gck303

Hello,

The steering on my 2000 LS400 has become rather vague. When travelling along the highway at 65mph I can move the wheel a few inches without it having any effect. The handling also seems rather floaty and indirect.

I have looked under the car and all seems okay:
- the shocks are not leaking. They seem to pass the bounce test
- the bushes in the control arms look okay. They do not look perished or collapsed
- there is a slight weep from the steering rack, but there is loads of fluid in it

Obviously to check the bushes I need to get the car in the air to take the weight from the wheels.

Is there anything else that I should get the shop to check for the problem?

There are new Dunlop tyres on the front, so hopefully these are not the problem.

Cheers!

George

JimsGX

Tie rod ends possibly as well...

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

Have you jacked the car up and checked for suspension play? Specifically ball joints and caster arms.
Also, check the tire pressures all a around

gck303

Thank you. I will do this and report back.

From what is said it sounds as if the shock absorbers are not the culprit.

George

Kansas

Check the strut rod bushings -- usually the first front suspension component to wear out on a 2000 LS400. The ones on my 2000 LS400 were replaced at 86,671 miles but probably needed replacing 10,000 miles earlier -- cost (parts and labor) at a Lexus dealer was $582. Replacing them really tightened up the steering feel and eliminated vibrations I had thought were caused by tire imbalance.

The strut rods (sometimes called strut bars, semi-longitudinal tension rods, etc.) come with the bushings. Most people replace the entire strut rod assemblies rather than press in new bushings.

This article notes why the strut rods wear out so quickly: http://www.autospeed.com/cms/A_3041/article.html

black_LS

I changed my bushings (upper CA, strut rods) and ball joints (upper and lower) and mine went away. It could very well be your tie rods too. Mine was as you describe it, but even more noticable on bumpy roads -- I could turn the wheel a significant amount without response.