bbsal Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 hi,well my wife now drives my es alot more and said tonight she heard rubbing from the back tire when she hits a bump.i never heard a sound from this car before she drove it but im not sure what it is.i drove it and when you hit a nice size bump or even a smaller one it sounds like the tire is rubbing something under the car.almost like the tire is to big for the car but that cant be because none of the other tires are doing it.i have 17 inch rims on it and had them ont here for a long time and never heard this till now.could it be the strut?it does it when the car goes up and down from hitting the bump and only makes it when the car goes down after the bump thats whats making me think its rubbing.what do you think?also its the driver side rear thats doing it.
NeiLtYmE Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 Could be that your struts need to be replaced... or your springs have gone bad.... if you go the back or your car... and to the side your having problems.... push down on the car from that corner... if it doesnt push down and spring up properly... then you have suspension issues
NeiLtYmE Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 you know its bad when it doesnt spring up properly... like bounces a lil to much.. just leans a lil too much... or makes a real funny sound.. make sure though your parking brake isnt up.
SpeedRacer959 Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 I would like to know what you find out. When I go over bumps I hear a rattle in the back. I've suspect that it might be the rear struts. It sounds like metal to metal hitting. Definatly a clunk of some sort. Is struts going bad a common thing on a 1997 lexus w/ 120k?
NeiLtYmE Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 @ 120 k ..... the car has been through more than you can think of..... yeah ... Struts can only take so much beating for so long...
SpeedRacer959 Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 Is that something that you can do yourself? Or is that a take-it-in sort of thing? I did a search on the LOC for R&I of rear struts and didn't come up w/ anything. Help would be MUCH appreciated!
chillaxin Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 I guess anything can be done yourself, but as far as i know, it's not easy to replace the struts at home
SW03ES Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 I know on the LS replacing the rear struts involves removing the rear seats LOL, tough job at home. At 120k having them require replacement is normal. You've forgotton what its supposed to ride like, get them replaced, and get the car back it'll be like brand new.
bbsal Posted July 24, 2003 Author Posted July 24, 2003 im going to get the struts checked out by lexus because i cant figure out what it is and its really getting to me.it could possibaly be the tire but i doubt it.it never did it until now so its most likely the struts.also is there a way to lift the car a inch or so.most people drop the car a inch but if it is the tire then i was just wondering if it could be lifted.i dont know to much about struts.
steviej Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 you can do struts at home if you are replacing the entire assembly. Strut, coil spring, brakets, etc. If you try to get the strut out from the spring and the bracket, you stand taking a shot to the chin when the strut pops. Also you will need a special tool to compress the new strut to get it in. either way, you may want to get a wheel alignment after the replacements. Just bring it in. Catch a deal at Midas or Meineke. Hope you don't have the adjustable suspension. That gets into the big bucks. steviej
SpeedRacer959 Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 Oh great. I have that fancy feature that adjusts it from sport to comfort mode. :( I'm dreading how much that will affect the cost. Anyone w/ experience on this? Costs? stupid struts :chairshot:
SpeedRacer959 Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 Well I just called the lexus dealer. The struts for the adjustable suspension are $398 each. That's pricey. Dealer price pirates . I'm wondering if I can just unplug the button that adjusts the shocks and just install normal ones that cost $79 each online. Any thoughts? Seems like it would work. Or should I just call it quits and sell the car to a salvage yard.
SW03ES Posted July 24, 2003 Posted July 24, 2003 Thats why I dont have that feature... Well mostly because I couldnt find one with it, but still ;)
bbsal Posted July 25, 2003 Author Posted July 25, 2003 i dont have that feature in mine.im sure there not adjustable.i been thinking what the rubbing could be and maybe it is the tire but im still doubtful.heres my size tires so maybe someone will know if thats to big 215 50 r17.i know you can fit 18 inch without rubbing so i doubt there to big.i here a little click when i push the back of the car up and down so im sure somethings not right with the strut.weird because i even made my father in law look under the car and around the wheel well when i push up and down very hard on the car and the tire never got close to touching.it sure sounds like a rubbing when i hit a good dip in the road.
SKperformance Posted July 25, 2003 Posted July 25, 2003 i am going to say first problem is the springs are saging not the struts as they only control the up and down speed in dampaning secong i think you have the wrong offset for your rims with mine lowered a good bit and 18's it all comes down to offsets of the rims look at the side wall of the tire in question and look for wear or gouges you could also try shaving some of the inner well lip off
bbsal Posted July 25, 2003 Author Posted July 25, 2003 the side wall is perfect in and out so it must be what you said about the springs sagging.im going to take it to the mechanic and see what they say about the springs.thanks for the help!
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