amol_pat

Hi everybody,

I just had my front struts and springs replaced on my 95 ES300 from a mechanic. I have not had it aligned yet. Whenever I take sharp turns (e.g. getting out of the driveway etc.), there is a humming kind of noise from the power steering as I turn. I hear the noise only when I am turning the wheels. I had never heard this noise before the struts/springs were replaced. The car is definitely unaligned since it slightly pulls toward the right side. Power steering fluid level is normal.

Can some expert suggest what the problem could be? Will 4 wheel alignment help?

thanks,

AP

Hey all first time poster here. I'm afraid I don't know much about cars, so I can use some serious help.

I've got a 1994 es300. I love my car. She's awesome, I call her Lexi and she has 132,000 miles on her. I want her to run another 132,000. For 4 years, there have been few problems. Only really had to replace the tires and work on the brakes, but since before thanksgiving, it occasionally will not start. After a visit to the mechanic, they couldn't find a problem, suggesting that the quality of the fuel (this was during the gas price hike) may be the problem.

Shortly thereafter (Late December), the check engine light came on, and they had to replace an oxygen sensor and some mounting bar for the engine. They also said that the fuel filter needed replacing (at exactly 50,000 miles gotta love this car's engineering), and that may have been the problem.

Well, today, it happened again. Took me 5 tries but it finally started. If it helps, It was literally 19 degrees and snowing last week, and now it is 70. Maybe some condensation in the fuel line?

Hope I was descriptive enough, has anyone seen the same thing in their early model es300?

I believe autozone does a free battery/alternator/charger check up.. you may try that..

I just changed my tires on 95 es300. michelin all season..made a lot of difference in the ride.. springs/struts are next.. I looked up the parts on rockauto.com

amol pat,

You may be absolutely correct about your tires. The two things you don't want to ignore on a car are the tires and the brakes. You can forget just about every other system on a vehicle to some extent, but if you can't stop the car once its moving you are in for a whole lot of pain. Good Luck!

gbhrps,

I agree with you completely. Thanks again for your reply..

amol_pat,

From what you describe I would think that it may be time to rebleed each of the calipers. You may have a small amount of air somewhere in the lines. If rebleeding doesn't cure what you think is a problem, it may well be that you don't have one, and that everything is normal. I've owned a lot of cars over the years, and done a lot of brake jobs. And everyone of them has a different feel at the pedal.

If you're still convinced you have a problem, take to a mechanic and have it checked out. Good Luck!

Gbhrps,

Thanks a bunch for your input. I will bleed the calipers over the weekend.. Interestingly, I replaced all four tires yesterday (after 50,000 miles) and went on the highway for a few miles and noticed that braking was better.. may be my old bald tires did not have that much traction and I needed to press harder to make them stop?

Hi,

I own a 1995 Es 300 with 130,000 miles on it. Couple of years ago, I had soft brake pedal issue and it turned out to be faulty master cylinder. I got it replaced then and things have been fine. I also changed the brake pads and the rotors at the same time. However, I have noticed one difference since then. Whenever I am driving at lower speeds (<55 mph), braking is really good, i.e. whenever I press on the brake pedal, car starts slowing down right away. But when I am driving at high speeds, I have noticed I have to press the pedal further down (at least 30% more) to see any noticeable slowing down. It does brake fine. I did not bother to pay much attention to it until now since my going on highways was always less then 20 miles; that too once a week. I recently decided to keep the car since it drives well otherwise and I just don't feel like starting another monthly payment. I am planning to move in a couple of months and drive approx 1000 miles in it. I don't want any mishaps on the road! :-) So I am wondering if there is anything I could do to fix this problem?

Brake fluid level is normal.

Any input is appreciated.

1995 Lexus ES300 purchased at the local lexus dealer for $8500 in Jan 2003. had 83,000 miles then. Now it has 121,000 miles.

It was a one owner car and everything was working.. I had 3 months warranty.

Most of the work on my car is done by a mechanic I know (he does this as an evening job). He works for a garage during the daytime.

So ofcourse the labor is way cheaper than the dealer 'hourly' charges. I don't think even a physician's hourly charges are not so much to repair a human body!

I have changed both CV joints, brake pads, rotors, master cylinder, A/C evaporator valve, replaced all the belts including timing belt and water pump, rear shocks, valve cover gasket (thanks to the oil change place that put extra oil), spark plugs, oxygen sensors, engine mounts, ABS speed sensor.

Most of this work was done as preventative except the A/C valve and the valve cover gasket.

I am planning to keep the car for another 2 years.

It seems like it will easily last..

-A

After a lot of phone calls, I found the sensor at the local junk yard... it was a camry part. It did not fit in the hole easily; so I had to shave off some of the plastic at the base of the sensor and finally it went in.. THE ABS LIGHT IS GONE!!!! whew!

thanks for the replies..

-A

Dear Members,

I own a 1995 lexus ES300 and had my CV joint replaced recently. I have now realized that the ABS speed sensor is damaged and should be replaced. I don't want to spend on a new sensor (costs more than $100). So I searched for a used lexus part at junk yards but no luck.. I was wondering if a used Camry part would work? If so which years?

Any suggestions are appreciated..

-A

I found a site that sells them, as I am in the same boat.

Although it doesnt say what model or year they are for, under description it just says ABS Speed Sensors for Lexus/Toyota. I just assumed that the ABS systems are all the same, and the type of car would not matter...

They are $22 Sensor and wiring...

Thanks for letting me know.. I have been checking through various websites and it seems like the part number is same for the same year Toyota Camry V6 model. I don't get the impression that the part is same for all the years though.. The lowest price I have seen is $98.00.. Can you please tell me the website you looked at? The cost seems a lot lesser there..

thanks,

-A

Dear Members,

I own a 1995 lexus ES300 and had my CV joint replaced recently. I have now realized that the ABS speed sensor is damaged and should be replaced. I don't want to spend on a new sensor (costs more than $100). So I searched for a used lexus part at junk yards but no luck.. I was wondering if a used Camry part would work? If so which years?

Any suggestions are appreciated..

-A

the rule of thumb is ABS would not work when the light is on. this is to avoid any faulty airbag deployments.

Thank you both homemechanic and mehullica... I really appreciate your help!

I will look for a sensor now!

-A

Dear members,

I own a 1995 ES 300 and got my CV joint changed today. My ABS light is on. After doing a little search on the net, I realized that the ring around the sensor in the new joint may be the problem. So I asked my mechanic to replace the ring with the old ring. Still the problem persists! The sensor or the wires don't look damaged..

Any suggestions?

Also does the ABS work without a signal from one of the wheels?

thanks!

-A

Dear members,

I got my CV joint changed today and my ABS light is on. After doing a little search on the net, I realized that the ring around the sensor in the new joint may be the problem. So I asked my mechanic to replace the ring with the old ring. Still the problem persists!

Any suggestions?

Also does the ABS work without a signal from one of the wheels?

thanks!

-A