elvis1962

It sure seems like it. Seems like I see a lot of posts here about our LS400s having vibrations. It seems to be the #1 problem. I think one thing is that these cars are so smooth otherwise - that the slightest vibration can become intolerable. Are these cars just bad when it comes to vibrations? Perhaps I excpect to much from Lexus. Really do not hear much about it on other cars. I will not be satisified until I get rid of the vibration on my Lexus.

Vibrations can have a lot of sources, as you know and this may not be yours. My 1991 lexus LS-400 is now perfectly smooth but it took some work.

I had a vibration at about 60 on up. It felt exactly like two or more out of balance tires. It wasn't severe but enough to aggravate me every time I drove the car.

I changed tires and balanced for a year. There was some improvement but I kept getting the impression that even with a "perfect balance" I would still have some noticeable shake. This proved to be correct as I found out when I finally did fix this problem.

The solution was new lower ball joints. My 91 LS-400 had a design problem. The lower ball joints have an internal, nylon-type device made to keep grease in the right place to prolong ball-joint life. It was designed incorrectly and actually kept grease away from critical wearing surfaces. Newer ball joints have been improved to eliminate this flaw. Once replaced, the car runs perfectly smooth. There was enough play in the old ball joints to allow the front wheels to move slightly under the dynamic load of 60 mph and up. The end result was a vibration that felt the same as an out-of-balance tire. Just about any front-end component with excessive play can do this, but checking the ball joints is a good place to start. I don't believe the car is overly sensitive to tire balance now. I also changed the upper ball joints and lower control-arm bushings. These were changed later to tighten up the steering but the vibration was gone from the earlier fix. What an inprovement. The car rides and handles like new. It has 135,000 miles at this time.

Hi Guys!! :)

I have to admit - I'm not very impressed with my '93 LS. Sure - I still love how it LOOKS - but I'm not very impressed with how it drives. Just got it back after being at the dealer's for 2 whole weeks. They replaced the front wheel bearings - balanced the drive shaft [in an attempt to get rid of a vibration] and replaced some of the bushings. Why it took two weeks - who knows. At least I didn't have to pay for the RX300 I used as a courtesy car. After all of that [and everything else I've done to the car] it still drives exactly the same. Even more money down the old LS drain. I'm getting tired of this. Instead of feeling lucky to have such a car - I starting to feel as though I'm stuck with it. And I am - I suppose - because I wouldn't get nearly what I've already put into it - IF I traded it in. This is not what I expected to feel. I wanted to own an LS - especially a '93 [or '94] for quite some time. I thought that I was very fortunate to find one in such great shape with very low miles. [about 50,000 miles - last October - when I bought it]

Is it horrible? No. It just rates a 2 out of 10 on my 'enjoyable to drive' scale. [and I'm being kind] It's humilated by newer 6 and even 4 cylinder cars and it handles like an old Lincoln Town Car. [and I know - I've driven several Lincolns in my life] I also find it frustrating that I can't really DO anything to make it better. [or to at least attempt to make it better] Firmer springs and shocks? Forget it. Unless I want my LS to be 1" lower to the ground and ride like a truck - I'm stuck.

Do I keep trying to make it better? Do I buy new spring and shocks [or whatever] to see if THAT will help build my confidence in the car? And do I buy OEM 'stuff'? OR am I 'looking' at 'this' the wrong way? Maybe I had [and have] expectations [based on everything I've read over the years] that no LS can live up to. Maybe all LS's have wind noise and/or whistling driver's mirrors. Maybe every LS handles like boat and that's just how they're made. Perhaps every LS vibrates - and I'll just have to accept that. Or do I?!

If you think I'm looking at this all wrong - a few encouraging [and constructive] words would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Craig!! :)

Craig,

Vibrations can have a lot of sources, as you know. I had a vibration at about 60 on up. It felt exactly like two or more out of balance tires. It wasn't severe but enough to aggravate me every time I drove the car.

I changed tires and balanced for a year. There was some improvement but I kept getting the impression that even with a "perfect balance" I would still have some noticeable shake. This proved to be correct as I found out when I finally did fix this problem.

The solution was new lower ball joints. My 91 LS-400 had a design problem. The lower ball joints have an internal, nylon-type device made to keep grease in the right place to prolong ball-joint life. It was designed incorrectly and actually kept grease away from critical wearing surfaces. Newer ball joints have been improved to eliminate this flaw. Once replaced, the car now runs perfectly smooth. There was enough play in the old ball joints to allow the front wheels to not control the tire. The end-result was a vibration that felt the same as an out-of-balance tire. Just about any front-end component with excessive play can do this, but checking the ball joints is a good place to start. I don't believe the car is overly sensitive to tire balance now.