ARK07

Maybe someone slipped a 2010 GX under you and you did'nt notice it, as many 2010 -11 seem to have a vibration they can't seem to figure out fix.

Sorry, just had to..........

ROSCOGX470

I could handle a slight vibration if someone wants to slip a 2010 GX under me.

esf1224`

Hi everyone,

Well, my problem seems to be getting worse. After being on and off for the last couple of months (sometimes even a few weeks without any issues) the car now seems to have a problem almost daily. Raising and lowering suspension used to help almost every time. However today a new symptom occurred - lowering a car does not work any more: Low light blinks for a couple of mins and then goes back to N position. Raising works only occasionally: Switching to High and light stays steady, as if it had already been raised. When raising car does work, it no longer cures the shaking problem. Car behaves really violent when driving. Seat belts lock up all the time.

I called my mechanic I trust, and he tells me that problems with height control are so rare that the company he buys his diagnostic software from does not offer anything to diagnose this type of problem. Nearest dealer was not able to diagnose the the problem before.

So my question is this - now that this is clearly a problem with something in the height control system, what are my options? Do i try to find a reputable place to fix it? What is the possible repair bill in this case? Do i start looking into getting rid of the car? I really dont want to spend a lot on repairs.

We really love the car and hate whats happening with it

Thanks for your words of wisdom

-esf

mbenz80

Fix it and enjoy it. Where are you located in IL., I'm in Lake Zurich. I have oem 2003 service manual, if you wish to take it look in it for what to do or how to check and test rear suspension.
There is a way to test height sensors (one on each side), and the compressor assembly has control (valve) solenoid right on it, this would be the most expensive part of the system (about $400) if it is bad. I believe you have a leak in the air system, could be any one of the tube/fitting connections. When you switch to high, can you hear the compressor working? Have your trusted mechanic check alldata service manual for suspension testing procedures (if he has access to it). If not, you can go to your local library and print it out for him from research databases under automotive repair to alldata files.
Also, do you have the famous clunk on your GX? If you are on your original driveshaft and splines in it are completely dry, it may be holding the air bags back when you are trying to race the vehicle because driveshaft has to expand (stretch) in that moment.
I had a clunk when ever pumping up the vehicle to normal height after sagging, compressor was working but car would not race up for a while then slight pop in the driveshaft and suspension jumpped up about inch then it would stay in that spot till another pop from bone dry driveshaft splines and it would jump higher.
After regreasing the driveshaft 3 times, I have no more sagging problem and no more clunk on takeoff, while stoping or when changing the height of vehicle (my driveshaft has 260,000 miles on and it is the factory original since 2003).
Bernard

esf1224`

Hi,

Thanks for the detailed reply.
I am in VH. I scheduled an appt tomorrow night at Arlington Lexus. Hopefully they cannot miss it this time.
Thanks for the repair manual offer. While i usually do most work on my other cars, I am not brave enough to do any work on Lexus

As of today, when i try to raise or lower the car, all i hear is a click. I dont hear anything working, but to be fair, i never did before either.
I had the famous clunk when we test drove the car. It was fixed under TSB before i picked it up.

Thanks again,
-esf

mbenz80

I'm 6 miles up on Rand from that dealer and that is the one taking care of all needs on this GX (from 53K to 256K miles). They quoted previous owner $6,000 for repair (broken timing belt) or $2,500 for the GX toward new or used Lexus purchase. I buy parts from them (at employee discout), I just hope Tom Prondzinski is taking care of you in service.

esf1224`

Well, went to the dealer... with the same result.
Went out with a mechanic, drove about 15 miles. With my luck, the problem did not present itself.

They offered to keep the car and start taking it apart (if they cant find meaningful diagnostic codes), but at $140/hr it does not make a ton of sense. We agreed that i would take it back and drive until i experience the problem again, and drive straight to them.
Service adviser admitted that there is a real possibility of performing thousands of dollars of work and still having this issue.

Haven't had the issue for 3 days now. Almost wish i did...

My wife is still refusing to drive it, so I am now driving a truck 2.5 miles to the train station

z0lt3c

iTrader: (1)

w/r/t the shaking -- Did you get the tires road forced balance, if so what are the measurement results of each tire? This can take multiple attempts and weights can fall off and/or tires can go out of round. How many miles are on the tires, sometimes it's just a bad tire? I am not a fan of rotating tires on a 4WD, did the problem start after a recent rotation?

Stuck rotors is also common and a good fit, I've had all 4 of my callipers replaced on my 2004.

There is a TSB to address shake outside of the above mentioned root causes. See the attachment on this post; https://www.clublexus.com/forums/4805963-post7.html


w/r/t height control -- This sounds like a sensor and should have been reproducible by the dealer given your descriptions. How did they not address this?

ak4700208

I have a 2004 GX470. Steering wheel shakes only when i hit bumps or potholes. May be it is rack and pinion bushings?
Any help is highly appreciated!

mbenz80

Could be just bad ball joints in steering rod ends. Easy to check play ones wheels are lift up off the ground.

co4wheel

Mine did that. It was the shocks. I just did the complete suspension including a air bag delete. Smooth as butter now. I thought it was a ball joint or a bushing as well. It was not. Probably just that heavy rear axle vibrating around after the bump.

chrisvr6

Mine only does it at 62 through like 80mph. Always has. Used to be ok in the winter but now its all the time. Will be doing front shocks soon. Hoping thats the problem.

ak4700208

I had my mechanic checked my front end and it's very solid(i checked it my self as well). No play in tie rod ends and ***** joints. The only thing which is not with in mfg. standards is LF shock has a slight leakage. As far as I know worn shock should nose dive or excess bounce but should not shake the steering wheel or the entire vehicle.
But then again it's LEXUS and their OEM shocks are different than normal ones.
What do you think?

co4wheel

Told you it was shocks potentially. Nose dive is not a great indicator. The bounce is why you have a shaking wheel.

chiph9

I have seen tires with stripes going across the tread, caused by worn shocks that allowed the wheel to bounce going down the road.

Sounds like new shock time.

Chip H.