woke up, and had a leak

[Eastcoastrunner]

ha
so today as I went about my drive to work, i walked up to the 4runner (03 limited v8) and noticed a two small puddles underneath it.
both located on drivers side, about midway down the suv.
i looked underneath, and the leak is very very slow and seems to be coming from just underneath, inside from the running board.
looks like it along a piping/line on one and another is around a cannister like object with a line going into it, and coming out pretty much midway along the running board (as reference).
Brake line?

also, the runner has felt really 'bouncey' lately, and it does have xreas suspension....what should i check?

 

[Zuke]

if you don't know the parts or type of fluid then take photos and post them.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

fluid was light light brown, felt 'oily'. and smelled it also.
i'll see if i can get a pic asap

 

[galactic_04]

good news is it's not gas. Probably brake fluid. I wouldn't drive it like that. You could lose the brakes at any time.

There shouldn't be any other fluid back that far

 

[czastrow]

perhaps your xreas has given out. not sure how to check it.

 

[Zuke]

Do you have xreas? You have a 03 V8 Limited correct? Most early Limiteds had xreas... If you have air suspension then you should have the xreas.

Look for something like this on both sides attached to the frame. If you have them then you have xreas.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

oh...no..that's what it looks like...

 

[TOYLUVA]

thats xreas for sure.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

took some quick pics with phone cam...sorry about the quality.
This should give you lucky sob's down south who don't live in the rust belt an idea of what we have to deal with up here!!
first pic is of the 'capsule', the other one is further upstream, closer to driver's side front tire...

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

so, looks like i will likely need to replace my xreas setup? grrr
what will give me the best ride quality/handling...i don't care about offroading very much. and if you guys have websites that sell at a decent price, that would be amazing too...

 

[nyc4runnin]

where r u located on the east coast ?

your 20034runner looks like my 1999 4runner that had coolant lines rotted thru like urs. My 2004 4runner still looks clean and i live in new england.

xreas replacement is a pita and not worth it. at this point i think u should strip out the xreas and replace with regular shocks.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

where r u located on the east coast ?

your 20034runner looks like my 1999 4runner that had coolant lines rotted thru like urs. My 2004 4runner still looks clean and i live in new england.

xreas replacement is a pita and not worth it. at this point i think u should strip out the xreas and replace with regular shocks.

east coast, Canada actually. Nova Scotia to be exact :whip2:
i do want to strip all of it out and place regular shocks...i've heard bilsteins and fj springs are the way to go i guess?
lastly, any chance this is repairable without a big $$$$

 

[Zuke]

Its expensive to repair. Just go with bilsteins they will run you about $400 for 4. I think you will be fine driving it until you can afford the repair.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

Its expensive to repair. Just go with bilsteins they will run you about $400 for 4. I think you will be fine driving it until you can afford the repair.

thanks. any particular trim level of bilsteins? can i install springs even with the airbags back there? also, i assume i will have to replace the front as well?
thanks!

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

anyone??

 

[krupnation]

If you don't do any heavy duty offroading then the FJ/5100 swap is a great option. My setup only cost me $430 (Billie's from Off Road Warehouse = $350 shipped, FJC coils from FJ forum user = $80). You get some awesome shocks, a little stiffer ride, and you can level the front all in one.

I'm pretty sure u can install your rear air bags in the FJ coils. I think some users on here have done so.

 

[camdz]

I cant help much with the air bag/spring question. I dont think its a direct swap, but could be wrong. It has been done many times though.

The shocks in question are the Bilstein 5100s though. They are very popular on the site.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

bad news...got in a fender bender, didn't realize people made complete stops at yield signs with no oncoming traffic! oh well, my fault technically...here's the damage

 

[galactic_04]

that sucks, but hopefully they'll replace the leaky xreas junk thinking the accident did it.

 

[Eastcoastrunner]

taken to an autobody shop....crossed fingers that it won't be written off and the xreas is resolved