^Thanks lowkut

 

I ordered mine from Carson the other day to be fixed on Saturday.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!My wife was in the car with my 2 year old daughter just now. She called to tell me that the front left wheel fell off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is just unbelievable....

 

Oh man so sorry to hear that… I hope everyone is ok.
Was she driving while this occurred?

I have my heart in my hands every time I drive my car knowing what could go wrong until I have this fixed.

The part that sucks the most is knowing you already ordered the replacement parts and your wheel feel off now… This is an extremely dangerous problem for all GS drivers out there. I still can’t believe Lexus is not doing anything about it!!

What is the year and mileage on your GS?

 

Yeah, she was driving about 25 to 30 mph, they're ok. She nearly hit a telephone pole though.

I have a 98 GS400 with about 110k.

It's absolutely crazy knowing that it can happen at 20mph or 80mph. Imagine it happening just at 60mph on a highway while it's raining?

Lexus needs to address this.

 

That is horrible, I hope your wife and daughter are okay. What a coincidence this happening right when you are ordering your part and posting about it.

This is a serious safety issue and you should definitely let Lexus Corporate hear about it and ask what they are doing about it. They will just ignore it like they do with most issues with the GS and say it is a isolated issue but you should still complain. I know they want to ignore it because they don't want to tarnish their high quality/reliability ratings and image but it is better to address it now instead of it being put all over the news when someone is killed or injured. The least Lexus should do is give all current 2nd GS owners a noticeable serious warning about this design defect through the mail, calling owners(they have records), and posting on their website about this serious issue they refuse and failed to address before someone gets seriously injured or killed. I am sorry but this is totally unacceptable and a very serious safety hazard, I have talked to many GS owners who do not go on the internet to read up on their car and they have no idea there is a ball joint issue with their cars nor do they know the door lock actuator failures they have are so widespread because they have been told by Lexus they are just isolated incidents.

I hope your wife and child are okay and the crash did not scare them too much and the damage is not going to cost you too much to fix.

 

They're ok thank you very much for the concern.

It is very scary that Lexus doesn't address this issue. Imagine the first to have a fatal crash due to this. Had she been traveling on the highway at 80mph when this happened, it may be different. She wasn't even turning the wheel!

Well, it cost me 400 for both sides including alignment. That's a good price. Thank god I have a good old school mechanic.

 

I purchased this car in Feb 08 with 78k on it. After about 3 weeks I noticed that is makes a slight knocking noise when I am on rough roads. I had it checked out form the Lexus Dealer I purchased it form and they said ball joints were tight and all was well. Next week I took it back again...again all was according to the tech. I only drive it once or twice a week at the most. Sometimes not even that as I have a company car. During the summer it made NO NOISE! Now thats its cold out again the noise is back...but now a squeaking noise form front pass side too when riding on rough roads. Sometimes as I slow to turn it will make a small clicking noise. Any suggestions? Should i just grab some new lower ball joints and get it done?

 

I have pretty much the same thing, a terrible loud creaking groaning noise when riding over bumpy roads and especially speed bumps that is very audible in the winter and not very audible in the summer from the passenger side suspension area. I have sprayed WD40 on just about every exposed bolt and connecting piece on the passenger side of the suspension which does not seem to make any difference now, when it was warmer it did seem to make a difference one time. I had the front stabilzer bar tightened once and that seemed to help temporarily but now the noise is back louder then ever, there was also a TSB for the shock absorber a mechanic told me about which was putting some kind of sound deadening spacer in it or replacing it but it was going to be around 2 hundred dollars and I did not want to spend that much on a noise and also something I was not sure would cure it. I don't know what it is but it is so annoying having a expensive Japanese luxury car creak and squeak worse then some junky American car from the 70's and 80's. Every one that hears it can't believe a Lexus makes those kind of loud cheap creaking and squeaking noises over rough roads and how Lexus mechanics can't figure out how to stop it.

I don't think my or your issue is the lower ball joints as I have had mine checked several times and they say they are fine. My car does not make popping noises when I turn just loud creeks and groans over rough roads, especially speed bumps. I kind of think it is the shock absorber but who knows, I am not going to keep spending a bunch of money for mechanics to try to diagnose it especially when they have been wrong every time.

 

Thanks UDel!! My Dad was a mechanic for years while he was a police officer because being a cop wasn't bringin' home the bacon enough for our needs. Anyway, he rode in the car with me last weekend and said he didn't think it was ball joints either. Turning the wheel all the way either way is completely silent. Just oslight bumbs in the road are really loud. It makes sense that it is louder in the winter too. I had a 98 Accord EX V6 before my GS and it make literally no noise at all. My girlfriend has the accord now and it has 116k on it...still silent. I guess because everything else on my car is really silent and smoth I just cant get passed the squeaky suspension. My dad said to put the car up on a lift so the suspension maxes out and spray some white lithium spray grease in the A arms and joints. EVERYTHING on my car is in such good shape and it just sits in the garage. Its my weekend cruiser and I just want it to be perfect! UGGHHH! As an automootive nut it just drives me crazy. I turn down the radio and listen to it all the time now and I can't enjoy my Lex anymore. I might spend the 200 on the noise. I had it checked again and ball joints are all tight so whatever. I do feel beter knowing that I'm not the only one though. IT JUST DOESNT MAKE SENSE! Such a nice car with a noise like that. Although, my bro has a 06 Mercedes S500 and it is in the shop constantly for noised and sensors and whatever. Thanks again buddy! I know this isnt the right thread but does anyone know where I can get a wood sterring wheel? Or the rest of the wood trim for the inside? I have very little wood in my car but I do have the Mark Levinson and the Nav System.

 

so... just to clarify, there's not a single 01+ 430 that's got this problem right? everyone in this thread that's reported problems has had a 98-00. never heard anything side-to-side or at full steering lock like some people have suggested.

 

i changed my ball joints around 70,000 and im at 85000.. was i supposed to also do the tie rods as well? I hear clicking more often now and its kinda cold.. it happens every time i change from reverse to drive or vice versa.. and its not the tranny because i hear and feel it coming from the control arm area in the fronts and rear? i got tie rods on hand ready to take them out when it gets warmer but I was wondering if anyone else has this sort of condition on their rides..

 

Devil's advocate:
1) If you've modified your suspension or have aftermarket rims, your modifications are likely a huge modifier that is greatly causing the stress that leads to failure. As with all aftermarket products, you are responsible for your own changes. A larger majority of the disasters that were posted here on CL I see are with modified cars.
If you've slammed your car, and the alignment specs cause your tires to wear out your tires really fast, it's not going to qualify for the tire manufacturer's mileage warranty.

2) For the non-modded: It says in the owner's manual maintenance guide to inspect ball joints (along with some other things) every 15000 miles (5k for special operating). If either you (or your mechanic) didn't do this, I'm not sure why you can blame Lexus. Make a photocopy of the log book and when you take your car in for service and make sure the mechanic checks the boxes. If your mechanic checks the box and then the part still failed then perhaps you have a case with your mechanic for not really doing the inspection when they said they did.

Don't take your car for granted. People read the manual for a tv, a phone, adigital camera; do it for your car too.

 

My ball joint gave out on me this evening doing about 25 mph. My wife was driving the 1998 GS 300 on the freeway earlier. I will be alerting the Consumer Affairs - Bureau of Automotive Repair tomorrow morning. We could be dead and although I have 125k on my car, that kind of thing should not just happen, especially with all of the response to this forum. It seems like a Lexus problem of inferior workmanship. I do not hear of this sort of thing happening to other vehicles.

 

Not to sound unsupportive, but:

The poster just above you has a great point. This is a wear and tear item that Lexus instructs owners to check at regular intervals. If you checked it, you would have known it was wearing out and would have replaced it. Ball joints don't just go from perfect to broken in 10 seconds. They wear out and, as such, give "warning" if you're looking for it.

You don't hear of this sort of thing happening to other vehicles because you don't read their forums Trust me - all cars have their glitches and commonly-broken items big and small. Try hopping on the Mercedes Forums for a while and you'll suddenly feel really good about your Lexus - even if it did break a ball joint on you!

 

My car been making noises due to steering. I havn't had money to fix it yet but are the ball joints on ebay worth getting?