01lexus01

When i take off and i step on the break my car makes a clucking noise and it only happens when i first take off, then after that it goes away. Does any one have the same problem or knoe whats going on. Thank you guys

flipside909

Does this only happen like once or twice when you first start driving the car? Esp after it has been parked for a long while? Sounds like your brake pads are shifting. This was a common sound among the Camry related vehicles brakes. You would hear a loud "clack" sound as you apply the brakes. I haven't had this sound problem with my 2004...yet.

Turbo'd_Wxman

Its the ABS setting. It will always happen when you start the car. Normal.

N5521F

My ES does the same thing, but I would describe it as a crunching noise. It sounds like I ran over a cardboard box. This happens when I move forward about 15' from a start and drive mode. At night I can see the headlights dim. It is the ABS calibrating. Note: If this happens only when you step on the break there could be another problem. A loose caliper or break pad shift as mentioned above.

mmarshall

Yeah, I have owned several Toyota-made vehicles (including my IS300) and EVERY one did EXACTLY the same thing. You generally don't notice it when they are brand-new, but after a couple of thousand miles, you start to hear a tapping or clicking noise when you FIRST press the brake pedal after EVERY time you change direction....go from forward to reverse, or vice-versa. After you hit the pedal once, you won't hear it again until you change direction again. The reason for this, as explained by several dealer technicians, is that virtually every Toyota product....front or rear-drive.....has floating disc brake calipers that are not anchored solidly to the wheel assemblies, so they rotate very slightly with the wheel as it first changes direction, and then hit up against their stops. That "Click" or "tap" is the sound of the metal caliper hitting its metal stop. This is prefectly normal and nothing to worry about.....I've seen Toyotas and Lexuses go 200,000 miles like this with no problem.
Flip, you're pretty knowlegeable...have you ever noticed this?

flipside909

Yep...with any Camry based vehicle from 1992 to current. My 95 Avalon and 99 Solara made the same sound. It's a normal characteristic. My 04 IS300 has yet to make this clack sound.

mmarshall

Give your IS300 a few more miles...it is still fairly new....but don't be surprised if you start hearing it. I've heard it not only on Camry-based stuff , as you point out, but on Tercels and Celicas also. That's OK...it's a very minor irritation at worst, and certainly preferable to some of the REAL problems you find in some other makes, like automatic transmissions failing in Chrysler products, engines burning up due to defective cooling fan switches in BMW's, hardware and trim falling off Mercedes products, brake rotors constantly warping in GM cars, etc...

DaveLee

wow that soucks than
I just logged in and created a thread with the same problem and it seems like it's not a problem at all??
let me describe it a little more - it's a clicking sound that happens really sporadic (at least i think so)
it happens on low speeds - like less than 20 miles per hour
it is heard like somewhere from the rear end of vehicle
it is not necessariliy when i hit the brake
sometimes it is when i hit a bump
or just make a turn on the parting lot
the sound is pretty loud and it sucks
my lexus is one year old and if it supposed to be like this than this car sucks big time

brendanlim

GS's as well. I notice it when I put the car in reverse, back out of somewhere, pop it in drive, go for a few seconds then step on the brakes. Brakes shifting. Normal.