trhs75

My daughter noticed sort of a static-y noise from her dash in the area behind the radio display. We drove and listened for quite a while. The noise was similar to a mouse tracking around in there, sort of a rustling noise. However, it sounds regular and mechanical and I think it has to do with the servos opening and closing some of the vent stuff deep inside. Has anyone run into this? How did you fix it? Thanks in advance!

salimshah

try searching on 'servo' and you will find plenty of information.

Salim

silverzzr

I just bought a new to me 02' RX300 on Monday, with 87K miles here in Florida and being a first timer at the dealership i was over my head and anxious and didn't bother to do some of the down and dirty nitpicking that I should have done. the whole time the vehicle was running the a/c was on with fan speed of mid to high. It wasn't until I drove off the lot after signing the papers and that I turned the fans speed down, making it quiet in the cabin did I notice what i would consider a "recirculating/mechanical" sound. Almost like the multidisk cd changer searching for cd's. But this noise is intermittent and also happens when the i have the air completley off, including fan. Does not make the sound with key in accessory position, and after sitting overnight it won't make the sound for at least 30 minutes of driving. It will stop and start at it's convenience. is this what would be considered the servo motor even though the fan is not on? It's going in for the 90K mile service and I told the Toyota mechanic about the noise and he said it could be the "blower motor", is he also diagnosing this as the servo?
Thanks.

hypervish

As Salim said to the OP, please do a search.

And, yes your problem sounds like it could be one of the servo motors. There are 3 If I remember correctly, you will find all the information you need to confirm which servo motor it is and how to fix it once you do a search.

trhs75

Turns out there were two bad servo motors. Ouch! My daughter heads back to college next week, and I didn't want to have her risk no heat or A/C. As silverzzr described, the sound is much like a CD changer searching. I should have thought to do a search, of course, but I thought the problem was too obscure!

Thanks, you guys!

silverzzr

I did do a search and read the links on the DIY but no one mentioned if they heard the noise while the fan was "off" so I wanted to get a better idea of the issue I was having.

salimshah

Ventilation system is a super set and the the blower motor is part of it,

Lexus has gone above and beyond in their pursuit of excellence and keeps the air moving in the cabin and the servos work over-time in directing air. You have to take it out of 'Auto' and and set the mode to keep them at one setting [if the setting and the ducts dont match in manual mode, the system will keep hunting].

If you want proof positive, touch the servos and see they are on the move and causing the noise.

Salim

supranyc

I recently did the DIY fix. I had been living with the issue for a while and it just gets progressively worse. Started with intermittent clicking sounds (with fan / ac off) in certain "mode" positions - eventually it got to the point where I couldnt change the mode without really loud buzzing grinding sounds which is when i decided to look into the DIY.

i agree with salim, take off the glove compartment to see for yourself, its only a couple of screws / bolts - takes about 5 minutes. from that point you have easy access to the 2 servos that seem to have issues. you can change your cabin air filter while your in there, its probably really gross if it hasnt been changed.

I spent a total of about 5 bucks and 2-3 hours. Dealer will be pretty pricey.

trhs75

They were pricey, all right. Unfortunately, I didn't have the time to get the car back, check it out, and put parts in if needed before college. Of course, if she had mentioned the noise earlier....

supranyc

Theres always the next school break..

trhs75

That's what I was thinking!

2ToeRacing

I know this is an old thread but does anyone have a part number for the two actuators for a 2001 Lexus RX300? I've been able to remove the ac/heat actuator, the top one,I can't get the bottom one, blend door out. I was able to move the arms on the heater/air box so I know that the actuators are the culprits. I've googled the parts, but there are a few different ones so I'd feel better having the real part numbers. I found them both on Amazon for about 40 bucks each, I'm not big on cheaping out , but I don't want to overspend.


Thanks, Barry

maxSteel

see:: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...l#post92546330