My 2001 has with 85K miles on her and the steering hasn't been feeling right for some time now. I noticed unusual wear on the outside of the front tires as well. The inner tie rods were floppy so I replaced the inner and outer tie rods and thought that would fix things up. Things felt better but still not right. The ball joints, upper, lower control arm bushings look good and are tight. Still, while driving down the road every imperfection and paint line would upset the direction of the car and it would wander. I also felt small disturbances kick back in the steering wheel. I inspected things while I had someone rocking the steering wheel back and forth. The steering rack seemed to move side-to-side more than I thought it should. I've never seen a rack move like this.

The steering rack bushings looked good from the outside. Having no other clues I decided to replace the bushings because if the rack can move then the wheels can move the rack which will allow wander and is felt in the steering wheel as well.

Dropping the rack down is possible without even removing the tie rods. Pretty easy. You do have to separate the rack from the steering shaft. The bushings come out with a little coaxing but they weren't falling out and they didn't feel like a sloppy fit in their holes in the steering rack. I thought I was wasting my time and money at this point.

The bushings installed with little trouble. I used a bit of rubber dressing to ease their installation. With everything back together I went for a test ride on some known bad roads. The steering now feels like it should. It feels like when it was new. I'm the original owner so I know.

The picture is of the old bushings. They do have eccentric lobes of rubber and that's normal. The lobes on the new bushings were more pronounced though and that is definitely the biggest difference. (The bushings are mounted with the lobes on the top and bottom.)

The passenger side bushings are different from the driver side so don't order four of the same if you do it. Look closely and you'll see that one set has round holes and the other set is oval. The round is the drivers side set, the oval is the passengers.

 

Good stuff,I'm glad you got it sorted. Just FYI,the more usual terms for steering 'looseness' are freeplay or slop.

I had the same problem in my old 11 series celsior,worn rack bushes. Mine were bad enough that when I'd turn a corner,the rack would slide to the side and the steering wheel would be off centre in the opposite direction to the way I'd just turned.


Justin...

 

I've been loving driving around today. It's amazing how these things sneak up on you over the years and miles. I'm thinking that this should be a 50,000 mile scheduled maintenance item. I've had several alignments in the recent past and no one picked up on it.

 

Thanks for the write up. What is the part number? Will it be the same for later years?

 

The part numbers for 2001 & 2002 are 45516-50030 and 45516-50040. You'll need 2 each. For whatever reason the exploded parts lists for 2003-2006 don't show the bushings separately. The steering rack part numbers are the same for 2001-2006 so the bushings should be the same but I'd ask before committing. It's possible that a change was made to the bushings after 2002. Considering that mine were dead with only 85K I think there's room for improvement!

 

i just had my lower ball joints replaced but my steering went stiff, should i have the bushings checked for my 03 GS? Or will it return to its normal slop after the lbj settle? Im not sure how much tension the steering should have but i liked it better prior to the change.

 

Yes, new tie rods and/or ball joints will make the steering stiffer until the components wear in a little. Give it some time and it'll get a bit looser and you'll also get a bit more used to it being a bit stiffer due to the tighter tolerances.

The GS steering rack and bushings look quite a bit different than the LS so I don't know what lifetime to expect from them. If you begin to feel any kickback in your steering from simple road irregularities, or you need frequent or excessive steering corrections you shouldn't overlook the steering rack bushings. They don't cost much as parts go.

 

You found this yourself ? and fixed it ? Great skills !

 

Aw heck, it was nuttin'. Of course, being an obsessive compulsive car nut helps! I maintain all three of my Lexus' vehicles and motorcycles and always have worked on everything I've ever owned. Having an engineering degree helps (and gets in the way sometimes ).

 

I am anxious to see if this could fix the on center wandering I get on the highway on my 2005. My hard parts are tight, so it must be something like this I think.

Also, tried typing in those part numbers on sewell and they did not pop up... where did you buy those and what did they cost?

Thanks!

 

I was told I need lower control bushings mite as well change those sway bushings to. Mines went bad at like 132,xxx. Are these parts hard to put on or are they a pain. I was quoted 480+parts for control arm bushings only.

 

so am I ......

If the basics are solid, tire size and type can make it more or less noticeable, but the pillow ride compromises handling. I think its always there, just not everyone notices, and some that do don't care

 

I can enter the part numbers in the "Search by part number" box and it does come up. Their search really doesn't want the dash in the numbers though. It will discard it. Both 45516-50030 and 45516-50040 turned up the parts. HOWEVER, the only years listed are 2001, 02 & 03. There may have been a design change or the like after that.

 

Tires can also be another reason a car wandering. I have no play in my steering, but when I changed my new BF Goodrich Touring TAs to Primacys it was like having front end work done. More precise handling. Don't forget that our cars steer like barges and will never steer like BMWs or a sports car.

 

Wow, the rack dances back and forth a few millimeters with my wife barely moving the steering wheel back and forth. I'll have to learn how to post the video I took... I think the bushings must be worn!

This could be the answer to the reason I hate commuting in my Lex... wander on the highway!