Front End Vibrations

[chocker]

Hi,

I have an 03 RX300 and I noticed lately that when I hit just below 40mph the front end starts having pretty heavy vibrations, almost like a shaking. I can feel it through the steering wheel and the pedal. The worst is between 40mph to 45 mph. It tapers off at around 50mph. It's still there but lighter at higher speeds. It only seems to be present on acceleration. For some reason, and maybe it's me but it seems to be coming from the front passenger side. If I let go of the accelerator and stay at that speed or I am going down a hill at that speed, no vibration. The rotors and pads are only a few months old and they are OEM. The tires have a lot of tread left and are in good condition. Just before winter I had the tires installed and balanced and they were fine before this. I had it in a snow bank and there was ice stuck to the wheels. I thought it was that so I used a blow dryer to melt it off. It still had the same issue afterwards. If anyone has any ideas that would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Mark

[chocker]

Hi,

sorry I haven't responded for a while but I've been so busy. I went to a mechanic who said to change the wheels. I was able to put the summer wheels on which had no problem with vibration when I took them off last fall. The vibration persisted. The mechanic then took another look and said that the wheels needed balancing and the suspension link bushings were finished so he replaced them as well. I looked at the links and agreed with the mechanic. Once that was done, he said that the driveshaft needed balancing. I consider myself a good DIYer but I don't have much experience with the driveshaft. I know how to replace one but I see in the RX300 diagram that it is a more complex setup than I am used to. It seems that it comes in three distinct parts in terms of actual shafts. Would anyone be able to shed some light on this for me. It's an AWD model.

Thanks,

Mark

[Drcoffee]

I am getting a slight shake between 70-80 mph and steering wheel wobble.  I am leaning towards the axle half shafts on the front.  If its happening under load, on the gas, its definitely a cv joint.  You may hear clicking too.  These are easy to replace.  If you mechanic is talking about the driveshaft to the rear wheels thats not the problem.  

What I noticed on my rx300 was that after a 75 mile highway run, I put my hand on the hub of the wheels and all were warm, not hot.  But after driving in local traffic for 1/2 hour and rechecking the wheels, my passenger front wheel was hot enough that I couldnt keep my hand on it.  The drivers side was warm.  So if it was bearing, it would have been hot from the highway drive and if it were the brakes, the calipers would have been hot too, and they were cool.  I can assume at this point that the passenger halfshaft is failing.  Combined with the inner joint grease slung up in the wheelwell, I believe I found my problem.  Hopefully this will help others diagnose there vehicles.