AJT123

Well folks, finally something has gone wrong with my LS, lol. Driver door lock quit. My experience mirrors Larishevo's (is he still around btw?), where it quit for a few days, then acted finicky, then worked fine for about 4-5 months. I had my fingers crossed it was just a fluke and "fixed itself" but in the back of my mind I knew it was probably a matter of time. Finally gave up on me last week, and the WD40 trick didn't work, unfortunately. It's dead.

Are there any other options here? The dealer wants like $750 and I just refuse to pay it. A few hundred is fine, but $750?? That's a lot of money for a door lock on a 12 year old car. However I love the car and plan to drive it to at least 225k (127k now) and it is slightly annoying to have to use a key. It's not the end of the world but I would fix it if the cost wasn't completely outrageous.

Am I stuck? I am not DIY inclined so that's out of the question but can't the dealer rebuild it rather than charge me for a new part? Or a Toyota dealer rebuild it? Anyone think a good stereo guy (ppl who take doors apart, etc.) or mechanic could do this with instructions if I bought that $5 motor?

I just can't pay that...I'd rather use that as a DP on a '13, but I'm not, I repeat NOT ready to move on from the 430 yet. Not even remotely. MANY MORE miles and years.

Has anyone found a way to fix this cheaper? Any members on here near me (Knoxville, TN) that have done this and would do it again for generous compensation?

Cant hurt to ask. I just realllllllllly don't wanna think I have no choice but to pay nearly a grand for a damn power door lock motor.

vr4/sc400

Hi AJT,

I typically frequent these boards to help out fellow DIYers and share my experiences and give tips when I can.
I am the owner of Actuators Plus (an actuator rebuilding service). I don't like to solicit my business on these boards, but if you really do not want to try and rebuild your own units (I highly recommend giving it a try, it is not that bad) then shoot me a PM and I can help you out.

Regards,
Lenny

lexusdog

iTrader: (1)

If you don't have the soft close doors or the dual-paned glass its not that bad. Check out the DIY instructions and give it a try. My car has the soft close doors and the dual-paned glass which makes it more difficult, but i was able to get the motor swapped out in under 2.5 hours. Just label the bolts and move the window track out of the way to access everything.

DavidinCT

It's what solo cups were made for Bring a hand full of them, label the cups put the screws in the cups.

Bocatrip

Maybe I'm out of turn, but I think what AJT123 is trying to say is that the cost for a door repair for his car is out of line for what he is prepared to pay. Yes, he want's to keep the car but the repair is not equivalent to the age/value of his car. This being the usual scenario for cars today especially high scale ones. No way around it..... cars are expensive to fix... thus the throw away generation.. I'm still holding on to my 01 LS430 for a few more years...but anything "big" as far as failure may change even during this post!

740ilsamue

Lenny, email me an answer.

BradTank

I wouldn't go to a Lexus dealer if budget is a concern for most repairs at this point in your vehicles life. Find a good independent "import" type shop.

The cheapest way outside of a DIY would be to maybe find a salvage or recycling yard, get the part, and take it to an independent shop and have them swap it out. I could easily then that shaving the price in half. Or look around at Ebay for used parts.

For finding salvage parts locally, I recommend

car-part.com


Also, sometimes "mobile" mechanics advertise their services on CraigsList and you might be able to find someone willing to do a job like that for cheap. Or a car audio/car alarm place that's used to opening up door panels all day?

You can definitely do a lot better than $750, but its not going to be the easy transaction it would be at a dealership.

airchomper

I used Lav's link to this motor.

It was pretty straightforward to pull out the actuator and swap the motor. I must have messed something up because now the lock has a lot of resistance to manual actuation, but it works perfectly fine if I just use the buttons to lock / unlock the car. But it did restore the keyless entry functionality for $11 with 2 day shipping so I can't complain.

I wish the new parts were cheaper and/or the dealer weren't so expensive but that's the nature of these cars. And the potential for repairs to be expensive is a factor that makes them so cheap.

If the motor went out again, I'd seriously consider hitting up the Actuators Plus guy.

I've heard that all the newer toyotas (well, most of them) are converging to a single actuator style, is that correct?

But maybe my new motor will last long enough to let me get behind the joystick of a Tesla Model 3? Here's to hoping.

OsideTurbo

Before you go to the dealer, go to a locksmith. You will be surprised at how much they can do - they know your locks better than your local dealer's service dept. Also super-cheap . . .

CarGuy89

If you do want that added security from the dealer/there aren't any good independents in the area, you could always try shopping around. Call up the next closest dealer and see what they're charging.

For example, the local BMW dealer was always charging a manditory $150 'inspection fee', so anytime the car got serviced it was like $250 minimum. So unhappy and curious what other places charged, I went to the next closest one (30 mi vs 15 mi). Turns out they don't charge that extra $150 fee so they have now become the BMW dealer of choice for me. Admittedly I didn't shop around much for Lexus bc my local one is prob the best one for servicing, their prices are always pretty reasonable (did the T-belt on my 430 for under 700 IIRC).

lexman52

There is a 10 dollar motor u can buy from amazon and put it in u self. I had a body shop install mine fore 50 dollars

Central Door Lock Actuator Motor
FC-280Pc-22125 flat shaft

lexman52

There is a big article on this here. LS 430 Door Lock Actuator Tutorial