Creaking going over bumps + braking "shakes"
11-14-19, 07:26 PM
#16
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
What? The LCA bushings do not require any ball joint separation or even special tools if you replace the bushing and bracket at the same time. It’s quite literally a 30 min job.
The actual ball joints would be something to check as
well though — those could cause a clunking or general looseness in the front end.
Stabilizer links, as mentioned could also be a culprit.
Take a second to look under your car. The front ends are actually remarkably simple and any noises can be pretty easily isolated.
The actual ball joints would be something to check as
well though — those could cause a clunking or general looseness in the front end.
Stabilizer links, as mentioned could also be a culprit.
Take a second to look under your car. The front ends are actually remarkably simple and any noises can be pretty easily isolated.
11-15-19, 03:10 AM
#17
The rear is attached to the body via a large rubber bushing. Are they cracked? Start there by replacing them (plural because both sides left/right).
The front most bushing is another rubber bushing. Unless it’s severely cracked, probably not your issue. Try getting a pry bar and trying to manipulate it. If you can replicate your noise then there ya go.
The third and final attachment point on the control arm is the ball joint. There are so many variables that can make these go bad, so another strong possibility here. Again, try to pry in a way that you can see any movement in this joint. If you see any then that is your issue.
Similarly, any looseness in your stabilizer bar bushings will clunk.
11-15-19, 03:50 AM
#18
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Sorry, I definitely oversimplified a bit. Look at your front control arm. There are three attachment points on this arm:
The rear is attached to the body via a large rubber bushing. Are they cracked? Start there by replacing them (plural because both sides left/right).
The front most bushing is another rubber bushing. Unless it’s severely cracked, probably not your issue. Try getting a pry bar and trying to manipulate it. If you can replicate your noise then there ya go.
The third and final attachment point on the control arm is the ball joint. There are so many variables that can make these go bad, so another strong possibility here. Again, try to pry in a way that you can see any movement in this joint. If you see any then that is your issue.
Similarly, any looseness in your stabilizer bar bushings will clunk.
The rear is attached to the body via a large rubber bushing. Are they cracked? Start there by replacing them (plural because both sides left/right).
The front most bushing is another rubber bushing. Unless it’s severely cracked, probably not your issue. Try getting a pry bar and trying to manipulate it. If you can replicate your noise then there ya go.
The third and final attachment point on the control arm is the ball joint. There are so many variables that can make these go bad, so another strong possibility here. Again, try to pry in a way that you can see any movement in this joint. If you see any then that is your issue.
Similarly, any looseness in your stabilizer bar bushings will clunk.
my plan was to take some silicone spray grease and grease each of the parts you described one by one and go over the same bump until the noise disappears.
11-15-19, 05:02 AM
#19
Lexus Champion
Out of all the 430s I've worked on/owned I've never seen the front bushing wear out. Hell, my 250k mile 430's bushing looks the same as my 90k mile 430's. But the rear one is almost ALWAYS worn on any 430 you look under.
I personally would suspect a worn front bushing last, especially considering at that point your only options are to purchase a chinese Mevotech aftermarket arm or expensive oem arm for crazy money.
I personally would suspect a worn front bushing last, especially considering at that point your only options are to purchase a chinese Mevotech aftermarket arm or expensive oem arm for crazy money.
Last edited by Striker223; 11-15-19 at 05:06 AM.
11-15-19, 05:52 AM
#20
Or pressing in a replacement MOOG bushing, like needed to be done on mine since the front was totally collapsed. At least on mine there was enough wear to cause the front to move and clunk so I kinda was forced into doing both since mevotech arms don't exactly fill me with confidence and OEM arms cost a bit more than is logical when you can just replace the bushings.
11-15-19, 06:32 AM
#22
Driver School Candidate
Thread Starter
Or pressing in a replacement MOOG bushing, like needed to be done on mine since the front was totally collapsed. At least on mine there was enough wear to cause the front to move and clunk so I kinda was forced into doing both since mevotech arms don't exactly fill me with confidence and OEM arms cost a bit more than is logical when you can just replace the bushings.
So as of now I'm taking the following actions in order of priority:
- Rear rotors / pads change, OEM (body shaking during braking)
- Use silicone spray to isolate front creak over bumps:
- Front LCA bushings
- Sway bar bushings
- Front lower ball joints
I still don't know what to do about the vibrations getting transmitted through the cabin when driving over uneven / rough roads, it's really severe as if the vibrations get attenuated and magnified as they go through the body of the car. I'm not getting steering wheel rattle when these vibrations happen. Any thoughts?
11-15-19, 09:37 AM
#23
Driver School Candidate
I purchased an 06 LS430 yesterday and have some of the same issues described above: creaks, bumps, shaking. The creaks and bumps are typically during low speed turning/braking/accelerating. The shaking happened only once at 45mph on a smooth road.
The previous owner said that he replaced the lower control arm and had the steering aligned immediately prior to my purchase, so I looked it over. Sure enough--it's a shiny new black part.
I jacked up the vehicle to look underneath and start shaking things around to see what moved and quickly noticed that the front LCA bushing has 2-3mm of wiggle relative to the frame when I push and pull on the tire.
Looking for how the component goes together, elsewhere on this forum I found a PDF including torque values.
rkw77080 posted it here:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...ntrol-arm.html
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/att...-lower-arm.pdf
I very seriously doubt that my nut is torqued to 172Nm (127 ft-lbf). Somebody replaced the part on mine, but didn't check their torques.
If yours needs to be replaced and you don't have a bearing press to salvage the original arm, Rockauto sells the assembly for <$100: https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...trol+arm,10401
Good luck.
The previous owner said that he replaced the lower control arm and had the steering aligned immediately prior to my purchase, so I looked it over. Sure enough--it's a shiny new black part.
I jacked up the vehicle to look underneath and start shaking things around to see what moved and quickly noticed that the front LCA bushing has 2-3mm of wiggle relative to the frame when I push and pull on the tire.
Looking for how the component goes together, elsewhere on this forum I found a PDF including torque values.
rkw77080 posted it here:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...ntrol-arm.html
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/att...-lower-arm.pdf
I very seriously doubt that my nut is torqued to 172Nm (127 ft-lbf). Somebody replaced the part on mine, but didn't check their torques.
If yours needs to be replaced and you don't have a bearing press to salvage the original arm, Rockauto sells the assembly for <$100: https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...trol+arm,10401
Good luck.
11-15-19, 10:09 AM
#25
Lexus Champion
Very likely not, that would have been the job of the alignment place but most chains screw it up on that type of adjustment. I would have Lexus do it so it's actually correct and if you really are concerned then after you get back check it yourself
11-18-19, 05:15 AM
#26
Driver School Candidate
Quick follow-up: I reviewed the replacement instructions that rkw77080 posted (linked above in thread) and re-torqued all of the joints to the specified values. Jacking up the front of the vehicle and removing the tire provided plenty of clearance to access all hardware. Not a big chore, even for a novice.
Test drove the vehicle briefly before taking it 200 miles across windy mountain roads from TN to NC. No problems whatsoever. Smooth as silk.
One of the beautiful things about driving a 13-yr-old vehicle is that others have already figured out what few things break and how to fix them cheaply. Love this forum...
Test drove the vehicle briefly before taking it 200 miles across windy mountain roads from TN to NC. No problems whatsoever. Smooth as silk.
One of the beautiful things about driving a 13-yr-old vehicle is that others have already figured out what few things break and how to fix them cheaply. Love this forum...
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