Rising2010

Hi guys a few weeks ago my steering and the car in general began to feel weird and wobbly. The car is a 2007 IS250 with 68,000 miles.

About a week after that my steering began to feel slightly loose and then started to make a whirring noise whenever it was turned to the left or right.

I took it to a mechanic who said I needed to take the carry to a rack and pinion specialist. Indeed, when I went under the car with the mechanic the sound was coming from the rack and pinion.

I will be taking it to a specialist tomorrow for repairs. However, I was just wondering if you guys could share your experiences with me so that I can know what to look for tomorrow so I know the repair guy is doing the repairs correctly. What exactly has most likely gone wrong with the rack and pinion?

UPDATE*** The rack and pinion was repaired or so the shop said and put on the car. The noise is gone BUT the steering is very stiff you have to fight to turn it. Also the P/S power steering light is on. The shop said this is because the steering needs to be re calibrated. My question is after replacing a rack and pinion is this stiffness normal? The car cannot be driven because of the stiffness.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

Offspring

iTrader: (3)

Aren't you under warranty up to 70,000 miles ? Is this being performed at a Lexus dealership or a third party tech ?

zmcgovern4

iTrader: (2)

My steering rack was replaced under warranty... there was a TSB issued for "notchy feeling steering" ie the wheel did not turn smoothly at highways speeds. Not sure if that would help you out?

Rising2010

Thank you both for replying. Offspring I am in Jamaica there is no Lexus dealership here I imported the car from Florida.

zmcgovern4 I will look up the tsb

Rising2010

Does anyone know anything about reprogramming the rack and pinion.

The guy that repaired it forgot to disconnect the battery and now the electronic module needs to be reprogrammed. A guy will be coming to reprogram it today but I wanted to get any knowledge possible about the reprogramming process beforehand.

B16da9

iTrader: (7)

You would need the TIS software to calibrate the steering ecu.

Rising2010

Thank you B16da9, so that's the TIS techstream software?

Do you know if any other software can work? Why I ask is because I have been calling around trying to find someone or somewhere that has the software and so far no luck. Other people are saying that other software can do it but I am kind of skeptical you know.

Rising2010

Ok so having called the world and his wife trying to get a better understanding as to why the steering is stiff and the p/s power steering light is on. My question is will a recalibration solve the stiffness of the steering? I would feel more comfortable if someone who is experienced does the recalibration. i found a shop but it is far away from the garage where the car is located. the car cannot be driven due to the stiffness of the steering so i would have to tow it to the location for a lot of money. to make matters worse the shop with the techstream software is saying that they think the racked and pinion was not repaired correctly and if they diagnose and recalbrate and its still stiff i would have to pay. so just trying to get a better understanding.

panda08

iTrader: (1)

should have just replaced the rack and pinion and not repair it. have the other shop re-diagnose it.

B16da9

iTrader: (7)

He lives in jamaica so his only option was probably to repair it unless he wants to get raped on the import taxes of a new unit.

Rising2010

B16da9 that's part of the reason it would cost me about US $2000 to just get the part in hand. Another $100 to put it on.

im also a female :-)

B16da9

iTrader: (7)

only other suggestion I can give you is to contact member "Jeff Lange" he's one of the few person on this forum that might be able to answer your question.