Hi !
my 2010 GS 450H , is shaking when I brake, pulling towards the right side if I let go off the steering wheel. I had a horrible experience while at a Shop getting the tires and brakes changed, pretty sure they messed something up.But no matter what, I won’t be going back there. yesterday I saw that my front passenger side tire seamed to look different. form what I saw online, seems like I’m missing the axel nut! Can someone tell me if that’s right ? Or what can you see based on this picture, I’m confused to as of what would a nut be screwed on, or is something else missing too ? I can see a bold on the back tire, but this empty hole is all there’s to the front one




thank you

 

It's missing the center cap for the wheel, which usually just snaps on.

As for the shaking, have you gotten an alignment yet? Did they change the rotors or just pads?

 

1) this is your wheel / rim / whateveryouwannacallit
2) the gs450h is a rear wheel drive vehicle, there are no front axles, this is the front wheel bearing assembly that you're seeing at the back
3) those wheels are not OEM. Long story short, I'd look for a set of 2nd hand OEM wheels, unless those that are on the car are actual good aftermarket wheels - can't tell from the picture but something (the dual wheel bolt/lug pattern) tells me this isn't the case. What are the current tires, in terms of dimensions (OEM are 245/40/18)?
4) What's missing is the wheel's center cap.

As for the shaking - if it's only during braking, it's likely just shot front brake rotor(s) (variable disc thickness due to uneven brake pad deposits). Very common on these cars, could funnily enough very well be due to lack of use (no, don't go crazy driving this thing). If this happens again after, say, half a year / a year or two (i.e. not immediately, as that'd mean that something else is amiss), I'd try vented and/or slotted rotors, as they tend to "self-clean" better.

Is the shaking still there after whatever work the shop did to the car? Can you show us pics of the front rotors? Regardless, the "horrible experience" part does not sound too encouraging, whatever the details are. I'd look around for local recommendations. If you're looking for somebody to maintain your vehicle, they should generally be familiar with Toyota hybrids - you could reasonably say that this is a rear wheel drive prius with a V6 - with a few more details, but it's a very good starting point. If you can't find one locally by your own means, you might get suggestions here if you mention where you are, but very likely not in this thread / forum subsection. @DaveGS4 not sure where to point to here - guessing "maintenance" or one of the regional forums.

 

Why do the lugs look like there barely threaded in? Are you running front spacers? Your front wheel doesnt look like its centered properly, I would remove the wheel and make sure the wheel gets seated properly, looks dangerous. Take it to any tire shop and let them have a look at whats going on.

 

Can't see too clearly from the pic, but judging by how the hub end lines up with the rim's center hole, they look well centered. Whether they're actually the right center bore (or have the right spacer or whatever) is another matter entirely, but given that the vibrations are only felt during braking, the usual suspects are the rotors - ESPECIALLY the fronts on most Lexus sedans. My comment re: "you might want to ditch those wheels for a set of OEMs" was in line with the thinking of "OEM sets are the sturdiest thing possible that you can run and all the good performance-oriented aftermarkets tend to be at the very least in a single PCD configuration". Not that this is the likely problem at hand here - the fitted wheels could very well last hundreds of thousands of miles. It was just a separate comment & my bias for OEM (or high quality aftermarket) showing.

 

Having bent wheels can also give the car shaking especially on braking. Especially if a tire shop does road force balancing. Driving normal it can be masked, but when you step on the brakes the front end puts load on the tire and wheel making the bent wheel more prenounced.

Original poster said the problem came after a shop did a brake swap. Im thinking the mechanic was in a hurry and just slapped the wheel in place. With aftermarket wheels you have hubcentric rings that you have to match with your cars front hubs. If those rings are missing or misaligned it will throw off the wheels centering and causing shaking. Because the lugs like they are not fully screwed in, kinda like the person didnt fully seat the wheel against the hub. If thats the case this is a huge safety concern as the wheel can fly off