tmf2004

iTrader: (15)

considering you have pretty low miles my guess would be recheck the wheel torque for the lug nuts.. Should be at 76ft. lbs..I have pretty low miles also with 59,xxx and i get a slight vibration to.. I think i experience "cold Tire" syndrome most of the time if the car sits more than a few days.. This was covered in a thread by "Lexforlife".. I think just about every GS owner has a issue with some sort of vibration and no matter what we do it never completely goes away or goes away and comes back.. I think were all in the same boat here..

T

lexforlife

iTrader: (7)

if you have your alignment printout please scan and post it for me to see

i want to see how well they adjusted your rear setting in relation to your front

dmc_maine

Hello everyone! OK, I've been battling this same issue for a little while now and might have something new to share.
1st, my GS is a stock 99 GS400 with 128k miles. I've had the front lower ball joints replaced and the tires were recently rotated in the first attempt to solve the high speed shimmy issue.
I believe the problem was solved today. I originally made an appointment to have the steering bushing(s) replaced but when my mechanic took it for a spin he had another plan. He put the car up on the lift and showed me that the left front tire could be rotated easily (but not too easily) and the right front tire required quite a bit of effort to rotate. So, the diagnosis was a brake issue - I've basically been riding around with my right front brake on. He ordered new rotors and a new caliper for the right side and I took a loaner and headed home.
About 2 hours later I got the call that the car was ready. I got the good news that the solution to the problem was less expensive than initially estimated ($400+).
When he got inside to work he found that the Right Front Brake Caliber Slide was seized - it would brake when actuated but would not let go. There was nothing wrong with the caliper. He freed it up, cleaned and lubricated. And he's quite confident that we've found and solved the problem. I'm looking forward to my ride in to the office tomorrow. total damage: just under $300.

I really hope that this information is helpful to someone because I know just how annoying this problem can be.

bwilder10h

Lexforlife, unfortunately I misplaced the receipt for the alignment (that or my wife tossed it, which is more likely) but if you give me the details on what to ask for, I have no problem taking it back and asking them to check if you think that could be the problem. I'll try anything within reason at this point.

This is more than a cold tire vibe. This begins at 60 and violently shakes beyond 80mph.

sung35

I second this. My left front brake cailper was also stuck, which caused vibration. I came home one day and realize that the left front of the car was soo hot and smelled burn too. Got a new caliper (ouch from the stealer for $400) and the vibration also gone since.

dmc_maine

Morning commute update: Now THAT'S more like it! Smooth sailing all the way in to the office today. I kept waiting for the vibration to start once I hit the highway and it never did. Nice. It's going to take some time to get used to driving without the shimmy, but I think I'll manage...

GATO

iTrader: (1)

very intresting read.

what causes the brake caliper to stick???

what can be done to prevent? clean calipers often??

I too have smelled something fishy.....I need to check this out

tmf2004

iTrader: (15)

Maybe this is a lexus flaw and were just replacing suspension pieces to mask the real issue? Keep us posted GATO.. Seems like the other guy is shimmy free..

dmc_maine

I do not know what causes the brake caliber to stick other than to say that it is an issue with the hydraulics, not necessarily the caliper. In fact, my mechanic did not replace the caliper, just the rotors.

If you have caught the issue early enough that your rotors are not damaged then a cleaning and lubrication of the Brake Caliper Slide should be sufficient to eliminate the problem.

sojah

iTrader: (1)

i had the same problem with the vibration and it got so bad that i tried to sell my rims (orig. 6K) and put the stock rims and tires back on. luckily nobody wanted them for what i had priced them at. anyways i spent 400$ to get the rims (front two) straight again and balanced them for the 3rd time (about $50 each time). my wife wouldn't even ride in the car with me anymore because i would complain so much about it. i finally bought some 15$ hubcentric wheel rings or hub rings to some and the vibration is completely gone. i would like to think that i didn't waste 500$ on something that was fixed for 15$ plus a 45 minute drive to go pick them up, but hey it is as smooth as ice again and i'm going to enjoy it while its here.

if you guys get anything out of my personal experiences its that i highly, highly, recommend that everyone with low pro tires or large heavy rims invest in a set of 4 (usually from 12-35$) of hub rings. i had a little trouble finding out the exact size i needed. you need the size of the inside diameter of your rims opening, in my case (lowenhart ld-1) . i called around until i found a shop that was able to tell me the correct size. incase your wondering the second generation gs hub ring clearance size is 60mm so all you need is the size of your rims like mine was 73mm so i ordered a set of hub rings for 15$ size 73mm by 60mm...

i would like to go ahead and say your welcome to anyone who doesn't already have these and takes my advice and is amazed at how much of a difference a little piece of plastic makes to smooth out the overall ride comfort. the only way i can describe it is that its like still having my 20x 10" rims with the 275x30x20 tires but with a feeling of riding on the stock tires (the big fluffy ones that came on my car).

i called around to about 20 places in all and the majority of them had not even heard of hub rings let alone any advice as to if they work or not. i always thought that it was somewhat common knowledge amongst large rim low profile tire owners, but i guess i was wrong. if you have large rims with low profile tires and can't stand the feeling, whether it vibrates constantly, shimmy's, shakes, or just rides way too rough then do yourself a favor and get these. i feel like i am preaching a little, but it is only because i was to hard headed to actually believe that this little addition could and would do so much. so yeah thats my story and i'm sticking to it.

~bbr

InvAsian

Ive had hub centric rings installed since the first day i bought my set of 20's... until this day, it stills vibrate at 60mph or so... ive tried jus about everything, ( except for checkin the front caliber brakes bein stuck ) suggested here in the club, but anyhow, becus of this vibration problem alot of members face, i myself have given up on the problem and will being trading her or sellin her soon.

gregor4

bwilder10h,
Sounds like you've eliminated the wheels as a problem, and if the rotors were warped you'd really feel it when braking. I've had problems in the past with rust and dirt etc. building up on the mounting surface of the rotor, so the wheel doesn't have a flat surface to sit on. No matter how tight the lugnuts are, the wheel will not be perfectly straight with respect to the rotor. Try taking a razor blade and scraping the mounting surfaces and spray them off with brake cleaner. If that doesn't solve it, you may be looking at a bearing issue.

Kbueno

This is a common problem especially with the stock 17" wheels. Mine went away after the Diazen Bushing install, so I'm not sure what else it could be in your case. If a slider is sticking it usually pulls to one side when braking. Make sure all you suspension components are tight...perhaps a loose swaybar?

bwilder10h

After reading the posts about the sticking calipers, I jacked the car up and spun the wheels. The passenger wheel didn't spin as freely as the drivers side so because I was needing breaks anyway, I bought two rotors and a set of pads because I assumed my rotor on the passenger side was warped. After getting it all back together, the passenger side still didn't spin as easily as the drivers side so even though the caliper wasn't frozen and I was able to push the pistons in with a c-clamp, I figured the pressure just isn't releasing after the brake pedal is released. Picked up a caliper and put it on, same deal, doesn't spin the same revolutions as the drivers. Parts place said it could be the hose... replaced it same deal. Any other ideas as to what could be causing one caliper to not be releasing as much as the others?

One thing I find interesting is from the day I got my car, something in the master cyl area under the hood groans and makes a buzzing sound for the first 10-20 seconds the key is turned to the 'on' position. What is causing that? Could it be related to the hanging caliper?

I still dont know that this is what is causing the vibrations but I do know it's gotten a little better but still by no means what I could live with...

David1969

Just wanted to add myself to this issue. My rims, i believe, are part of the problem. I had them rotated and my problem got worse. Before the rotation, i could feel the vibration, but not so bad. After the rotation, it's pretty bad over 60mph. I think it's got something to do with the rims, but won't know until i change them out.

I had a similar problem like this when i was in high school with my old car. The car would get to a certain speed and then would start to shake violently. That problem turned out to be the CV joints. I wonder if this could be the issue in our cars?