AST300

I’m sure no one is stupid enough to have backed an open liftgate into the open garage door like I was a couple days ago.

I was in the garage with the garage door open and had opened the liftgate to get something out from under the floor in the spare tire area, and then I pressed the button on the bottom of the liftgate to close it. It started to close, and then I realized I needed something else from inside the cargo area, so I pressed the button again and the liftgate stopped in place. I retrieved what I needed and pressed the button again, got in the car, turned it on, and proceeded to back out of the garage when CRUNCH! I didn’t know what I had hit, so I pulled forward and parked the car and got out to see I had a Self-Inflicted wound! The liftgate was in the full open position and had hit the bottom of the open garage door in the area of the panel below the liftgate window and above the trim above the license plate. As it turns out, this panel is a plastic trim piece covering the sheet metal, and the panel shattered into many pieces. The panel holds the large Lexus hands-free sensor, which seemed to be functional, but the mounting tabs on the back were snapped off.

I would have sworn from experience that pressing the button to close the liftgate from a partially open position would close it, but it does not, or maybe it is dependent on just how far open the liftgate is.

Yesterday I took the car to the dealer Collision Center. The good news is that Lexus sells the panel pre-painted and the estimated time to remove and replace the damaged parts is only 1.6 hours and I should be able to wait while the work is done. The bad news is the sticker shock, approximately $1800.

Since returning home from the Collision Center, I have gone into the car’s settings and adjusted the opening height of the liftgate to open to position 4 of 5 rather than 5 of 5 (which is fully open). I may have to be a little careful not to hit my head, but better than the risk of another self-inflicted wound!

RGSW

I had a similar experience on a 2015 RX and replaced the entire rear hatch. When I got the new rear lift hatch back, I placed a large sticker/decal on the outside of the rear hatch window. Now I always try and look for the decal/sticker before backing out of a garage.

kg11

I bet this happens often enough that it there should be a user setting where you cannot shift out of park if any door is open.

Mike728

Every vehicle I've driven that has a backup cam, has made something like this impossible. I've not driven a current RX. Is the camera not part of the lift-gate?

skiracer

ouch.... I thought my ding was bad from trying to open the lift gate when the RX was parked a little too close to the garage door...

E46CT

My IS dings and hollars when you shift out of park when the doors, hood, or trunk is open. Doesn't the RX do that? Not to mention the backup camera showing the ceiling.

Maybe OP got too excited and didn't notice. Either way glad it wasn't a steel panel it looks like, but a replaceable painted piece.

FastFord

Well I'm with you...stupid enough!!

I did it going forward out of the garage. Had loaded up some long pieces of stuff and it was sticking out the back, jumped in the car and drove out...Only very minor damage as opposed to going backwards.

I think most of us have brain cramps from time to time.

TeKKieNYC

Glad you are OK. I've had a garage sensor malfunction where the gate closed on my vehicle as I was reversing. The gate crumbled on top of my roof. The car was like 5 days old at that time.

LexRexBlue

I drove into the garage with the hatch open. I'm not sure why the car didn't make a warning sound.The garage door made the car close the hatch. My back ledge got scratched up. The dark blue had white vertical marks. I took it to the dealer who removed much of the garage door paint and the touch on the lift gate still works!
The other day I repositioned the car in a parking lot with the lift gate open. I wondered why the back up camera was giving a bird's eye view!!!

greatalok

Won't the back camera lift up as well while backing up with a open hatch?

ggebhardt

I did the same many years ago with my LX470.

Oldfart

Surprisingly you still able to see behind.

Krishh

Hello,

Do they have to remove the interior trim under the hatch to install the broken part?
or did they just do it from outside?

RVAHoo

My wife did it to out old Chevy Trailblazer. She caught the rear wiper on the metal garage door brace and bent the hatch's sheet metal.

Quantum501

My RX does....yesterday I went to Home Depot and tossed a box in the rear area. Hit close and hopped in the car to leave. As soon as I put it in gear the car beeped and flashed symbol on dash saying that the lift gate had no closed all of the way (not sure why since I hit the button). Got out and reopened and reclosed and went on my way.