Good afternoon to all,

I am currently experiencing issues with the cluster on my 2004 Lexus SC 430. The cluster does not work unless I unplug and plug in the battery. Has anyone experienced this issue and was it resolved? How was it resolved? Any guidance will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

JB

 

Not sure of your problem. We need more details and better description.

 

When I turn on the vehicle, none of the gauges, and lights work. The only lights the that turn on are the ABS, Brake, and a third light that I cannot recall at the moment. I then open up the hood disconnect the negative cable from battery for approximately 3-5 second then connect it back on to the battery post. I turn on the car afterwards and the cluster works as normal. Hopefully this information helps.

 

So it happens only one time or after you turn off the engine the problem starts again. Also, can you start the car when the problem occurred?

 

The car turns on without any issue and the vehicle runs great. It happens every time the engine is shut off. Once I shut off the car, the display indicating the driver side door is open as normal. After shutting the door and allowing the dome light and auto lights to go through its cycle of shutting off. I then open the door to start the vehicle and the indicator light that displays the door open does not illuminate. That is when I know that the cluster is not going to turn on. Hopefully i explain this correctly.

 

I've seen a growing number of electrical problems turn out to be a weak battery. With modern vehicles being so highly electronicized (coining a new word here), a battery can have enough power to start a vehicle, but may not have enough power to properly boot all the on-board electronics. It seems strange, but this is a growing phenomenon.

You could rule out the battery by having it tested or by completely disconnecting it and jumping a new battery in its place. Don't just jump it with the existing battery connected as it may have a bad or weak cell that could interfere with the test.

 

Thank you for the information, I never thought about that. I will have the battery tested tomorrow. Keeping my fingers crossed. Thank you for your time and patience.

 

I don’t think it’s your battery since you can start your car. But have it tested anyway. The only I can think of you’re losing ground somewhere or bad harness connection in the instrument panel. Other can chime in and help.

 

Maybe it is something similar to what this member just went through.
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sc4...ng-lights.html

 

JB, have you ever scanned for the codes? If you don’t have Techstream, you can go to Autozone they will scan for free. With the codes, we’ll have better pictures of what is going on.
Harold, I don’t think he has skid control issues.

 

The reason I pointed out the thread with the skid control ECU is that his cluster kept going out on him also and thought that there might be a connection (no pun intended) there. To be honest, I hadn't even heard of the skid control ECU before that, so I really don't know what all it controls, other than the obvious name related stuff. I'm not even sure what all controls the cluster.

 

I agree with Harold. I would look into the Skid Control going bad. It effects the speedometer, has a history of going bad and his ABS light is on.

His next step would be to have his codes read. He may have to go to a Toyota/Lexus expert so they can use techstream to read the codes. It most likely is a proprietary code.