Brooklyn Digital Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 I'm soooo sorry to rant again... I have a 2003 LS430 47,300 I saved 14yrs for this car The ride is getting worse, I drift all over the road ( no wind ) and feel the road like a MB S430. toyota / Lexus stealers say all is fine. goodyear assurance tires from the dealer. I drive like an old man ( always did, even in my 92 camry & 98 lincoln ) ( I did a tranny flush @ 46,800, now I feel every gear ) drive by wire driving me crazy like an 07 camry. So much hesitation and did the disconnect of the neg batt term. I have to keep this car 'cause now... It's only worth $33k ( bought it 3/20/07 for $40k --- CPO ) Please advise me of what to do, I keep my cars in mint Mechanical condition Carmine Peace & Love to your Families Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRK Posted July 12, 2007 Share Posted July 12, 2007 Carmine: The best thing to do now is to take the car to a recognized quality independant alignment shop and ask them for a four wheel alignment. You want to see the before and after alignment specs from YOUR car. Hold the camber to near zero at each wheel. Talk to the tech who will do the work and explain the "wandering" feeling you have. If he's good, he'll use your description and the factory specs to arrive at an alignment that will make you happy with the car. Also the tire pressures are worth experimenting with. Keep them at factory for now. Go two or four pounds higher and lower and see what happens. Then you'll get a feel for how pressures affect steering and ride. At the end of all this you may find you have to change tires - I have never driven a Goodyear I liked, but that's personal. Michelin Exaltos or even MXV4's will change the car completely from where it is now - some may argue worse, but for sure it will be different from the Goodyears. I hope this helps. It's worth it because that's a wonderful car and it deserves a good alignment and good tires. SRK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brooklyn Digital Posted July 13, 2007 Author Share Posted July 13, 2007 SRK so kind for your advice... I will do as you say. I'll let y'all know Carmine SRK thanks again !!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9779 Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 I agree with SRK, try both alignment and different tires. My neighbor had similar problems until he put Michelin tires on the car. Fixed the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboBob Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Hello Carmine, I just joined this site to help my father research buying a used LS. While I don't have Lexus experience, I have been a mechanic professionally, and have played with, repaired and modified cars for over 30 years. That being said, I can give you my answer in general automotive terms. As for the ride quality, dump the Goodyears . I have to agree on the Michelin MXVs, especially for someone who "drives like an old man". They are a little bit spendy, but well worth it as they are designed for this type of car and your style of driving. Trans flush, the new fluids in the trans will soften the seals that control shifting. This is a good thing, even though you can feel things a bit more, it means that fluid is not leaking buy those seals. The more solid shift you feel means the tranny is not slipping, which keeps tempuratures in the trans and the engine lower. Drive by wire, while some systems are flawlessly smooth, my Audi comes to mind, others do lag in throttle response, my new Chevy truck drives me nuts, as it lags both accelerating and decelerating. I doesn't get much more annoying than the feeling I get when my engine slows down 2 seconds after I let off the gas. This is just something inherent in the proogramming in your ECU, and something we'll both just have to live with. Hope that makes you feel a little better. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brooklyn Digital Posted July 14, 2007 Author Share Posted July 14, 2007 TurboBoB, I dont know the keystrokes for clapping but.... Bravo I read you response 3x and I feel better ( I just ordered a set of MXV4' & Hydroedge ) I can try them for a week and still go back to my own. I f I go back, I pay $100 for being a pain in the tail. Thank you Bob, stay well I'll let ya know ~Carmine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW03ES Posted July 14, 2007 Share Posted July 14, 2007 I bet its the tires. If they're Assurance ComforTread they're too low a speed rating for the LS, and if they're TripleTreads they're too aggressive. Michelin has discontinued the MXV4 Plus and I have no experience with the new S8 or the Primacy tires they replaced them with. I have the Bridgestone Turanza LS-V and am very satisfied with them, I'd re-shoe it with a set of those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mls Posted July 15, 2007 Share Posted July 15, 2007 My 95 LS seems to wander guite a bit on the highway also. I describe it as a lack of on center feel in the steering. I have not tried anything to correct it yet. I am curious if yours can be corrected with custom alignment or different tires. Please post if you have any luck correcting this problem. TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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