Its Been A While Guys....no Good News Either

[1UZ-FE]

well its been a while since i've been active on the greatest forum ever. so im just gonna fill u guys in on whats happened lately. over a period of about a month, i've learned that my car is going to need many repairs. with no job, no money, and a car payment, thats not gonna be easy

about a month ago, i went to the shop my car was serviced at before i bought it. these repairs were performed by Triangle Imports and paid for by the private dealer i bought my car from. anyway, the reciept said that one of the things they did is replaced my PS pump, which had been making quite a bit of noise for a while. i figured they put in a faulty pump and they would have to replace it under warranty. this is where the bad news starts and its all downhill from here. they brought me into the shop and showed me 2 problems. the first: my PS pump was making noise b/c it was low on fluid...but why was it low on fluid??--it's leaking from my steering rack! thats ~$2300. the second problem: my rear main seal needs to be replaced. my brother had this done on his Jeep Grand Cherokee and it set him back about $450. i wanted a second opinion on these so i brought my car to a highly trusted shop i have used many times. they confirmed both problems. so in just one day my total for repairs that i need is ~$2700.

i have known about the second issue since day 1 of owning my car. when i first bought my car, i noticed a creaking noise coming from the front suspension. this only happened *sometimes* when turning the wheel atleast 1 revolution at speeds below 5 mph, such as pulling in a parking spot. this was identified early by a lexus tech as upper conrol arms. since January of this year, it has gotten progressively worse and creaks *every time* i park, turn into a driveway, or even making a 90 degree turn onto a road. obviously, this needs to be taken care of pretty soon. i dont know exactly how much this will cost but i estimate somewhere around $700. now my total is around $3400.

lastly, i had a brand new set of Yokahamas that were stored away until my Turanzas wore out. i swear my set Turanzas must be magnetic b/c i have picked up way too many nails for it to just be luck. one of my friends gave me $70 for helping him a little so i decided to mount my Yokahamas and trash my "holy" Turanzas. during my lengthy stay at Merchants Tire, more bad news. the Turnaza that was on the left front was "feathered", meaning i need an alignment. after borrowing $70 more to pay for the alignment, i was told by the mechanic that did my alignment to come outside and look at something. he pulls into the parking lot and goes 1-2 mph and taps the brake very quickly. as he does this, he tells me look at the front wheels, which seem to be shifting back and forth as he plays with the brake pedal. once my cars back up on the lift, he points out that a bushing is worn out, located where the lower control arm meets the frame. since the bushing itself cannot be replaced, the whole lower control arm must be replaced - that job is another $750. and now my total is up to ~$4200.

all in all, this month i spent about $150 to find out i need to magically come up with over $4000.

there are many other things that need to be fixed but these are the major problems. i still need a drivers door handle to replace my cracking one, spark plug wires, something to fix the ever widening tearing leather on my drivers seat, front pads and rotors, and a tranny flush/refill. i cant wait till sh*t starts breaking and i have no choice but to fix it.....but with what money??

anyway, please comment if you like and suggestions are appreciated too.

[SRK]

Think about what is needed for safety, and what is needed to keep the driveway clean. They are two different things. The oil leaks are just leaks, messy, but not a pressing issue. The steering may be a safety item, depending on the extent of wear, but his price quote sounds a bit high too. That should probably be done.

All cars get a little wear as they age, so these things are bound to happen. Just don't think that you must repair everything - keep the repairs in perspective.

[Lexus Envy]

Wow :o

I think you have just experinced what is my nightmares. Do what SRK says, you don't have to do them all at once, just do what has to be done, then slowly work on the other things.

I have a 1990 LS400, I will start praying now.

[flanker271]

I had my powersteering pump resealed 6 month ago to protect my alternator. At the time, the dealer told me that my ps rack and high pressure ps line is also leaking, and should be replaced at once. They further suggested that these leaks will get worse as soon as they make the ps pump "not leak".

Well, six months passed. I haven't lost a tiny bit of ps fluid in my reserviour. Your rack might experience a bit more wear and tear than mine, but personally I believe that as long as the alternator is nice and dry, leaky rack is not an issue. Just remember to add ps fluid occationally as often as needed. A dead alternator can stop you, but leaky ps rack can not.

[90LS400Lexus]

Sorry to hear about your cars misfortunes. It sounds like you are in the same boat that I am in. My A/C is broken, LCD recently going on cooler mornings, radio will not work unless the interior of the car is above 75 degrees and now the brakes are "growling", despite new pads, as well as an occasional steering vibration at very low speeds @ sharp turns (such as parking lots), clunking front suspension, "cupped" tires from mis-alignment, and most recently, my speedometer needle light only lights 1/2 way (that is what I get for boasting about all of my instrument panel needle lights working), but luckily I have been spared from power steering or engine leakages.

I paid $4000 + tax for this car (about $4400) + $200 for struts and I am guessing repairs will be at least $1500. I am glad that my problems are annoyances, rather than "fix now" items. These problems would probably not bother most people, but it does me- which is why I am selling, rather than pouring more money into this car.

It came out in the paper yesterday for $3600, with a couple of potential buyers, but I will come down as low as $3000 if I must. It is still a good car, but not the car for me any longer..... :(

[cnacne]

That is absolutely the worst story I've ever heard. Sorry to hear about your bad luck.

I would agree, just do what is necessary to keep the car safely on the road.

Joe