I recently had the stock radio replaced with a new pioneer unit which renders the Nav useless. I manually pulled open the wood panel and it went all the way back in the dash and wont come forward automatically when press the open button. Anyway to pull the panel back down without taking apart the entire dash?

 

I don't know the answer to your question. But if you remove the radio and use a 60-Ohm resistor, in conjunction with some jumper wires on the oem connectors, the door function will come back. Tested and proven by several members, myself included.

Here's a link to the specifics of the jumper wire and resistor.
Audio System Makeover - Page 4 - ClubLexus - Lexus Forum Discussion

 

i don't think so. you can try pulling it down manually i guess.

my 2002 had the door stuck open when i bought it. door and tilt weren't working.
i had to take it apart and close it manually. it's not hard to do but i recommend taking your time so you don't break any of the plastic retaining clips.
i had to remove climate control unit, a/c vents on both sides, and finally the nav unit itself. there are plenty of threads and vids of the process. if i can do it, anyone can.

interestingly, i discovered that the door still works but only intermittently. tilt doesn't work at all. i keep nav door closed permanently and like the clean look.

like you, my radio was replaced with a pioneer unit plus the beatsonic audio adapter and i get music and navigation through my phone.

 

Thanks for the help and if you remove the stock radio does the nav lose power? I have none since the upgrade. Did you upgrade your speakers and what did you choose? Also how much did they run you?

 

when i bought the car, the stock radio had already been replaced with pioneer and beatsonic. the nav was still working (and still is today) but the nav door and tilt did not.
since all my music & nav needs were being met by the pioneer/beatsonic, i closed the nav door as stated earlier.

i did not upgrade the speakers. i'm still using the oem mark levinson speakers and amp. instead, i bought speaker foam repair kit from simply speakers. i think it was around $50.
the kit comes with replacement foam for the two 6x9 door woofers, the two rear speakers, and the subwoofer located behind the rear seat.
i replaced only the drivers door and rear subwoofer foam and it sounds great to me!

 

The nav screen itself doesn't lose power. However, the open/close/tilt function is run by wiring from the radio (AVC-LAN master). On the bus with the radio is the Gateway ECU, the climate control panel, stereo amplifier, etc.

Without the resistor and jumped wires that are not used with aftermarket head units, or alternate solution (perhaps Beatsonic? I don't have one to verify), the Gateway ECU doesn't see a AVC-LAN master, so the nav door never gets commanded to open/close/tilt. The resistor "tricks" the AVC LAN to think a master is there and all is well (except the radio itself).

 

I was able to remove the trim and get at the door. It was pretty easy using a You tube DYI. Thanks everyone for the input.