Steering Wheel Shake

Moose111 · March 30, 2015

Just wondered if anyone out there has had the same fault I have on my is200 03 plate.The steering wheel has started to vibrate quiet violently intermittently.There appears to be no pattern as to when fault occurs.First started at approx 60mph and could drive through it..Now getting worse and occurs from approx 30mph up to 60..Car does not pull to either side.There are no unusual noises.Thought it was the old tyres.Had 4 brand new tyres fitted Saturday and balanced..Still occurs.Power steering fluid appears ok and checked all belts .The very strange thing is that it will occur very often but then when I turn round and drive the same road under the same conditions it can be ok.Spent 5 hours yesterday in the rain swoping tyres.removing belts checking suspension and road testing .The feel of the pas is good,does not go heavy or light.Fault can occur with air con on or off ,thought a.c. or other pulleys may be tight or seizing.Fault occurs when engine is hot or cold..Engine and gearbox all good.No other work been done on car.Suspension and brakes all good.Thought I knew but about cars but never known steering wheel to shake very violently between 1 to 2 inches then when slow down for few minutes or leave engine to idle and set off again fault can go for next 10 miles or so.Sorry to go but am just hoping somebody has come across this before and can advise.At the moment I can only guess fault is in the rack.There is no play in steering components or .suspension.Thanks to anyone reading this in the first place.and any replies are greatly appreciated..Even to sell the car..Only has 45000 miles on is in excellent condition.Is the 2litre automatic..Thanks again.

Ithought · March 30, 2015

I've got a 2003 GS300 sport, had the same story. Replaced all tyres, got worse. In so far as it was intermitant I figured it might be front brake related so I shopped around and bought new front discs and pads (less than 90 euro at http://www.mister-auto.ie), fitted them, and it's perfect. Worth a shot at the price.

Gerry

Wexford

is200 Newbie · March 30, 2015

At a guess I would say that your front discs are warped

Moose111 · March 30, 2015

Thanks for thoughts but fault occurs when driving.There is no judder felt through brake pedal even when braking..fault occurs when hot or cold .the very strange thing is that the fault is intermittent.can come and go throughout a journey.Thanks once again, gnt

cjg85 · April 20, 2015

You wouldnt feel the warp through the brake peddle only through the steering wheel so id start there to be honest. I had the same on my celica and my is200 had just done it so changed pads and disc on front problem solved!

janner · August 9, 2015

hi. Ive just bought an is 200 sport and had the same issue. Had it serviced and its warped brake discs causing issue, no idea if this is a common occurrence. A pity the dealer (Plympton car centre) has a warranty so crap it more or less only covers the cigarette lighter, so gonna have to pay for that to be done :(

ChrisIS200SportTTE · August 9, 2015

Discs dont just warp. Something causes them to warp. Normally sticking front brake callipers. It's a very very common issue.

If you replace warped discs but don't find the underlying cause such as a sticking calliper that's causing them to warp then you'll end up with the same problem in a few thousand miles or less.

Connoisseur · August 10, 2015

hi. Ive just bought an is 200 sport and had the same issue. Had it serviced and its warped brake discs causing issue, no idea if this is a common occurrence. A pity the dealer (Plympton car centre) has a warranty so crap it more or less only covers the cigarette lighter, so gonna have to pay for that to be done :(

If you have just bought the car then, by law the Dealer you bought from is responsible for sorting your disc problem, not you (for up to 6 months after purchase). The Sale of Goods Act covers this. Obviously all will be relative to the price paid but warped discs on a just sold car are down to the Dealer, not you. Worth taking the car back and asking them to sort...........

For full details do a web search on car purchase and sale of goods act.........

hth

janner · August 10, 2015

Is that true? Oh cool! however relations between myself and the garage broke down so bad the fella wont even speak to me!!! Never ever dealt with a car dealer so bad before. I think I will have to do some research but the last thing i want to do is to face the dealer at present, the rudest person i have ever met, no idea why he is still in business

Connoisseur · August 10, 2015

Have a read here http://www.tradingstandards.uk/advice/problemswithvehicles-sum6.cfm

janner · August 10, 2015

Have a read here http://www.tradingstandards.uk/advice/problemswithvehicles-sum6.cfm

Thanks thats handy info. So it seems the law is on my side however there is no way the dealer will do the work. Am already 100 down by having a collapsed shock replaced (2 days after i got the car). There are a couple of noises when going over bumps which i presume are lower suspension mountings that need replacing and of course the discs issue. Hes already said he wont do it, so any idea what to do now or would i be flogging a dead horse with the legal route?

janner · August 10, 2015

BTW had a long chat with the CAB and trading standards today. It seems i have to write a letter detailing everything and tell them i will take it to my regular garage to fix and then bill them, but whats the likelihood they will pay up something that could run into hundreds, and seems i would have to take them to court to get them to pay! So they sell me a car with dodgy brake discs and therefore possibly dodgy calipers, a leaking shock absorber, and possibly faults ABS. I have to pay for that after spending 2800 on the car? Any thoughts anyone?

Connoisseur · August 11, 2015

if the Dealer has not been around long then that is one thing; if he has been in business a long time then he could give in w'out too much fuss because the cost/hassle of not doing so could be high.

Either way, you could:

1. lodge a formal complaint with trading standards as it is then on their records

2. speak nicely to the guy and ask him again to replace the discs - if he still says no then go to your local newspaper and radio with the story

3. write a blog about your experiences and put it on the web - then send him a link ;)

hth

janner · August 11, 2015

All good ideas but I dont want this car to end up being a "bad taste in the mouth" so to speak. I wrote a truthful but harsh review on the Plympton car sales facebook page but for some reason they took it down! I have spoken to Plymouth trading standards, they think there is a case for prosecution but the fella that deals with it isn't in until next monday! As far as speaking with the fella, that totally out of the window. I have never dealt with such an awful car dealer

is200 Newbie · August 12, 2015

Sometimes its just better to learn by your mistakes and cut your losses - not saying that it makes anything better but consider the hassle / stress you are going through..... it may be better to just accept it happened - learn the lesson in this case and move on to repair the car yourself.

I have learned that what goes around comes around.

If its a daily runner then it would make sense to get it done asap

You will need to face the guy at some point if you take it to him to repair - would you trust him to do a satisfactory job, I wouldn't

janner · August 12, 2015

Hi, yes, to be honest with you, I may have to. Its already spoilt it, the fact that, I'm not a wealthy fella, but every time I got a commission cheque from work, i put a bit away, and thus saved up for it, so a bit of anti climax really, not with the car, LOVE it but I'm sure you can agree, getting bad service from anywhere, and being able to do nothing about it, is somewhat frustrating!

So as far as i can see, i have to pay about another 300 quid for the cambelt, 150 to 200 for new discs, and whatever its going to cost to fix the oil leak and the suspension! :( oh well!

is200 Newbie · August 12, 2015

Totally agree with you ... been through it with a previous car (Vauxhall) and to be honest I got nowhere so took it on the chin. A year later when it developed the same fault after vx told me there was no issue at all with it I managed to px it at the Vauxhall dealer I bought it from and it was then that I bought my first lexus which was a 200 by the way (the vx was knackered - engine valves had gone, using oil by the jug load but ran fine, so as I said in the first post what goes around ....). A few faults with the Lex when I bought it it but I prioritized the repairs needed and got them done. Looking back - yes it was worth it and it was one of the best cars I have had.

brake discs are very easy - if you have the space you can do these yourself to save labour costs - cost will be around £80 approx. for the discs and another 20 for the pads. Job will take an hour if that max.. I also had my cam belt done (by Lexus) but I managed to get the price reduced. Thought it was cheeky at the time asking for them to reduce the price but they did. One tip if you are getting it done. Get the other belts done at the same time as they need to come off to replace the cam belt anyway and for the price of the part only then its well worth it.

100k is the typical realistic interval to change the cam belt or 6 years. I had mine changed at 8 years and 90k miles. The belt was returned and looked fine.

If the cars been looked after then it will do you fine

IS200D · August 13, 2015

Sometimes its just better to learn by your mistakes and cut your losses - not saying that it makes anything better but consider the hassle / stress you are going through..... it may be better to just accept it happened - learn the lesson in this case and move on to repair the car yourself.

I have learned that what goes around comes around.

If its a daily runner then it would make sense to get it done asap

You will need to face the guy at some point if you take it to him to repair - would you trust him to do a satisfactory job, I wouldn't

I agree, its all very well having the law behind you, but if the dealer is in any way dodgy it makes for a bigger headache.

In my case, I was lucky I was dealing with a big company (possibly biggest dealer in UK), so had it relatively easy. As well as getting new Lexus discs and pads fitted at their in house garage, my coolant pump got replaced at Lexus.

If you do pursue him, I'd say you want to have it repaired at an independant garage - because you don't trust him to do a good job based upon your experience. Main thing is be polite at all times, but be firm about what you want done.

janner · August 13, 2015

Thanks for the replies. Well legally, I'm not sure where I stand. I have to wait until next week when the trading standards fella is back of holiday (!) but ive been told what to do but I don't think Plympton Car centre are going to play ball, and hell, I don't want to deal with the boss who is a nasty piece of work. I may have to take it on the chin and just spend more money on the car which i didn't plan for! Oh well, still a great car but after spending a fair bit buying it as i thought it was a good one, its a damn shame that a garage offers a warranty and doesnt honour it!