96 Ls400 Steering Noise

[choiboyogg]

just today, i noticed that my ls makes a noise and a slight vibration when i turn right and slightly when i turn left.

any ideas?

[obergc]

The obvious reply is, what is the level of fluid in your PS pump resouvoir. It may be low and you're getting air in your system. First thing to check.

[choiboyogg]

well it was really late last night so i didnt check but curt, it seems to be just that.

i called lexus to get a bottle of power steering fluid but they dont stock them. they said just regular ATF.

what does that mean?

[RFeldes]

ATF4 Auto Matic Transmission Fluid, red in color. Toyota Dealer or maybe autozone.

[99lsguy]

Yes,

Get some ATF Dex III........I use Valvoline Maxlife. one quart.

This does mean you have a leak somewhere............. :o

[KY350]

Well I have the exact same problem as choiboyogg. I get a slight groaning noise when I turn the steering wheel to the right and slightly less so when turning to the left.

I check the power steering fluid level which was at the low mark with the engine cold. So I topped it up to the high tide mark with ATF and the noise was still there.

Then I removed the power steering fluid resevoir cap and looked for bubbles in the fluid when turning the steering wheel. I could not detect any bubbles. Continued turning the steering wheel right and left, then took the car for a short drive. When I got back home, it was still making the same noise so again I removed the resevoir cap and turned the wheel. After all that, the noise still persisted.

Could it be a problem with the actual power steering pump?

[99lsguy]

Well I have the exact same problem as choiboyogg. I get a slight groaning noise when I turn the steering wheel to the right and slightly less so when turning to the left.

I check the power steering fluid level which was at the low mark with the engine cold. So I topped it up to the high tide mark with ATF and the noise was still there.

Then I removed the power steering fluid resevoir cap and looked for bubbles in the fluid when turning the steering wheel. I could not detect any bubbles. Continued turning the steering wheel right and left, then took the car for a short drive. When I got back home, it was still making the same noise so again I removed the resevoir cap and turned the wheel. After all that, the noise still persisted.

Could it be a problem with the actual power steering pump?

ky,

It could be a problem with the pump......but I'd flush is out first. PS flush procedures are well documented on this forum...try a search and see what you get.

I use two floor jacks when flushing the PS fluid, I can just turn the steering wheel lock to lock without turning the car on. Do this when filling the reservoir and flushing out the old fluid....you'll see the new stuff coming out the clear tube after about a quart or so...

Leave your wheels up also after filling with new fluid to purge the air also.....easy to do.

I am a firm believer EVERY fluid in a vehicle should be flushed/serviced every two-three years.

[KY350]

Thanks for the response 99lsguy.

Last Feb I was going to do the PS fluid flush following the tutorial that appears on lexls website. However, my RHD model does not allow easy access to the inlet hose (have to remove several other components to get to the reservoir inlet), so I simply sucked out fluid from the reservoir and topped up with new fluid. Repeated about a dozen times and called it a day.

This time however, I will take the car to the mechanic and have him do a complete flush and see if that gets rid of the groaning noise.