Vibration and steering problems

[Btdub1]

Hello all-
I purchased a 2003 gx470 in May and everything is great so far except a vibration problem. The truck came with a new 2” old man emu lift and new trd wheels with bf Goodrich k02s. Not sure where I should start to figure out the problem. It starts getting a vibration or light shake at maybe 30mph. And it gets a little worse at higher speeds. It also feels like it jerks around a bit. Any advice is much appreciated

 

[Btdub1]

They also said a new sway bar was installed. Not sure if that came with the lift or not. Also the tires are just under 32”

 

[Toyoland66]

Start with an alignment, jerky steering is a symptom of low caster

 

[Btdub1]

Ok thanks

 

[vipergrhd]

I would get the front end inspected including hub bearings for play from there have the tires balance and check for any wheel damage. Make sure the lug nuts use are for the correct wheels too.

 

[Btdub1]

Ok thank you

 

[GXDude]

Verify you have extended thread lugnuts - too often i see toyotas with standard lugs and its NOT correct.
if you're in southern cal, call in and bring it to any ORW for an inspection, theyll get to the bottom it!

 

[Btdub1]

I’m in Arizona. How do I know if it’s the correct lugs? They are not stock wheels. TRD wheels. Also, should I be considering a slip yoke eliminator? It has a 2” lift and about an inch of tire lift i think.

 

[Toyoland66]

Slip yoke eliminators are a Jeep thing. The slip yoke on your GX is already in the driveshaft.

some pics would help, TRD wheels should take the stock lug nuts but it depends on which wheel you have.

like others are saying, start with simple and most likely and drill down from there. Alignment, tires balanced, check wheel bearings and other front end components like tie rod ends and bushings, CVS, U joints. Vibrations are pretty hard to diagnose over the internet without very detailed information.

 

[Btdub1]

thank you for the explanation. I will start there and see what I find. Thanks everyone

 

[GXDude]

yea on TRD wheels theyll be stock - unless theyre the FN wheels ones. In which case, they look like : What is an ET style lug nut?

basically, about an extra ~1/4" worth of thread on the lug itself.

 

[Btdub1]

Hey everyone, just got a couple checks done on the GX. Wheels were out of balance so that was fixed. Then took it to the alignment shop and they said the front control arm bushings are bad. Would this cause a vibration/shaking problem? Also, how difficult are these to swap out? The shop said the bushings aren’t made so the entire arm needs to be replaced. They quoted me at 1700$ For parts, labor and an alignment

 

[Toyoland66]

Moog sells bushings for both upper and lower control arms, you didn’t say which is bad. Swapping just the bushings can be tough depending on how rusty they are, they tend to seize up inside the arms.

Moog also sells complete lower control arms with the ball joint installed, swapping the entire arm is probably 1-1.5 hr per side Depending on how difficult the ball joint is, the piece that the ball joint mounts to (not sure what it’s called) is attached to the knuckle with 2 bolts, so you can take the entire control arm assembly out of the car to swap that piece.

If it’s your upper control arms then you should consider going aftermarket for improved caster.

ETA these parts are also available OEM, the only thing I am aware of that you can’t buy separate and have to buy an entire arm for Are the ball joints

FRONT AXLE ARM & STEERING KNUCKLE | Lexus LEXUS GX470 UZJ120L-GKAZKA UZJ120 | Parts Catalogs | PartSouq

If you are looking for FRONT AXLE ARM & STEERING KNUCKLE Parts for Lexus LEXUS GX470 UZJ120L-GKAZKA UZJ120 then we advise you to pay attention to the range of our spare parts catalog for Lexus!

partsouq.com

 

[Btdub1]

Thank you for that info. It is the lower arm bushings. I watched a couple videos of removing and installing the lower arm and it looks pretty straight forward. Should I pull it out and see if I can get the bushing ms out before I buy parts? I would rather just do the bushings if there isn’t a reason to reuse the original arm. Also I read previous posts and they are saying to swap the ball joint at as well. Are you saying I would have to buy a whole new arm with ball joint unit attached already?

 

[GXDude]

lower arm bushing will 100% cause a shaking. i went thru 3 sets of LCAs haha.

Bushings are obtainable, its a WAY easier process to replace the arm. you get bushings and balljoints so it makes it nice. Personally, after having blown 3 sets of Moog lowers, id recommend OEM or aftrmarket which is a LOT more money. if you go the bushing route, ive always found it easier to burn the old bushings out using a torch vs pressing them. tends to run a lot smoother....and ive done several haha

 

[GXDude]

small tip;
www.oemvehicleparts.com

OEM toyota parts are dealer prices. Thank me later

 

[Btdub1]

I found a full front bushing set for 107$ by energy suspension. Is there any reason besides the hassle of swapping bushings that I shouldnt use the original arms? I would rather save the money and do the extra work if it doesn’t matter. I read someone’s post that they paid 20$ for a shop to swap the bushing. Any truth to that?

 

[Toyoland66]

small tip;
www.oemvehicleparts.com

OEM toyota parts are dealer prices. Thank me later

Search Results | OEM Vehicle Parts

www.oemvehicleparts.com

$300 per arm, partsouq has them for $245, but you are sending money to UAE and have to pay more shipping, up to you I guess, but I have ordered several times from partsouq

4806860010 right arm $245
4806960010 left arm $245
4862560010 ball joint attachment RH $39
4862660010 ball joint attachment LH $39
9017116050 castle nut x2 $4
9025203015 cotter pin x2 $2
9010516053 bolt x4 $7
Shipping is probably $100

That would replace all the parts with new OEM and you wouldn’t have to mess with pressing out the ball joint

I wouldn’t mess with energy suspension stuff IMO the OEM last a pretty long time and don’t squeak.

 

[Btdub1]

Has anyone tried Apache off-road? 570$ shipped

 

[Btdub1]

Well I just bought a pair of A1 lower arms. Comes with bushings and ball joints. Read plenty of good posts about them and only paid 211$ after tax and free shipping. I’ll keep the stock and rebuild them and will have backups all for less than one replacements. Hopefully it works out well. I really appreciate everyone’s input