Update: She's fixed! Rolled the dice, bought a complete right side hinge assembly off ebay for $226 shipped. I swapped out just the gear assembly in the above pic, crossed my fingers and hit the button. Top works like it's new. No noise, perfectly normal. Saved $5K...


Thanks for those who helped!

Oh, wheels are 19x9.5 and 19x11

 

Outstanding. Did you pull apart the old worm gear to get a look at the nylon gear you said that you thought was bad. I would be interested in knowing how worn or broken was that gear. I wonder if there is maintainence procedure that might prevent this happening in the future. Lubrication or cleaning.Make you wonder what the enginneres were thinking.

 

I haven't looked inside the gear assembly yet... The gray colored cap on the assembly in the other picture is removable by simply unscrewing it. The worm gear inside is covered in lithium grease, and the fact the cap is removable tells me it's a part that needs regreasing at some point. Needless to say, I regreased both sides as well as all hinge points.

 

that's the way to make a repair, nice when you can get the part some were. very good work.

 

Unless the grease is oozing out from the seals etc , I wouldn't worry about constantly re-greasing the worm gear assembly.

 

Nicely done!!!


I agree that barring leaks, there should be no reason to include regreasing as part of regular maintenance. Given the relatively benign operating environment, the grease shouldn't break down, should it? In the case of the OP, was there an initial assembly problem (insufficient grease), an alignment problem, or a manufacturing defect? Or will we see more of these as the number of roof cycles accumulate in our older SC's??

 

kjcole, there's actually 2 gears within the assembly, with only one being partially visible after taking off the gray cap. Everything looked normal with the one assembly that malfunctioned, grease looked sufficient as well. Who knows why it failed? It just did. No pre warning either, one day she worked normal, the next it was broke. It may have been just a fluke, sometimes stuff breaks?

What I've learned from this experience is:

A) If top malfunctions and there aren't any codes, it may be a mechanical issue.

B) Lexus dealerships hands are sometimes tied, as in this case in order for them to replace the broken gear assembly they would have been required to purchase the entire hinge assembly at $4,630.57, as there isn't an individual part number for the one component.

C) Although the SC 430 top is very complex, it is very possible to trouble shoot what's going on, so long as you're not afraid to dive into it. I now have a much better understanding of how the top operates along with how to manually close the top, which isn't really that hard to do at all.

 

I've been always curious I've read the manual and it states you need two people to manually open and close the top is this true? is it possible you can do it by yourself and if so what is the easy way wish you could do a youtube video =) jk

 

Yes I would like to see a u tube on manual close

 

Closing the top manually requires two average strength adults. My wife helped me and she is 5'4" tall and weighs 110 lbs. It was a slight struggle for her at first but not too bad really. If you ever have to do it, just follow the owner's manual, that's what we did.

 

The Top Problem on my vehicle seems like it may be sensor related or, perhaps, something to do with any processor(s) that may be involved. Initially, the top was working fine, then after a while it required depressing the Down Side on the control switch for quite a while to complete the cycle. Then, the last time the top was opened and closed everything went well except the door windows didn't close, and control switch red light was on (note: the Quarter windows did close) So, I close the windows by using the window control switch. Here is where it gets spooky. The Up/Down control switch, when pushed and held on Close, resulted in the front windows opening. The control switch still showing flashing red. All the usual suggested fixes (disconnect battery, check Valet switch, ensure top is tightly closed) were all tried - no change. So, following the manual page 268 I figure trying the "Closing the quarter window" procedure couldn't hurt. It worked, somewhat, in that the door windows no longer open when when the Close switch is pushed. However, pushing the Close switch results in a Flashing red light whereas pushing the Open switch results in just a solid red light, No roof movement on either. A trip to the dealer may be in order.

Reading other posts on Top Related problems does not make me any less apprehensive about a dealer visit. The one time I spoke to the Lexus service manager here in Jacksonville Fl, it was about my Nav Unit Door stuck open. He basically told me I was looking at a $5,000.00 repair job. I fixed it myself with help from my son-in-law in about 1 hour by removing it, tightening all screws and, replacing. The Nav Unit works fine now. The top, may be another matter altogether. Any ideas?

 

It does sound like you are probably right about a sensor. It could be the sensor is just slightly out of position. Now determining which sensor, that is another matter? Is the system putting out any codes?

 

I don't know. Have yet to go to the dealer. Is there any display of failure codes available on the Nav system or other such in car means?

 

Take it to a parts house (like Autozone or something). Some of them will read it free for you. Then report back and someone here in the forum is likely capable of determining what that code means.

 

Somebody correct me if I am wrong, but I don't believe the top codes can be read by a standard OBDII reader. I think they will only show up in Techstream or by the dealership's scanner.