btanchors

2003 GS 430, 106,000 miles

So, this morning, my Check Engine, VSC Off, and VSC Lights all came on simultaneously, and stayed on. I checked for simple things like a loose gas cap, obvious loose connections in the engine compartment, etc. Couldn't find anything.

The car exhibited no other symptoms. Good power, Good Acceleration. Smooth idle. I've been checking gas mileage lately, just routinely - still gets excellent gas mileage. In fact, if the lights weren't on, I wouldn't know anything was wrong, there were no other symptoms.

I decided to take it to the Lexus dealer as I don't have time to fool with it, and since my wife will be driving the car, I wanted it checked out. I figured it was going to be an Oxygen Sensor. Nope.

I took it in, and they read the codes. The Service advisor came and got me from the waiting room and said he wanted to show me something. He took me into the shop in front of the car. The immediate cause was a hose had come off - I can't remember the exact hose, but he showed me. The real problem was what made the hose come off. It was a broken motor mount! They put the car in gear with the brake on, and gave the engine some throttle. The driver's side of the engine lifted several inches! Way too much! Cost to fix by dealer: $1450.00!

I'm actually glad I took it in. If I had looked the engine over thoroughly myself, I would have found the disconnected hose, re-attached it, then patted myself on the back for fixing it. I would NEVER have realized I had a broken motor mount!

Now, a question to our board members: They pretty much have to lift the engine up to remove and replace the motor mount. Is there anything that should be inspected and/or replaced that is easier to do while the engine is lifted? The Timing Belt and Water Pump were changed not long ago, so that's not needed. Anything else?

NorthStyle

iTrader: (16)

You're actually going to pay them that much to replace the motor mounts?

Anyway, on to your question: if they're going to replace them you might as well have them replace the transmission mount while they're there.

SpectraBlu

iTrader: (1)

Wow, that seems like a lot of money for motor mounts. You should check around to see if someone else can do it cheaper. I haven't had to change mine yet, but sooner or later I will. Couldn't u just jack the motor up a little bit and change em yourself? I haven't driven mine in 5 months so I can't remember where they are or how much in the pain in the butt it might be. Either way u do it, wether you do it yourself or the dealer puts a gun to your face and jacks you, your wife will be safe and that's the important part. Good luck man😃

Mr Jokster

iTrader: (8)

Here is the method to replace the engine mounts on the GS4
1. Remove the cover and the nuts (02 for each side) on the sub-frame support bar
2. Remove the nut on the top of the motor mount 17mm
3. Remove the bracket, which connected between the engine and engine mount by loosing 4 bolts (12mm or 14mm)
4. lift the engine up. then you will able to remove the engine mounts
Note: You need to do both side of the same time, so you can lift the engine higher, more clearance.

This is all that needs to be done, however the hard part is that there is no clearance for the 4 bolts and they require a ton of torque to remove them and there is hardly any room to get a breaker bar in there. $1500 seems to be way too steep, are you sure they didnt add a bunch of other repairs to the job. I see that oem mounts are just under $500, so a grand for labor seem pretty crooked. I did some searching (as you should do too) and I found a few threads where people only paid $150 bucks for the installs. As mentioned above, call around to some shops, I dont see more than a couple hours of work tops for an experienced mechanic even having a hard time with the bolts. They'll have their secrets on removing them.