gsnz

I've just completed the left rear. It seemed to take less bends to the rods, or maybe it was just because I had the experience of doing one previously. This time only took an hour start to finish. I'll put up a couple of picks of the assemble unit out of the car. I've tried to align it as it would be in the vehicle so you can see how it works. The reason for the two piece rod clamped together is that it is infinitely variable adjustable length. This means you can mount the actuator where you want and not have to try and make a one piece rod the exact right length.

gsnz

The actuator I used is a Uniden brand actuator. Used to fit security systems or central locking into older cars. Unfortunately I did not try to program the remote as when I was testing operation before reassembly I noticed the drivers door also has a faulty actuator. Years of using the key meant that the fact the drivers door had stopped operating had gone unnoticed. Oh well, these things are sent to test us. I hope I have been of some help at least.

Hazimwood

There is no need to remove the glass from the door on the front. I followed the video on YouTube and realized that it was an unnecessary step. Everything else is fine. One important thing to note is that there are now cheaper alternatives to buying the actuators for all the doors: EBAY! I paid less than $30.00 for both front units and the same for the rear. You may need the cable if it breaks or is broken, but that was about $30.00 by itself.

If you only repair the front doors, something strange happens: The alarm goes off whenever you open the door.
Solution: remotely unlock the car, then remotely pop the trunk and open it..then close it, then just open the front door and it wont sound. If you finish installing the actuators in the rear doors also, this will not happen. This is only in the case that all the actuators are shot of course..which by now, they usually are.

BayAreaLex

Thank you for the helpful post. I used this thread to do my first door lock actuator motor swap on the rear passenger side of my 2001 GS430. A few comments:

I found that getting the door panel off was rather easy. It's amazing how much improved the door panel design and materials are than the old 5-liter Mustangs I used to play with years ago lol. On those cars once you removed a door panel, you were certain to break the plastic clips and it was a crap shoot whether that panel was every going to be tight against the door again.

There is a lot of discussion in this thread about people having difficulty in removing the actuator after removing the four torx fasteners that keep the actuator assembly secured. I just wiggled it out in less than 30 seconds. I had to pull up a bit on the handle as I was wiggling but it came right out without any issue. There was no need to remove the door handle or any glass.

Next, the hardest part of the job was getting the old actuator housing split. I probably spent 25min with a razor blade slowly going around the perimeter. That's tough plastic and glue, maaaan!

Eventually I got it and swapped the motor. Everything is working just great. Not bad for 2.5hrs of work and a few bucks in the replacement motor.

sbagdon

That funny, reading this thread. Camry door handles have a habit of breaking off, after about 20yrs. The fronts are easy... about 30-45min. The rears... 4hrs of my life I want back. you end up unbolting the motor/window from the door, and dropping it all. Darned rear doors, for all of Toyota/Lexus..! : )

36Chambers

I see multiple sets for sale such as 2pins and 6 pins together. . The correct one is 4 pins and 6 pins correct. Going in. 02 gs300.

thanks Drew.

sharee

A video on this would be a bonus. And how do you know which one to replace? Bought a 03 GS430 and the drivers main control one for the other locks isn't strong enough for the other locks to move. You HEAR them trying to move and one back door half moved but then nothing.

TW99GS300

There are videos on this if you purchase from the seller LuxiousAuto on Feacebook

mtaalib3

Just replaced my 2 rear door lock actuators on my 05 GS430. I would like to add my comments from my personal experience in doing this project. Honestly, it never occurred to me to pull on the cable. I actually pushed down on the metal latch that the door handle pushes down on to get the actuator out without removing the handle for the driver's side. But I removed the handle on the passenger's side which was a big PITA.

After reading this post I can see how just pulling on the cable would be much easier provided that the child safety lock is not activated. Regarding the child safety lock, I had a problem moving it back into the disabled position with the door latch cable extended. If you're having this issue, push the cable (the one with the white/clear end) fully back in and you will be able to put the safety lock back into the disabled position. It has to be in the disabled position for the cable to work in pulling down the latch for the actuator assembly to come out. With the latch pulled down (white/clear cable pulled and child safety lock disabled) twist the door lock assembly toward the outside of the door. This will allow the latch for the child safety lock to clear the sheet metal. Once the latch for the child safety lock is clear, you should be able to pull out the whole door lock assembly.

Some things to note: Make sure ALL of your doors unlock when you push the unlock button and lock when you push lock. If the new motor is going in reverse then the polarity of your new motor is wired in reverse to the OEM. This can be fixed by switching the wires going to the motor but who wants to do that for all for doors? Just buy the correct motors so they all spin in the same direction. The motors I purchased are from Amazon (part number#: FC-280PC-22125 or ASIN#: B00IARL4R8). Hopefully they will still be available when you're ready to order them.

So far, I have replaced 3 of my 4 doors with my driver side front door remaining. Currently my key fob is NOT working to lock and unlock the doors. But using the driver side AND passenger side door switch is currently locking and unlocking all of my doors although I am getting a double click on locking. I am hoping that this is a result of 1) me not putting all of my doors in the unlock position when I started on my passenger side front door as I have read in another post. And/Or 2) the motors not all matching. Tomorrow I will replace my driver side front door motor despite it still working. Hopefully this will restore the functionality of my key fob. I will post an update once I complete the driver side door.

One final word of caution: Be careful when separating the motor housing. The big wheel that has teeth is spring loaded. I accidentally caused the wheel to pop up which released tension on the wheel. Not really paying attention I installed everything back only to have the door work for a few lock/unlock cycles then malfunction again. Obviously was not due to a faulty motor because I disassembled and reassembled everything again only to have it work then fail after a few cycles. I concluded that it was because that big wheel no longer has the spring tension. Fortunately it is easy to reset the spring so the wheel has tension on it again. Just be careful when disassembling the housing. Also, I used a Walkera motor pulley puller. This makes pulling off that little black piece sooooooo much easier. I used a set of large channel lock pliers (readily available at Home Depot) to squeeze that little black piece onto the new motor shaft. Much easier than using a hammer. Hope this posts helps someone avoid the problems I encountered.

lexo98

iTrader: (2)

The front actuators can also be removed without removing the door handles. Since you already took one off you can see how with a long screw driver you can undo the clip holding the rod into the door handle.