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Has anyone else tried this? Was it worth the effort?
Hardly any effort involved... but definitely worth the few minutes.
If a rear door, I found it easier to leave door closed and drill hinge from front side of B pillar. I used penetrating oil (i.e PB Blaster - which loosened up my frozen caliper too ). Hit it once, let it sit 10-15 min, then work it in. Hit again and then double back a week later to hit a third time. By no means is it flawlessly smooth like other hinges but door can now close w/ one push from full extension...
My door hinge just broke on my rear door. It was very hard to open for a year and now just snapped. I expect this from a Yugo, not a lexus...Looks like many other people have had the same experience. This is something Lexus should reimburse owners for as the door is obviously defective.
Thanks to everyone that posted regarding this problem with the door hinges. I almost spent $386 on new hinges installed/painted until I found the solution in this forum.
Here are the steps I took to fix the issue on my 2007 Lexus GS 350. Drill 1/8 hole in the bottom half of each hinge. Using PB Blaster or WD 40 or another type product, wrap a shop towel or rag around the straw and insert into the hole and push the rag up to the hinge so there isn't a lot of overspray while spraying. Spray for a few seconds in each hole and inspect the rag. I found that the bottom hinge produced something black on the rag as I kept spraying it, the top hinge did not. I sprayed into the bottom hinge until the black substance was gone then I opened and closed the door until it started to loosen up. I'm going to use white lithium grease in a can to spray in the hinge but I don't have any at the moment. Right now my door is probably 90% of what it should be which is pretty good since I haven't even had time to grease it properly yet.
So I posted this under an LS conversation but thought I would repost in the GS section to see if anyone has gone through this as well. The thread started from a guy with a 2007 LS where his door hinges were becoming basically awful to the point where it was very difficult to shut the doors. My response follows...
So it's almost been two years since the last post in regards to this but I thought I would share a similar experience I'm going through with my 2007 GS 350. 2 months ago I broke down and bought a set of hinges for the right rear door because it got to the point that you physically had to walk with the door to close it ($400 parts, labor, paint). I am now having a similar experience with the driver door and it's getting worse every month.
Any update on what you guys have seen/done?
I just got a 07 gs450h and have the same problem with the driver rear left door . I tried some penetrating white lithium grease and worked the door for 5 minutes and didn't seem to help that much. you literally have to push the door until less that 10 inches to close it
I will see if my body shop buddy can help me with replacing the hinges if this grease doesn't loosen things up
Step 1: use PB blaster and/or white grease and soak the hinges while moving door in and out.
Step 2: if problem persists, replace the pin in the door hinge. They do get worn out over time from use as well as simply being exposed to the environmental elements. I am not sure if this requires replacing entire door hinge or not.
You can do this with a buddy and hinges only run about $30 each.
I noticed you are in IL, are you having rust issues with your car. How many miles do you have?
list price is $62 for each top and lower. Where did you buy on eBay?
I figured it was worth a shot to drill the hinges because if I had to spend money on new ones the old ones would go in the trash anyway.
I drilled holes in my hinges as the other member suggested. The theory is the hinge is either dirty or non lubricated. After I drilled the holes in the top and bottom of each hinge, then i cleaned them with brake cleaner, than sprayed it with White Lithium grease. It is now much easier to open and close now, probably 90-95% what it should be. Before this it was impossible to close the door unless you slam it within 2 inches.
So I posted this under an LS conversation but thought I would repost in the GS section to see if anyone has gone through this as well. The thread started from a guy with a 2007 LS where his door hinges were becoming basically awful to the point where it was very difficult to shut the doors. My response follows...
So it's almost been two years since the last post in regards to this but I thought I would share a similar experience I'm going through with my 2007 GS 350. 2 months ago I broke down and bought a set of hinges for the right rear door because it got to the point that you physically had to walk with the door to close it ($400 parts, labor, paint). I am now having a similar experience with the driver door and it's getting worse every month.
Any update on what you guys have seen/done?
Yes, i am having a similar issue with my GS300. The passenger back door was tight, whereas you have to apply more pressure to close it. When i bought it back in 2012, the car had a little over 50k miles. i thought, the tightness was from it just wasnt used a lot or maybe the door needed to be oiled, anyway, i didnt think much of it. Well fast forward to now July 2017, im putting my mother's suitcase in the back seat, and attempt to close the door..and the door would not close all the way..so i looked to make sure the suitcase wasnt blocking or preventing it from closing, and it wasnt..At this point, im puzzled..so i looked to make sure nothing was caught, in the door preventing it from closing, and it wasnt..so, i go look at the opposite rear door on the drivers side, to compare the differences..and i see where the hinge and door is connected, closing rather smoothly...and i go back around to the passenger rear door, and i noticed the hinge is disconnected from the door..Not only is it disconnected, but its completely off track; and now the front door won't close. At that point, we called AAA and had it towed to Lexus. The customer service rep asked what happened, i said "nothing, i was putting stuff in back sit, went to close the door and it wouldnt close all the way". My door was not hit, jammed, bumped, or swung open by the wind; nothing! I called the insurance and they didnt know, how to file it, since there was no, accident or evidence of vandalism..So, i decided to research and see if others have had this complaint or issue, and sure enough; other Lexus owners with this make, model and Generation series, also witnessed this same occurrance..Lexus America is not taking responsibility for this defect in the hinge or mechanics for this make, year and model..The Lexus America claims representative, say they have no records indicating defects with their doors and/or hinges 😮.. I should not have to pay for something that was faulty or defective in the first place. So, yes, i am experiencing this issue as we speak and i have been greatly inconvenienced..i am in Texas and have to return back to Fort Bragg, North Carolina on Monday, without my car, again for the 2nd week in a row.
"Off track"? Pretty sure that is impossible. These are pinned hinges. If it won't close it's probably because it's so corroded inside the hinge, and needs to be drilled to get lube inside there.
I figured it was worth a shot to drill the hinges because if I had to spend money on new ones the old ones would go in the trash anyway.
I drilled holes in my hinges as the other member suggested. The theory is the hinge is either dirty or non lubricated. After I drilled the holes in the top and bottom of each hinge, then i cleaned them with brake cleaner, than sprayed it with White Lithium grease. It is now much easier to open and close now, probably 90-95% what it should be. Before this it was impossible to close the door unless you slam it within 2 inches.
Looks as if you drilled though the bracket and into the pin?? Is the pin hallow?
Can anyone post a link to a vendor who sells door hinges please? Please post only if you’ve successfully used the hinges from the vendor. (I have a ‘07 GS-350 AWD) thank you in advance.
Looks as if you drilled though the bracket and into the pin?? Is the pin hallow?
You have to drill through all the way through the outer part and because drill tip is not flat that means automatically you will drill some part of the inner pin. Not sure if the inner pin is hollow but after I drilled into it there still seems alot of metal behind it.
04-18-14, 06:42 AM
too ). Hit it once, let it sit 10-15 min, then work it in. Hit again and then double back a week later to hit a third time. By no means is it flawlessly smooth like other hinges but door can now close w/ one push from full extension...
