We own an '07 RX400h with a badly-scratched aluminum switch trim piece (the trim that surrounds the door and window switches) on the right-side door. I just bought the car, and haven't yet purchased the service manuals.

Can someone provide the basic steps for removing this piece of trim? I assume it involves removing the interior door panel first, but I'm not quite sure where to start with that, and don't want to scrape anything up. I can provide a picture if necessary.

Thanks in advance from a relative newcomer to the Lexus fold.

-rob.

 

Search for side mirror replacement, it will show the door removal procedure.

 

That helped, indirectly . I found some door disassembly instructions, and thought "it can't require all of this to replace a simple piece of trim."

So I looked at my replacement part more closely, saw where the clips were on the side, then inserted a (taped over, thin) flat-bladed screwdriver near the bottom left (as seen from above) clip position on the installed piece of trim.

A bit of pressue led to a click sound, and the trim piece then popped up enough that I could then free the rest of it quite easily. I unplugged the two wiring harnesses, popped out the two switch assemblies, put them in the new piece, connected the wiring, and snapped it into place.

Took about two minutes once I figured out what to do . If anyone else happens to be doing this and wants a pic, I can provide.

Thanks again for the pointer.

-rob.

 

Pictures help, please post. More pics, the easier for people to get the idea!

 

OK, here are a few pix. I snapped the part itself (well, the old one ), a close-up of the tab, a close-up showing the taped up screwdriver against the tab (out of the vehicle), and then one showing about where I inserted the screwdriver for the mounted piece of trim.

Once I pressed it in there, I heard the tab click, and I then moved the screwdriver up a bit towards the next tab, and it popped, too. I then slid it down to the bottom of the trim piece, and pried up a bit. That's when it popped free.

-rob.

 

That's cool. Thank you very much!

 

How much was the trim?

 

If anyone is looking for good pry bar tools for interior work try Harbour Freight. They have a 4 pc. Pry Bar Installer set for about six dollars. These are coated with nylon and will not scratch the interior.