jpkuehn

I purchased an 05 ES330 2 years ago here in the rust belt (MA/CT). The interior (practically new) and body were in fantastic shape, but the underside had some rust issues. I've replaced a number of things and wouldn't have done so if the car wasn't worth the time and energy. If it were a house, they'd say it has "good bones". I went with KYB struts and mounts paired with Moog springs on the rear. Now I'm on to the front suspension, but coil spring options are more limited. I would love to use OEM, but it's prohibitively expensive. $370 without shipping from Lexus, $350 quote from amayama.com. No luck on eBay either. I'm going to stay far away from complete strut assemblies because the Monroe Quick Struts on my 05 Highlander were a bad choice (alot of body roll). This leaves me with a few aftermarket options...

LESJÖFORS (only choice on RockAuto)
Duralast (AutoZone)
Import Direct (OReillys, looks to be the same product as Duralast)
Mevotech

Napa has nothing for the front and if Advance Auto had something, it would most likely be the same as AutoZone and O'Reillys. Based on price alone, the Mevotech appear to be way too cheap and therefore not an option.

And, I'm highly certain the existing front assemblies are aftermarket, therefore I can't re-use the springs. They are a mid-blue color and look too new to be 18 years old. And they had the stickers across the top of the upper mounts when I purchased the car, so that further leads me to believe they are complete struts and probably Monro-Matic, which would explain the problems I experiencing.

Has anybody purchased aftermarket front springs and had good success with them? If so, which ones? Or would a better option be to keep an eye out for used OEM springs (eBay or FB Marketplace part outs) that don't have too many miles on them (under 125k)? Would low mileage 18 year old springs be worth using?

LeX2K

On Amayama I see $250.

If that's still too much you'll have to grab some from a salvage yard yourself or get lucky on Ebay.

edit - here's one
https://www.ebay.com/itm/284281034128

and another
https://www.ebay.com/itm/222504632123

Buy while you can.

jpkuehn

I would have gone with Amayama at $250, but after submitting for "review" it came back as $350 with the possibility of additional charges... "Import duty and taxes will be applied when the package reaches the destination."

LeX2K

I hate when Amayama does that. Buy the Ebay ones before someone else does.

jpkuehn

I did see those on eBay. The price is right, but one is used (55k on it), the other is new. I'll keep a watch out for pairs... don't want to match old and new.

jpkuehn

And the icing on the cake. Just got an email from Amayama, even though I didn't place the order, saying the parts were out of stock at the supplier and would take 1-2 months. My first foray in dealing with Amayama and I think it'll be my last.