leecm

Hi all,
Below is a rundown on what has occurred over the past few weeks.

I went out of state for Christmas and came back to a dead battery on my IS. The interior light was on and it was cold, so I didn't give it a second thought. I jumped the car and didn't have any issues.

Fast forward to last week (1/14) and after driving to school (about 30 miles away) I stop by a store to pick up my textbooks, get back in my car and start it, the P/S light is on and the power steering won't work. I ended up having to get the car towed back home.

I was too busy to actually deal with the issue immediately and I have another car, so in the meantime I researched what may cause the P/S issue (determined it could be the ECU unit among a couple of other things). This weekend I start to diagnose the issue and realize the car is completely dead again. I tried jumping the car again and this time it wouldn't turn over even with the jumper cables attached to the other vehicle. Being the mechanically ignorant person I am, I assumed that my battery needed to be replaced. It was originally installed in 2014 so this may indeed be the case.

I bought a new battery, installed it, and the car still won't start. It tries to turn over for about 10 seconds but ends up failing. I researched why this may be happening and there were several answers, but the most common were: the engine may be flooded, the main fuse is blown, the fuel pump needs to be replaced.

Flooded engine - Reading about what causes a flooded engine, this seemed like it could be the cause. The car was started twice when being towed and was only driven about 15 feet each time. With that said, the car did have a few days to sit before I tried to start it again, which I would presume would have given the engine time to clear (but I don't know for sure). I tried pressing down the throttle (along with the brake pedal) and starting the vehicle. This didn't fix the issue. Do I need to have a mechanic check the spark plugs? I watched the video on how to access the spark plugs and it doesn't look like a something I'm interested in doing myself.

Main fuse - I checked the fuse box, and after cracking the transparent covering trying to remove it, I was able to inspect the fuses.They all look fine from what I can tell. I tried taking some pictures and will upload them later.

Fuel pump - I haven't done anything to check this. Any recommendations?

Also, regarding the ECU unit. I checked it visually and didn't see any loose connections. I didn't try to unplug anything and reseat the connections. Would this cause an issue with the engine starting? I know that it was the main culprit that people listed regarding the P/S issue, but I feel like the issue causing the engine to not start is something else entirely.

maeveLexi

There was a post a couple weeks ago with the exact same problem you have.
The OP ended up having a flooded engine and he fixed it by just stepping on the gas a couple times while the car was off (not with the brakes) and then just started it normally.

I tried looking for the post but I couldn't find it.

leecm

Thank you for the response. I did fully step on the gas pedal and hold it a couple of times before trying to start the car, but the car won't start until I press the brake as well. Either way, that didn't fix the issue, unfortunately.

MikeFig82

iTrader: (13)

Read this thread it sound similar to what you're describing.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-...eck-vsc-3.html

Gville350

iTrader: (10)

You might also have a bad alternator.

leecm

I realized today that there is a buzzing noise in the rear passenger side of the car when I push the power putton (to turn on car power but not turn on cluster). Is that a sign of a bad fuel pump? Does the ECU under the battery control the fuel pump?

MikeFig82

iTrader: (13)

The ecu under the battery tray. It's for the steering electric power steering.

leecm

The issue originally started when I had a power steering issue (P/S light was illuminated) that required me to have my car towed home. Is there a chance that replacing the ECU will fix the issue where the engine won't turn over or is there another issue?

Zmon

iTrader: (2)

If he's saying rear passenger side, I would imagine he's hearing the fuel pump priming. A dead steering ECU won't cause a car to not start, reportedly the car still works just no P/S (At the very least, I've used an unprogrammed IS-F steering ECU and drove it to a nearby dealer with no P/S to have it programmed). I imagine OP has other issues considering his car keeps on dying, is there anything aftermarket on the car? One thing you could try, which I doubt is the issue here, is to unplug the fuel pressure sensor on the back of the engine and see if the car will start. Even if it starts, that won't explain the phantom electrical drain though but that'll be one thing that you could swap out and get fixed.

leecm

Thanks for the post! There is nothing aftermarket on the car.

Can I reach the fuel pressure sensor by hand? Is there a how-to to accessing it that you know of? Also, I don't know if I'd call the dead battery phantom. The battery was purchased in 2014 and the front passenger dome light got left on while I was out of town the week of Christmas. Now, for the second dead battery that occurred after the P/S light came on and I had to have it towed, I have no explanation for other than the battery is pretty old and the car sat in below freezing temps for a few days before I tried starting it again.

Am I supposed to be hearing that buzzing noise from the fuel pump? I never noticed it before, but then again, I never had a reason to notice it because my car always started.