Improkap

So, my dad has decided to drive his 2011 RX350 AWD to the ground and is approaching the 300k miles mark.
Recently the car developed a bad vibration at highway speeds, which turned out to be caused by both front CV Axles outer boots tearing without him noticing, so he kept driving until it got really bad.
Tried to re-boot both axles and it *mostly* went away. It still shakes somewhat when merging on the highway or when accelerating while going up hills, tolerable but noticeable. As my dad wants to keep the car we are looking to replace both axles so the shaking goes away for good.

My questions are:
1) ¿Any suggestions regarding aftermarket CV Axles?
2) ¿Wich seals/gaskets would I need to replace? If someone knows the part numbers it would be very helpful.

Regarding #1, my options seem to be either Cardone, Trakmotive, or A-Premium parts, with Cardone being a bit more expensive than the others. Im located outside the US, so reman or OEM is not an option. The same goes for junkyard parts, as these cars are not very common around here.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers.

MattRX

All I can say is that Trakmotive is complete crap and should be avoided at all cost. The tolerances where the shaft entered my diff was completely wrong and they kept popping out while driving and ruined my axle seals. All is well with GSP replacements.

Though, you’ll want to hit the GSPs with a coat of paint as they don’t have a thick layer to begin with. These had an OE-style shape though though and are holding up well. As for Cardone, screw ‘em too. They sent me a “remanufactured” brake caliper with an original, dented piston and stripped banjo bolt threads.

RX in NC

Good advice above. My past research has told me to stay away from aftermarket CV axles regardless of what make of vehicle you happen to drive. So many of them are a half-inch too short or made from inferior materials by sketchy companies overseas. If I intended to keep the vehicle long-term, I would look for the best deal I could find on an OEM one.

Clutchless

FYI the same CV axle part fits the following vehicles in addition to the RX. It may help you find the part. They Toyota OEM parts may be cheaper.
This is based on cross reference info at Rock Auto.

Front ​​​​​​Right axle

LEXUS RX350 2010-2014
TOYOTA HIGHLANDER 2014-2017
TOYOTA VENZA 2009-2015

Front Left axle

​​​​​​LEXUS RX350 2010-2015
LEXUS RX450H 2011
TOYOTA HIGHLANDER 2011-2016
TOYOTA VENZA 2009-2015

Improkap

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

Regarding Toyota parts, unfortunately, neither the Venza nor Highlander are sold over here.

I understand that OEM is the better part, but so far I have not been able to find a reasonable deal that's local to me. On the other hand, letting go of an otherwise perfectly drivable car over a CV Axle would be a waste, so I believe the best course of action is to fit the "better" aftermarket axle available to me. If it fails I could get it replaced under warranty and then dump the car, my old man is also willing to give it a shot.

@MattRX I could get GSP, however, their site states their front AWD part does not fit Japan-built vehicles, which I find weird since it cross references with the ones from Cardone or Trakmotive who don't mention anything about it being exclusive for American-built cars.

MattRX

I have always disregarded that when buying parts and it has never let me down. In some older Toy Lex cars JPN and NA had different brake calipers / horns, door panels etc back in the day, but now that practically is non-existent on our newer RXs. The splines and hubs between NA and JPN is the same, including the transfer case and transmission so I wouldn’t worry about it.

Improkap

So, the axles are on the way. Took a gamble on Cardone since they offer the best warranty over here, looked for experiences on other Lexus models and it seems hit or miss.

My question regarding what gaskets/seals I should have on hand remains. The price gouging on such parts at my local Lexus dealer is disgusting, so I would prefer to get them directly from amazon or eBay.
Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

salimshah

I am suspecting that what you will get from cardone is a serviced unit. (i think they require you turn in the old). From what I have gathered is, it is a hit or miss. The good thing is it carries a warranty [you pay for labor and time].
The other parts needed are clips and seals. I would recommend replacing them with OEM. If you leaning to use an aftermarket ...
I would suggest to leave in place the existing [that is if you do not see leak or damage] instead of reaching out for a cheap aftermarket.
You can try online Lexus dealerships [they are present on eBay].

If you are not shy, you can ask for 10% discount at the dealership.

Saliim

chuyrobles

Is Vina del Mar in Chile? I see that is near the coast. Corrosion may be a factor in replacing the passenger side CV shaft. It slides into a bearing bracket near the midpoint and the shaft tends to seize to the race. Be prepared for that. Cardone usually has an option for a remanufactured or a new unit. The reman's usually cost more. The new units are no doubt made in China/Taiwan which is not necessarily a bad thing if quality control is not compromised. I put a Cardone made-in-China shaft in our ES350 along with a new output seal from Napa. It fixed a similar vibration issue at acceleration. That was about five years ago and it is holding up well. I also bought the driver side shaft but I installed it three years later since the passenger side fixed the vibration issue, as is usually the case.

Improkap

@salimshah I asked if it was a new o reman unit and was told it's a new Cardone made one, guessing they won't take cores from abroad because of shipping fees. Thanks for the advice on the clips and seals, I plan to go go oem, but it's cheaper for me to get them from ebay or amazon and shipped to my country versus getting them directly at my local dealer. That's why I would be grateful if anybody knows the part #'s.

@chuyrobles Yes, Im posting from Chile. Corrosion is generally not a problem, the weather is nice year-round and mostly dry, plus the car is garage kept. The only time I've had a rust-seized part was when replacing the exhaust gaskets last year, will do a quick check to see if it looks corroded. Thanks for the heads up and for sharing your experience with Cardone, hope my parts turn out as good as yours.

salimshah

Go to Lexus on line parts like Lexus of Atlanta and drill down to model and year of production.

You can also search the web and a few listing with part number will show up.

I am of little help on how to find equivalent Toyota part number, but once again search to see the Toyota equivalent.

There are few international Toyota/Lexus part supplier which ship from Middle East or Far East as well like Amayama. maybe worthwhile if you want to purchase the shaft too.

Also you have the option to rebuild the shaft. I did that on my first gen RX. Bench vice is very handy.

Salim