clarky86

I have a 2008 ES350 with ML sound that recently blew the sub (playing Pretender by the Foo Fighters). The symptom was a cracking sound when heavy bass notes played with medium or more volume. I suspected the sub foam ring was damaged and when I opened the trunk there was a small piece of the foam on the floor under where the sub sits. My option was to replace the sub but Lexus wanted $350 and Amazon had some well reviewed subs for $50-60 but I wasn't sure what ohm the speaker was (I now know it is a 6ohm).

I found the foam surround from a place in Florida for $25 and from Speakerworks.com for about $16 delivered which is where I bought it. The part number is SWK8M and it's named named 8" M Roll speaker repair kit angle attach. It was very easy to fix and I would recommend anyone who has a blown sub with ML or non-ML sound should do it. 8 bolts total!

1) remove rear seat - grab the bottom underneath at about 1 foot from either side and pull up HARD. There are two holding points, do one side, then the other and remove seat bottom from car. There are 4 bolts holding the seat back on, use a 12mm socket and remove the bolts. Lift the back of the seat vertically and then towards the front of the car. Again, do one side, then the other. The seat belts hold this so just push it forward to the front seats. There is enough room for you to work now.

2) the rear package tray is held down with 2 nylon snap pins like what hold a door panel on. They are both about a foot from the side. Pull the package tray up or insert a screwdriver near the pins and pry up gently.

3) you will leave the package tray attached but lift up enough to get to the four bolts holding the sub down. Use a 10mm socket and ratchet and remove them. Unclip the connector by pushing in the tab and pulling the connector apart. Push the tray way up and slide the speaker out.

4) the foam kit has instructions and there are various videos online showing foam replacement. The ML speaker is pretty standard except for the large plastic ring that first needs to be gently pried off by inserting a screwdriver from the side and lifting it off the metal speaker. I used a hair drier to give the glue a little more persuasion to let go.

Next tip is try to pull the gasket off the cone, you should not need to use a razor blade there. You do need a razor to cut the foam from the metal speaker. I glued the new foam to the speaker cone first making sure it had good up and down movement without touching the coil. The new foam almost centers itself, then I dab the foam to the cone all around. Here is my best tip--- I wanted good contact all around so I used pieces of blue painters tape all around for the first half hour or so until it set, then removed the tape so the glue could dry fully. The last step of gluing the outer foam to the metal was no issue but I also put a very thin glue film and put that big plastic ring on at this step. Flipped the speaker over, put some weight on it and let it dry over night.

5) Reassembly should only take about 15 minutes. Twenty if you vacuum the french fries that fell under the seat. Play that funky music to test it. Mine worked great.

Pictures: Top is removing sub from under package tray.
Middle - key seat removal points
Bottom - old torn foam and new foam gluing on.

jagtoes

Pretty good now just think what is happening to your hearing.

Robert_J

When I re-foam subs, I remove the dust-cap and shim the voice coil. That insures there will be no coil rub after the foam replacement.

zealexus

Thanks for your diy, helped me take out the mark levinson sub in my es350, I replaced it with the 10" all in one micro sub. This thing sounds great! Also got a bass level **** installed in the change drawer.