I have a 2000 GS 300. Over the past couple of weeks, the steering wheel will start to vibrate over rough road conditions. Not only does my steering wheel shake, but sometimes it feels as if I dont have total control of the car. On some rough roads the car will feel as if it will swerve to the direction the bump was, so handling has been off. Another thing i have noticed, on some bumps or rough roads the car will go over the smallest bump and the car will take a rough hit as if there is no suspension, even the radio will go out for 1 sec. I don't know if the problem is tire problem or a suspension problem, just wondering if anyone has any insight?

 

First thing you need to do is take it in and get an Alignment and check your suspension bushings, control arms, shock and top mounts.

 

This sounds like the classic "lower ball joint" syndrome, so many of us 2nd generation GS owners are facing (or have faced).

The lower ball joints are the likely culprit, since you have a 7 year old car. My 1999 GS4 had the same problem 2 months ago. I have learned a lot inthis time and also spent a lot of money I didn't need to spend. I replaced:

1, UPPER BALL JOINTS (which to me didn't need to be changed. This was the most expensive part. Since the ball joints cannot be bought separately, the ENTRE UPPER "A" arm on each side has to be replaced. Each arm costs $387.00 at Carson Toyota and other specalty Toyota /Lexus store. The standard Lexus dealerships wil charge in excess of $400.00 per side. I now know how to check them, but did not in the past. DON'T buy these if you really don't need them. Carson tried to talk me out of buying these unless I really needed them, but I elected to buy them anyway. Wished I had not bought them, but what's done is done, and I know they are good now.

2. LOWER BALL JOINTS-- THESE were the culprits in my car, and nearly everyone else's as well. I raised my car up just slightly off the ground//)just enough to get a board under the tire from the side. I lifted up slightly and could fell the slack each time I raised and lowered the board. It does not have to be a BIG board, just one that will not flex when leverage is applied to it. Lft slowly but firmly and bounce it up and down. If the lower joint is bad, it will be evident right away. I changed both lower joints inless than an hour once the car was securely raised and the wheels were removed. There are MANY tutorials on CLUBLEXUS that shows how it is done. Very accurate too, I might add.

3. TIE ROD ENDS--- These were borderline on my car, and could have lasted a while longer in my opinion. I did not have the "swaying" you talked about, but a friend of mine did have it in his GS4, and we changed his as well. His ball joints and tie rod ends were BOTH shot, but his upper ball joints were still good. The tutorials also show how these are to be changed as well, but my advice is to get a wheel alignment IMMEDIATELY, as there is NO WAY that you can change these and still have the car in alignment by putting them in the same spot as the old ones. I was VERY careful and counted the threads in and out, and I still got tire squeal until I got to the alignment shop the same day. Tire wear will occur quickly if alignment is not done SOON thereafter.

4. LOWER STABILIZER ARMS. Mine were borderline also.

5. SHOCK MOUNTS... These can also be bad, but mine were good since I replaced my struts earlier, and the mounts were fine.

I would say that lower ball jionts and tie rod ends should take care of your problem IF you know for sure your tires are good. If your GS has over 70,000 miles on it, these parts should be checked and replaced if needed.

My alignment folks had to really look for the loose ball joint to find it, since mine wasn't as bad as yours. My car had over 120,000 miles when my parts were changed, so I got good wear. I started looking at them because of a popping noise I had, AND reading notes from CLUBLEXUS members recommending ball joints and tie rod replacement after 80,000 miles or so. Some cars have these parts fail earlier than that due to other factors.

I also have the stock 16 inch wheels and tires on my car. I believe personally that bigger wheels and tires contribute to quicker wear of these parts due to greater forces produced while driving.

AS A SIDE NOTE: I was finally able to get rid of the popping and creaking I had when going over bumps at slow speeds. Even after changing all my parts up front, i STILL had that nagging creak that began each day just SITTING down in the driver's seat.

My alignment folks finally went underneath the car and hand tightened each bolt and nut in that lower suspension. I thought he was nuts, but he proved me wrong. After a long trp to Louisiana from California, my front end loosened up enough to cause me problems. I fugured it was time to change a few things, and I did.

Good luck and keep in touch!

 

great post GSEREP1. how would i check the condition of the upper ball joints on my car?

 

As I said earlier, testing the upper ball joints takes a little work. The upper ball joint is not replaceable without changing the entire A arm, as it is pressed into the A arm from the factory. Parts are not sold separately from the dealer. To really check the upper ball joint and A arm requires removing the nut connecting it all to the brake / lower ball joint assembly arm and separating the two assemblies. Remove the front tires first, naturally.

The brakes do NOT have to be removed to change the upper ball joints/A arm, but you can if you want to. They WILL have to be removed to change the lower ball joints. Doing the lowers also require removing the front brake rotors, along with the bracket holding the brake pads and caliper on each side. Tie up the caliper to keep it from hanging by the brake line. DON'T let it hang.

Regardless of whether you remove the brakes or not, to check the upper ball joints, start by..
1. Removing the reuseable cotter pin /clp.
2. Remove the upper ball joint nut.
3. Remove the ball joint from the brake assembly arm with a special tool available from Autozone. It is available to buy or to rent. (I bought mine for $12.95.)

Once the ball joint is removed from the brake assembly arm, it can be moved about freely. Inspect the rubber boot to ensure grease is still inside. If the boot is broken, most of the grease may be out already. PLEASE DO NOT USE A PICKLE-FORK. It WILL damage the boot, and you will have to replace the entire arm.

The upper ball joint is attached to the upper A arm. Once the ball joint swings free the entire arm can be moved up and down. Inspect the entire arm and see if there is slack in the bushings by wiggling it from side to side. There are two bushings..one on the left and one on the right side of the A arm. A bolt goes through each bushing and into the body of the car, where the mating threads for the long bolt are located. There should be no side to side slack.

If it is noticeable, the bushings will have to be replaced (meaning new A arm in most instances.) Some folks are replacing the stock rubber bushings with aftermarket bushings, but it is quite a job without the correct tools to get them in and out. It definitely requires a press to get the new bushings into the old arm.

I also question the longevity of the special bushings vice the durability of the stock ones. Like I said, I really didn't need the new ones, but since I already bought them, I did not want to return them and pay a restocking charge, only to need them in a year or two. Some owners report squeaking from the polyurethane bushings in cold weather. I am in California, so the weather doesn't stay consistently cold enough to worry about it. I like the rubber and elected to stay with it. There is supposedly less flex with the polyurethance, which equates to more stiffness and control, but I am not that concerned about that increased handling the special bushings provide. Stock 16 inch wheels don't need the extra control in my opinion. The stock arm is a good piece in my humble opinion.

My guess is that your upper ball joint bushings are good. Just check the condition of the ball joint. I used an impact gun to take out the old nut since I knew I was replacing the entire arm. The nut should come out without the center spinning if it is properly set into the mating brake assembly arm. If you are just inspecting it all, take the nut off by hand slowly using ratchet and socket. If the nut spins while trying to take it out, then the shaft on the ball joint was probably not seated properly. This is not likely, and the nut should come off without incident. When tightening, make sure the ball joint is fully seated down after it is torqued down. A light tap on theball joint with a rubber or plastic mallet wiwill help seat the ball joint shaft into the arm. The shaft shoould not spin on the nut while tightening. Make sure the entire upper assembly including the ball joint will turn when the entire assembly is moved left to right by hand (as it will do when turning while driving).

Hope I haven't gven you too much information. Go to the tutorials in the "search" part of the website and there are pictures and text showing how to change ball joints.

Good luck and please keep in touch.

 

I'm having a problem similar to what you stated (lot of play in steering wheel) where can i find the guide to changing ball joints and tie rods .I need to do these asap. Thanks in advance.

 

Hi,
to find the tutorial, click the "search" link and type in "DIY Lower Ball joints"

There is a DIy in there from a post by OVERSTEER" on 12/01/06. There are pictures and everything. The car in question is a "LS", but the scenario is the same.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...er+ball+joints

BE SURE to go from page to page on the bottom of the link. It takes about 4 pages to go through it all.

Give it a try!
Good luck!