my steering has been terrible for months finally decided to go under and investigate steering bushings were shot no rubber was even left just the metal part was left.....

If you have 150000 miles and have never done your rack bushings do it im pretty sure yours will be shot as well..

I ordered aluminum bushings from driftmotion all of $45 bucks, i know some guys order daizen but my steering response was so bad i wanted the tightest fit possible thus aluminum bushings i went with..

Now my car actually turns when i turn the steering wheel and responds nicely, so if you been delaying and procrastinating get over the hump and do it you will feel much safer on the road especially if you can do the work yourself...

 

yikes yeah those are gone!thanks for the tip i know i need them. along with a whole bunch of other suspension parts..lol.

 

yea me too i still got to do lca then i can through my coils on, but those bushings are probly the cheapest and easiest part to change of suspension components i have experienced

 

I remember doing the Daizen steering rack busings with my brother.... now THAT was a pain in the ***.

 

How was the handling before you fixed it? Was there a terrible vibration at 60mph? Like every thing inside the car is shaking and feels like somethings gonna collapse? I think I have the same problem, I'm just wondering why Lexus is saying its my rear wheels causing the vibration when I can feel and see my steering wheel shaking right in front of me.

 

No vibration at all just little response in reaction when u turn Da steering wheel.....if I'm driving straight line n slightly turn left or right Da car still goes in a straight line it was like making a uturn on a simple basis right or left turn.....but ur problem sounds different I would start with checking ur balance n tires dat would cause vibration at those speeds

 

uh just a guess but if lexus told you it was your tires it is probably your tires.........lol. kp you rock.. if your tires are worn they are probably out of round or have bubbles. and this will cause vibration throughout. including steering wheel vibration. a balance may help some until you get new tires. another source of vibration at highway speed is worn motor mounts. but again if lexus said......

 

There are numerous things that could cause the vibration.. Rack bushings. . Motor mounts.. Arm bushings.. Wheel bearing seizing.. Tire out of balance. Etc

 

nice work. i remember doing mines and didnt even need to remove the rack. it had enough space to fit the new bushings in.

 

Bleedspeed, I have no problem believing Lexus if they where FOR SURE it was the wheels(not the tires), but they weren't even sure. They said it might be it, or it might not be it. I have new tires at the rear, so it can't be it. I think the technician from Lexus didn't really look into it as much as I wanted him to, so after I fix everything that I'm working on my SC right now and that vibration is still there, I'm bringing my car back to Lexus as a back job, period.

 

I definitely need to do my bushings. My SC is really hard to control when driving in a straight line.

 

to the op, was this on a 300 or 400? if on the 400 were you able to do it without any significant removal of parts? also do any of you know if the aluminum ones need any kind of grease or lubricant when installing them?

 

it was on a 400 but the bushings are for both 400/300 i didnt have to drop the rack i literally removed 3 bolts from the rack and used a pry bar to lift it up to slide the new ones in and my rack had so much grease on it from when i had the oil leak and still going power steering leak the aluminum just slide right in didnt have to fight at all without grease i would imagine a little fight as they are a very snug fit.

 

i need to do this too.. i want my car to turn in nicely as well.. anyone know the OEM part number?

 

Why did you choose to go with the ones from DM instead of the Daizens?