Hello, I apologize if this is the wrong forum to post in,

Today in Vancouver, BC the weather reached around -13 C (around 9F) in the morning. I had started my car using the Lexus Remote app for five minutes and turned it off via app. I went outside and popped the trunk initially to put some stuff in, closed it back, went to the driver side and put my hand on the door handle. I heard a few beeps and saw the emergency light going off a few times, a faint "click" sound but nothing happened. I went around to the passenger side, put my hand on the door handle and unlocked the door.
Bedazzled, I went around all four doors to put my hand on the handle but was unresponsive. I used my key fob to lock / unlock the door - nothing, I went inside to lock/unlock the door manually - nothing. I tried the lock function on Lexus Remote app but keep getting the error "existing request in progress". Finally, the only side that worked, front passenger side, gave up on me and right now my car is outside with all four doors unlocked. The dealership is closed for the holiday and I am fearful for the security of my vehicle.

I have read a lot of the posts prior to creating this thread and suspect that the actuator may need to be replaced and I doubt the the fob is out of battery. But is there also a chance that the locking mechanism may have been "frozen" due to the unexpected weather and the issue would resolve on its own?

What do you think is causing this issue? any further testing that I can do easily at home to find out what is happening?

 

Your keyfob has a manual key. Grab the driver door handle and hold it open, on the right side behind the handle it will expose a key cylinder. Use the manual key to get in and try pressing the lock / unlock on the door. If that method does not work physically move the locks to the lock position on each door and that will keep the car locked until you can get to the dealer or maybe buy enough time for the weather to warm up and try again.

 

Thank you.

As an update, I went outside to lock the cars manually and was surprised to find out that all locking functions (door handle, key fob) were back to normal.
This leads me to believe that the locking mechanism had indeed froze overnight from the unexpected cold weather but the question remains:

Is it expected that this type of problem may occur to such a basic function of a vehicle? What would happen in a more severe cold weather?

I have been very satisfied with the vehicle but this does raise a concern for the future. I will be sure to contact the dealership for them to make a note on this issue.

Please share if you have had any similar experiences.

 

One other test you could've performed (although not necessary now that you've resolved this):

Since the doors were open, you could've driven the car to some indoor parking garage (perhaps a mall) that is somewhat warmer than where the car is now. Let it sit for an hour and then try again.

 

I've replaced 3 door actuators in our 2015, all under warranty. The last was very frustrating and intermittent. In speaking to the Service Manager, I was able to take a video of it not performing and they replaced.

 

2015 NX200
Same problem with mine. Driver side only. Its the actuator in the door. Nothing to do with the weather unless heat makes it act up too lol Florida here.
I took mine to the dealer and had them replace it. Under third party warranty with my bank and all fixed. I think it was quoted around $630 !
If you can find out how to do it yourself, I would. That's crazy expensive.

P.S One day it was fine the next day it was acting up but i can tell you that its only going to get worse if you haven't replaced it.

Good luck!