ihboy75

Just noticed my wife's R&P boot on passenger side is toast. No other issues otherwise.............So, i saw on ebay i can just buy the boot to replace instead of the whole R&P. What is all of your experience/opinion?? The car has 190K on it and has been meticulously maintained. Figured that would be way easier and cheaper lol.

Lexuswiz

iTrader: (1)

I had to replace the whole rack on the car before my RX330, which was a Highlander for the same reason. Problem was not only the boot was toast, the seals were bad and leaking. I'd say if you caught it in time and debris has not go into the inside of the boot, replacing it should be fine but if it's nasty in there with bad seal, a replacement may be in order.

Swinke

the boot does nothing but cover your inner tie rod joint. If it's leaking power steering fluid like I guarantee it is, then the seals are blown. You can replace just the seal but it's labor intensive. Normally the whole rack and pinion is replaced. Very common problem with the 04-09 rx350's

ihboy75

Yes, there is obvious leakage going on. Not terrible but I'm sure it'll get worse...............Next question is where do you guys recommend getting a R&P from at a reasonable price and good quality? I see i can get one from Detroit axle that's "rebuilt". Price is right at 170 ish with both tie rods. I had it on the lift and it doesn't look terrible to pull out, just time consuming. Anyone done it? anything special or tips? thanks all!

RedGemini

You may find some useful information in this thread on page 2. Hope this helps.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...mselves-2.html

nwfsnake

Relplace the boot, replace your ps fluid with Lucas PS stop leak, drive on for another 100K miles. $25, problem solved.

cdnewton

As with most owners of 2004-2009 RX's, we had the same issue with our 2004 RX330.

What nwfsnake said in post #6 is an approach I had hoped to take, except I couldn't find any shops that would just replace the torn boot. I also prefer MaxLife ATF vs Lucas. Finally, I am, unfortunately, not handy enough to take that on.

When it is time to replace the OEM rack and pinion, I highly recommend the Maval refurbished unit (9379M). According to the Toyota specialist I use, he only installs the Maval unit. It saves the vehicle owner about $300 versus the Toyota unit and carries a lifetime warranty on the part. He has replaced "a lot of OEM units" and has never had one come back. I normally only use OEM parts, but with the problems Toyota has had with their OEM rack and pinion units, I decided this would be an exception.

We just replaced our original OEM unit with a Maval unit at 213,000 miles; the only reason I had it replaced was due to the fact my wife was taking the vehicle on a long trip and traveling alone. No difference at all in steering or handling and we saved quite a bit of money with the repair.

ihboy75

thanks for the input guys! i probably would have tried the easier approach 1st but already ordered a R&P from rockauto that had good reviews. hoping to put another couple 100k on her anyway.