convert to coil over springs.

Nice example by the way.

2 hours ago, Malc said:

Nigel, hi, welcome back. I do remember you getting your Lexus and going to NZ, didn't realise it was two years ago though.

You've come up against the fearsome air suspension debacle and I'm sorry for that. I know nothing of the practicalities of this but I'm sure someone will advise the options here, possibly ( but not with Lexus main dealer ) just changing all 4 legs to non-air and at a total possible cost of just the one air replacement too !.

In the time you've been away it seems to be the given advice that the radiator should also be changed at some near time to avoid ruining your gearbox ! There's threads on this.

Now, brand new Mercedes and economical 43mpg makes me chuckle a little with such amazing fuel economy being achieved at a capital cost of £70,000 ......... one could buy many many Ls430s and get normal comparatively uneconomic fuel economy and save loadsa dosh in capital spend ...... and I suspect Mercedes Main Dealer servicing costs too which I guess might be comparable to Lexus.

I've personally deferred my Ls600 purchase indefinitely, well until my own Mk3 passes on, which if I'm lucky might co-incide with me !

Good luck with the air stuff.

Malc

Hi Malc,

Could you please let me know which radiator you are referring to? not the main water radiator I assume.

Nigel

NiceNige · July 11, 2016

2 hours ago, messi said:

Hi there

Thing I'd recommend is changing the suspension to coilovers which will cost around £600 and that's for all 4 I think, because if one air suspension is leaking now, it wont before the other one starts leaking. Okay so that ride may not be that smooth anymore, but you'd save alot of money, and another thing to do if it hasnt already been done is replace the radiator, as they can start to leak into the gearbox and then you'll need a new or refurbished gearbox.

And your lexus looks very nice, beautiful colour and the wheels suit it

Hi Messi,

Thank you, and the comment on the wheels, I think it looks like a special edition!

I will consider the coil overs, but which radiator are you referring to?

Nigel

steve2006 · July 11, 2016

Welcome back Nigel, are you the same guy who also used to have a series I LS400 and came to the Doncaster meet?

It is the engine coolant radiator they are refering to, there is a transmission intercooler mounted at the bottom, a leak occurs allowing the 2 fluids to mix and wrecking the gearbox.

Suprised to hear an air strut is "misting" I thought there was no fluid in them to produce a mist being an air suspension unit.

Bluesman · July 11, 2016

Welcome back Nigel. Great looking car. You must be very proud. Mike.

MLW · July 11, 2016

I'm in the same boat. My offside rear 5 years ago was said to be 'misting'. The car has since then done few miles, but my

philosophy is to carry on till trouble arrives as the car drives beautifully.

mrdoofa · July 12, 2016

I'd definitely get the radiator changed (it is the main engine coolant radiator). My LS430 had this issue and the gearbox completely failed all of a sudden without warning on mine. I now have a mk4 LS400 because I've been told they don't have this problem and also no air suspension worries. If the MOT advisory just says light misting of oil, I'd leave it for now if the suspension all operates fine. I've seen that advisory a lot on LS430s. Looks a nice car you have there though.

NiceNige · July 12, 2016

On 11 July 2016 at 0:16 PM, steve2006 said:

Welcome back Nigel, are you the same guy who also used to have a series I LS400 and came to the Doncaster meet?

It is the engine coolant radiator they are refering to, there is a transmission intercooler mounted at the bottom, a leak occurs allowing the 2 fluids to mix and wrecking the gearbox.

Suprised to hear an air strut is "misting" I thought there was no fluid in them to produce a mist being an air suspension unit.

No, it wasn't me with the LS400.

i was surprised too!

NiceNige · July 12, 2016

11 hours ago, piasek said:

Correct me if I'm wrong. Air shock absorber is normal shock absorber (with oil inside) that is build into air unit that allows to control the height of the car and replace standard spring. If all of above is correct then if you have leak from oil shock absorber which means it will have negative impact on car handling even if the car height is correct (air unit is still fine).

Hi Piasek,

thanks for that, I agree. It might have been my imagination but the left side looked lower than the right but when I measured the height of the rear mud flaps from the ground they were exactly the same distance from the ground, supporting your theory. The air unit is ok, it's the oil part that's the problem and I have noticed the handling is a bit 'off' .

Nige

NiceNige · July 12, 2016

20 hours ago, mrdoofa said:

I'd definitely get the radiator changed (it is the main engine coolant radiator). My LS430 had this issue and the gearbox completely failed all of a sudden without warning on mine. I now have a mk4 LS400 because I've been told they don't have this problem and also no air suspension worries. If the MOT advisory just says light misting of oil, I'd leave it for now if the suspension all operates fine. I've seen that advisory a lot on LS430s. Looks a nice car you have there though.

Thank you, but how does the main engine coolant radiator effect the gearbox?

mrdoofa · July 13, 2016

It's because at the bottom of the radiator there is the gearbox oil intercooler. When the bottom of the radiator corrodes it allows the 2 fluids to mix which means certain death for the gearbox which I found out the hard way. Once again if you are getting no other symptoms from the suspension and it all functions normally I wouldn't rush into doing anything with it yet.

Many LS430 owners pretty much treat replacing the radiator as routine maintenance. With that and the air suspension worries i have to admit that it has made me a bit wary of LS430s but I am more than happy with my mk4 LS400 at the moment!!! I may take the plunge with another LS430 one day as I still think they are a lovely car but would like a facelift one this time if I do.

The-Acre · July 13, 2016

This is where the problem begins, the union corrodes and the o rings no longer seal allowing water to mix. I took my old one apart to have a good look.

mikeyv · July 13, 2016

Not sure how that would allow the fluids to mix Phil.

Surely the failed seal would just allow whatever passes through that pipe to escape to the outside.

I would guess the fault would be internal.

Certainly a wise move to fit a new rad though, in my opinion.

The-Acre · July 13, 2016

3 hours ago, mikeyv said:

Not sure how that would allow the fluids to mix Phil.

Surely the failed seal would just allow whatever passes through that pipe to escape to the outside.

I would guess the fault would be internal.

Certainly a wise move to fit a new rad though, in my opinion.

Everything In the second photo is internal, what you see is the actual trans cooler which is aluminium and in perfect condition which I took out, there's nothing else that can really fail and because the transmission fluid is pumped it sucks coolant in when the o rings fail due to rust.

mikeyv · July 13, 2016

2 hours ago, The-Acre said:

Everything In the second photo is internal, what you see is the actual trans cooler which is aluminium and in perfect condition which I took out, there's nothing else that can really fail and because the transmission fluid is pumped it sucks coolant in when the o rings fail due to rust.

With you now.

The-Acre · July 13, 2016

2 hours ago, mikeyv said:

With you now.

I can't help thinking that that one was on borrowed time, if you look at the amount of rust near the o rings it may not have been long! Which makes me think, could a cheaper fix involve unscrewing the two unions, cleaning the rust off and fitting new o rings...hmmm, food for thought. And that way you get to keep the original radiator if you wanted to.

mikeyv · July 14, 2016

16 hours ago, The-Acre said:

I can't help thinking that that one was on borrowed time, if you look at the amount of rust near the o rings it may not have been long! Which makes me think, could a cheaper fix involve unscrewing the two unions, cleaning the rust off and fitting new o rings...hmmm, food for thought. And that way you get to keep the original radiator if you wanted to.

Cheaper, yes, but brand new gives you peace of mind, when you consider this is a fault that could effectively write the car off.

The-Acre · July 14, 2016

1 hour ago, mikeyv said:

Cheaper, yes, but brand new gives you peace of mind, when you consider this is a fault that could effectively write the car off.

True enough, and I wouldn't risk it, although in theory it would work. They don't last forever anyway so a new one makes good sense. I put my new radiator to the test on Monday when I traveled 6 miles in two hours through London traffic!

NiceNige · July 29, 2016

On 11 July 2016 at 9:26 AM, cruisermark said:

Hi

LS430 is a brilliant car - i know i have one!

The LS430 suspension is complicated business in the past a member had problems getting an independent to replace some suspension parts - they could not get the suspension to rise back up again because of some software or electrical glitch so really if you want piece of mind then the only route is take into the main dealer. If you want to save a bit of money on parts try getting a quote from Amayama.com - they will sell genuine parts at a discount

I have a feeling the the misting comment could be an over kill because the suspension is reasonably reliable with a limited number of total failures - suspension controllers are more common failures due to water ingress - mainly on the pre facelift 430.

I would take it to lexus and ask them to inspect the suspension and give an opinion - maybe even leave it and monitor it after cleaning it.

mine has 135K with no suspension problems.

Reference the interior boot release - make sure the key barrel is unlocked and not pushed in

Hi,

thank you for the key barrel advice, it worked! At first I thought you meant the key barrell on the boot itself not next to the boot release. It took time but I got there.

nigel