ancpratt

Hi guys,

Has anyone else been hearing a creaking sound when steering their car at a very low speed; like while pulling into a driveway or parking space for example?

I have a 2014 IS 250 F Sport with 30K miles on it and this noise started happening about a month ago. I did some quick research and results point me to the solution of greasing the sway bars as there may now be a lack of lubrication.

Thoughts? Anyone else had to deal with this?

Thanks!

sdiver68

It's under warranty, right? Take it to the dealer. I wouldn't put up with it even if a bunch of other people said yes I get the same thing.

Aeromotive

What a coincidence, I've been having this for 2 months now and I haven't had the time to take it in. I'm calling next week. I'm at 46k km, which is not far from 30k miles.

mingkwong

Is it only on the rough surface and bumpy road? Mine has rattles when steering on rough surface but Lexus told me that it's a defect on the IS250 which they had no solution to fix.

ancpratt

Sdiver68,

Thanks and yes... it's certainly still under warranty and I do plan to take it in as soon as I can. I'll let them deal with it but I'll report back to you guys once I learn of what the issue was.

Regards.

ancpratt

mingkwong,

No, it happens on completely flat pavement. When I turn the steering wheel to park in a parking space, the creaking noise is heard.

Thanks.

Vivid101

I have the same noise at 2900 miles on my 2016 350.

mario2625

I have the same problem on my 2014 Lexus IS250 with 27k miles even after two dealership visits. Each time I have taken it, it is the hardest thing to reproduce the sound. In the two visits, they lubricated the sway bars and isolated the springs, which works for about 2 months but then the sound returns. Such an annoying/embarrassing problem especially when you have a passenger

ancpratt

Hi again guys,

Well, I took my IS into the dealership and to my surprise, the creaking noise I was experiencing was because my brake pads were due to be changed out. They were never down to the wear tabs but the tech said that he has seen where the brake components get a little sloppy in there and can cause that kind of creaking when the pads wear down (my two fronts were both at 3mm in thickness).

I had them put new shoes on the fronts and boom, the noise is completely gone. The car is like brand new again.

*I asked them put on their alternative pad instead of the OEM high friction pads which cause so much brake dust on the wheels (alternative pad part #04465-53030). They didn't know if those are ceramic but promised they'll be a lot less dusty.

Thanks.

ancpratt

Yeah, I agree PartixUSA. It doesn't make sense. Low brake pads have never caused such an issue on any car I've owned in the past... and they shouldn't. I needed new pads anyways so went ahead with getting those swapped out.

Unless the dealership hid something from me by fixing the real problem without my knowledge and blaming the brake pads instead, I can't think of any other reason why the noise was happening. They swore it wasn't a lubrication issue but yes, I'll let you all know if the noise resurfaces.

Vivid101

Mine is not a brake pad issue. I know what worn pads sound like. This is a turn the wheel and drive slow creek every time the front tires rotate. Sounds like it is coming from the drivers side.

ancpratt

I had the exact same symptoms Vivid101. The brakes were never squealing because they were never worn down to the wear tabs.

The tech said that the brake assembly components like the calipers etc gets "loose" when the pads get on the thin side and that was causing my creaking noise.

Vivid101

I just pulled off the front wheel to inspect the brake assembly and pads. The caliper, shield, rotor, brake lines and everything is tight. I even used my torque wrench to tighten the bots down and they were solid.

I then pulled out the caliper bolt to take out the pads. The pads look brand new. No abnormal wear.

The brake rotor shield is perfect. not bent or rubbing anything.

ancpratt

Vivid,

Maybe take your car to another mechanic for a second opinion if you haven't already. Our noises are certainly strange and unexplainable. What do you think?

One thing I forgot to mention earlier is that when the tech and I were in the car together for a test drive and before any repairs were made, he was driving, stopped the car while still in drive, and with his foot on the brakes, turned the steering wheel all the way left and right to full lock. The creaking noise was heard. Then, he engaged the emergency brake, took his foot off of the brake pedal, and turned the steering wheel again. NO noise was heard. My issue certainly had something to do with the brakes.

CarlitoIS

This happened to my 2015 IS. That car had about 14.5K miles. Every time I used to back out of the driveway or when I used to park and turned the steering wheel, I would hear that creaking sound like something was breaking under the car.. I don't know. I never went in and asked, I just lived with it and traded in the lease for a 2016.