This post is preety long so thank you for taking the time to comment on it. I finally got to drive my 93 sc400 which i bought on saturday. Seems it was a drug car. When the cops were looking for drugs they took everything apart and did a **** poor job of putting it together. I think they might have mis-wired or did not connect allot of the things back together. As for my problems some fuses (yes they are good) dont even have voltage flowing thru them, seems they just dont work. So im hoping thats the reason why all 4 of my needles dont light up, why my ac unit doesnt have light , why my sunroof doesnt function and why my Trac button doesnt seem to respond to anything i do to it. The car initially had an aftermarket viper alarm installed on top of its factory alarm. Now i have remote start , when i remote start the car the front small light bulbs light up and start flashing about every 3 seconds and so do the tailights, however once i turn the car on and engage it into drive, my tail lights dont work unless i break and my small marker lights upfront dont work at all , only the headlights work. Another problem is the car was hit on the front passenger side , seems when they put the new parts on they cut the wires for the abs system and maybe the trac system too, i see a yellow wire which is cut. Otherwise the car dives wonderfully. However i have no clue where to start i love working on my car but this is past my knowledge of fixer upers, if anyone can please help me, any advice will be appreciated again thanks for taking the time to read this

 

Buy the electrical service guide and start tracing the harness. Or you can take it to an expert and pay. I do hope you got a great deal on that car because it is very frustrating to repair the electrical systems.

I would suggest starting out by PULLING the Viper till you get the car operationally back to stock, then re-installing it. Also, spend the time to remove all the panels and reassemble per the factory specs. This may help alot.

There is a how-to on this forum on how to pull the dash speedo assembly and check the plugs.

MW

 

If it were me, I'd take everything apart again and recheck all the connections.

Remove the alarm, as those cause huge electrical problems if not installed right.

Then go from there. If necessary, bring it to a professional. Use some of the money you saved to get the car up to par.

Keith

 

Thanks allot guy i would love to do the work myself unfortunately the below freezing weather we have been experiencing in NY is notorious so i wont be able to work outside on it. How much am i looking to pay for rewiring of the entire car xcept the engine i just need an estimate.

 

Does any one know where i can obtain the electrical manual for the sc400?

 

The Lexus Dealer (Parts Dept) can get you the wiring manual. Check out the CL vendors. I think there are some discounted dealers. Carson Toyota comes to mind.

As far as an estimate - that would be impossible to tell. Hourly rates vary depending on where you live, and I have no clue what the book hours are on all that, let alone exactlly what would need to be looked at.

My guess would be around 300-500$ just for an estimate alone. The actual repairs would obvoiusly be extra.

Do you have a garage to work in? Or do you live in an apartment?

Another couple of cents here -> Sit in your car after its all warm and cozy with the heat on. The try to track down the simple stuff, like cut wires behind the radio to fix the no-light problem or to replace the burnt out bulbs. Also you can disconnect the alarm fairly easily from inside the car. Removing all the wiring will require some outside work, but most can be done from inside. If you have patience for the cold, it only takes 2 minutes to remove the drivers seat, then access will be simple for the under dash components while still keeping the heat on and doors closed.

Or just drop the car off and let someone else deal with it! Just depends on your finances. Your call.

 

Sounds like a mess- I hope you got a 'smokin' deal on the car...

This is why us MECP Certified (Mobile Electronics Certification Program) guys get $45-$75 per hour- diagnosing electrical problems sucks. There's no big secret to it (although experience helps!), just buck-up for the Lexus Service manual (probably $100), a volt meter, a test light, and get to it. It will take time and money to fix all of these problems.

If what I've heard about the early SCs stands true, your A/C cluster and needles are probably dead. There have been a number of threads on the repair of these items, so try a search.

Best of luck!

 

And as for the lights, if they do infact light up with the auto-car starter, you know they work and it's gotta be a connection somewhere between the switch and lights. Perhaps, like someone said, begin my taking the alarm out. Good luck, I had many probs, not this bad, but close!! let me assure you, about 1 day a week, and 2 months later, bam, brand new car! Good luck

 

It was a burnt out fuse now i got my headlights and tailights working and half of the lights inside the car went on the ac control, volume control , trac light , etc some still dont work at least im on the right track thanks guys

 

Lexo,

I went to my Lexus dealer, and they copied the electrical diagrams for me. Might save you $300.

-scott

 

that will be great if you can somehow get them over here, let me know if theres anything i need to do