F14AV8R

I orginally posted this to ask where the VSC Yaw Sensor is located. I had a hard VSC Light and TRAC OFF Light. The Check Engine Light was NOT on. My dealer diagnosed a bad YAW RATE sensor and wanted $1150 to replace the thing. I found a sensor at a Junk Dealer on Ebay for $125 and am going to replace and recalibrate it myself. Now I just need to know exactly where it is located so I don't tear the whole car apart looking for the silly thing. My cheepo Haynes Repair Manual doesn't even discuss the VSC system . .

UPDATE!

Okay, I found the sensor and replaced it today. The Yaw Rate Sensor on my 2004Saved myself $1000 bucks in the process. The sensor is not hard to replace but it does require a bit of work to replace. You have to remove (or at least move) the passenger seat, remove the front and rear door sill trim, the lower center pillar (between the doors) trim and the right front kick panel. All the panel removal is to allow you to lift the carpet and access the sensor. After that, it is a simple matter to remove the protective cover, remove the sensor from its mount, disconnect it from the harness and replace it with the new part. After replacement you must zero and recalibrate the sensor. That procedure can be found all over the internet with a simple search. I've included a PDF file with the procedure and some photos. Note that the SST mentioned in the procedure is nothing more than a tool to short the two pins on the DLC.

As an aside, Lexus (or Toyota on the Highlander) would have you replace the sensor and its mounting bracket. I guessed the positioning of the sensor on the bracket was somewhat critical so I was careful to put the new sensor in precisely the same footprint as the old one. I marked the outline of the old sensor on the bracket before removing it.

After replacing the sensor and executing the simple recalibration procedure, the lights were gone and everything worked perfectly. You should perform the recal on a level surface and drive the car for a few minutes afterwards to make sure the calibration was successful.

Photos attached. Hope this helps anybody facing this situation again.

thomas1

It may be located in the same location as this posting:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...-location.html

However an easy way to find out is talk to the parts counter and let them show you a diagram of its location.,

shoebopper

It's called a yaw rate sensor. Hopefully, I have attached the drawing and it's circled in red. And it is expensive...there are 2 parts, totalling about $1,200. I am guessing you can get it cheaper.

The PDF I included was for an '06 RX330. The part numbers on this diagram are 89180-48010 for #1 and 89183-48010 for #2. They priced at $609 and $526, respectively, at Sewell, wth the discount. Seems to be the same numbers for your '04. But it gives you an idea anyway. Retail for the two parts is somewhere around $1,800. My guess is your delaer quoted you a cost to replace just one of them, with labor.

F14AV8R

Shoebopper,
Thanks so much for posting the diagram. I've actually seen that one before. Unfortunately, the parts are just floating in space. My question is where, exactly they are located in the vehicle.

Also, I've discovered that 89183-48010 (# 2 in the diagram) is the actual sensor. The other piece is the mounting bracket. I'm assuming I can re-use the bracket so I only bought the sensor. I got one from a junk dealer in CA for $125. Fingers crossed!