2007 Lexus ES350 transmission stutter and steering wheel vibration

[kattru01]

I have a 2007 Lexus ES350 that I bought when it was 1 yr. old. It now has 80,150 miles on it. The last month, I've been having strange problems with the transmission shifting. About a block after I first get in it or get in it after a long day, I'll be taking off and it stutters as I start to accelerate. The RPM ramps up and there's no response to depressing the accelerator, then a few seconds, later it shifts. It's done this about 6  times in the last month and doesn't do it every time. It did it a few days ago, and this time I heard gears grinding. My husband can't find the transmission stick and from what I've read, I don't think there is one? This past weekend, another problem started. I was coming back from the Houston Discovery Green NFL experience and was on the freeway about to exit (so I was driving freeway speeds). The steering wheel started vibrating really hard when I pressed on the brake to slow down to exit speed! Not just a little vibration - a lot. When I took my foot off the brake, it quit. Any ideas about the transmission and steering wheel problems?

[TrevC]

Hi Kathy...welcome to the Forum

It sounds like you have an engine running issue which is being transmitted through the auto trans making it appear to be a transmission fault. I would run checks on the engine first.

The shudder is warped brake rotors, you can get these checked by a garage who can measure the run-out on them and replace if excessive.

Cheers  Trevor