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I was told that the rear bushings are beginning to show wear on our 2010 RX350 and that the cost to replace would be about $2000 due to labor.
Is that reasonable? Said they had to lift out engine to get to bushings.
I would immediately find another mechanic. Not only is the quoted cost way out of line, but also no front-engine vehicle would ever need the engine lifted in order to get to the rear bushings. What bushings are you referring to, anyway? Control arms? Shock mounts? Something else?
I think that the shop is referring to the lower control arm rear bushing is starting to deteriorate. In order to replace the lower control arm the engine mounts will have to be removed (mount is limiting access to bolt in order to remove lower control arm). Do you hear a thumping sound? You can always try taking it a Toyota dealership, it shares the same suspension as a Toyota Highlander.
"rear bushing" is incomplete description. If OP comes back with the right description we can offer help.
If indeed it is the lower control arm, the engine mount can be removed without too much fuss by supporting the engine [just couple of additional steps] and it does not mean removing the engine.
In first gen RX, I replaced the control arm without moving/removing the engine mount. As a DIY it was bit difficult as I could not plant myself ( I was sliding on the floor) and it did need a bit of muscle to fight the arm in place. Please search and you will find videos on the net where they show a person remove the mounting.
If you are not hearing any thunks or clunks, you can wait a bit. Else you can have some one show you the movement in the joint. I say this as your mechanics $$ figure makes me suspect the motive.
No thumping sound yet. Mechanic said just starting to show wear.
Thanks for your information.
No thumping and as you stated, "Mechanic said just starting to show wear". I would just leave it alone until your mechanic tell you it's time to replace or you start to hear noise going over bumps and potholes.
This is what a lower control arm bushing looks like that needs replacing.
This is the part that needs replacing depending if it is the right or left side. The picture shows the right side lower control arm.
I just replaced mine two weeks ago. There were no thumping noises but the bushings were visibly worn and when you hit the brakes from low speed, you can see (standing outside of vehicle) the front wheel moving rearward. My RX wandered left and right on the highway so unless yours is making noise or driving abnormally, I wouldn't replace them just yet.
Normally I go for OEM whenever possible, but I went with Moog instead. It's a lot cheaper plus I don't have too much faith in the OEM bushings considering mine went out at only 60k miles.
No thumping and as you stated, "Mechanic said just starting to show wear". I would just leave it alone until your mechanic tell you it's time to replace or you start to hear noise going over bumps and potholes.
This is what a lower control arm bushing looks like that needs replacing.
This is the part that needs replacing depending if it is the right or left side. The picture shows the right side lower control arm.
Do you have to purchase the entire control arm or are the bushings replaceable in existing control arm ?
Not worth it to change the bushings themselves, even with access to a 20-ton shop press that will easily pop ‘em out. It’s not much more money to get a whole new arm and throw it in. Toyota also doesn’t sell the bushing by itself it seems.
If I need to do the bushings again though I would buy another arm and press out the bushings and in place put more durable polyurethane ones instead.
Get a second opinon on this job as it is rare to need to replace the front control arms. A few cracks in the bushing do not mean anything.. It is normal wear and you can go years before they really nead replacing unless you have driving issues.
01-02-19, 11:01 AM
Cost to replace rear bushings
