phillip830

iTrader: (1)

I finally got my 07 AWD lowered with NF210 after much research here and I believe that I have vibration at idle and wobbling right around at 9-10 mph. I test drove my car like hours just to make sure and until now I am still not sure if this happened after I lowered the car or not. Another very interesting thing is that my mechanic is one of those who does crazy modification to his own car and motorcycle as an example he has modified his trans-am to 750 hp and the car can do ***** according to him and also he is putting supercharger to his E-class AMG by himself. He told me couple of things after I told him about my vibration and alignment. The fact the car vibrates when stopped, it cannot possibly be a CV joint issue and he thiink that vibration probably was there but is being amplified through shorter and stiffer spring. I asked him if I have to do the re-alignment, he said that will be waste of money since the 1" drop cannot make that much of a difference and my rear camber is not adjustable anyway. He told me that he dropped his AMG by 1" long time ago and even showed me how his tires are wearing evenly as well. I definately feel the vibration but I am not sure it was there or not before lowering. He thinks that softer motor mount could be a solution but not sure at this point. Sorry about the long post but wanted to share what I learned. My back ground is mechanical engineering and everything he told me made sense at least to me. All comments welcome!!

arnieosp

iTrader: (1)

I lowered my 08 GS350AWD a week ago on F-Sports and had alignment done right away. It was slightly off on the front. I am not even sure about the idle vibration, sometimes I think I have it, other times I don't feel anything. Definately no wobbling, though. The ride is very tight, even somewhat stiff, no body roll around the curves. I am really happy with the way it turned out.

phillip830

iTrader: (1)

arnieosp,
Good to hear that your car has no wobbling. As I was driving this morning through the bad traffic for an hour and half, I felt more wobbling at low speed. The vibration I can live with, but wobbling bothers me a lot. I am thinking that it has something to do with alignment which i did not get done yet. Anyone out there having same thing happening and any way to get rid of that?

nardeezy

Theoretically and technically, I can't understand how the front CV joints would cause the wobble at low speeds just because the car is lowered. Based on reading this http://www.answers.com/topic/constant-velocity-joint and researching a little more on CV joint vibrations on google I cannot make a conclusion that the observed wobble is due to the CV joint angle. The intent and design of CV joints are meant to eliminate vibration. I could understand U-Joints causing vibration but not CV joints.

nardeezy

This website http://www.aa1car.com/library/2004/bf100434.htm mentions that vibrations among acceleration could be caused by bad inner CV joints, which can be inspected.

phillip830

iTrader: (1)

I went back to my super mechanic to show him my wobble and he said he would do some research and let me know.
Nardeezy - do you think we may have had this vibration prior to the lowering and now it is being aplified through stiffer spring? if that is the case there is no damage being done and we just have to ignore the wobbling.
when i hear back from my mechanic, i will post for your information. Thanks for your shared insight.

telmz1

iTrader: (1)

When I put my stock suspension back on all wobbling and vibrations stopped. I drove around for a couple weeks just to make sure. I couldn't take the 4X4 look anymore and put my coilovers back on. The wobbling is very weird as I do not get it all the time. I get it for sure whenever I am going up hill. I also had my boots replaced because they were leaking and my mechanics said that my inner joints were fine.

ryan78

iTrader: (2)

telmz - when you reinstalled the coils, did you make sure that the car was completely level at the frame (not at the wheel well apex)? that is the one thing that CM/BC said to troubleshoot first.

telmz1

iTrader: (1)

nope. I will try that next. I have the leveling tool - any idea where i should put it?

nardeezy

It's been a while since I updated this, please review for accuracy.

31 out of 34 AWD Owners = Lowered (currently)
7 out of 34 AWD Owners = Lowered and Staggered

2007+ GS350 AWD
retrospexo – tanabe nf210; no issues reported, initially had road magnets and was unhappy with the ride quality
B Diddy – eibach pro kit; no issues reported (staggered 19's)
stvincent – tein s.tech; typical AWD vibe and low speed vibe (20's all around)
Kyang91 – tanabe nf210 no issues reported
MKIV98TT – tanabe nf210; typical AWD vibe's
kuch123 – tanabe nf210; no issues reported
sbrown02 – tanabe nf210; no issues reported
spider 55 – tanabe nf210; typical AWD vibes (19's all around and stock 17's for winter)
gs350on22s – tein h.tech replaced with eibach; reports of vibration due to tires? Changed rear hub and vibes are gone, pm for details (aftermarket 22's)
ICENUTZ – eibach; no issues reported (staggered 20’s)
as3.0cl – tanabe nf210; highway vibe's reported (seems to be related to wheels/tires)
Oneflyguy – tanabe nf210; no issues reported (aftermarket 20's)
Tungo – nf210 then df210; no major issues
BKE420 – nf210, no issues reported
Ryan78 – BC coilovers, typical vibration reported
Phillip830 – nf210, typical vibrations reported
arnieosp – f-sport springs, unsure if he feels vibrations
01a4man – BC coilovers installed (staggered 20's)

cenglebert – planning on road magnets (aftermarket 19's, not lowered yet)
mikedozz – n/a; no issues reported (aftermarket 20's, not lowered yet?)

2006 GS300 AWD
nardeezy – tanabe nf210; typical AWD vibe and low speed vibe (staggered iForged 20's)
Mixman - tanabe nf210; no issues reported (aftermarket 18's all around)
apok003 – tanabe nf210; typical AWD vibe and low speed vibe(staggered iForged 20's)
Jdog – no issues reported
Jai015 – tanabe nf210; AFS sensor (install issue)
Conclevage – tanabe nf210; no issues reported
planoag – no issues reported
SGT – tanabe nf210; no issues reported (Tourmaline 18's)
4thone – tanabe nf210; no issues reported (aftermarket 19's)
lextronics – Universal Air Ride Suspension; no issues reported (PM for install details)
tsavo – tanabe nf210; initially, no issues reported. recently reported highway vibrations (aftermarket 20's)

tripleJs15 – typical AWD vibe and possibly low speed vibe detected prior to installation of aftermarket wheels/tires (aftermarket 19’s only, not lowered)
telmz1 – df210 and BC coilovers then back to stock, reported vibration (staggered wheels)
Iocca – df210, wants air bags to go lower(staggered 20’s)

typical AWD vibe = idle at a stop light while in drive and brake applied (significant during cold startup)
low speed vibe = acceleration between 0/5mph - 15/20mph vibration (very subtle side to side)
Keep in mind, the level of noted vibration is subjective.

Reply to this post if you are not on the list and want to be added (lowered or not).

Evel

Nardeezy,

So what have we learned about what causes some to experience amplified vibration or wobble vs those who experience no issues? From the thread, it appears the BC coil over can reduce or eliminate the vibration if they increase the height & level-out the driveshaft. Right?

For those who went with various springs (primarily Tanabe nf210) we still don't know why some have no issues after installation & others have first time or amplified vibration.

I still have not lowered yet & its still a roll of the dice on having issues or no issues.

nardeezy

The only only thing I learned is that the GS awd is not ideal for lowering and installing staggered 20's if you're worried about wobbles or vibrations. I would not recommend modifying this car unless we knew for sure that the wobble or vibrations is more of a nuisance rather than a potential problem waiting to happen.

Iocca

iTrader: (2)

I am not lowered, just have staggered 20s. I get vibration when the car is cold in drive with foot on the brake, but it goes away after the car warms up.

Evel

I've spoke to several service mgrs & mechanics at two different Lexus dealers in my area. They all say the same thing & I hope I am re-telling it correct: "With the 2006 GS model year, Lexus introduced a new high compression, direct injection engine, as a by-product of this new direct injection design, you will experience the ticking noise & vibration felt while in drive or reverse, with brakes engaged while at traffic lights/stop signs. Two things that was not present with the engines used in the GS model years prior to 2006". Apparently lowering the GS AWD model amplifies the vibration making it noticeable to those who may not have noticed the rough idle feel previously & more noticeable for those who felt it. I first noticed it on my way home after receiving the 30-day courtesy inspection. Not the the smooth "running like a stocking" and quiet engine experience I was expected based on people I know who had earlier Lexus models...that you can stand next to not realized the engine was running because it was so quiet. Oh well, I guess that's progress for you.

Paul_in_PA

I had 20" rims installed right before Christmas on my 2007 GS 350 AWD. Then about 5 days ago I had F-Sport Springs installed. I live in the Philly area and we have had temps in the 20s for a couple of weeks now. I never noticed any vibrations at idle on my stock set up. After I did my homework and read all these posts on AWD lowering over the last couple of months, I really paid attention at idle to see if I could notice anything. Maybe I did . . . but not convinced . . . maybe it was just in my head after reading all the posts. Then after the rims went on I paid attention again . . . still not sure I had any issues. Now that I have my F-Sports on, I am convinced I have some extra vibrations; at idle, in gear, when stopped with my foot on the brake. Sliding the car into neutral does completely resolve it. Also, it is much more pronounced at start up when the car is cold (or maybe that just because I really pay attention right when I jump in the car in the morning.) How bad is it . . . in my subjective opinion, not bad at all. I would say it is very subtle. I am not at all concerned, and much prefer the aesthetics of the 20" wheels and subtle ~1" drop. That OEM set up is just ugly IMO on the AWD. The handling is also much improved and I have much more confidence taking turns at higher speeds. Reduced body roll, better feel for the road, more responsive steering, and now I smile when I walk towards my car in a parking lot, whereas I used to just stare at the wheel gap and wonder, "What were they thinking!" I have finally solved my only beef with this car. Those terrible OEM rims and that crazy 4x4 stance that the AWD comes standard with.