romy101

Now I have my GX back and I can say the clunking is completely gone. Maybe it will come back but we will see. As for now I cannot find another suv on the market that pleases me in ride quality as much as my GX470.

zelz

Met with a Lexus Factory Rep and Service Manager this morning. They took a ride and felt the vibration and also the 'clunking' noise after stopping at a light. They know how to fix the noise but they say that they still have no fix for the vibration at about 2000/2200 RPM's. The factory Rep said that unfortuneatly the fix only comes after the new model is put up on the assembly line so they can see what 'works'. So, next Thursday I will have the 'clunk' fixed and talk about the vibration once again......That's about all I can do since the Rep shook his head about it...but I am pleased that he drove the GX and felt what I have been feeling since last December. Good luck.....

modelaford

Where have they been for the last year? They should have have been testing on the assembly line for the last year as thats when all the complaints started. What a snowjob!

super_cjc

Just said bye-bye to my 03 and drove the 04 home. No vibration and no clunking problem.
I think the ride is firmer for the 04 model 9700B, maybe that's how they increased the GVWR to 6150lb.

Many information from this forum helped my buy back process went smoothly.
A brand new car plus some cash back to my pocket, I am happy now

jacksonian

rjmespn,
You said the dealer switched out your tires to the Michelins, did they charge you extra? I don't know what's shipping on mine (should be here next Thursday). I don't know anything about tires, so I'm not sure what to do.

rjmespn

I had 150 miles on the Dunlop AT20's that came on the 04GX. The dealer changed them to Michelin Cross terrains for the labor cost to change the tires and rims ($40). The cross terain is a better built tire. Go to Tirerack. com and see how they graded out. The tread wear is a 9+ compared to the AT20 3+ The ride with the AT20's was softer but not by much.The Cross Terrain is a better all around tire.

PitBull

I've experienced this clunk on a FZJ80 Landcruiser and also on a 100 Series Landcruiser. Normally you just need to grease the driveline and it will go away. Not a big deal and it won't hurt anything. Drove the 1995 for 136K miles before I traded it and it had the Clunk from time to time. I know others that have over 250K miles and no problem from having the clunk. I would just tell the dealer you want it corrected and have them write it up and then just drive your GX until they have the new drive shaft available to install. About the vibration, I think it is a harmonic problem that will be very hard to find, since it does not show up on all of the GX470's or 4th generation 4runners. I decreased my vibration by just changing the angle of the steering wheel. I also don't think this harmonic is a problem, just something to bug you, more so in the GX then the 4runner since the GX is a more luxurious vehicle and the vibration stands out even more.

RAINMN60

I still experience both problems -- Clunking and Vibration. Supposively parts are on order. My car has already been in twice to try to rectify this problem.

I took delivery of the vehicle at the end of November, 2003.

Although I am relatively satisfied with the vehicle (ride and comfort), I am disappointed in the time it has taken Lexus to resolve the issue. When you spend over $50k on a vehicle you shouldn't have to receive such a substandard level of service.

PitBull

I sure can't argue with that!!! If I were you I would ask for some free service work directly from Lexus for the delay. Maybe a free 30K mile service?

nbfc

I have a 2004 GX470 it also has the vibration in the steering. According to the dealership who had an engineer out to look at it they told it is a characteristic of the vehicle. As far as i am concerned it is unsafe and it now sits in my driveway because my wife refuses to drive. The service dept. can't even tell me what is causing it. It has been looked at 5 times by 2 dealerships and a private mechanic. They all say that there is a problem but because the engineer say that it is operating as per design they wont do anything about it. I am now forced into a Lemon Lawsuit with them. I have asked for a new truck they told me it doesn,t work that way. I have shown them the TSB on the truck and they say there are none for my vehicle. Lexus is the worst car company I have ever dealt with regarding a problem. At first I justed wanted a mine fixed then asked for a new one. I even went as far as to ask for an RX all they replied was that is not how it works,sorry. Now i am looking for my money back. Im sure it is a great truck for those who dont have a problem but if you are the unlucky person who has one with a problem then you know what i mean

super_cjc

nbfc - sorry to hear your experience.

For other current/future GX owners information -

My 2004 GX 9700B, vibration has been fixed by the TSB 00404.

jacksonian

What about the hum/vibration makes the truck unsafe to drive?

nbfc

According to Lexus my truck has teh fix in it. According to the dealership they dont know why it vibrates. I asked them if this is what it does at 2,000 miles what will it do at 5,000 miles or at 10,000 miles. They said they dont know. That is why I feel it is unsafe. How can something vibrate for that period of time without something happening. When i showed the service the dept all the TSB from this forum as well as others all they said was that they dont go by these TSB and there is nothing wrong with my truck it is a characteristic of my vehicle.

PitBull

What they are saying is that it is like a tuning fork. At some vibration levels you could not feel it through the steering wheel, but at the frequency that it happens to be in your vehicle at the 1700-2000 engine rpm range it sets up a frequency that carrys through your steering and causes the vibration feeling. All the fix is going to do if it works is isolate the harmonic's from the steering it will never eliminate the harmonic's. There are all sorts of harmonics that create vibrations that go on in your vehicle, it's just that normally Lexus isolates you from them and you never hear or feel them. Drive your vehicle and get in line for the fix if you need it. If they did the fix and it did not work I would have them redo it since they did not isolate the harmonic. Good luck.

nbfc

I agree with you and i asked them to redo the fix that is supposely done on mine already. There answer was there is no reason to it meets specs. and there is nothing more to do. After the second dealership looked at it they basically told don't bother bringing it to other dealerships because the answer will be the same. If anybody has any advice i would be happy to hear it but i think i have explore all areas so far.