How bad is the rest of the frame? It really is a bummer how 5G’s are so susceptible to rust and if l lived in the rust belt, I would not own one.

It really might be time to beat it on down the line as even a $3-$4000 repair would be tough to swallow if the rest of the frame is rusting badly as well.

$10k is absolute insanity. KDSS is really nothing high tech and shouldn't be that hard to replace. Hell, it's a $1750 option from Toyota.

If it were me, I'd just buy new suspension for about $1000. I have a Dr. KDSS switch in mine with Fox 2.0 suspension. You can definitely feel the difference with it off, but it's certainly tolerable on the road. I'm sure it's still better than a stock SR5 or TRDOR without KDSS based on what everyone says about nose dive and body roll on them.

Like everyone else has said, it shouldn't be that complicated to fix. And it shouldn't be that expensive. It's unlikely that it needs new lines. Unless stainless steel lines are rusting now. KDSS failures are very few and far between. I wish my fox suspension lasted as long as KDSS.

A complete control actuator/accumulator from a low mile GX 460 will run you about $5-600. Lexus GX460 Stabilizer Control Actuator w/ Accumulator 2010-2020 OEM | eBay

New ones are only about 1500.

The hardlines are stainless. Seems pretty unlikely that they are rusted.

I think you may need to find a new dealer.

If braided steel lines can fail on my water heater in 12 years (lines that do not flex daily, and are only subject to line pressures of 60 PSI) I imagine they can fail in automobiles a lot sooner. Rust was not even a factor. Pinholes in the underlying rubber.

For hard pipe, ask any plumber why do pipes leak in the middle where there’s not even a joint? Corrosion from the inside. No visible rust may be present upon observation. I’m thinking some sort of galvanic reaction?

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A 10k quote is that dealer basically saying that they don't know how to, or simply don't want to work on it.

A ridiculously high quote so you'll go away. In other words.

I worked at some places back in the day that used that tactic. That and other examples of poor customer service is why I walked away from consumer car repair, in disgust.

Good luck OP.

Kind of apples and oranges here. The lines on KDSS are pretty different from the lines on your water heater. They're closer to an oversized brake line. The soft line portion is short. Most of the KDSS line system is rigid stainless steel. Just like the brake lines. I wouldn't be surprised if it's all the same material just scaled up for the fluid volume KDSS requires. Brake lines can wear through, or fail for other reasons like metal fatigue from flexing. But it's pretty darn rare for that to happen. Replacing flexible brake hoses isn't a common maintenance item and they typically last for the life of the vehicle. KDSS lines should be the same way. And it seems to be for the vast majority of Land cruisers and 4Runners.

In the case of stainless steel and aluminum together, aluminum will be the anode so the aluminum will corrode, not the stainless. I suspect that's the case in the corrosion examples I've seen on KDSS systems. Add enough electrolyte and water and the aluminum will start to corrode.

Without seeing the actual problem it's pretty much impossible to tell what's going on in this case.

It would be nice if Toyota built an easy way to flush the fluid like they did on the LX570 AHC. I don't know that that helps a lot for longevity though. There are so few problems with KDSS or AHC that there's really no way to tell which one is more reliable.

Can I interest you in an X-REAS system


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Just not seeing the cost/reward benefit. Downside risk of costly repairs. Upside is that corners with less body sway at 70 mph….err wrong vehicle for that use anyway.

for that price, I think I would look into an aftermarket setup like Currie Antirock. And I'm not sure if it works, but it looks like there are threaded holes up front where the non-KDSS sway bar would bolt up. And then you could maybe get someone to fab up the mounts for the rear sway bar. Just get rid of the system all together

Spoke about KDSS wear and replacement at my local dealer in California. He said that once it fails it can’t really be fixed but has to be replaced. Also, KDSS has finite life, so 220k miles is a good run. Dealer Said they just did it and it was about $4k, but could be more because it’s very labor intensive (about $2k in parts and $2k in labor). A viable alternative he suggested is asking the dealer to remove KDSS. It’s cheaper and gives you more aftermarket options.

lol i like to hit my corners hard. kdss gives me confidence lol.
but i've been in a 3rd gen with the sways pulled. omg it was the scariest experience. i swear i thought we were going to tip over all the time lol.

That seems a little excessive... when you say "unit" what are you referring to?

There's a cylinder front and rear, a central pump/valve assembly, and the lines in-between all of them. If your vehicle is as rusty as you say, it wouldn't surprise me if they've quoted every single bracket, bolt, retaining clip, etc. along with additional labor to Sawzall and torch things off. Still seems a bit high for all that, but I haven't priced out a KDSS system or looked into the labor for replacing the entire system.

One horribly rusty Sequoia I worked on needed a Sawzall and our oxy-acetylene torch to remove the old shocks, brake lines, and other bits (they spent way too much money on this thing when it should have been junked). Much of the brake system, power steering lines, and such including brackets were zip-tied to the frame or strapped because the frame had holes or was soft in spots.

There is always more to these stories.

What they are telling you with that price is they don’t want to do the work/. The truck is too rusty and they don’t want the headache associated with taking it apart and having problems for which they will be responsible. So instead of telling you that they give you a high price to send you somewhere else.

Unfortunately frame rust is an issue on all these trucks as they age/. Have some friends who live in Pittsburgh and the cars and trucks there last about 10 years max even with good care. Just too much continuous salt.

Thanks everyone for your helpful replies. On a few people's advice, I took the vehicle to a Lexus dealer. The KDSS warning light turned off on the hour-long drive to the Lexus dealer. They found an older stored code C1851, "Low Pressure Malfunction in KDSS system". They believe the KDSS valve may have been stuck and worked its way free. So for now, I will wait and see what happens next. I do park my 4Runner on a non-level surface.

Did the Lexus dealer give you an idea how much it would cost to fix had the valve stayed stuck, just to compare to the other estimate?