Is it normal for the rear strut to leak alittle grease?

My left rear strut is leaking oil and when I took it to my dealer they said it was normal for the type of struts Lexus uses. I took my car to a Toyota and Lexus specialty repai shop and they are saying it's shot and needs to be replaced. Who am I supposed to believe??

 

Nothing is supposed to leak, period.

 

i noticed some oil around the shaft when i lowered my car. i didn't really think anything of it or care actually.

 

This is exactly correct. If it's leaking, the seal on the rod is bad.

 

We have shocks, not struts.

 

Thread title fixed. Also, I found the official Lexus criteria for shock replacement.



I don't exactly agree with it, but this is what the dealership will use to determine if they are going to give you a new shock under warranty. IME levels 4 & 5 will progress to level 2. I guess they're just hoping this doesn't happen before the warranty expires.

 

I had this happen on my right front shock on my RX300, but I knew it was going to have to be changed as I could see it had sprayed fluid on to the plastic covering around the wheel well and in addition I could here a clink coming from that side on occasion. Rather than buy a new one, I had it fixed by someone down here.

 

Is your car lowered at all?? Why would it leak??

 

Bad roads cause this, and I got them down here.

 

Lobuxracer- Thanks for the chart!!

Mine is at level 3. If you touch the last ring of the spring where the spring seat is, your finger will be covered with oil. My dealer is saying this is normal and will not replace it.

I have not lowered my car or hit anything with my rear wheels.

 

Same thing today service advisor said my rear struts were leaking, im at 72,000 miles and thinking of getting coilovers. The labor is what I'm having a hard time understanding, each strut is $277, that's fine, but $690 for the labor, holy moly donut shop that's more than the parts, in addition to the $100 alignment any advice out there?

 

$690 for labor seems WAY too high. What is their hourly labor charge? I think it took only about 4 hours to do the same work in my garage at home. I believe it should take less than 2 hours for an experienced tech in a well equipped shop. The price for the shocks (they are not struts) seems pretty high too. I suggest buying the shocks online, then install them yourself.

 

Shoot, I'll put in shocks for less than that!

 

hmmm, i ran thru some rough roads in my 2 years of ownership. i'm gonna take a quick look at all 4 corners of my car tonight.

Thanks Lance for the chart

 

Mines being replaced tomorrow I took it in today and they said it was bad...i was noticing a crappier ride but blamed it on my BF tires....anyhow the strut/shock isnt in stock so I wont get my car till tomorrow...in the mean time i have a 2010 Silver IS250 w Nav so not too bad...my car is better though