johnno92

I originally did this fix 4 months ago and everything was working fine until this past weekend, when it died again. I took everything apart and this time I sanded the copper ring part of the gear drive with 150 grit sandpaper until it was shiny copper again. It was pretty black and I assumed that it was not conducting as well as it could to the brushes. I also cleaned and re-lubed the gear drive with some white lithium grease and now it is working again! Hopefully this works for a while. I don't want to do it again in January...

dinhNER

iTrader: (5)

Must try this bc I was thinking of stopping the steering wheel
In place.

iogs

iTrader: (2)

Bump......
Just tried last night, after putting the motor back on it made some weird noise and then stop, since then it doesn't move any more all I can hear is the clicking sound from the joy stick.


Did I screw it up? Please help

DosyBoy

iTrader: (1)

I did this last year and it works flawlessly, take it back out, make sure theirs plenty of grease, do not get any in the copper ring, if so clean it all of and also hit it with compressed air, also,u have to have that metal backing plate on their also or it will not work...

boostedsi

iTrader: (5)

i just tired this and still working sometimes,, hmmm just a question do you re grease the inside of the plastic piece?
like around the two little connectors? thats the only part i did not grease. thanks alot guys

STREETGS

i have the same problem, except that my steering wheel does not come out , it will
go up and down but not in- or- out.
will this solution fix my problem?

johnno92

This solution will fix the Up/Down motion of the wheel. I can only assume that the other motor (the one closer to the firewall), may be the culprit in your case. I have not needed to fix that feature on mine.

On another note, my Up/Down stopped working again.

johnnyho

I'm trying to remove the under-dash piece (#1 Safety pad, says manual) to get better access to steering wheel tilt motor. Not finding much on it ... I assumed is because is easy, but I'm tired of being "stuck" at this.

Removed #1 under-cover, ignition switch cover and 4 or so bolts from safety pad, but still sticking on right. Thought of prying this piece out (nothing about doing this?) in case a bolt behind it, but what if is a sensitive sensor? Anyone know something - what's procedure, or just pull like heck on it?



.

johnno92

Just remove the black bolt shown in the center of the picture. Then lift it up. Once all the fasteners are removed, it will only be held on by the little plastic post in the top-right of the picture.

I think that vent on the panel covers the interior temp sensor for the climate control.

johnnyho

Thanks Johnno92! Nice to know you're still out there :-)

Disheartening to see you last posted this fix (regreasing) only lasted a year or so.
What did you end up doing? I can only guess the alternatives are replacing the column as a unit, or that motor?

AS far as this removal...I looked at that bolt, but didn't seem that bracket was still connected to anything inhibiting removal. What did work was a bolt kind of wedged between the black (undercover) and gray (safety pad) in that right corner. Removed it and was able to clear that "post". Trying not to remove pieces don't need to....and hoping I can remember where everything goes to put back. I only have so much time each evening, so this is drawn out over time.


The only info out there for us GS's so far, is your posts! Lots of stuff for LS's and SC's, but I guess those are easier.

Anyway, thank you for what you have contributed!!!

Not sure what I'll run into taking this motor apart (if I get lucky enough to remove it). Lol

John

johnno92

Glad to hear the you got the piece off, even though I was not absolutely correct in fixing the problem.

I have done this repair about 4 times now. All I can do other than getting a new motor is clean it every so often. The car is approaching 17 years and EVERY time that the key is inserted and removed, these motors move, which eventually causes lots of wear on the components.

As far as further instructions go, you only need to remove the bottom clip from the tilt motor and only 2 of the screws holding that beefy part of the motor to the steering column. See the picture for those screws. You may have to wiggle it out to remove it. Once it is out, there are the other 2 screws that are held in with small nuts sitting in a slot (don't lose them!).

Once it is all cleaned up, put it back together and install into the steering column. You MAY need to remove the gear assembly cover only if you cannot get the motor shaft back in. Wiggling it up and down as you put it in will help.

Let me know if you have any more questions, and I will help if I can.

johnnyho

Awesome, thank you so much! Sounds like you definitely have some experience with this...much as I share in your pain of it - lol :-). I would not have known this.

Looks like you are also removing the covering around the telescoping (ridged) shaft. Did you attempt to clean/regrease some in there? I wonder if the grease is just continuing to break down every year or so?

Somewhere I had read the Lexus steering system manual says "Molybdenum disulfide lithium base grease". Wonder if the dealer will sell this?

I am last having problems undoing that lower front-facing screw...worried I am stripping it. The material seems a bit soft, for the torque required. Worst case I may end up dremmeling off edges to get a better grip and looking for a replacement at a fastener specialty.

Much as I would love to be focusing on more progress on this today (A/C servos are next, geesh).
Life's pulling me in a lot of directions and I have to unpack boxes this weekend, to stay in the rental I am in...with an attached garage, so I can continue to do this work - lol. Hope this car appreciates the sacrifices I'm making for it, at the moment. But I digress.

Your kindness sharing your experiences is absolutely appreciated. Thank you.. Off-topic, but let me know if you have an opinion about replacing the front bumper (got a gash in it) with a fancy duraflex version I can get cheap. Don't know if it would shatter, chip and scratch like cheap plastic..

Have a great Sunday!

johnnyho

Man, that pictures worth a thousand words. Thank you again :-)

johnnyho

Ok, I have something relevant to add to our knowledge-base on this topic!

I had read a post in here saying the Lexus "steering system manual" says to use "Molybdenum disulfide lithium base grease" for the steering wheel gears. While it may not be related experiences using standard white lithium grease and things reverting within a year, I had read a post of someone having a dealer do the clean/regrease and still holding up after some time. Also someone that used ball-joint grease, saying it would take a long time to break down and their procedure was still fine sometime later.

I called Lexus dealerships to ask if they sold something like this "recommended grease". First dealer did show they carry a specified grease for the application (disulfide lithium grease) for $70 a tube. Tried another to price-compare (having also inquired with both service departments if they do the service itself - they're not that familiar with here). The next sold the tubes for $65, but then also showed a cross-reference to an alternate, less expensive one. Which turned out to be Napa Auto Parts, part# SL3174...a CV-joint grease made by Stay Lube for around $6 a tube..

My nearest Napa had to have it brought in from the nearest warehouse, same afternoon, sure enough it says its a lithium grease fortified with "moly disulfide"(with some other additives and inhibitors). But at a...what. 130% savings? Keeping in mind it is supposed to be for CV joint applications, it does say "old grease should be solvent-cleaned and air-dried before application".

I'm going to give it a try, soon as I can return to trying to remove the two screws holding the tilt-motor to the shaft (rear upper and front-facing lower, of the motor)...hopefully without stripping out the phillips recess of the screw heads.

Thought I'd post this info fast as I could meanwhile. This grease is dark-colored, vs the original whitish color, fyi.

Hope may be helpful?!!!

Also got my A/C "mode servo" in, off Ebay for $110 off Ebay (at moment). Heading under that side of the dash next, once fortunate enough to complete this operation.

johnnyho

I'm editing some of my posts, for anyone searching these things in the future.

Had a heck of a time with the "rear" (eng compartment-facing) upper screw....but fit the right Phillips tip (tho the screw is small, a medium sized tip is wanted) and get your line of site on it (crane yourself as needed) and will get it.

Problem now is in needing the "joystick" to work to back the long gear out (pics on pg 2 or so of this post). Mine just clicks but doesn't turn right now. Lord knows if it is a relay instead of motor?
Switch seems to work when warmer, but it is cold tonight again.

BTW...had to remove the wiring harness from the switch to access that back screw, and in doing so learned that the horizontal connection powers the tilt motor...reconnect when done with screws when need to operate to remove the drive.
The vertical connector between the two motors operates the telescoping motor.

I've seen people talk about positioning the column where want then disconnecting the auto-feature from moving again....disconnecting these two leads would do that.

One more thing I can mention....there's a vertical piece to the "ventilation "tubing" that will be hanging to your left, restricting the width of space you have for a screwdriver. It has two plastic molding-type fasteners holding it in place.....I managed to remove the one facing the engine compartment to make it easier to move out of the way. The opposite-facing fastener, facing passenger compartment, will be much more difficult to get a grip on - space is tight in there....unless you have some kind of forked removal tool Even then will be hard to put back in later....I managed just removing the one and pushing the hanging ventilation tube around as needed.

So far I guess I'm still just at the half-way point - nearing removal,.more...and stuck at another step yet again (gear removal by toggling the switch, which isn't working). Maybe someone will identify or come up with a better process in the future? Meanwhile.

If I'd known all the abundant info available was for LS and SC 2nd gens only (forums, Youtube vids and more), I might have considered buying one of those. Hope us 2nd gen GS owners aren't dying out and getting left in the dust...or maybe there's less probs? Don't know, but keep supporting and adding to our knowledge if you can!!! Thanks.