Been watching your content for months and love it! Just purchased megan toe arms and traction rods as a package! Let me tell you, I haven't installed the toe arms yet but I just did the traction rods yesterday..BY FAR THE BEST UPGRADE TO MY SUSPENSION SO FAR!! They literally eliminated 85 percent of the body roll around corners at ALL speeds and I don't even have coilovers! If you don't have them, get them immediately! And for all new 2nd gen GS owners, first upgrade to your suspension MUST BE megan traction rods! You won't regret it I promise!!🙌🏾
Your videos have a way of encouraging me to spend lots of time and money on my GS and I thank you for it! Always helpful on FB, IG and here on UA-cam. Appreciate you in the community!
I basically do 50% of it in my upcoming LSD series and older vids. I do the diff subframe inserts and subframe supplemental bushings in the LSD series. 👍
Thanks for posting. Excellent video. I've got a Lexus SC430 and I'll be doing this job soon. I will have a little more corrosion to deal with, but hopefully, it will go okay.
Yesterday I just bought a 2002 GS430 for $1000 and I thiiiiink I got a good deal but I’m still scared hahahah. It’s pretty rough, paint is gone headlights faded, Dent on rear door, but the big issues are the transmission. In reverse sometimes it doesn’t engage and you have to rev it WAY up and it sloooowly starts to go backwards. It also has an evap leak and it leaks oil it’s seeping pretty bad. Other than that it drives pretty flawlessly and I’m very happy with it. It has SC430 wheels lol. I hoooope the trans is not terrible expensive 🤣
@@ForwardMomentum thanks so much! That will be the first thing I check. Your channel is a godsend for 2 gen GS content! Looking forward to my GS430 project!
@@ForwardMomentum Thinking of buying these as I type. Are you saying there's no need for the traction arms? Or did you mean no need to replace them if you just lowering, not if you are overhauling.
Another awesome GS400 upgrade video! Thanks Christian! BTW, my GS came with a 1.5" drop, and the camber ran out of adjustment at -1.3 deg F&R. I want to bring it in more so that the tires last longer. I'm considering either welding some thickness onto the stock camber adjustment stop (free but ghetto), or buying the Megan Racing F&R control arm kits (deluxe but $$$). What are your thoughts? How much is your GS lowered, and what’s your camber look like?
My camber is -1.0 F and -1.2 R. If you get front RCA’s it should help a little, but yours isn’t out bad enough to where I would do anything personally.
camber wont wear your tires its the tow you onky get "camber " wear because thats what is making the contact if you have 0 camber your entire tire will just wear
ohh would you do a how to change lower ball joints? i heard terror stories about these coming out , my engines has 250k miles on it and i dont no if they ever been changed
Generally pretty easy, yeah, but plan on doing it over the weekend or something. It took me a couple days but once I did one side, the other side was a LOT easier and quicker because I knew what I was doing 😅 I do, however, recommend picking up a ball joint separator tool. I could NOT hammer out the lower ball joints to save my life. My GS had 240k miles so I imagine yours are just as stuck. Research, read and take notes, reach Forward Momentum's video and a couple others. You'll be fine lol.
Hey question! So I just purchased these and installed my self. I had them pretty much spot on and the car feels soooo much better in handling. However just to be safe, I took it to the shop to get an alignment. After the alignment, whenever I go Over any hump @30+mph, the whole car is wobbling everywhere. On freeway it feels like it's going to lose control..Ive read that the toe out is the issue..Should I take back to shop or fix myself? Any input would be great, thanks!
The shop screwed something up for sure. I have found that many don’t know how to adjust these until you point it out because they’re used to cam bolts only. Let’s put it this way: if it didn’t do this before you went to the shop, and now it does it, logic says they screwed something up.
@ForwardMomentum ok cool. Yeah I new they did. And the worst part is the guy is supposed to be one of the best in this area. Bragged about how he knows his stuff 🙄 thanks for the advice. 👍🏽
Yeah. As shown in the video, you can get it close, but probably not perfect. And toe eats tires fast. Make sure the alignment shop understands you have aftermarket adjustable toe arms and not standard cam bolts before you take it in. It’s possible they won’t do the alignment. Once I told my shop, they said no problem and dialed in the toe.
I'm really confused , alignment shop told me I have excessive negative toe while the toe arm being maxed out cuz of how low I am, but your saying when a gs is lowered it gains positive toe, so I dont know what to believe especially since I read negative toe wears out the inside edge of tires (which is what's happening to me) and positive toe wears out the outside edge
When lowering a car, generally speaking, the front will tow out and the rear will tow in. There are many other factors at play of course, but that’s the general rule.
What is the name of part you point at? 7min 51 sec mark "the shop is going to want to move this"...I wrote more but my comment did not save... found this part Alignment Camber Adjusting Eccentric (Rear) at Lexus website, Mechanic called it rear tie rod adjuster. Is it this? Thanks. Ps/fyi I have Godspeed rear toe adjustable toe arms. Cheers
Eccentric bushings. Some people call them cam bolts. They adjust toe on factory suspension set ups. That’s what the shop will be accustomed to looking for and moving vs toe arms. That’s all I meant. 😎
@@ForwardMomentum Many names lol...I just now found the paper were I had him write it down and he put "frozen inside toe adjuster/rear cam adjuster...going to him tomorrow to confirm what I printed/if right part Eibach PRO-ALIGNMENT Camber Plate/Nut Kit 5.67510K (found on Tirerack). Thanks so much, they won't do my free alignment (for life) unless I fix that and also fix the rack and pinion (hit a bad/deep bump and cracked/minor leak). Cheers!!
@@ForwardMomentum Yeah those are the issues I was referring too. For some reason he bumped the price up by 1500 bucks and I just figured out it’s a rebuilt title too so I don’t want to mess with that
This was filmed before the 9K arrived. In fact, I’ll have a radiator replacement episode that has the old lift in it too. I have already filmed 90% of the Stratus 9000 episode and so far I really like it. It will be a few weeks before I release it though.
@@ForwardMomentum I’m about to pick up the 9k in a few weeks. I have a wide variety of vehicles in my fleet and this should lift all of them. Old BMW 2002, RZR, Mini, Ram 2500, jetta wagon. There aren’t many videos on that lift specifically so hopefully you release something soon.
Definitely. I may move the review video ahead of my radiator vid. It’s really nice. A huge step up over the MSOC80. A few things worth noting: the hydraulics/wiring come out of the front right, there’s less room between the ramps (32”), it doesn’t come with a way to jack up the cross bars to slip the wheels on (the 80 came with a tool), it’s 73” ramp to ramp and that’s about it. Really impressed with this one overall!
@@ForwardMomentum big difference between the ramps, the other one was like 41 inches. I think it’s probably still enough room to do driveline and exhaust work
Hey Brother. Looking at replacing the rear toe link right now. How is your experience with Megan piece? Does it hold the adjustment? I’m rebating the Megan or an SPL and debating if I need to spend double the money on SPL. Expected driving habits are Highway daily, no racing, no drifting.
I swear this man is the most informed gs person I watch every single video and helps me out a lot every time.
Ha ha, thanks! I doubt I’m the most informed, but I do try to put out good info and vids. Thanks for watching and for the kind words!
@Brian Baumgartner try Toyota Information Services (TIS) for the FSMs.
But in the beginning of video, he's describing camber with his hands.
Best visual representation of what Ive been trying to find out thank you
Been watching your content for months and love it! Just purchased megan toe arms and traction rods as a package! Let me tell you, I haven't installed the toe arms yet but I just did the traction rods yesterday..BY FAR THE BEST UPGRADE TO MY SUSPENSION SO FAR!! They literally eliminated 85 percent of the body roll around corners at ALL speeds and I don't even have coilovers! If you don't have them, get them immediately! And for all new 2nd gen GS owners, first upgrade to your suspension MUST BE megan traction rods! You won't regret it I promise!!🙌🏾
Interesting! I’ll definitely keep this in mind! 👊
This dudes videos on gs stuff is the dude
Your videos have a way of encouraging me to spend lots of time and money on my GS and I thank you for it! Always helpful on FB, IG and here on UA-cam. Appreciate you in the community!
Thank you for the kind words and sorry about the money thing. 🤣
You can also buy the manzo racing rear toe arms. They sell for $20-30 less and are made by megan racing.
Just subscribe bro. I like how detailed you are and u have hands on as well. Camera editing on point. Very good man.
Another great video, Christian!
Could you make a video on front rotors and pads replacement. My parts just came home but I feel safer watching your channel as a guide
I’ll have a big brake upgrade in a couple months. That should cover you. It’s pretty easy though, so you might not want to wait that long.
Please do a subframe restoration video
I basically do 50% of it in my upcoming LSD series and older vids. I do the diff subframe inserts and subframe supplemental bushings in the LSD series. 👍
Awesome, brother! Thanks so much!
Thanks for posting. Excellent video. I've got a Lexus SC430 and I'll be doing this job soon. I will have a little more corrosion to deal with, but hopefully, it will go okay.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Yesterday I just bought a 2002 GS430 for $1000 and I thiiiiink I got a good deal but I’m still scared hahahah. It’s pretty rough, paint is gone headlights faded, Dent on rear door, but the big issues are the transmission. In reverse sometimes it doesn’t engage and you have to rev it WAY up and it sloooowly starts to go backwards. It also has an evap leak and it leaks oil it’s seeping pretty bad. Other than that it drives pretty flawlessly and I’m very happy with it. It has SC430 wheels lol. I hoooope the trans is not terrible expensive 🤣
That trans issue may simply be fluid. They behave like that when fluid is low. Check that first. Hope you get it sorted out and I hope I can help.
@@ForwardMomentum thanks so much! That will be the first thing I check. Your channel is a godsend for 2 gen GS content! Looking forward to my GS430 project!
Wait then what's the traction arm do?
They control bump steer during suspension compression. They also have an effect on caster.
@@ForwardMomentum thank you! It sounds like the toe arms are more beneficial for lowered cars then.
Generally yes. Most guys don’t mess with traction arms unless there’s a good reason to.
@@ForwardMomentum Thinking of buying these as I type. Are you saying there's no need for the traction arms? Or did you mean no need to replace them if you just lowering, not if you are overhauling.
If you’re lowered up to 2” and your alignment is in spec, traction arms are probably a waste unless your existing ones are failing.
Another awesome GS400 upgrade video! Thanks Christian! BTW, my GS came with a 1.5" drop, and the camber ran out of adjustment at -1.3 deg F&R. I want to bring it in more so that the tires last longer. I'm considering either welding some thickness onto the stock camber adjustment stop (free but ghetto), or buying the Megan Racing F&R control arm kits (deluxe but $$$). What are your thoughts? How much is your GS lowered, and what’s your camber look like?
My camber is -1.0 F and -1.2 R. If you get front RCA’s it should help a little, but yours isn’t out bad enough to where I would do anything personally.
camber wont wear your tires its the tow you onky get "camber " wear because thats what is making the contact if you have 0 camber your entire tire will just wear
ohh would you do a how to change lower ball joints? i heard terror stories about these coming out , my engines has 250k miles on it and i dont no if they ever been changed
i know lots of high mile lexuses whove never had that issue but its defineatly real, I changed mine and i only have 99k miles
I have a quick video on getting them out. Pretty easy job. Definitely change them.
Generally pretty easy, yeah, but plan on doing it over the weekend or something. It took me a couple days but once I did one side, the other side was a LOT easier and quicker because I knew what I was doing 😅 I do, however, recommend picking up a ball joint separator tool. I could NOT hammer out the lower ball joints to save my life. My GS had 240k miles so I imagine yours are just as stuck.
Research, read and take notes, reach Forward Momentum's video and a couple others. You'll be fine lol.
Hi bro! You can make an overview of the size of your wheels. Very interesting. Sincerely, Kazakhstan!
Hi- my wheels are 2012 GS350 wheels. They are 18x8 and I run 25mm spacers in the rear. I hope that helps!
@@ForwardMomentum do you need longer bolts if you are using 25mm spacers?
No. The H&R kit comes with everything you need. Been running these for years now.
Hey question! So I just purchased these and installed my self. I had them pretty much spot on and the car feels soooo much better in handling. However just to be safe, I took it to the shop to get an alignment. After the alignment, whenever I go Over any hump @30+mph, the whole car is wobbling everywhere. On freeway it feels like it's going to lose control..Ive read that the toe out is the issue..Should I take back to shop or fix myself? Any input would be great, thanks!
The shop screwed something up for sure. I have found that many don’t know how to adjust these until you point it out because they’re used to cam bolts only. Let’s put it this way: if it didn’t do this before you went to the shop, and now it does it, logic says they screwed something up.
@ForwardMomentum ok cool. Yeah I new they did. And the worst part is the guy is supposed to be one of the best in this area. Bragged about how he knows his stuff 🙄 thanks for the advice. 👍🏽
Would you assume this is similar to the IS300? I gotta replace mine
Yes, it should be very similar.
@@ForwardMomentum awesome, shop quoted me 600, but my buddy thinks he can help me, I should get a professional alignment afterwards tho huh?
Yeah. As shown in the video, you can get it close, but probably not perfect. And toe eats tires fast. Make sure the alignment shop understands you have aftermarket adjustable toe arms and not standard cam bolts before you take it in. It’s possible they won’t do the alignment. Once I told my shop, they said no problem and dialed in the toe.
Yusssss
I'm really confused , alignment shop told me I have excessive negative toe while the toe arm being maxed out cuz of how low I am, but your saying when a gs is lowered it gains positive toe, so I dont know what to believe especially since I read negative toe wears out the inside edge of tires (which is what's happening to me) and positive toe wears out the outside edge
When lowering a car, generally speaking, the front will tow out and the rear will tow in. There are many other factors at play of course, but that’s the general rule.
Did you add grease to the boots before doing this? The ones i got seem to be lacking grease.
No. Mine had grease. Definitely add some.
Do the megan links have a hole for a cotter pin?
Negative. They came with self-locking nuts.
@@ForwardMomentum You were the only definitive answer I've gotten in 2 days. Thanks Professor!
What is the name of part you point at? 7min 51 sec mark "the shop is going to want to move this"...I wrote more but my comment did not save... found this part Alignment Camber Adjusting Eccentric (Rear) at Lexus website, Mechanic called it rear tie rod adjuster. Is it this? Thanks. Ps/fyi I have Godspeed rear toe adjustable toe arms. Cheers
Eccentric bushings. Some people call them cam bolts. They adjust toe on factory suspension set ups. That’s what the shop will be accustomed to looking for and moving vs toe arms. That’s all I meant. 😎
@@ForwardMomentum Many names lol...I just now found the paper were I had him write it down and he put "frozen inside toe adjuster/rear cam adjuster...going to him tomorrow to confirm what I printed/if right part Eibach PRO-ALIGNMENT Camber Plate/Nut Kit 5.67510K (found on Tirerack). Thanks so much, they won't do my free alignment (for life) unless I fix that and also fix the rack and pinion (hit a bad/deep bump and cracked/minor leak). Cheers!!
Is there any extra noise or vibrant inside the car with the new toe rods? Just curious since they don't have a rubber bushing. Thank you.
No, not at all.
@@ForwardMomentum Thanks for the fast responses.
@@ForwardMomentum Thanks again. Just installed mine today and did my alignment today. It came out perfect.
I just found a 98’ gs400 in a nice blue color with only 76k original miles for 6k. Do you think It’s a good idea?
If everything else checks out perfectly, yes. That’s about right for a 400. But it needs to be almost perfect.
@@ForwardMomentum ok dope thank you. Does it normally have the same problems as a gs430 like I had
Depends on what you mean. Stand out issues are LBJs, BMC, door locks, etc. All shared by the 2GS platforms.
@@ForwardMomentum Yeah those are the issues I was referring too. For some reason he bumped the price up by 1500 bucks and I just figured out it’s a rebuilt title too so I don’t want to mess with that
Yeah, don’t mess with that. Good call.
So did stratus send you that 9k pound lift? Or is this old footage?
This was filmed before the 9K arrived. In fact, I’ll have a radiator replacement episode that has the old lift in it too. I have already filmed 90% of the Stratus 9000 episode and so far I really like it. It will be a few weeks before I release it though.
@@ForwardMomentum I’m about to pick up the 9k in a few weeks. I have a wide variety of vehicles in my fleet and this should lift all of them. Old BMW 2002, RZR, Mini, Ram 2500, jetta wagon. There aren’t many videos on that lift specifically so hopefully you release something soon.
Definitely. I may move the review video ahead of my radiator vid. It’s really nice. A huge step up over the MSOC80. A few things worth noting: the hydraulics/wiring come out of the front right, there’s less room between the ramps (32”), it doesn’t come with a way to jack up the cross bars to slip the wheels on (the 80 came with a tool), it’s 73” ramp to ramp and that’s about it. Really impressed with this one overall!
@@ForwardMomentum big difference between the ramps, the other one was like 41 inches. I think it’s probably still enough room to do driveline and exhaust work
Definitely!
Hey Brother. Looking at replacing the rear toe link right now. How is your experience with Megan piece? Does it hold the adjustment? I’m rebating the Megan or an SPL and debating if I need to spend double the money on SPL.
Expected driving habits are Highway daily, no racing, no drifting.
Hey - Megan rear toe links have been great. No issues. 👍
@@ForwardMomentum and the ones for GS are from a IS 300, correct?
Not sure about that. I just got the ones for the GS. Maybe cross reference the part numbers and see if they are the same?
@@ForwardMomentum I see, Just checked and Megan carries same part number for both cards . Got any preferred place you to get these?
I actually don’t have a preferred place. I recommend a legit dealer if possible. I got mine off eBay from a seasoned seller.