Incredibly, with just 13k miles on my 2018 LS, the telescoping function failed this past March (2023). The factory warranty expired two years ago.
Tilt worked just fine but when moving the "joystick" in and out (for telescoping), there would be just a faint buzzing or grinding sound.
I came to this forum and found that nobody had addressed this problem.

My fear was that the motor had failed. I took it apart and it turns out it was even worse - a 3/4" plastic gear inside the steering column had failed.
Unlike some other past Lexus models Lexus doesn't sell just the motor or gears to fix this problem..
Lexus sells only the whole upper steering column assembly, which includes the tilt and telescoping mechanisms.
Used ones right now on Ebay are about $1,200. New ones from Lexus are $1,900. Including labor, the dealership probably wants $3k, even though they probably won't replace the steering column.

After extensive research (before tearing anything apart), I found that the LS500 steering column assembly is identical to that for the LC500 and has the same Lexus part number. This only mattered because there were zero used LS500 assemblies for sale at the time. I happened to find an LC500 assembly on Ebay for just $325. This guaranteed that I'd be able to fix my LS.

Based on Ebay photos, it looks like LS460s might use the same tilt and telescoping motors as the LS500, but the steering columns are different.
The 460 telescoping mechanism looks very similar to the LS500 but the tilt mechanism is definitely different. The LS460's is all metal and the LS500 one has a big nylon piece. .
LS460 steering columns are now going for below $100 on Ebay, including the tilt and telescoping motors.

So, on to the fix. I was afraid I'd have to remove the lower (knee) air bag to get to the steering column, but I managed to remove the telescoping motor with the air bag in place.
I did have to remove a piece of plastic ductwork to gain better access.

When I removed the telescoping motor, I plugged it back into the harness and it worked when I moved the joystick. So, that left the telescoping mechanism itself as the problem..
Fortunately, there's only two bolts holding the mechanism on, and I was able to remove it. That's when I saw the broken gear (see photo).
I replaced it with the one from the used LC500 steering column and decided to reuse my old motor since I know it's got low miles on it.
I put it all back together and it works great now.
I really don't know if I would have been able to get to the tilt motor and mechanism without removing the lower air bag.

I didn't document the whole procedure, but did attach a few photos taken from under the steering column and close-ups of the tilt and telescoping assemblies off the car. One of the most difficult parts was just figuring out how to remove the lower steering column cover from the upper one. You remove the one screw underneath, and then it just snaps apart from the upper cover if you pull hard.

Anyway, I'm just glad it works. It's ridiculous that the gear failed at 13k miles. I drove a '92 SC400 daily for 20 years and the tilt and telescoping function never failed.
Mark


Removed upper and lower steering column covers (lower cover attaches with one screw and snaps away from upper cover if you pull hard enough. Removed plastic duct behind airbag. Airbag was never removed.

View from beneath airbag assembly. 1. Telescoping Motor 2. Tilt Motor

Telescoping mechanism with broken gear. Note two big holes on bracket - this is where two bolts held it on the steering column.

Close-up of broken gear inside telescoping mechanism. Motor still worked.

View of shaft end of still-working telescoping motor.

Motor detached from telescoping mechanism. Motor has a flattened shaft that fits into a plastic piece with a flattened hole, attached to a metal worm shaft. Motor turns worm shaft, which turns black plastic gear, which turns metal threaded rod with white nylon piece on the end. Nylon piece is fixed to steering column, so rotating threaded rod causes telescoping motion (inner tube moves within outer tube).

Tilt mechanism - removed from LC500 donor steering column assembly. Identical to LS500 tilt mechanism.

Tilt mechanism - view of underside. Like the telescoping mechanism, the nylon piece is fixed to a "hinged" part of the steering column so rotating threaded rod causes tilting motion.

Both tilt and telescoping motors attach with just two screws, which are in opposite corners.

LC500 donor steering column with tilt and telescoping mechanisms removed. This column is identical to the LS500 steering column, including Lexus part number.

 

Lexus thought they could prevent failure by packing in moar grease.

 

Never apply force at the steering wheel when it's moving (when you power on/off the car), the gears should last almost forever.

 

You would think so, but we never applied force during tilt or telescoping.
As I mentioned in my original post, the tilt/telescoping on my SC400 lasted for 20+ years and 260k miles. Besides, the small motor's torque should at most strip the teeth on the black plastic gear before breaking it into two pieces. The gear had a structural defect in my opinion.

 

Nice write photos! Glad to know the LS500 ain't too hard to work on. You know if you still have that broken gear someone on here might want it to reverse engineer and 3D print spares for possible future breakage...

 

Thanks Dan. Funny you should mention 3D printing of gears. My other car is a 2011 Infiniti G37 Convertible (I would have bought a 2011 Lexus Sports Coupe but there wasn't one!).
The G37 convertible has these two "flappers" that come down on each side and cover the holes behind the rear seat when the top is down.
They're notorious for failing due to the use of nylon gears driven by electric motors. Like the Lexus, the only factory fix is a whole new flapper assembly. Infiniti doesn't sell individual parts.

There's currently listed on Ebay, both 3D printed gears (using carbon fiber infused filament) and machined aluminum gears someone had produced at a machine shop at considerable setup expense.
Reverse engineering and printing with 3D probably isn't that hard and they're selling each gear for $99 . The machined gears are selling for $160 each, as it supposedly cost one or two thousand bucks to get a local machine shop set up to start producing them.

One of my flapper gears failed at 60k miles and I cheaped out and went with a 3D printed one (supposedly with carbon fiber type filament) from a guy selling them on a G37 forum. I installed it and it failed a few months later with stripped teeth. I got a refund from the guy. I then bought two aluminum ones and installed one on each side. This was about three years ago and they're still going strong.

My theory is that gears are not conducive to being produced with significant strength by the typical hobbyist "FDM" 3D printer, since filament never fuses completely into a homogeneous piece. After researching it just now, I found that SLS printers apparently use lasers and make very strong parts from fused powder. Those printers apparently cost $20k to $30k, down from $200k a few years ago.

 

Nice write up.

 

Hi everyone,
Referencing this post, I had the same broken plastic gear for a 2012 Lexus GS250. Not sure if it will the same gear for other models, but this this is my experience so hopefully can be a reference for others facing a similar issue.


Some said can access the gear just from the bottom of the steering column without removing any part of the bottom dash, but my workshop removed the entire column. Probably not for the faint of heart.

Here's the entire column. Broken gear is exposed, with the yellow grease.

Close-up of broken gear.

Aftermarket gear, in metal. Lasts longer probably, but added an issue that will mention later.

Broken plastic gear, next to new metal gear.

New metal gear installed.

Close-up of new metal gear. Because it's metal on metal, there is a quite loud whirring noise when motor is working. No amount of grease will reduce it. Photo is before grease applied. So, I added an on/off kill switch to disable the easy-entry/exit mode. Still can engage the telescoping motor when I turn the switch back on.

 

hspace8,
Thanks for posting this. I always thought auto manufacturers used nylon gears because they would strip before causing major damage, but now I realize it's probably for reduced noise. The metal gears i mentioned above that I put on my Infiniti are noisy too, but they're not too loud from inside the car. Nice idea with the on/off switch.

 

Hello ! Do you mind sharing where you sourced that little "metal" gear ? did I read the thread correct, you used a donor column and pulled parts off ? I have the same broken gear on my 2012 LS 460. The tilt gear was broken also, but easier to just just set the tilt with a wrench manually, set it and forget it, but the telescoping would be good to have so "auto-retract" and extension would work with memory again for multiple drivers.

 

Bought it directly from a China maker. Website is entirely in Chinese though. Abt US$60 shipped, before any newfangled tariffs or whatever is going on with the crazy tariff world nowadays. As a note again, since it's metal it'll last longer, but it makes a fair bit of noise when in use.

 

can you share the link to the part please. Most parts are made in China anyway.
thanks

 

LxAz, I'm the original poster. I did use a preowned donor column from an LC500 because it was the identical column to the LS500. If you can get the metal gear, of course, that's the cheapest route. If you don't want the noise, then a used steering column for an LS460 should work. You can get one for less than $100 on eBay right now. I don't think the year of the donor 460 should matter because the tilt/telescoping mechanisms are probably the same. Of course that's not guaranteed. I see many 07-09 steering columns and one 2007-2012 column with no tilt/telescoping mechanisms on it. And, it's not clear whether there is a single steering column to fit 2007-2012. If there was, why are there so many listed for 07-09? You might search for a new OEM steering column for your car and see what other years it's common with.

 

Just for reference, since I landed on this thread searching a replacement gear in metal for my LS600h: Aliexpress sells brass gears for the Lexus ES for around 20 bucks (there is a cheaper plastic variant as well). They look like exactly the right gear for my LS600h and will most likely work on the newer LS, too as the mechanism seems to be the same.


https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_c4F1vJzZ

I will try to post a follow-up once I receive it.

 

Interesting. Was the original 'gear' also made in brass? If it wasn't, it will have an impact on the other 'gears' that it contacts. You'll need to match the durometer of the OEM part to avoid destroying the other 'gears'. There is, obviously, some engineering involved here.