Can anyone help?
I have a beautiful 1998 MK4 LS400, which I bought 4 years ago from Lexus Nottingham, with just 22,000 miles on the clock. However, on my very first motorway journey, about a week after purchase, I noticed a trembling vibration travelling through the car and immediately suspected that the wheels needed balancing. I had all the wheels balanced the next day but still no improvement, so I had them balance again at a different garage and again, no joy.
The following week, I took the car back to Lexus where it was inspected for steering or suspension problems. The dealer said that there were no mechanical problems with the car and that the only thing that can explain the vibration is tyre imbalance, so I had them balance all 5-wheels again – still no improvement. I took the car to another Lexus dealer - Bromley in London - and begged for their help but all they could say was that I should not be driving at speeds of 85-95mph. They balanced the wheels but still no different. I was getting desperate now so I decided to change all 5 perfectly good tyres and bought the best high-speed-rated Pirelli tyres I could afford – still no improvement.
After years of balancing and re-balancing (more than £1,000 spent, inclusive of tyres) I was still non-the-wiser as to what could be causing this vibration. Fortunately, about 18-months ago, my need to commute back and forth from London to Manchester ceased following a change of jobs and for the first time since buying the car, I really began to appreciate the Lexus driving experience, albeit at speeds of 50mph or less. I was in love, totally in love and swore that I would do whatever is necessary to rectify this problem. Only problem is, almost 2 more years on and another £1,250 on new tyres and countless balancing, I still have exactly the same problem – no better and no worse?
For those who may think I am being particularly fussy, every front seat passenger in my car to date (when travelling between 85-95mph) have all complained about this juddering through the car. Please someone help me, I have no where else to go and Lexus have disowned me (except for when it come to taking money off me for servicing).
Regards to all,
Sam
