TRDGS300

if you do remove the tensioner, BE VERY CAREFUL NOT TO DROP ANY OF THE BOLTS TOWARD THE CRANK. you will run into a big headache. if a bolt drops, hope you can fish it out with a magnet or be ready to remove everything up to the timing belt... or deal with with bent/snapped valves resulting in a new head.

as far as any other maintenance, replace the wheel bearings as well. sooner or later they will go out. easier to take off the steering knuckle off now then to remove everything off later. wheel bearings are about 46 dollars at an auto parts store. you will need to take them to a shop to have them pressed in. best place for that, try a machine shop. they will give you a better deal. also check all other suspension components while you are at it such as tie rod ends, upper ball joints. and you shouldnt need an allignment after the ball joints are done. well for the lower ones at least

just replaced my upper control arm as well. seems that my shock has blown out as well when my lower ball joint snapped. when you have the ball joints replaced, have your tech check all the shocks as well. they tend to go out after time. that could be the case as well.

check local junkyards for the part. you might be able to find one for about 300 bucks. give ebay a try as well.

like the lexus, but damn, youre gonna go through those ball joints a lot:/ :whistles:

BTW, good investment on a gs300. Best car I have ever owned. Love driving every minute of it. Comfort, reliability, and great looks along with a good amount of power. Cant ask for more

i have the same problem with my gs... i think it might be a feature with them.lol. mine look a little pink in the dark. i just tinted my rear tails and it took care of the problem.lol

special treatment is bs in my opinion. its a direct bolt on for them. take the serpentine belt off, replace the pump and reservoir. the reason they quoted you that is because its got a nice "L" badge on the front and the back. thats the only reason.lol

castrol sae 5w-30 full synthetic. advanced auto special 5 quarts and a filter for 25 bucks. i just buy 10 quarts and a filter. have plenty of oill last me

does the ticking sounds get faster as you accelerate? if so, check your cam gears, one could be loose.

not trying to scare you *BLEEP*less bud, but the master cylinder seems like its the issue:/ check your brake fluid and see if it dirty. can have something to do with it. also could be one of the abs sensors. if you kicked the VSC( Vehicle Stability Control) light on along with the abs, it might be the abs sensor. i said it can be the master cylinder as the worst case senario. PM me if you have any more questions.

You also gotta consider how much you will be spending on gas as well. The gs430 is a great car. Make sure you check if the timing belt and water pump have been replaced, upper and lower ball joints(common problem with the gs series in that year) struts, and other wear and tear items. If the car has been taken care of properly, then you wont have problems with it. Of course you're gonna have to do routine maintenance as well like brakes, oil change, tranny fluid. If you keep up with the maintenance, the car will not leave you stranded.

radiator fluid level sounds about right. let the car sit and let the motor cool down. Start the car up and remove the radiator cap. once the car warms up, the thermostat will open up and the fans should turn on. it will suck some of the fluid down the radiator. top it off and replace the cap. should fix the problem

dcfish. THANK YOU FOR THE AWESOME POST!!!

As far as performance chips.. haven't had any luck with those. Best thing for your money would be the common Headers, Intake and Exhaust. if the car breathes more, It will produce more power. Once you get enough cash saved up, boost and tune it. The stock 2JZ blocks can hold up to 400 Horses without any mods. Only thing is their compression is a little high. Once i swapped the head on mine, I put in The 2JZ-GTE pistons in it. Even stock, they still produce good numbers and have a descent amount of torque. In mine, im able to smoke WRX's New K-series SIs... it all depends. The more power you want, the more money youre gonna have to feed it. The supra GTE pistons are like 40 dollars a pop from the dealership. So it wasnt completely ridiculous.

for ball joints, you don't really have to be a gear head to replace them, but if your buddy is giving you a great deal on the labor, go for it. professional over first time replacement is always more recommended. Im trying to find the upper ball joints by themselves without the control arm. I guess Lexus really knew how to make good money on the parts. I see a lot of the GS's whose ball joints are gonna bust soon and a lot of the owners neglect it. Mostly happens because you see a lot of the owners put huge rims on it. Just tears them apart even more. Personally, I wouldn't put anything bigger then 18s on my GS. I guess as soon as I figure out where the ball joints are sold separately, I will let you know. Its a big money saver. So far the cheapest price is on EBAY and the control arm+ball joint is going for 280 with a nuy it now. I guess its still better then going to the dealership to pay their price:/ hope i could help you out. Let me know if you need anymore help. And the sound you are getting from your car could be a few different things. It could be that your tire is bad to where it has a lump. But my guess from experience its the ball joint. The prices you should look for the parts Lower Ball Joints= around 40 dollars a side Upper Ball Joint+Control Arm=280 O_o Upper ball Joint alone= Mystery to this day.haha

I guess we all know that its almost a feature on the gs300 and 400s that the upper and lower ball joints tend to give out after a while. I was wondering, is there any place that has the upper ball joints by themselves? I have looked in numerous places and they only sell the control arm with the ball joint. Does anyone in the forum know where to find the upper ball joints by themselves? If so, feel free to post away or pm me if you have any ideas.

if you do end up changing the ball joints out yourself, be careful with the abs sensor wires and the sensor itself. if the wire snaps at all, it will kick off the three famous lights. ABS, VSC, and VSC OFF. the sensor is expensive as hell. 180 for the part itself.

teins are the way to go. they give like a 1 inch lowering rate on them. make the car sit nice and ride smooth...

as far as lower ball joints, dont risk it... i would replace them asap. my lower ball joint snapped on the front right side on the highway. its scary as hell and can most def. kill you. lower ball joints are pretty cheap and very easy to replace on your own. its like 3 bolts holding them in on each side. the upper ball joints are the expensive ones. you gotta get the control arm with the ball joint in it. i dont think that toyota made the ball joints alone... or if anyone knows where i can find the upper ball joints by themselves, pm me. and chadius, if you need more help, just send me a message...

pretty much everything... besides stuff i have to take it to a shop for such as alignments..

hmmm... does the noise happen only when the car is moving? if not, start the car and pop the hood. play with the throttle(rev it up lightly) and see if you can hear the noise. if not, your motor should be fine, then its probably something loose. as mentioned above could be a battery, motor mount etc...