JodyJohn21

My 2002 LS 430 steering wheel vibrates intermittently between 55 and 65mph, regardless of road surface quality, engine or air temperature, anything. Sometimes it does it the whole time at that speed range, sometimes it doesn't at all. It occurred with my old set of Kumho tires, and now my new Michelin set; rims (chromed 16") are not out of round, balancing has been redone and tested. I thought it might be the shocks, but I would notice that all the time, just as I would an out-of-balance tire (at high speeds anyway). Rack and pinion is solid, no leaks or bending. Otherwise no other vibrations elsewhere in the car at any speed.

Any ideas? My private mechanic, and Glendale Lexus Service Dept., is stumped.

blacksc400

iTrader: (4)

I would say balancing, but you already have them balanced.
Lower control arms? Alignment?

usermel

....there may be an issue dealing with air tire pressure as well.That said, Blaclsc400 stated the main possible issues. The balancing could possibly be of as well. Hope your issue is repaired before the tires are effected!!! L.G.N.M

Kansas

I fought a similar intermittent front end vibration problem on my 2000 LS400 from about 80,000 miles until it was "cured" by the Lexus dealer at about 86,000 miles.

I had my summer wheels (same 16" wheels as standard on the 01-02 LS430) and tires balanced a bunch of times times by different tire shops trying to resolve the problem.

The cause of the problem turned out to be worn strut rod bushings -- the bars running from the lower suspension arm to the front of the car that you can see when you kneel down and look in front of each front wheel. After the strut rod assemblies were replaced (dealer charged about $580 including tax!), the vibration was completely gone and it's still vibration free at about 109,000 miles.

BTW, the dealer found the problem when attempting to align the front wheels -- there was too much "slop" to align the wheels.

I didn't suspect the strut bar bushings as being the cause of the problem since they lasted much longer on my first LS.

bigcory

I would take it to a tire shop. They will have much more experience in diagnosing this issue than a gernal mechanic or even the dealership.

Could be something to do with the tire itself, rim, balancing, alignment, any number of things.

maximussp

ROAD FORCE BALANCE!!!!

http://www.gsp9700.com/

PeteinPA

iTrader: (2)

I had a similar issue. When I had the dealer put in new front brakes, they also replaced a bolt of some sort. No shaking since. If I can find the invoice I'll let you know what part it was.

Kansas

A factor I didn't mention was that the suspension issue that caused a similar vibration on my 00 LS was substantially more pronounced when I was correcting for a stiff cross wind at highway speeds ... something to take notice of the next time the vibration occurs.

KILLERGS4

i had this issue with my GS4 with aftermarket wheels. It took several tries (balancing) to get rid of the problem... good luck. Lexus dealership raved about this expensive balancing machine they just bought, and they were able to fix it.

JemmyTran

I had the same problem I took it to toyota to get it balanced and worked out fine.

I8ABMR

most likely just needs to be rebalanced

lxus4xms

You may need rotors fixed my problem

AtlGator

I second RoadForce balance. It's the best balance out there. Call around and ask if the place has a RoadForce machine....they'll know you know what you're talking about when you do.