Hey all, newbie to the lexus world and need help from you experts. I just picked up a 97 es with 130k for $1800(good buy i thought)to use as a beater/grocery getter and its driving me up the wall! Dont get me wrong, its an awesome car when im on local roads but as soon as i get close to 60 mph, car starts shaking. I had the front wheels balanced and allignment(twice, cuz i went back to the shop again since allignment was still off first time). Now its dead center in low speed, doesn't pull either way but the shake remains. There is a very slight play in the rear wheels, and me and the mechanic both agreed the rear wheel hubs might be on their way out, but not close to being depleted completely! Only other thing I've noticed is a very slight boat rocking type of feeling when I am coasting to a stop at a light, almost like I'm riding on wheels that are not fully round! Front tires have about 60-70% tread left and off the same tread design. back tires are mismatched but they still have a good 40% left or so. What else am I missing!??! thanks in advance for any pointers you might have!

 

Could be bad tie rod ends or a slightly bent rim. This stuff is really hard to diagnose

 

If it's not shaking at all speeds it's not likely a bent rim nor a worn part... it's most likely balance. Is there any noise associated with the shake? Does it smooth out over 65 or so? Need more info.

 

Just re-read your post, it's very possible you could have an issue with a CV axle. Some have weights on the axle shaft. Could also be a worn CV joint, do you hear clicking noises if you make a sharp turn? Could be an inner joint as well.

 

it remains abt the same over 65+, though the most i've tried is about 74. don't wanna end up on the guardrail! there is no clicking noise, visual inspection of the front suspensions all checked out, again 2 pairs of eyes. front wheels have no play at all. tie rod end and all the boots looked in good stead. on-their-way-out rear hubs shouldnt have anything to do with it, am i correct? the shop guy was trying to hint at exactly that, since they assumed i'd give them $391/parts and $171/labor to replace those!

i cant discard the notion its a very slightly bent rim, specially since i feel that slight rocker feeling when im stopping. thats also gonna b a b**** since i have to get a rim and go around replacing it one at a time and test. as i said, its a beater and i dont really wanna throw too much time/money at it.

are motor mounts a possibility? how to check if those are bad?

 

Not a motor mount issue. At slow speed does the steering wheel move back and forth? If not it's not in front (assuming a bent wheel) so rotating the tires would reveal that one way or the other. If it's a bent CV axle, worn inner CV joint, or lost weights on a CV axle it's gonna be a lot tougher to determine. I seriously doubt worn bearings would cause that. Strong possibility it's a failing tire as well. If it's a bent wheel then that should've been caught visually while balancing. Recommend you start with the easiest first, have the wheel balance checked but watch it being done. Checking for a bent wheel is simple, so is checking for a possible seperating tire.

 

I agree with mdbrown, but really lean toward tires. A lot of times people out think themselves, professionals(?) included. Most people think because there is good tread on tires, the tires are still good. Check the outside rib of tread on your tires, is it worn? Is it worn the same amount all the way around the tire or is the tread thinner in one or two spots. If its worn thinner in spots, a belt has separated and causing the tire to be out of round and wearing the "high" spot faster.
Something to try an doesn't cost anything but time and/or labor. Move the front tire to the back and back to front, one side at a time. Drive and see if there's any difference in where the vibration comes from. Do the same on the other side. If the car is pulling left or right, switch the front tires side to side and see if the pull changes direction. If it does, bad tire. If it pulls right, the left is bad, if it pulls left, the right is bad. A good tire alignment shop would have checked all this for you.
One more thing, are your wheel lug nuts all hand torqued to the proper specs and even? Uneven, over tight, under tightening can cause vibration when driving and braking.
Just some things to look at from a guy who spent 30+ years in the shops. :>)

 

I forgot to mention;
Alignment rarely, I repeat, rarely cause vibrations unless it's like tons of way out where the tires are fighting each other to go straight, and that rarely happens. Loose and or worn suspension parts and steering parts and tires cause vibration.

 

Another possibility is an out of balance Disk

 

??? Never heard of that in my life. I have heard of warped rotors... never balance. On the car balancing would compensate though if that were the case.

 

Sorry, I meant to say Disk Brake Rotor not Disk.

If the Wheel Balance is done with the wheels on the car, than indeed that would also compensate for a possible out of balance Disk Brake Rotor. However most, if not all wheel balances are normally done with the wheel Off the car, unless specifically requested by the customer, or recommended by the mechanic for a specific reason.

 

You didn't state that there was still a slight pull to the right. Check the left front tire for an out of round condition.

 

ya will swap the front two tires this weekend to see if it pulls to the left now. rotors looked very new, but I didn't really paid that much attention to it. I guess i gotta spend a good amount of time on it this weekend!

will the out of round tire make that big of a difference from low speed to high? from being very smooth to shaking your teeth out type?

thank you for all the tips though, much appreciated!!! I'll post updates as soon as i find out!

 

Typically no. With a seperating tire the normal symptoms are a distinct gyration at low speeds... thing a rocking boat. As you speed up it will change to more of a shake. In between low speed and high speed you might not notice it much depending on how bad it is. I'm still thinking an out of balance CV shaft or failing inner joint.

 

ya...i do have that rocking boat feeling!! but i only feel it when i am slowly coming to a halt. its not noticeable in the 20-40 mph range!