eman_be_lexin

Not yet,

The car has been sitting as I just got back from vacation. I am going to take it apart this weekend. Will Post Pics when finished.

Thanks so much for your input. I ordered them and will try to do a write up on it this weekend.

I am sure once I get the wheel off that I can figure it out. Thanks so much for the pic, it definately helps when I have a visual aid to go by. Will I need 1 or 2 bushings for the right side? I am thinking about doing the left side as well so I guess I should just get them all at 1 time.

Thanks for the information. I am pretty handy with fixing things as long as I don't need a weird tool to perform the job. Do you think this is something that a person can do themselves or better left to be done at a shop?

I figured out what the problem is this weekend. The control arm bushings are dry rotted and pretty much gone!! There is no isolation from the control arm and the bar on car that it attaches to. So when I hit a bump or I get to at least 40, the wheel rocks side to side the same distance as if the bushings were in place. Now my question is, can just the bushings be replaced or do I have to get an entire new control arm assy?

I am setting her up on Saturday Hopefully I can get it straight. It has to be something painfully obvious

I have a weird problem where my rear passenger tire shimmys on while driving at any speed. I don't know if it is the ball joint or the sway bar bushings. I am going to replace the sway bar bushings this weekend. The weirdest thing is that I am able to pivot the wheel side to side just by kicking the side of it. Does anyone know what that means or what the culprit is? I would like to try to replace the part myself if possible.

It definately seems like something is very loose. I wonder what a bad wheel bearing sounds like? My car has 230K on it, so I think I just need new stabilizer bars in the back.

I am experiencing that same situation also. I only hear it when I am going around a curve towards the left. I haven't replaced the sway bars yet though.

I had that same problem with my 97 ES. I don't know what year your ES is (maybe I didn't see it) but mine has heated seats and the way I got to the bulb was I pried out the heated seat buttons, disconnected the harness from the switch and pulled the wood cover up. The bulb is right under the shift indicators. It is just 1 bulb and it only cost me $3.00. The two heated seat switches snap into the wood cover. They come out fairly easily. Be very careful not to crack the wood cover when pulling it out. You should be able to get a flat head screw driver to help pry the front of the wood cover out of the console as well.

I have a 97 ES300 that was working perfectly until the temperatures dropped to 15 deg. The next morning, I noticed that I had no power steering and there were no puddles under the car. I checked the reservoir and it was bone dry. There is a lot of fluid around the black hose going to the side of the reservoir. Is that hose the return or the High Pressure? Also is the power steering pump the same in the 97 Camry V6? I can still drive the car but it feels like I am driving an old Cadillac with no power steering. I supspect it is tight because i have aftermarket wheels that are almost 2x wider than the factory. :cries:

I am having the same problem with my front end too but my struts were replaced 2 years ago. Only about 100,000 miles. I am haiving the control arms, stabilizer bar, and bushings replaced next week. Does anyone have a diagram or picture of where the "bump stop" is so I can try this same procedure? I will try that to see if it works before replacing the control arms.

I have a 1997 ES300 and I wanted to connect an aftermarket amp and sub to the factory system. I already ran the power wire from the battery to the amp. I used the existing wires that connect to the sub in the back window to the input side of the amp. For the life of me I don't know what wire in the back of the head unit will give me the 12V I need to connect to the remote port of the amp. Is there a specific color wire that will give me that constant 12V?

Tanx!

I had my transmission replaced last year and I am noticing that my shifting is a little lazy. I was reading in the forum about resetting the ECU but no instructions on how to do it.

200020 and still grinnin! I really love this car. The best I ever had!

I put up with this loose steering wheel for a few months until I got so used to it that when I drive, I knew exactly how much play there was and adjusted accordingly. Thinking I had a very serious problem, I took the car back to the shop where I got the tranny installed and they told me that the nut on the steering collar was loose. He tightned it and didn't charge me anything.

CV Axle boot could be torn. Similar problem with my previous car. Do you hear the sound when making a sharp turn only?

What can be used to lube the tracks? I am having the same problem with mine.

Last time I posted a topic, I said my baby won't move anymore. We went over my P0500 CEL code and the posibility of a faulty Speed sensor. I had my mechanic take a look at the speed sensor and he said there was nothing wrong with it. I purchased a used transmission from a 98 ES300 for about $500. My mechanic installed it with new gaskets, filter, oil and an external cooler for $690. Overall about $1200 is so much less than the $4500 the lexus dealership wanted to charge me. The car shifts smoothly, it doesn't jerk forward slightly when I shift into D.

The only thing I noticed is that my alignment is really out of wack but I associate that with the fact that the drive shafts had to be removed to take out the tranny. When i say my alignment, I mean my steering wheel is off center. I also noticed that my gas mileage is slightly lower but after reading the forums, I may need to reset my ECU to compensate for the new tranny. Correct me if I am wrong!

I have said it so many times before. This website has saved me from so much heartache. Thanks again guys!

I had the car hooked up to a computer and it gives me a P0500 code. What does that mean? My mechanic told me the Tranny needs to be replaced with that code but I want to get more information.

Yesterday, I was driving down a regular 2 way street when I attempted to pass a slower car in front of me. When I pressed on the gas a little more, I noticed that the tach moved from 2100 to 6000 rpm's with no accelleration. It didn't dawn on my as to what was happening. I tried it again and nothing. I rolled into a nearby parking lot and noticed that I had no gears. I tried R,D,2,L and it was like the car is stuck in N. I popped the hood and checked my transmission fluid (the car was off but was at normal operating temp). THe level was normal but the fluid was dirty. When I got back in the car, it started just fine and when I put it in D, the car made a slight move foreward like it was ready to move. I put the hood down and drove the car normally up the street. It accellerated normally until I got to a red light. When the light turned green, the car felt like it was in Neutral again. I had the car towed to my house and it is just sitting there? My check enging light also came on when it wouldn't accelerate. Is there any way I can check the codes without taking it to Autozone (which is 12 miles away)? Any troubleshooting techniques that anyone knows about?

Has anyone ever experienced a wierd popping noise coming from the front end of the car when you turn the steering wheel (right/left)? I hear a popping noise whenever I am making a sharp turn like backing out of my driveway or parking in a parking lot. I dont' hear the noise when I am driving more than 15mph but when I am moving slowly, I hear the spring like popping sound. I suspect it is the CV but I am not 100% sure. I just had new suspension installed in December. New struts, springs, and bushings.

I believe it only goes up when the Stereo is on. If you are playing a CD or tape it will go down.