Yeah it could be something to do with a steering or speed sensors but I would think that would cause bigger issues that the car would complain about. I have tried different steering modes but on the base model, non F sport it doesn't seem to do much.

The only other thing I can think of is the cars tire pressure sensors are all dead. I have the little tire pressure warning indicator and when I switch to the tire pressure page in the dash none of them are registering. I'm pretty sure the car had been sitting a while and they simply ran dead. Maybe there is some programming logic to protect against swerving off the highway in the event of a blowout. I'm curious if anyone else with this issue had a tire pressure sensor complaining at the same time.

I'll start there since that is the easiest and I could use those anyway. Either way I luckily don't commute far so I only notice this if I'm driving out of town. The next step after the tire pressure sensor will probably be finding a highway route that consistently causes the issue then try to get a Lexus tech to drive it and experience it themselves. It is significant enough that it would be crazy to experience it and think there is nothing wrong with the car.

 

It's the notorious Toyota Steering Rack classic problem. Its the Rack.

 

I guess I'm out of the loop with this issue. If I replace the steering rack with the oem rack that Lexus recommends will that fix my problem? As long as I know what it is I'll be happy to replace it and move on with what is otherwise a great car.

 

Without testing or diagnosing your car, I have seen this many times on the Lexus and Toyota Forums.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...long-post.html

 

Okay, yeah I've seen that one and another person with similar issues that were resolved by replacing the rack. It sounds like that is most likely the culprit. If/when I get this problem resolved I'll be sure to come back here and let you guys know what it was.

 

I have the same issue with my car. How much does it cost to replace the steering rack?

 

Probably over $2000, depending who does it (dealer or not) and assuming their isn't a non-OEM part you could use that would be less expensive. The question is, does this fix it? And what other costs are involved, like an alignment?

Personally, I see this as a safety defect that Lexus should step up and take care of for all, like a recall. The more people that file complaints on NHTSA's website, the more likely this would happen.

 

I went on the NHTSA's website and filed a complain about this issue. Ugh, now to get it fixed somehow.

 

Following this thread. I have a 2013 GS350 AWD no Lane Keep or any of that stuff, this is what I'm experiencing:

This weekend I did a trip. I noticed an issue, when over 60 MPH the steering wheel kinda sticks at center. So if I try to steer left or right from center or straight at highway speeds it's like there is a bump or little catch in the steering. Never experienced before and honestly it was very annoying, even my SO felt it. Now I'm not sure if it's related to the rotation, maybe tires, or maybe my steering rack is going bad? Whatever it is I need some ideas here as to what could be going on. Could the shop I went to have tampered with the steering rack?

I need to figure this out soon, this issue just recently started.

 

did you ever get to the bottom of this? i now experience the same steering issue. mine keeps pulling to the right at speed 45mph and above. it pulls so hard that if i take my hand off the steering wheel, the car will veer onto the side and cause an accident!

 

DID YOU EVER FIND OUT? Thanks

 

I wanted to share my experience with this issue in my ‘15 GS350 F Sport, and how I ultimately resolved it, the expensive way. So late Spring early winter last year (2025) I started having an issue with my steering becoming “stiff” or feeling “stuck” on extended highway trips, mostly anything over an hour and a half. After doing some searching I discovered this thread and realized I wasn’t crazy, that this was actually a fairly common issue. After reading everyone’s experiences and knowing several master techs who all agree the dealerships would never allow a technician or mechanic to drive a customer vehicle long enough to reproduce the issue, I decided I valued my safety and the safety of my GS more than replacing the entire car (it was cheaper to fix it then replace the car). I ultimately reached out to my local Lexus dealership and after discussing with the service team I decided to go ahead and replace the steering rack completely with an alignment, this ended up costing $2900. Thankfully after several months I’ve yet to reproduce the issue, not once, even on 6+ hours of highway driving at a time. It certainly was not cheap, and it doesn’t explain the “why” it was happening in the first place. I hope this helps anyone else on deciding how to approach this issue with their GS.

 

please file complaints on NHTSA's website. i have been trying to solve mine, in every possible way imagine. the only thing left is to go ahead and spend another $2900 like yours (on top of $2400 to replace the tires, lower control arm bushing, ect ect ect).

 

Hi all,

I'm an owner of a Lexus IS 300H. I'm from the UK, and it appears that this issue is also suffered by owners over here. There is not as many instances of this happening since there are not as many Lexus in the UK. Also, Lexus owners here seem unable to fathom that an issue like this would be ignored by the manufacturer.

I've been having this issue since i purchased the car. Its a 2020, which i purchased at 44k miles and the issue has been there since that point and was likely there a long time before. Like all of you, once i get onto a straight road for a period of time, particularly at highway speed. The car feels like it is wandering and will not centre. Its particularly bad when windy, hot, or in heavy rain. I also have symptoms where the steering doesnt return after taking a turn; I also hear what sounds like a motor struggling when manoeuvring in tight spaces at low speeds. When i come to a stop and the car is warmed up, sometimes if the road cambers to the left or there is uneven road, the steering wheel moves about 45 degrees to the left if i let go.

I've done a lot of research into this, and it appears this issue is experienced across the Lexus sedan/saloon range (IS, GS, RC, LS, ISF, RCF). Not sure about the ES, i know the ES hybrid has a different setup with the electric motor in the column. It was also experienced by owners of the previous generations. If you look at the steering racks, they are the same across the generations and different models. There is a service bulletin for the 2013 IS300h models for notchy (sticky) steering, but not anything past that. There have been numerous reports by owners of cars past that age though.

Now there are a number of other brands suffering or have suffered similar symptoms. Please see the list below. The setups are different, however, all of them occur due to something in the rack binding, either due to a part being oversized, defective and catching, springs which are exerting too much force, or often a lack of or a breakdown of lubrication.

Honda recall of 530k cars- https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/202...3003-12662.pdf
Kia recall - https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/20...83333-0001.pdf - Discussion of symptoms Sticky/Notchy Steering - Kia Technical Service Bulletin (MY10) | Kia Owners Club Forum
BMW - Discussion of symptoms https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...ing-Fix/page10
Toyota - Discussion of symptoms with link to youtube video for how to repair 2011 Toyota RAV4 - Steering Stickiness Issue | Toyota RAV4 Forums
Mazda recall - INOA-RQ26002-10003.pdf

There are plenty of other forums discussing other brands having similar issues, and other models of the brands mentioned above. I believe the BMW 3 series also had issues from 2013. As you can see the majority of the brands experience issues with binding due to a worm gear, or a lack of lubrication. Re-lubricating the part in some cases does seem like its fixes or improves the issue, although perhaps temporarily.
The Lexus rack as far as im aware does not use a worm gear, instead it uses a pinion. A pinion gear is very similar to a worm gear. I believe the rack is overly stiff, particularly at centre. As i understand it steering racks are made with larger teeth at centre to allow cars to go straight and not wander (oh the irony). The teeth on the rest of the rack are smaller to avoid binding when taking a turn and avoiding a potentially dangerous manoeuvre.

I believe a number of things could be happening, possibly a combination:

• The rack has been overtightened at factory - there is lash adjuster on these racks
• A part has been made too large
• A nylon or thermoplastic part was made too large and they did not account for it expanding over the first years of the vehicles life (similar to one of the other brands)
• Lubrication amount was not enough at factory
• The lubrication has degraded

I think the rack is too stiff generally, however, at low speeds, the motor provides more assist. I personally now believe I can feel it at low speeds, but it is very subtle. This has always been the way steering has operated since the rack is harder to operate at low speeds. At high speeds, the assist is decreased since the steering should now be easier to operate manually.

People have observed the issues is worse when going in a straight line, and this is due to the heat from the engine that builds up. The pinion is very close to the engine and likely absorbs a lot of that heat. Secondly, since when going straight, the wheel is barely moved more than a few inches either way. I believe the tightness of the pinion against the rack forces the lubrication out away from the pinion. This is exacerbated by the heat, either due to the heat causing the lubrication to soften up and move away from the pinion or causing the parts to expand very slightly. I believe one of the other brands I mentioned experienced a decrease in the film thickness of the grease.

What did have me confused is how there is play between the steering wheel and the rack when hot, there is a fully solid connection between the intermediate shaft and the rack. However, both hydraulic and electric racks incorporate a torsion bar between the shaft and the pinion. Please see the video links below for an explanation. The first video explains it perfectly, if the rack is too stiff, this torsion bar will allow more flex between the two until the manual stops are hit and you are fully in physical control of the vehicle. Hence why we feel stiffness at centre. Now my theory in the former paragraph might be incorrect, the issue could entirely be where this torsion bar is located. I'm not sure if this torsion bar is greased, and I feel like the issue is at least partially related to lubrication. As other posters have mentioned, when you wiggle the steering wheel, it appears to clear the issue up temporarily. When I have come off a motorway, taken a number of turns and then got back onto the motorway, it also feels better for a short time, i.e., something has been regreased until the tightness/heat then forces the lubrication back out. It could just be that the motor is weak and this is exacerbated by heat, but I really think this is just a mechanical binding. Once again, there is definitely something to do with lubrication going on.


There may be some things I have forgotten to mention, but hopefully that provides some context. I'm considering getting an in-depth report done with a steering specialist or an engineer and will let you know the results.

 

Thank you for the in depth analysis, I'm in south Africa 2014 gs350 f sport and similar straight line issue I feel it has improved since doing gsf LCA bushes and changing tyres but may just be getting used to it, mine tramlines at low speeds and tends to veer left on the highway as though the steering wheel centre is position slightly left , it even looks and feels as though it doesn't centre dead straight but idk if that's to do with the electric power steering.

Nonetheless seems like nothing we can do besides live with it.