Jpilot

I am of the humble opinion that the airbag system is more work than its worth. Springs for sure. I have never heard an owner that went with springs that would go back. Just easier and a lot more options for hight and ride.

lexus13dan

Easy fix arnotts air bags, 500.00 installed by Indy

chiph9

If you can't hear the air compressor run, and it ought to be (like if you told it to go to high clearance via the console switch), then start with cheap stuff like the fuses and relays. Then use a voltmeter at the air compressor to make sure it's getting voltage. If there's voltage at the connector, but its not running, then the compressor is bad.

Chip H.

Tech

Not much information from the OP here.

How many miles on the unit?

Airbags probably need replaced. Compressor probably overworked because the airbags have been leaking for a long time.

Tons of posts about these kinds of problems.

😎
You probably also need to replace your shocks.

You can search my threads for a complete replacement of airbags and shocks in the rear.

lexus13dan

Very rare for a compressor to fail, You need new air bags, Cheap fix

Bachir

Hi All, I appreciate any help on this. I have a Lexus GX470 in a very good shape except the car was bouncing a little about 2 years ago. My local mechanic recommended replacing the rear shocks which I did. I got the shocks brand new from the Lexus dealership (costly). about 6 month ago, I took my car to replace the brakes and my mechanic noticed little play in the front of the car. He recommended replacing the front shocks and springs (costly again) which I did all brand new part from the Lexus dealership. The ride went downhill from this point on as the car was bouncing and was able to feel small imperfections in the road. I took the car to the Lexus dealer and waited for 4 hours only to learn that Lexus couldn't really help in this case mainly because the computer wasn't spitting any error codes. They recommended to start troubleshooting by replacing the ECU and two sensors with no guaranties of fixing the problem. I finally gave up and decide to get the Metal-tech 4x4 GX470 Rear Coil Conversion Stage 3 MT-KEY-4004.

The question I have is: Would it be fine to keep the front and rear electronic shocks which I recently bought from the dealer or do I need to replace these with non-electronic shocks to work properly with the conversion kit? If I could keep these shocks, I assume I should disconnect the wire harness that connect these shocks to the system. Do I have to disconnect the wire harness on all shocks, front and rear? what would be the default setting or behavior of the shocks after disconnecting the wire harness? Normal, comfort or sport?

Thanks,

mntntrls71

Why would you need to disconnect your shocks. I would not. The shocks and springs do different jobs. You also just bought the shocks so why replace them. I would try keeping the shocks and keeping them connected. Remember that any changes you do is going to feel different so you will need to get used to it. You might try talking to a different shop though, just to get another opinion. Try a Toyota only shop.

IanB2

Are you converting to rear springs with stock height, or will there be a lift associated? If stock height, you can still use your stock shocks.

Bachir

I am replacing with stock height. thanks

Bachir

Something is broken with the air suspension communication but Lexus couldn't figure out what is broken. I want to eliminate dependency on the sensors and ECU. I believe disconnecting the shocks electronically should do the trick. I believe the ECU is broken or not getting the right information from the sensors. I could be wrong, but I think the ECU sends orders to the shocks to adjust the ride at a very fast rate like 1000 times per second. Separating the shocks from the ECU should make the shocks function like conventional none-electronic shocks. Again, I could be wrong here but I am hoping that someone that understands how the system works could tell me if I am making the right decision. Thanks,

IanB2

Air ride and electronically adjustable shocks are seperate systems. You can convert to rear springs and retain the shocks adjustability, I don't believe there's an ecu associated with the shock system.

chiph9

The "Absorber Control Actuators" share the ECU with the air springs. It's located behind the driver's side dashboard.
They have four wires each, but I don't know what they do.

Chip H.

tz693

Disconnecting the shock electrical connector will leave the shock's comfort mode setting at the one before you disconnect it. It could be "sport" mode or "comfort" mode. But you may get a dash light after you disconnect it.

Bachir

Thank you all for your replies. I should receive the Metal-Tech conversion kit on Friday. I will try to schedule the swap for next week and report back.

I will ask my mechanic to leave the wire harnesses on all shocks pugged in at first and test drive the car. If the problem I am now experiencing doesn't go away, I will ask the mechanic to disconnect one or all the shocks' wire harnesses and test again. I believe if one of the wire harnesses is disconnected the system will disengage as a test is run once the car is started and if one element in the system is disengaged the whole system becomes disengaged.

GSGXNC

My 2008 apparently had on airbag issue and the PO completely removed the bags and installed conventional springs. I realize that they operate independent of the airbags but the shocks appear stock and may be no good. The firmness switch does not make a noticable difference. Under normal operation it rides decent but the rear suspension seems a little harsh over small but sharp bumps.

My problem is when towing my boat (the reason I wanted a vehicle with a truck frame). Its not a huge boat and with the boat against the bow-stop the tongue weight isn't excessive. But I feel like the rear suspension is hitting the bump-stops with even a moderate dip in the road. I guess this should be double-question thread. I am interested is adding some aftermarket assist airbags but I'd like for the OEM pump to blow these bags up. Based on some videos I have seen, this is very do-able. But only if the stock pump and sensors are still working. There are no lights on my dash which I think means that all the fuses have been removed to completely defeat the system. So, If I simply replace the fuses with no airsprings, will the pump likely run? I have not yet verified that my sensors and those mechanisms are still attached.

Part 2 or Option B: New shocks. I don't see a large amount of sag in the rear suspension when I lower be boat trailer onto the ball. This makes me wonder if more support from the air bags may not be the best option or may simply not be enough to overcome what may be weak shocks.

Looking for advice from those who may have been through something similar. If it matters, my boat is a simple 18ft runabout but I don't know the weight. This boats was pulled for a short time but a Toyota Venza (Toyota's RX350, I think) and with that I did not have any bottoming issues.