Kennyr44

My control arms in my 07 were fine at 90,000 miles. No noise at all. I just changed them myself with aftermarket parts for $500 because of all the noise here on the forum about it. I thought it would be a fun project (it wasn't). I did shocks also. Yours may be fine, it seems like its a big mechanic upsell.

2013FSport

iTrader: (2)

A word of caution to DIY:
When control arms and bushings are replaced, you must get the car on the ground setting on its own 4 wheels and THEN tighten the pinch bolts that secure control arms AND/OR with the spring/spindle out, tighten these components while holding them at the actual ride height.

Why? If these bolts are tightened while the suspension/ wheels are hanging down the bushings will be strained and tear prematurely when the car is under its own weight.

When the car is at ride height lets say the arm angles are all at 0° and the suspension can compress -35° and extend 35° offering 70° of travel from a neutral position.
If the bushings are tightened into place while hanging at say 35° and we set the car on the ground, the bushings are now being ripped apart under full compression due to over rotation..

A very common mistake that drastically reduces the life of rubber bushings. Even vetran mechanics make this mistake as they don't have the proper lift to do the job right or they are lazy and some cars make this nearly impossible to tighten while sitting on all 4 due to access issues.

UDel

Was it hard? Any surprises, can it be done with common tools? Could you do a step by step explanation/DIY what you did?

UZ214

I have 2011 , came from a ls430 bought it with about 55k on it..have about 98k as we speak been as solid as the ls430. Don't let the control arms scare you.

COOLIS

The control arms going on V8 Lexus' is nothing new. They were replaced on my moms 1992 SC400 and my 2002 GS430, and were needed on a 1998 LS400 I bought and then sold. I guess it's the cost of the arms for the LS460 that's causing the uproar?

vuong05

If control arms are the only things that need replacing? That's quite cheap for a flagship model. Can't imagine what might go wrong in an older S Class or 7 Series....? Yikes!

dlbuckls10

Hummmm? Control arms might be cheap for DIY'ers but it's still expensive if done at the dealership or a independent shop. A lot can go wrong with any older MB or BMW but don't hear this as been on of their complaints. I haven't had a control arms issue (dealership said that are ok) yet and hopefully I want because my warranty have expired on my '10 LS.

roadfrog

Beck Arnley and Mevotech here as well.

DavidinCT

Can anyone clear this up for someone who does not know what to expect ?

What is the symptoms of failing control arms ? Is it just a little creak or does it effect the ride ? How do you know what one of the control arm are failing ?

Any pictures showing the issue on the control arms to look out for ?

I have some ride issues and not sure what they are and would like to know exactly what to expect if it IS the control arms failing.

Thanks ! (is there something on here explaining it ? I searched and only can really find replacing them, not the symptoms )

Doublebase

Pretty similar to any worn suspension symptom, noise going over bumps, uneven tire wear, maybe a slight pull to one side. Visually you should be looking for substantial tears and cracks in the rubber bushings. You may actually hear a knocking noise over bumps if they're worn really bad. You might hear some noise when you brake because all the weight is shifting to the front. Stuff like that.

Don't you have a ton of mikes on your car, like over 200,000k? How's the car treating you overall, that's a lot of miles?

DavidinCT

Nah, about 150K now. Hmmm... I get a "ting" sound when hitting the breaks hard from the drivers side but, there is a vibration when going 65+ not a rotational vibration and I am trying to rule it out.

dry-fly

I've pulled the trigger and bought a 2008 LS with 67k miles on it. Super clean trade at Northside Lexus in Houston. It's pretty much loaded out, we can't get down there to pick it up,until next Saturday. It's going to be a long week...thank you all for your advise and input again.

Persocon

I would not call it a problem/issue, only one of mine was shot at 140k miles, they are simply wear and tear parts, no car has forever bushings.
Febest bushings for quality OEM rubber comfort feel. PSB polyurethane bushings for longer lasting.
Stick with doing the bushings, the control arms that came on your car are precise OEM dimensions, aftermarket Ctrl Arms tolerances may not be on par with Lexus factory depending on quality/price.

roadfrog

In my case, I never experienced any abnormal issues with the ride. It was only when I went for a wheel alignment that the shop advised me that one of my control arms was shot as well as a ball joint, and therefore could not do a proper wheel alignment until I replaced the one arm and ball joint. So, I went with a complete replacement of all eight of my front arms as well as ball joints and shocks. All totalled I was in for about 1200 dollars inc labor.