Wow. There is a lot here. Exactly what pads and rotors should I use?

 

Inspect them to make sure they are warped. ONLY replace all of them if they have issue. Don't waste money if they're not broken.

2x Front Centric rotors w/pad(didn't use) - $120 (you might be able to do better if you wait for sales)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/04-06-Lexus-...-/310271957247

2x Rear Brembo rotors - $70
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Brembo-25861...-/221056196588

Front and back Akebono pads, I believe this is the OEM manufacture, great company - $100


Mechanic charge $90 per Axle - $180 + $30 tips = $210

All add up to exactly $500 for me.

 

will keep the the message above on the rotors and pads. Boy, i getting to love this forum

 

I would doubt that a violent vibration would be caused by a warped rotor. I would inspect the axle, suspension, suspension mount, tie rod ends, control arm bushings, PS RACK BUSHINGS, ball joints, and tire wear.

Have the tires balanced.

See if you notice any vibration by turning the vehicle.

Check your wheel for wobble caused by worn bearings! If the bearing is worn badly it will cause wobble at high speeds. This is dangerous and needs to be inspected immediately.

Again, if it is severe vibration it is HIGHLY unlikely that it is caused by a severely warped rotor that is NOT NOTICEABLE at low speeds or braking as well.

 

You ARE the price shopper! I thought R1 had decent prices with free shipping, not any more.

I agree with others regarding the OP front end issue, there's more to it than warped rotors, probably feel the pedal pulse if they were.

 

Watch this at 1:35. This is what its like:




I completed agree here. I think most posters above are underestimating the intensity of this vibration. It is equivalent to the death wobble. It is NOT consistent, it has only happened twice, 3months apart. My wife is out of town so i plan to look at this week. I'll report back soon.

 

Maaaan, this is crazy, scary, and very intense bro ... Good luck and let us know how it goes...

 

It is scary, had this happen in a 6" lifted Jeep Cherokee in Utah, hit a small bump, then it started!
Thing is not to panic, slow down slowly control the steering as best as possible, never happened again. Always knew some other people explain it happening, until it does the pucker factor can take the leather off the seats!!!

 

I wanted to provide an update here. Since my last post I changed my wife's tires from:

Nexen CP521

to

Pirelli Scorpion Verde

As a result (so far) I have not had any of the issues I described before. I will report back if I do but it appears as though it was the tires. The Nexen tires were absolute garbage. I was only able to get 25k miles out of them. So far I love the Pirellis. Amazing grip and super quiet.

 

I have a 2005 RX330 with 139,000 miles.

I had a very annoying steering wheel vibration than would usually surface around 70 - 75mph. It was so characteristic of wheels out of balance that you would swear that's what it was. Around 10,000 miles ago, I had worn Bridestones replaced with new Michelins at Costco. Vibration was still there. Quieter, but still would vibrate. Interestingly, it would usually only vibrate on certain road surfaces (almost always smooth assphalt...most unfortunate since this makes up most of my commute). On smooth concrete highways, the vibration was usually never noticeable. A couple weeks ago, I had the wheels balanced again (~10,000 miles on tires) at a different Costco. Employee said the wheels balanced perfectly.

Today, I replaced all 4 struts myself, including mounts and isolators (only carryover component were the springs). This was the first time the struts were replaced. NO VIBRATIONS!!! It's soooo wonderful...and rides so tight and controlled.

 

Thanks for the note. This is good to know. What struts did you go with?

 

All KYB stuff. Also, I want to make sure not to downplay to potential dangers of other worn suspension components. It just so happened in my case a very irritating steering vibration that often could be felt thru the entire interior was fixed with struts.

Front:
Fr Right Strut - 334399
Fr Left Strut - 334400
Fr Mount (x2) - SM5423
Fr Upper Spring Seat (x2) - SM5485
Fr Boots (x2) - SB102

Rear:
Rr Left Strut - 334395
Rr Right Strut - 334394
Rr Boots - SB104
Rr Left Mount - SM5492
Rr Right Mount - SM5491
Rr Lower Coil Spring Insulator (x2) - SM5469

 

I solved my vibration issue - front AXLE issue. Changed them here....

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...akes-pics.html

 

Alchemist,

I have been reading your posts and am extremely impressed! We have a 2006 RX330 AWD that is experiencing the following:

At 65+mph begins shaking without applying brakes.

Applying brakes at greater than 40mph results in extremely violent shaking of steering wheel and whole front end. This does not happen every time, but is definitely becoming more frequent.

At speeds less than 65mph we usually do not feel any shaking while coasting along or maintain speed.

Things I have replaced so far:

Had very loud airplane sounds in back so I replaced both rear Hub/Bearing assemblies.
Replaced pads in front and back.
Replaced rotors up front as I thought that was the problem with brake applied shaking--No improvement

Lower Control Arm bushings are cracked/worn just like your pics.
We experienced very uneven tire wear, mostly on passenger front tire the outer 2 inches completely wore down while the rest of tire seemed almost new.
Have noticed that steering seems erratic and car seems to teeter side to side and requires correction when changing lanes or any quick movement of steering wheel.

Do you have any suggestions as to where I should begin?

Also, if I need to replace my front axles, how much are they and where did you buy from? Any special tools needed for the axle removal and reinstall?
Thank you very much for your input!

 

Sounds like front axle. My theory why your passenger tire is worse off is typically the passenger axle goes out the earliest because the shafts are longer than the driver's side and have more stress on them. With that said, I would replace both.

I bought the EMPI brand (Empire). It should be ~$120 for both sides combined (off Rock Auto).

No special tools but big air wrench could be used to remove/install axle nut. It can be challenging removing the passenger carrier bearing from the housing - but a hammer and crow bar helped here.

The bad bushings only create a minor vibration so I dont think it is that.

Yours did exactly what ours was doing. Changing axles solved our problem so your should be the same. While you are in there I would also change front struts.

Not sure how many miles you have but it could be due.

Good luck