pras

Hey folks,


This morning, I noticed that one of the rear park sensors is "loose." It looks like it's falling into the rear bumper, as if someone had decided to push it in. I don't have any errors, etc. showing up. There has been no impact to that area at all.


1. Has this happened to any of you?
2. Is this something typically covered under warranty? I bought my vehicle CPO in August '15. I'll hope it is.
3. If not, anyone know how to fix this? Does it require full rear bumper removal?


Thanks in advance.


Cheers.

bc6152

This was reported early on with the new model. The member had it repaired under warranty. I would think that access would be by removing the bumper cover.

pras

Think there's any issues with driving the car in the rain? Wondering if water entering the opening would cause any damage. It will be at least a week before I can take it in.

bc6152

IMO the little bit of water that would gain entry wouldn't damage anything. However, to allay your concerns simply put a small piece of duct tape over it until you get it into the dealer.

lesz

Water entering is, I think, a non--issue. The actual electronics in the sensor are contained in a rectangular-shaped box a little smaller than the size of a cigarette pack. That small box sits behind the bumper cover, and the part of the sensor that you see is a cylinder that extends from that box and fits through the hole in the bumper. I saw one that was replaced in my ES a couple of weeks ago, and it looks like anything that could be damaged by water is pretty well sealed.

If pressure is applied on the sensor from the outside, it will retract into the bumper, like with what you see in your pictures. Replacing the sensor with a new one does require removing the bumper cover, but I'm not sure whether the dealer's service department might have some sort of tool that would allow them to pull the sensor back out without having to remove the bumper cover.

lamikela1

Your car probably had the bumper replaced or repaired sometime before you purchased it and there is a good chance that they did not re-install the sensor correctly. Since it's a CPO no worries. Just get it to the dealer.

pras

So I took my car to the local dealer. They inspected it and claim a clip that holds the sensor in place is "damaged" and hence not covered under warranty. At least they waived the $149 diagnostic charge they have.

I know that the rear number had work done to it before I purchased it, as it showed up on the service history from Lexus when I bought it CPO. I purchased the vehicle at another local dealer, so I'm going to take it back there. I figure they will either fix it and take on the cost, or the body shop which the dealer uses will take it under their warranty.

Any suggestions on how to avoid a third trip and argument with the dealer on this? I'm not OK with spending $1K+ to fix this silly item.

Let's see what happens. Such a pain in the neck!

lesz

What exactly are they saying that they are going to do for $1000+.

Just a few weeks ago after someone backed into my ES, part of the repairs required replacing one of the parking sensors and the bracket (and a number of other things on the front of the vehicle). The cost of the sensor itself (genuine Lexus part) is $257.61, and the cost of the bracket is $8.47. It sounds like you only need the bracket and not the sensor.

If the cause of your issue is just a broken bracket, I'm not sure that I see how the cost of the repair would add up to over $1000. Even if the bumper needs to removed and reinstalled, there is no way that the labor should come anywhere close to $1000. My suggestion would be to find out what a Toyota dealer or an independent shop would charge you. I'd bet that it will turn out to be only a fraction of what the Lexus dealer quoted. Even if the sensor needs to be replaced, too, $1000+ still sounds like a ridiculous amount to pay. That is about what the body shop charged my insurance company to replace the whole bumper.

pras

They didn't give me an estimate at that time, the service guy just ballparked for me when I dropped the car off. I'm picking it up today.

Anyone happen to have the service instructions for this? Perhaps I can DIY it. If not I'll try and check TIS.

I'll report back after trying the dealer I purchased it from.

pras

So the dealer I purchased from fixed the item right away while I waited. Problem solved.

lesz

Can we take it, therefore, that the bumper didn't need to be removed to gain access to the back of the sensor? Does that also mean that the sensor bracket was not broken?

If those assumptions are correct, what does that say about the dealer that quoted you $1000+ to re-position the the sensor?

How did they actually end up re-positioning the sensor?

pras

I didn't take the time to ask all of that unfortunately. I believe they did have to remove the bumper, but am not sure. Also, the first dealership didn't quote me, the guy just gave me a ballpark when I first dropped the car off (before anyone had seen it). The amount he told me was the amount someone else had paid to replace a whole sensor recently.

The bracket (or rather retainer as they are calling it) was in fact broken, but they said it is no longer a clip and is now more of a plastic piece with double sided tape. I was a bit apprehensive when they told me that, and thought maybe this was a shortcut. However, since they have done the work it's on them, and i'm not too worried.

Yoosi

I had the same issue 1 month after I bought a brand new lexus rx350h (2023). Not sure how it happened, but I spoke with lexus dealership, they said bring in the car and they`ll fix it. But I wasnt happy with the fix and called them again, they inspected the car again and told me the sensor holder needs to be replaced and they`ll have to order a new one. The most annoying part was them sending me a text before each appointment telling me "for faster check out visit our secure payment link". And i always told them the car is under warranty to which they responded ... "oh diagnostic charges are up to technicians discretion".
Anyways, they replaced it and its good now, they haven't charged me anything for all 3 visit but it definitely gave me anxiety every time.

samsonn25

You can buy a generic black colored one for $16

My mechanic had to change one before I forget if it was front or back but there was enough room for him to do it without removing the bumper (pain in the ***)

NdYAG

I had bad experience with an aftermarket Toyota $16 sensor. It started giving "false" detection beeps - especially in hot weather. After a while I noticed that I just started to completely ignore all the beeps - rendering the whole system useless. Had to switch to the OEM $170 sensor to fix the issue for sure.