X-REAS its my turn....

[t-man]

That wasn't my quote. I'm not the OP -- that is Roy-R.

Except for my recent frame replacement and related work, I have my work done by an independent mechanic.

Oh, my bad. Didn't really look as I am on my phone right now. Lol

 

[iBison]

Find a quality independent shop or better yet find a friend and pay them. Some junior colleges/tech schools will work on peoples cars for the cost of parts. If your dealership is anything like mine I hope you have an Amex black card. The only time I would ever take a car to a dealer would be for warranty work.

 

[Bonyfattony]

I noticed you didn't say timing belt... Any reason why you didn't do that?

 

[RoyR]

Ok, cost a bit of money, but we are done - no more XREAS, replaced by Fox 2.0 Coil-Overs etc.

Ride is still stiff (needs to be, this thing is heavy), but not as harsh as with the XREAS. Drives a 100% better than stock....

Could lift the front a bit more, but it's ok for now.

PS. Timing belt, water pump and all that stuff was done at the 100k service, another big bill event - love the vehicle!

Next time, saw this too late!

:wave:

let me know if I can help.

Cracked CV Boot

Leaking Strut

Fox 2.0 Coil-Over

Done

 

[RoyR]

^^^ This should probably be in the LIFT section...oh well!

 

[LTDSC]

im not entirely sure what the f*ck i just read.

 

[alaskaman]

I had one side of the XREAS replaced by the dealer. Cost was $620.00 under warranty. Not bad all things considered. What kind of roads are you driving on there son....? You don't sound like the kind of man to beat your dog but that is a lot of suspension at 120K imho.

 

[t-man]

Ride is still stiff (needs to be, this thing is heavy), but not as harsh as with the XREAS. Drives a 100% better than stock....

Heavy?? It's only 4700lbs! lol. look up the weights of other suv's, Tahoe, Expedition, etc... This things a light weight!

 

[RoyR]

Heavy?? It's only 4700lbs! lol. look up the weights of other suv's, Tahoe, Expedition, etc... This things a light weight!

It's too "heavy" for just 5100s....needs the FJ Springs, to add back some stiffness - so, instead of dealing with all that, just got the Fox 2.0s.

I had one side of the XREAS replaced by the dealer. Cost was $620.00 under warranty. Not bad all things considered. What kind of roads are you driving on there son....? You don't sound like the kind of man to beat your dog but that is a lot of suspension at 120K imho.

Take it into the desert every now and then, and then hit the washes and some whoops, nothing serious (oh, I have another set of wheels for that)!

It's going to last another 100k right?

 

[bpatten0416]

You actually can replace the XREAS shocks - one time (according to the Toyota shop manual) - at the disconnect points which means you can replace them 1 at a time - HOWEVER, that said, don't bother. Rip the system off and go Bilstein 5100's and FJ Cruiser 4WD springs all around. I did just recently and LOVE the way the truck rides and handles now - far better than it ever was with XREAS. As my brother, who is a master mechanic, said - "Suspensions are not that complex - it's springs and dampeners, the technology has been around and proven for years. Why you need all this hokum (i.e. XREAS) beats the hell out of me...."

 

[Bumper2Bumper Auto]

First off, if you paid $1040 for an oil change, there might be the beginning of your issues...

There's nothing wrong with replacing the CV Boots (it's a somewhat common failure as they get higher in mileage if you look on the forum), though the price quoted for both sides seems a bit high. At that price point you're almost better off getting new Toyota Axles, re-manufactured CVJs are not a bad idea as they use quality parts (general consensus is that if you're off-roading a Toyota or CVJ axle is better, for daily driver/pavement pounder the off-brand OEM stuff works okay.) In all honesty I rebooted my factory axles because they were leaking only a little and the grease was clean with no signs of debris; the factory axles are plenty strong and back in the day it was common to rebuild/reboot them (along with a lot of things), cheap aftermarket parts have made it easier to justify throwing away perfectly good axles because of torn boots (though in many cases you get what you pay for...)

Don't even pay the money for the wheel bearing job, you're $500 in parts before they even press them together. Buy a new set from [MENTION=99491]Bumper2Bumper Auto[/MENTION] (good vendor on the forum that makes quality bolt-on bearing assemblies), for about $300~350 you can do both sides yourself (or negotiate a price for labor if you provide the parts to cheapen that almost $1000 bill for 1 side.) I posted what the process looks like on my build thread (along with a small section on removing the XREAS):

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/84725-zombie-truck-2-0-mpav-build-9.html

Finally the XREAS, you can't replace just the shocks when they are leaking; the system needs to be replaced in cross-linked pairs and at that price they aren't even including all the parts required which lends me to believe they may not have dealt with these before (you'd be surprised how few people actually have replaced/messed with them at the dealerships.) You can't exactly fault the vehicle for giving up the ghost on a wear & tear part, hell the fact that you got 120k is pretty impressive considering most factory shocks start degrading after 50k (the XREAS seems to be lasting north of 100k, but after that it starts to leak and such.)

The good news is that it's cheaper, and typically better to go with Bilistein 5100's. Not to mention the swap over is pretty easy. Though if you are planning a lift, now would be the time to start shopping and saving up.

I wouldn't hold what the dealership charges you against the manufacturer, at least not 100%. Dealerships are privately owned facilities that work with the manufacturer, they are not owned or operated by Toyota in any direct manner. As such you'll see differences in part pricing, mark-up, service rates, ect. depending on who owns/operates the dealership, the area it's located in, how well business is doing, how often they get away with over-charging people and still turn a profit, ect. Though on a counter point to that, cars are not cheap to fix anymore; it's not "lets go down to Autozone and get a $20 Cap & Rotor Set." Instead its, "lets get a new dual roller wheel bearing assembly with a built-in ABS Tone Ring, hub to flange o-ring, 4 Bolts w/ washers, entire hub assembly, and oil seals for the back side of the hub! also a proprietary suspension system that is very technical and only made for Toyota."

Thanks for the mention and kinds words, Blackworks! I would be more than happy to help out on the bearing assemblies if the OP needs them. I am an official vendor here on T4R, as well as Tacomaworld.com. Just let me know what you need, if you decide to go with a preassembled unit. Thanks!