SaiyanGS3

iTrader: (8)

That's one thing that I try to refrain from us using something I "heard". I also believed the same thing too, but when I started to search, I could never find concrete proof that they made the 01+ more stout. I even asked the question on here many of times and their response is very similiar to your response lol. I think the reason why there is more failure with 99-00 is due to the caster bushings, which they upgraded on the 01+. I have seen some failures with the 01+ though...

lextout

Everything could have seemed in order when they did an alignment, it could have been just a coincidence that the lbj failed on you miles after.

mk2tmr2

iTrader: (1)

Healthy ball joints on a stock car don't just tend to fail without warning. A visual inspection would, more likely than not, have revealed more than acceptable amount of wear and tear. And, remember, the OP said that it was brought in for an alignment - in the first place - for symptoms that would have led any tech worth his salt to inspect the LBJ's for wear.

Not to mention that the opposite side wheel FELL THE **** OFF THE CAR not long before this one did the same exact thing for the same exact reason.

[Caps added for emphasis. Not yelling at anyone in particular. Well...maybe yelling at the techs who replaced a failed lower ball joint but failed to inspect the opposite one.]

raytseng

sad to hear it,
but this is part of the result of buying a 15year old car. Every basic car buying site will advise that for the typical buyer wanting a reliable car to not buy a car more than 5years old.

Even if it's a luxury car, wear and tear start kicking in, and the tables of responsibility start to flip from the manufacturer to the owner to ensure the car is running properly.

I would suggest that if you do not want to put up with the quirks of a 15year old car, you should try to get out of your purchase of this car and try for a more recent model car especially if you bought it with some kind of warranty or have any kind of recourse. If it was AS-IS and you didn't get an inspection...well that's the way the cookie crumbles.

Let's be honest, even a 4 year old toyota or honda will be more tightly put together than a 15year GS-even after your repairs. Look for the monster thread on suspension shimmy for an idea of the money pit some people get into trying to restore the GS back to "new" state..

sakataj

iTrader: (182)

there is a reason ALL sewell/any dealership sells now is the 2001+ LBJ, they are indeed "thicker" or beefier..... compare a OEM 98-00 one to a 2001+ one and you'll see.

repugnante

^ I have yet to see anyone with an 01+ talk about their ball joints snapping. I'm only seeing 98-00's.

sakataj

iTrader: (182)

i have, there are some in the balljoint thread..... the 2001+ arent 100% better but they are thicker and in this spot thicker is better(TWSS)

bottom line if u dont replace them, eventually they will fail.....keep in mind the lowering/bigger rims we put on our car cause alot more stress to this already weak point. what i wish is they made a replaceable ball joint JUST the ball joint not the whole arm

repugnante

I wish they did what Nissan/Infiniti did which is press the ball joint into a control arm. We would never have issues like these. Oh well, double wishbone suspensions....sheesh!!!!

MikeFoxx

iTrader: (8)

And the visual is an easy pass/fail no brainer

sakataj

iTrader: (182)

me too, me too

thats not the balljoint, thats the castor arm

these are the balljoints

http://lexus.sewellparts.com/accesso...2001/2950.html

MikeFoxx

iTrader: (8)

^^^^^^ lmao i posted the wrong pic... I shoulda checked the post after it loaded... "Chime in Fail"

mk2tmr2

iTrader: (1)

I should have taken a photo of my 110k mile ball joints next to the new ones. They were not clunking, rattling, or otherwise showing any sign of being bad. They had no play when manually inspected. However, the rubber boots were completely squished and almost all the grease had evacuated.

Bottom line...this is a wear-and-tear item just like brake pads. Hell...they're not much more expensive than brake pads...and they are easy to swap. I don't understand how people can drive on them until they're so bad that they're clunking or even snapping.

I guess the bottom line is that people don't tend to maintain their cars much these days. They just drive until something fails and then replace it. The downside to doing that on 2GS LBJ's is that when they fail it can be catastrophic.

My outer tie rods are next. Just waiting to finish my NA-T project so I can pick up the FIGS ones.

SoicyGS300

That is definitely a pic of the radius arm, lol. I changed those when i changed all my front end bushings and tie rods beacuse the radius arm bushings were completely torn.