I have 2002 SC430 with an annoying vibration through the seat/chassis at 60mph but she's smooth at 55 and slower and at 65+ mph ? Things I have tried so far ...
wheel balance
wheel alignment
2 rims rerolled that were out of round
bushes and suspension all checked
moved wheel positions front to back etc
Thinking now maybe driveshaft or uni joints ? or new tires but that's an expensive exercise !!
Here's the deal:
1. My 2002 SC430 with 23,000 miles on it is making a low rubbing noise when slowing down, with a slight vibration, not severe enough, but it is annoying and frankly surprising on this car. The dealer tells me it's because the brakes have "glaze" on them, and short of a new brake job, you can jam on the brakes to clear or loosen some of this and reduce the noise. ( I live in the desert so I'm sure I could find a deserted stretch or road for this craziness...) The dealer reports the brakes have 70 - 80 percent life on them and I don't need a brake job.
2. Power steering. I thought this particular car was just hard to steer, but even the tech at the dealer commented it's like I have no power steering. I test drove two other cars, and the steering is markedly lighter on the other two SC430's I drove. (2002 and 2005) Dealer can't seem to find an explanation, but I have to drive this car with two hands around town... I know this is not the way this car was intended to feel.
I don't believe the car changed that much from the 2002 model so as to affect the steering. BTW, I'm using stock tires, not run flat, 4 months old. And the steering is stiff at idle anyway, regardless of tires. The first SC I drove, which sealed the decision to buy one, was so quiet I didn't know the engine was running, easy to steer, and smooth.
I just purchased my 2003 sc it has 78000 miles on it and I am not sure if im running rf's in the rear and non rf's in the front. I know the ones in the rear are very different looking they are s800 bct's , and the front they are continentals. Anyway how can i tell between a run flat tire and a non run flat tire??
Do they look different in appearance? All i know is that sucker vibrates damn good at around 55-68 mph. should i get a wheel balance?There is no spare in the trunk and the tires look brand new.
Car has this vibration for the first mile or so. After that it smooths out to nothing. don't hear anything on corners, no metal on metal ( I know they are pressed in bearings sealed).
New rubber, fresh alignment, balanced wheels. Anyway, I can't tell what wheel it is coming from. What would cause a good vibration for a short period of time? Is this the start of wheel bearings? If so, how do you figure out what corner?
I took my car to a mechanic the other day to get the spark plugs change. Then I notice when I turn my car on my seats starts to vibrate when in idle. Is this normal cuz the mechanic says this is normal and that every car vibrates just a little. I read some where it could be the mounts but someone on here told me they not because it doesn't shake my seats just vibrates if I seat there I can feel the seats vibrating on and off its not crazy bad vibrate. It's a minor vibration. I was hoping for no vibration what so ever like sitting in on my leather couch in my living room. Mine is a old model 2002.
View 3 RepliesNoticed a slight vibration from my engine at idle. Nothing too overbearing but just had a concern. How much should I expect if the engine mounts need replacement? Parts? Labor?
View 11 Replies1) Where to find a driver's lower fuse panel in cabin fuse cover/kick space left side, near brake?
2) I have a slight intermittent magic fingers kind of idle. I changed spark plugs, no diff, have been using Techron, timing belt replaced, etc.
I have noticed that when pressing on the brakes at 50 MPH and higher my steering wheel starts vibrating and it feels like the car is being tugged a little to the left. This started a couple of weeks ago, what might be causing this?
View 14 Repliesjust bought a 2002 lexus sc430 the car is nice but i have been reading in regards to the throttle lag. Any resolution for this. I've read that the apexi or blitz trottle control is an option to work with the lag.
View 14 RepliesMy brake light and ABS lights appeared today on my '02 SC430. What this might mean and the solution?
View 4 RepliesNoticed the antenna did not go all the way down. It will also not go up. When I turn the radio off the motor grinds for few seconds but the antenna does not go all the way down. Mast problems? Any links how to fix it?
View 14 RepliesOn my 2002 SC with 51K miles, the front end is squeaking. BTW, shocks are good...
View 6 RepliesMy check engine light came on.. so I took it to express tires.. And they said that they need to replace my vacuum hoses cause it busted ... well when I saw the guy used the obd checker thing.. after checking the codes.. i saw that when u turned on the engine.. the vsc on and vcs off lights came on..
So I figured after he fixed the problem.. it will go off.. well after he got done.. fixing the problem.. I drove away.. after bout like 2min.. i had to turn around cause the vsc on and vsc off came on.. and I told the guy to check.. And he used his checker.. and there was no problem.. and the "check engine" light is not on anymore.. just the vsc on and vsc off!!
Could the checker.. messed it up??? the vsc off button.. only works when the key is turned on.. " not when the engine started but right before it.. when the power comes on" so the button is working correctly.. it just comes on.. when i start driving the car...
And no they did not check my tire pressure or do anything to the tires or the wheels.. it just turned on.. when he inserted the obd thing to check..
And yes I read the [URL] .....
Is it dangerous to be driving with the vsc and vsc off light on??
I recently got into my 2002 SC430 and could not shift the car out of park. In addition, another symptom was that when I pressed the brake pedal, my rear brake lights would either come on momentarily and then turn off (looked like a strobe-light effect), OR the rear brake lights would not come on at all (the taillights, however, continued to function).
The only way to get around this issue was to use the manual override (by taking out the little plastic tab on the shifter and using a screw driver to press the hidden button, which would momentarily override and let me shift).
After much research, I found out that my Brake Switch/Sensor was failing (this is what tells the car's computer that you're pressing the brake pedal, and thus allowing you to shift out of Park). Unfortunately, I don't have the model number handy.
My non-Lexus mechanic charged me $100 (parts and labor) to replace the Brake Switch/Sensor. I'm not sure how much the actual part cost, but it couldn't have been much. It's a very scary feeling when you need to drive somewhere quick and you cannot shift out of Park.
I had to replace the ECU on my 2002 sc430. Although the original ECU was malfunctioningthe car started and was drivable (but the speedometer and odometer did not work, nor did the power steering). Following installing a used ECU, the car will now not start. I reset the ECU following the directions posted by others in this forum (both the gas pedal method and removing the fuses), but that has not fixed the problem. Do I need to have the dealer sync the key to the new ECU?
View 6 RepliesI have a 2002 SC 430 with 68,000 miles on it. Having problems with the transmission? Today, I could not go forward in any gear...could go in reverse. I turned off the ignition and re-started the engine, then the car worked fine.
Tonight I went out and the car was fine. However, later had the same problem.
I just purchased a 2002 sc430 and the steering was nice and solid. It needed new tires, so I purchased them at tire kingdom. they told me I needed a steering flush (lexus did as well at my oil change) so I to0ld them to do the flush. When I got my car back, the steering was so flaty, I have to keep my hand on the wheel all the time, they gave me an upgraded tire, to the falken, felt a little smoother but still floaty. brought it to lexus, they said it was the tires. the rear needed 255 and front 245. they upgraded the tires again and I still have the floating steering wheel.
View 3 RepliesThis week I began experiencing operational problems with the mark levinson stereo and I'm looking for a logical next step to resolve
1). I cannot adjust the volume either from the volume **** or from the steering wheel. I have volume I just cannot adjust it.
2). I cannot eject any of the CDs. I can play them.
3). Tapping the tuner **** should take you into stereo setup where you adjust bass, tremble, fade etc. when I tap it there is no response.
I can tune the radio fine. I can play the CDs fine. It does not appear to be fuse related
I called a car stereo guy who rebuilt my dried out speakers today and he suggested disconnecting the negative battery connection and touching the positive connection and that might reset it. That sounds scary to me and I do not want to harm any other components (or me!) by trying this. Any logical next step to resolving??
I am the original owner and all these symptoms happened at once and started after car sat in garage for a week. It has a new battery installed last year and shows no sign of a weak battery
Recently purchased an 2002 SC430 and have an error on Navigation System which states the following...
DVD
UNABLE TO READ DATA
CHECK IF MAP DVD IS CORRECT
Dealer thinks it an internal failure at navigation ECU. Estimate for repair $1,256.00 OUCH..
I'm having some trouble regulating the cabin temp in my 2002 SC430. It's cold outside here in Atlanta (in the 30's in the morning) and for some reason even when I have the temp set on 66 (not in auto mode) the cabin gets really hot! If I drop it to 65 the AC comes on. It's just weird.
Not sure where the temp sensor is located (will check the manual for that) but having a problem regulating the cabin temp. If put it the auto mode -- it ramps the fan up to high and cooks us all inside the car.
What is the location of the Thermostat the for 2002 SC430. Any pictures and/or diagrams ....
View 1 Replies