duballstar

Hello Friends,

I recently purchased a 91' LS400 that I am slowly fixing up and bring back to life. The car runs pretty good but there is no check engine light on start up. I believe the bulb was removed so I am currently trying to diagnose this issue. Before removing the cluster I wanted to properly lower the steering wheel all the way down for ease of install. My forward and back controls (and seat controls) all work properly, but the steering wheel up and down function do not. When I initially bought the car the controls worked for about 5 minutes before starting to make the clicking noise that everyone experiences. Being impatient I continued to use the button until the clicking stopped and there was no sound or movement while using the controls. I took the column cover off and removed the gear to inspect and space out properly (zip tie trick). Upon removal I realized the screw that turns the gear would not move. I suspecte the motor was bad, but still wasnt sure. After playing around with the controls for a few more minutes I realized that if I consecutively hit the button three or four times in the same direction the motor would turn for a few seconds ( ie. push up, up, up, up, the wheel would travel up a small amount). At this point it may be an issue with the switch contacts. Does anyone have any similar experiences? Any input is greatly appriciated. Do I need to remove the wheel to remove the switch?

Thanks in advance.

duballstar

Well after no responses and few hours of searching I came up with nothing. The only thing I could think of was pulling the battery to reset the control module and amazingly it worked. The motor seems to respond accordingly without the gear installed. I bought the garden hose washer and will be installing everything tomorrow.

Yamae

I bet you motor is about to die or should I write it's time to have some treatment to survive more. Small DC motors with brushes inside tend to have a problem of clogging inside.

The motor is so small that the carbon dusts from the brushes are trapped inside and the dusts make a bridge or a path between terminals. This makes a short circuit and a excess current is going through. The micro controller detects it and stops to supply DC to the motor. Some motors have a positive thermistor which prevents the excess current.

At the initial stage, the current is not too much and also it varies depending on the conditions such as voltage, temperature, humidity and etc. Resetting the micro controller makes it possible to supply the DC again but it is unstable due to the conditions. I think your situation is someting like this.

The best way to fix this is to replace the motor but cleaning the inside of the motor can fix the problem most of the case according to my experience. I used to fix different DC motors just cleaning the inside as is shown at my blog writing for my good old American DIY friends who taught me how to fix and maintain cars when I was there in US.
http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/mae_yas/1405005.html
http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/mae_yas/1478773.html

Sorry for my limited English but I hope you understand what I do seeing photos.

python

iTrader: (4)

i would get a small amount of smoke comin from the left side of the column when i would use the tilt feature..i just have it set at a certain position and dont use it

duballstar

I can see how cleaning the motor will help the cause. The only strange thing was when it was not functioning on command how I could make it move by repetitively pressing the button. It was pretty much like every time after 4-6 separate presses it would go in the desired position for about a second.

Anyway, I put everything back together today with some grease and it works again. I do feel a subtle pause when I initially push the button. Almost like a millisecond delay. Is this common? This could also be a sign of the motor going out. At least it moves regularly on command now. I set it where I liked it and turned AUTO off so I would savor the life it has left. Thanks for the help and suggestions.

Titchener1

the millisecond delay is exactly what mine does and always wondered if that is normal i press it, it moves stops and then moves constantly does anybody else experience it or isit to do with my battery needing replacing??

duballstar

I would suggest this being a sign of our tilt motors going bad. I would use other common trouble shooting technics to test and see if your battery is going bad.

emarknot

I have a ms delay, but i have a bad worm gear. Not being too terribly bothered by it, i lowered the steering wheel to the service position, and turned the auto tilt switch off. I do not have the auto tilt wheel now...well, for about a year now, but noone drives my car but me.

If it is a great concern to you, try to get the wheel were you want it, and turn off the auto tilt wheel off, and never touch it again. If you notice play in the steering column after doing so, you sould put the wheel in service mode, which is the steering column all the way down then press the down button seven times and hold. It will drop a 1\4 inch and press the auto tilt will be disabled and everything should feel tight.

And if this is the case, you a bad worm gear.

oldyngoody

Did you test the wormscrew activation/operation without the yellow plastic gear installed ?

When I was diagnosing my tilt issue, trial and error, the motor would only turn on and drive the wormscrew intermittantly (usually with a loud grinding sound). Once I removed the plastic gear, the motor and worm screw operated smoothly each time I inserted the key or pushed the control buttons. That's how I realized there was a spacer issue that misaligned the gear to the wormscrew.

firefinder

pressing on the brakes 10x would also reset the module. I think the module gets shut down when gears slip to protect the motor.

Dubbayoo

I finally gave this a shot on my '92 using a zip tie. After the change (nor before) my worm screw wasn't turning at all. ext? I tried the brake pump 10X which didn't work but pressing the button several times in the same direction fixed it! Now I have a working steering tilt for free; great work guys!

duballstar

Always good to see forum feedback help. Happy you found use of the thread.

ozlexus

Thanks guys, as a newbie here I have been perusing threads in search of the fix for my recently purchased 91. I had shimmed the plastic gear out, but the wheel still only went short distances up and down. Did the brake pump, then the 9x down with the switch, and voila! Got the wheel set where I want it to preserve the motor, but of course only after running it up and down its full range of motion a few times first. Sure puts a smile on your face when you discover a simple, free fix like that! Thanks!