I bought an 02 LS430 and the trunk pops (like over and over again) without pushing the button, the gas lid won't open, the brake lights and reverse lights don't work, and sometimes with the key off; the auto vents stay running?? this all happens so much so that the battery runs dead. I need some help! Anyone have a suggestion on where to start? Fuses, disconnecting something? It seems like that whole branch of wiring in the rear of the car has something going on...

 

Hi morgihm .... ohhhh man ... your problem sounds crazy !! As a total long shot, two things come to my mind : if I am not mistaken, I think there are a set of wires that are associated with the opening and closing of the trunk itself and if memory serves me correctly, I think I have heard of finding damaged wires there that could cause weird problems. ( because of the action of the opening / closing of the trunk itself wires can brake over years and years ) . Another long shot : could it be possible that somehow you have a control module ( or even the ECM / ECU) that may have had even a drop of water damage somehow? ( the clue on this is that it kinda sounds like you just recently bought this car? Did someone pressure wash heavily inside the engine bay??? ) I had that happen to me a few months back ( different make of car ) where they had this thing called a "CCRM" module inside the engine bay ... well ... in reality the CCRM is like a small, little black box stuffed with relays inside ... there are relays for all kinds of stuff in that thing ... for example, the A/C clutch, the radiator fan relay, the HVAC control unit .... as well as the fuel pump master relay. Long story short, I took the CCRM apart to figure out why it failed. Well ... turns out I did not know that actually I had a pin hole radiator leak ( for a while ) that was shooting a small stream of coolant directly on to the CCRM ... and a little tiny amount of water got into the CCRM over time and messed-up the relay for my fuel pump! I went to the junk yard and got another CCRM from an identical car ... plugged it in ... and my car started on the first turn ( and I only paid $45 bucks for the part ) So, is there some sort of module in your engine bay that got a little too wet if the car was pressure washed? Probably not ... but perhaps??? It's just a wild theory, of course. Soooooooo ... anyways .... then there is your ECM which is located behind your glove box inside the car ... obviously, it is highly unlikely that you got any water inside your ECM / ECU ... but ... what if a capaacitor has been leaking for a while hidden inside your ECM ... and now has messed things up inside? That is a total long shot, for sure .... but ... hey ... I am just throwing out ideas : ) So first, I think I would have a look around at all the wiring in the trunk area ... just to rule that out. Secondly ... hey ... what the heck ... extract the ECM from behind the glove box and take a look inside. Please ... make sure to disconnect your battery before that is attempted ( for safe I might even leave my battery disconnected for 30 minutes ) I'm sure other people here will chime in on all of this .... but anyways, my thinking is ... to open the ECM up and just have a look inside to see what's up ... that is free, you know? What the heck ...

In the mean time, so as to stay alive ... get a battery tender ( "trickle charger" ) and have that hooked-up to the battery when you are not driving the car .... that will help a lot to keep your battery alive while we figure this out. Don't worry ... there is a solution ... and with all the people on this forum, we will find an answer ..... : ) It will be great news for many others here to find out what was done to totally solve this problem ..... I got a serious hunch what ever the problem is, it will be a very simple fix. : )

 

Sounds like you purchased a flood car check the fuses, for the lights as well as making sure the bulbs are fine for the taillights. The trunk switch may be bad or a wire may be pinched electrical problems are always hard to diagnose.

 

"Battery runs dead" can be a blessing in your case - it can help lead you to at least one of the problem areas. Please take a look at the link below, starting on Post #4...
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls-...e-car-off.html

 

Yup! Sounds like a flood car. Get to all the fuse boxes and pull all the wires (with the battery disconnected) and clean them with contact cleaner. Same with all the connectors you can find. Use a contact cleaner that is plastic friendly, otherwise it will make the connectors brittle, and they will break.

 

got some good ideas going here ... I just want to mention that spuds mentioned this spray I have yet to try, but sounds really, really good from what I have found on Amazon ... the name is : Hosa D5S-6 DeoxIT 5% Spray ... from what I can gather this is a really great product ... perhaps it may help

 

Deoxit! That's it!
One plug at a time. Plug it back before you pull the next one. Look for white/greenish powder forming around connections, like what forms around the battery terminals. Use a toothbrush with the spray if you have to.

 

If you can just replace the entire fuse blocks they can be found on Ebay for $100 and change used. Just an idea but hope you get everything sorted out soon.

 

 

 

 

This is the exact issue i had, as you noticed your trunk does not seal and water collect in the trunk. I punched a couple holes in the very bottom of that depression with a hammer and screwdriver to drain it. But unfortunately the fuse box may be irrepairably damaged. Any updates on how it turned out?