Lexus GS 430 torque steer

[Enrique Quijano]

Hello everybody
I own a 2002 GS 430. I owned a GS300 before.The GS 430 is becoming a very
quaint car. Irritating. Driven at speed, up to 90 mph, it holds the road
reasonably well , as might be expected, but the steering is too vague and
lacks in sharpness.
Over 90 mph, let us say at 110 mph, the steering lacks precision, the car
seems twitchy , ESP kicks in ( on dry , straight , even roads), braking the
car, and it does not follow a straight track. With moderate wind, it veers
off and shudders, struggling to cope. Tha car suffers from torque steer, as
if the steering can not cope with all the power . I experienced something
similar with another previous car, a rear wheel drive 1986 204 bhp Ford
Sierra Cosworth .
Tyres are fine, camber and caster are fine, there is no imbalance on
either axle. It has standard Lexus-recommended 235 ZR, s. My dealer is
unhelpful.
Mercedes and BMWŽs pass me with apparent ease at 120 mph, while I am
struggling to keep the damned car on the road. This was made to be an
executive car, with a big engine. So are Mercedes and Audis. And before you
jump to any conclusions on my driving abilities, I have over one million
miles under my belt, mostly on fast cars.
My GS 300 was fetter better composed, precise and predictable than this.It
is sorely missed.
Has anyone experienced this? Any suggestions? Why is the steering so dead?
. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.
Thanks for your time and interest.

[ACAR]

On Mar 28, 12:21 pm, "Enrique Quijano" <***@skynet.be>
wrote:
  Any suggestions?

Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.

Why is the steering so dead?

'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS  300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time  and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

[Enrique Quijano]

ACAR
Thank you for your answer.
It has been most unhelpful.

Contrary to what you dismissively assert, not all Lexus have dead
steering. My GS was a lively car which kept you in touch with the road,
instead of insulating you from it . I kept it for 8 years and over 90.000
miles. It never failed to deliver on good ride and performance.
And yes, I did test drive the GS 430. My father taught me to test drive
cars prior to purchasing them, along with many other things, like toe and
heel shifting, fast mountain road driving, and passed on to me an overall
interest in all things automotive.I just did not drive it up on my test
drive to 120 mph.As I said, it had an acceptable ride up to 90 mph. I
assumed, wrongly, that it would be an improved version of the GS 300.
He also taught me to be polite to strangers, something your own father
obviously failed to do with you.
And my tyres are not "junk", even though you seem to know better, which,
obviously, you donŽt.
And I live in Europe. There is no such thing as Tire Rack here.Not that I
would need it, anyway.


"ACAR" <***@gmail.com> escribi� en el mensaje news:6cb5e64f-91ee-4f6e-89bd-***@w40g2000yqd.googlegroups.com...
On Mar 28, 12:21 pm, "Enrique Quijano" <***@skynet.be>
wrote:
Any suggestions?

Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.

Why is the steering so dead?

'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

[OldMan]

I wasn't going to reply until I saw the unhelpful post
I had a 1998 400 with some 90k miles I saw none of your symptoms, up to
140mph
Generally, I would expect such symptoms to be with worn bushes, or shocks,
on the front end.
You stated toe in & camber was correct, was this checked at a reliable
workshop?
The first thing I did on purchase was to have these checked, and adjusted,
as tyre wear led me to suspect a problem
Braking from high speed exhibited no problems, even prior to having the
disks replaced
ESP never kicked in except in wet/bad conditions
This side of the pond my local Lexus is most helpfull, even with an old
model not supplied by them
Where are you located?
I disposed of my LS400 & purchased an MB S Class - seriously bad move!

Post by Enrique Quijano
ACAR
Thank you for your answer.
It has been most unhelpful.
Contrary to what you dismissively assert, not all Lexus have dead
steering. My GS was a lively car which kept you in touch with the road,
instead of insulating you from it . I kept it for 8 years and over 90.000
miles. It never failed to deliver on good ride and performance.
And yes, I did test drive the GS 430. My father taught me to test drive
cars prior to purchasing them, along with many other things, like toe and
heel shifting, fast mountain road driving, and passed on to me an
overall interest in all things automotive.I just did not drive it up on
my test drive to 120 mph.As I said, it had an acceptable ride up to 90
mph. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be an improved version of the GS
300.
He also taught me to be polite to strangers, something your own father
obviously failed to do with you.
And my tyres are not "junk", even though you seem to know better,
which, obviously, you donŽt.
And I live in Europe. There is no such thing as Tire Rack here.Not that I
would need it, anyway.
Any suggestions?
Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.
Why is the steering so dead?
'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

[Enrique Quijano]

Hi.
Thanks for your answer.
It is probably a suspension problem, I will eventually have to take it down
to a reliable mechanic, all the wheel alignment and camber/caster work was
done at a tyre shop around the corner, and in my experience one usually
comes across more incompetent mechanics tah one does good ones, the hitch
with Lexus being people usually drive them in a leisurely way and these
glitches rarely, if ever, crop up.
This is a second hand car, I, unfortunately, crashed the GS 300, nothing to
do with reckless driving or excessive speed. The car probably saved my
life, but a new GS 430 was way out of my then financial limit, and I settled
for this. I have this sinking feeling it has been involved in a major crash
and put back together shodilly, although my enquiries have so far run up
against a blank wall.
I live in Brussels, Belgium. I am from Spain. All those high speeds are
somehow common around here, although the law is becoming more and more of a
nuisance.
I?d be delighted to hear from your MB experience. I always assumed they were
good cars, and used S class go here for a song, what with the crisis and
all. But, I remember this German guy I crossed at a gas station , he was
driving a MB 500, I was on a Saab 9000 turbo, considering a Lexus, Saabs
are the stuff of nightmares, and the fellow told me Lexus was far better
then MB and he was trading his for a Lexus GA 300 shortly.
What went wrong with yours?
Cheers
Enrique Quijano

----- Original Message -----
From: "OldMan" <***@spoofmail.nothere>
Newsgroups: alt.autos.lexus
Sent: Tuesday, March 31, 2009 1:38 AM
Subject: Re: Lexus GS 430 torque steer

Post by OldMan
I wasn't going to reply until I saw the unhelpful post
I had a 1998 400 with some 90k miles I saw none of your symptoms, up to
140mph
Generally, I would expect such symptoms to be with worn bushes, or shocks,
on the front end.
You stated toe in & camber was correct, was this checked at a reliable
workshop?
The first thing I did on purchase was to have these checked, and adjusted,
as tyre wear led me to suspect a problem
Braking from high speed exhibited no problems, even prior to having the
disks replaced
ESP never kicked in except in wet/bad conditions
This side of the pond my local Lexus is most helpfull, even with an old
model not supplied by them
Where are you located?
I disposed of my LS400 & purchased an MB S Class - seriously bad move!

Post by Enrique Quijano
ACAR
Thank you for your answer.
It has been most unhelpful.
Contrary to what you dismissively assert, not all Lexus have dead
steering. My GS was a lively car which kept you in touch with the road,
instead of insulating you from it . I kept it for 8 years and over 90.000
miles. It never failed to deliver on good ride and performance.
And yes, I did test drive the GS 430. My father taught me to test drive
cars prior to purchasing them, along with many other things, like toe
and heel shifting, fast mountain road driving, and passed on to me an
overall interest in all things automotive.I just did not drive it up on
my test drive to 120 mph.As I said, it had an acceptable ride up to 90
mph. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be an improved version of the GS
300.
He also taught me to be polite to strangers, something your own father
obviously failed to do with you.
And my tyres are not "junk", even though you seem to know better,
which, obviously, you donŽt.
And I live in Europe. There is no such thing as Tire Rack here.Not that I
would need it, anyway.
Any suggestions?
Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.
Why is the steering so dead?
'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

I wasn't going to reply until I saw the unhelpful post
I had a 1998 400 with some 90k miles I saw none of your symptoms, up to
140mph
Generally, I would expect such symptoms to be with worn bushes, or shocks,
on the front end.
You stated toe in & camber was correct, was this checked at a reliable
workshop?
The first thing I did on purchase was to have these checked, and adjusted,
as tyre wear led me to suspect a problem
Braking from high speed exhibited no problems, even prior to having the
disks replaced
ESP never kicked in except in wet/bad conditions
This side of the pond my local Lexus is most helpfull, even with an old
model not supplied by them
Where are you located?
I disposed of my LS400 & purchased an MB S Class - seriously bad move!

Post by Enrique Quijano
ACAR
Thank you for your answer.
It has been most unhelpful.
Contrary to what you dismissively assert, not all Lexus have dead
steering. My GS was a lively car which kept you in touch with the road,
instead of insulating you from it . I kept it for 8 years and over 90.000
miles. It never failed to deliver on good ride and performance.
And yes, I did test drive the GS 430. My father taught me to test drive
cars prior to purchasing them, along with many other things, like toe
and heel shifting, fast mountain road driving, and passed on to me an
overall interest in all things automotive.I just did not drive it up on
my test drive to 120 mph.As I said, it had an acceptable ride up to 90
mph. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be an improved version of the GS
300.
He also taught me to be polite to strangers, something your own father
obviously failed to do with you.
And my tyres are not "junk", even though you seem to know better,
which, obviously, you donŽt.
And I live in Europe. There is no such thing as Tire Rack here.Not that I
would need it, anyway.
Any suggestions?
Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.
Why is the steering so dead?
'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

[OldMan]

I'm in the UK; previously had MB 300TD E Class, from new, then a 220 CDI E
from new both had some 100k miles on them after 3 & 4 years whilst I had no
particular problems with the cars, but I found them an uncomfortable drive.
The only problems I had were with the MB UK dealers who charge extortionate
rates. In the end I used to pop over to France and had the car serviced at
the MB dealer there - really nice people & about third the price of UK, and
the MB guarantee was still valid.
I then bought the Lexus 400, as I dont do too many miles now. I had no
problem with the car, excepting I started to get a slight front end
vibration on braking, the workshop (Lexus specialist) said disks required
replacement. However next service the vibration was back, this time they
said disks were warped, and were replaced under warranty. - I'm not a heavy
on the brakes - coming up to the next service the vibration was back. So
since the car didnt actually have the full service history it was supposed
to have when I purchased it I part exchanged it for an 2003 S class 320cdi,
low mileage car, full MB history. The car is comfortable to drive, the Nav
system is not a patch on the Lexus sys, has some niggling probs in that
warnings keep on comming & going - nothing actually wrong - I had the torque
convertor fail within the first 1k miles, cost £2k approx, now taking seller
to court to recover costs
I'm given to understand that MB cars made after 2004 or so got there
reliability/ build quality back, after throwing out the accountants / cost
saving experts
good luck
PS A friend who has a business in Spain, for some years, tells me its really
grim out there now, business wise.

Post by Enrique Quijano
Hi.
Thanks for your answer.
It is probably a suspension problem, I will eventually have to take it down
to a reliable mechanic, all the wheel alignment and camber/caster work was
done at a tyre shop around the corner, and in my experience one usually
comes across more incompetent mechanics tah one does good ones, the hitch
with Lexus being people usually drive them in a leisurely way and these
glitches rarely, if ever, crop up.
This is a second hand car, I, unfortunately, crashed the GS 300, nothing to
do with reckless driving or excessive speed. The car probably saved my
life, but a new GS 430 was way out of my then financial limit, and I settled
for this. I have this sinking feeling it has been involved in a major crash
and put back together shodilly, although my enquiries have so far run up
against a blank wall.
I live in Brussels, Belgium. I am from Spain. All those high speeds are
somehow common around here, although the law is becoming more and more of a
nuisance.
I?d be delighted to hear from your MB experience. I always assumed they were
good cars, and used S class go here for a song, what with the crisis and
all. But, I remember this German guy I crossed at a gas station , he was
driving a MB 500, I was on a Saab 9000 turbo, considering a Lexus, Saabs
are the stuff of nightmares, and the fellow told me Lexus was far better
then MB and he was trading his for a Lexus GA 300 shortly.
What went wrong with yours?
Cheers
Enrique Quijano
----- Original Message -----
Newsgroups: alt.autos.lexus
Sent: Tuesday, March 31, 2009 1:38 AM
Subject: Re: Lexus GS 430 torque steer

Post by OldMan
I wasn't going to reply until I saw the unhelpful post
I had a 1998 400 with some 90k miles I saw none of your symptoms, up to
140mph
Generally, I would expect such symptoms to be with worn bushes, or
shocks, on the front end.
You stated toe in & camber was correct, was this checked at a reliable
workshop?
The first thing I did on purchase was to have these checked, and
adjusted, as tyre wear led me to suspect a problem
Braking from high speed exhibited no problems, even prior to having the
disks replaced
ESP never kicked in except in wet/bad conditions
This side of the pond my local Lexus is most helpfull, even with an old
model not supplied by them
Where are you located?
I disposed of my LS400 & purchased an MB S Class - seriously bad move!

Post by Enrique Quijano
ACAR
Thank you for your answer.
It has been most unhelpful.
Contrary to what you dismissively assert, not all Lexus have dead
steering. My GS was a lively car which kept you in touch with the road,
instead of insulating you from it . I kept it for 8 years and over
90.000 miles. It never failed to deliver on good ride and performance.
And yes, I did test drive the GS 430. My father taught me to test drive
cars prior to purchasing them, along with many other things, like toe
and heel shifting, fast mountain road driving, and passed on to me an
overall interest in all things automotive.I just did not drive it up on
my test drive to 120 mph.As I said, it had an acceptable ride up to 90
mph. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be an improved version of the GS
300.
He also taught me to be polite to strangers, something your own father
obviously failed to do with you.
And my tyres are not "junk", even though you seem to know better,
which, obviously, you donŽt.
And I live in Europe. There is no such thing as Tire Rack here.Not that
I would need it, anyway.
Any suggestions?
Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.
Why is the steering so dead?
'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

I wasn't going to reply until I saw the unhelpful post
I had a 1998 400 with some 90k miles I saw none of your symptoms, up to
140mph
Generally, I would expect such symptoms to be with worn bushes, or
shocks, on the front end.
You stated toe in & camber was correct, was this checked at a reliable
workshop?
The first thing I did on purchase was to have these checked, and
adjusted, as tyre wear led me to suspect a problem
Braking from high speed exhibited no problems, even prior to having the
disks replaced
ESP never kicked in except in wet/bad conditions
This side of the pond my local Lexus is most helpfull, even with an old
model not supplied by them
Where are you located?
I disposed of my LS400 & purchased an MB S Class - seriously bad move!

Post by Enrique Quijano
ACAR
Thank you for your answer.
It has been most unhelpful.
Contrary to what you dismissively assert, not all Lexus have dead
steering. My GS was a lively car which kept you in touch with the road,
instead of insulating you from it . I kept it for 8 years and over
90.000 miles. It never failed to deliver on good ride and performance.
And yes, I did test drive the GS 430. My father taught me to test drive
cars prior to purchasing them, along with many other things, like toe
and heel shifting, fast mountain road driving, and passed on to me an
overall interest in all things automotive.I just did not drive it up on
my test drive to 120 mph.As I said, it had an acceptable ride up to 90
mph. I assumed, wrongly, that it would be an improved version of the GS
300.
He also taught me to be polite to strangers, something your own father
obviously failed to do with you.
And my tyres are not "junk", even though you seem to know better,
which, obviously, you donŽt.
And I live in Europe. There is no such thing as Tire Rack here.Not that
I would need it, anyway.
Any suggestions?
Test drive a new GS. If it has the same problem, you probably won't be
able to fix it in your older one.
Why is the steering so dead?
'Cause it's a Lexus. Why'd you buy a car with dead steering?

. My own brother, with a 2006 GS 300 , complains of the same thing.

So your dad didn't teach you or your brother how to test drive a car
before you buy.

Thanks for your time and interest.

Despite your claim regarding tires, I suspect your tires are junk. Buy
a decent set from Tire Rack.

[j***@hotmail.com]

Sure, MB has some quality lapses, but they seem focused on solving
those. See the following Business Week report:
http://www.businessweek.com/autos/autobeat/archives/2007/06/mercedes_e_clas.html

That said, if unlike the Lexus IS (new cars) torque steer problem,
your GS started this later, then check the ball joints. Worn ball
joints can cause toe changes, and the results common to Lexus LS
wheels coming off can happen.

According to the discussions in Club Lexus, these weak ball joints are
common on the Lexus LS. See:

http://www.chrisandnat.com/projects/LexusBallJoint/BallJoint.htm
Loading Image...
Loading Image...

Post by OldMan
I'm in the UK; previously had MB 300TD E Class, from new, then a 220 CDI E
from new both had some 100k miles on them after 3 & 4 years whilst I had no
particular problems with the cars, but I found them an uncomfortable drive.
The only problems I had were with the MB UK dealers who charge extortionate
rates. In the end I used to pop over to France and had the car serviced at
the MB dealer there - really nice people & about third the price of UK, and
the MB guarantee was still valid.
I then bought the Lexus 400, as I dont do too many miles now. I had no
problem with the car, excepting I started to get a slight front end
vibration on braking, the workshop (Lexus specialist) said disks required
replacement. However next service the vibration was back, this time they
said disks were warped, and were replaced under warranty. - I'm not a heavy
on the brakes - coming up to the next service the vibration was back. So
since the car didnt actually have the full service history it was supposed
to have when I purchased it I part exchanged it for an 2003 S class 320cdi,
low mileage car, full MB history. The car is comfortable to drive, the Nav
system is not a patch on the Lexus sys, has some niggling probs in that
warnings keep on comming & going - nothing actually wrong - I had the torque
convertor fail within the first 1k miles, cost £2k approx, now taking seller
to court to recover costs
I'm given to understand that MB cars made after 2004 or so got there
reliability/ build quality back, after throwing out the accountants / cost
saving experts
good luck
PS A friend who has a business in Spain, for some years, tells me its really
grim out there now, business wise.

[greg]

Post by Enrique Quijano
Hello everybody
I own a 2002 GS 430. I owned a GS300 before.The GS 430 is becoming a very
quaint car. Irritating.  Driven at speed, up to 90 mph, it holds the road
reasonably well , as might be expected, but the steering is too vague and
lacks in sharpness.
Over 90 mph, let us say at 110  mph,  the steering lacks precision, the car
seems twitchy , ESP kicks in ( on dry , straight , even roads), braking the
car, and it does not follow a straight track.  With moderate wind, it veers
off and shudders, struggling to cope.  Tha car suffers from torque steer, as
if the steering can not cope with  all the power . I experienced something
similar with another previous car, a  rear wheel drive  1986  204 bhp Ford
Sierra Cosworth .
Tyres are fine, camber and caster are fine, there is no imbalance  on
either axle. It has standard Lexus-recommended 235 ZR, s. My dealer  is
unhelpful.
Mercedes and BMW´s pass me with  apparent ease at 120 mph, while I am
struggling to keep the damned car on the road. This was made to be an
executive car, with a big engine. So are Mercedes and Audis. And before you
jump to  any conclusions on my driving abilities,  I have over one million
miles under my belt, mostly  on fast cars.
My GS 300 was fetter better composed, precise and predictable than this.It
is sorely missed.
Has anyone experienced this?   Any suggestions? Why is the steering so dead?
. My own brother, with a 2006 GS  300 , complains of the same thing.
Thanks for your time  and interest.

You said camber and caster are fine, but what about toe settings? That
would affect straight line stability more than either of those. Also,
what are the condition of the front ball joints.

When you said ESP is kicking in - assuming you mean the VSC (vehicle
skid control in the USA) - do you mean the buzzer sounds and the VSC
light flashes? This should only happen when the yaw rate sensor
detects excessive sideways-type motion indicating imminent over or
under steer. The sensor may be malfunctioning due to electrical
interference caused by cel phones, as I believe the yaw rate sensor is
located in the center armrest area and that is where many people place
their cel phones.

Has the Lexus dealer verified your concerns? What did they recommend?

[j***@hotmail.com]

Yeah, I think Greg point to a potentially dangerous failure commonly
known on the Lexus LS. If the ball joint seizes/fails Enrique could
loose steering control !!

http://www.chrisandnat.com/projects/LexusBallJoint/BallJoint.htm

Post by greg

Post by Enrique Quijano
Hello everybody
I own a 2002 GS 430. I owned a GS300 before.The GS 430 is becoming a very
quaint car. Irritating.  Driven at speed, up to 90 mph, it holds the road
reasonably well , as might be expected, but the steering is too vague and
lacks in sharpness.
Over 90 mph, let us say at 110  mph,  the steering lacks precision, the car
seems twitchy , ESP kicks in ( on dry , straight , even roads), braking the
car, and it does not follow a straight track.  With moderate wind, it veers
off and shudders, struggling to cope.  Tha car suffers from torque steer, as
if the steering can not cope with  all the power . I experienced something
similar with another previous car, a  rear wheel drive  1986  204 bhp Ford
Sierra Cosworth .
Tyres are fine, camber and caster are fine, there is no imbalance  on
either axle. It has standard Lexus-recommended 235 ZR, s. My dealer  is
unhelpful.
Mercedes and BMW´s pass me with  apparent ease at 120 mph, while I am
struggling to keep the damned car on the road. This was made to be an
executive car, with a big engine. So are Mercedes and Audis. And before you
jump to  any conclusions on my driving abilities,  I have over one million
miles under my belt, mostly  on fast cars.
My GS 300 was fetter better composed, precise and predictable than this.It
is sorely missed.
Has anyone experienced this?   Any suggestions? Why is the steering so dead?
. My own brother, with a 2006 GS  300 , complains of the same thing.
Thanks for your time  and interest.

You said camber and caster are fine, but what about toe settings? That
would affect straight line stability more than either of those.  Also,
what are the condition of the front ball joints.
When you said ESP is kicking in - assuming you mean the VSC (vehicle
skid control in the USA) - do you mean the buzzer sounds and the VSC
light flashes? This should only happen when the yaw rate sensor
detects excessive sideways-type motion indicating imminent over or
under steer. The sensor may be malfunctioning due to electrical
interference caused by cel phones, as I believe the yaw rate sensor is
located in the center armrest area and that is where many people place
their cel phones.
Has the Lexus dealer verified your concerns? What did they recommend?

[j***@hotmail.com]

Some reviews say the IS does the same thing. Rear drive cars don't
really have a torque steer problem as in front drives, because the
propeller shaft is located in the center of the driveline. So maybe
Toyota's drivetrains are crooked, and that points to poor engineering.

I'd say trade that junk in for a BMW or Mercedes. At least you'll get
a true luxury car.

Post by Enrique Quijano
Hello everybody
I own a 2002 GS 430. I owned a GS300 before.The GS 430 is becoming a very
quaint car. Irritating.  Driven at speed, up to 90 mph, it holds the road
reasonably well , as might be expected, but the steering is too vague and
lacks in sharpness.
Over 90 mph, let us say at 110  mph,  the steering lacks precision, the car
seems twitchy , ESP kicks in ( on dry , straight , even roads), braking the
car, and it does not follow a straight track.  With moderate wind, it veers
off and shudders, struggling to cope.  Tha car suffers from torque steer, as
if the steering can not cope with  all the power . I experienced something
similar with another previous car, a  rear wheel drive  1986  204 bhp Ford
Sierra Cosworth .
Tyres are fine, camber and caster are fine, there is no imbalance  on
either axle. It has standard Lexus-recommended 235 ZR, s. My dealer  is
unhelpful.
Mercedes and BMW´s pass me with  apparent ease at 120 mph, while I am
struggling to keep the damned car on the road. This was made to be an
executive car, with a big engine. So are Mercedes and Audis. And before you
jump to  any conclusions on my driving abilities,  I have over one million
miles under my belt, mostly  on fast cars.
My GS 300 was fetter better composed, precise and predictable than this.It
is sorely missed.
Has anyone experienced this?   Any suggestions? Why is the steering so dead?
. My own brother, with a 2006 GS  300 , complains of the same thing.
Thanks for your time  and interest.