400h locking

[SDi]

Hi to you all.

Just bought a 2005 rx 400h with 70000 miles on it. From what I am reading on the forum, thats just "run in".

The only problem I have found is the rear nearside door wont lock. If I remove the door trim and then undo the two cables to the inside door handle and lock, the door will lock and unlock. If I reconect the two bowden cables and replace the door trim, then when I try to lock it with the remote or the key, it makes a couple of clonking sounds but will not lock the door.

So it would seem that the actuator is working. The interior door handle and locking tab seem to move freely.... so whats causing it not to lock.....

It seems a very nice car, a bit surprised by 25mpg.... but i am thinking that may improve.

Thanks.  steve

[Herbie]

Congrats Steve and welcome to the forum - let's see some pictures of the beast when you can  

Not sure about your locking problem but as for the fuel consumption, it may not improve much at all, especially in the cold winter months. Have a look at http://www.fuelly.com/car/lexus/rx400h to give you a 'real world' idea of what to expect.

[SDi]

So it looks as if 25mpg is about average.... well I never.....

[ColinBarber]

I averaged 31 mpg in my 400h. It's the wrong time of year to be getting the best mpg figures in a hybrid. Once the weather improves so should your mpg, and it takes a few months to learn how to be more economical with a hybrid.

[Delphius1]

Hi, I'd lubricate the cables, the door handle mechanism and the lock mechanisms. I see it on MX-5s where the cables get a bit dry and start to seize, defeating the central locking actuator. Lubricating the cables and the lock latch mechanism frees things off and you should be back to normal. That lovely lock/unlock indicator on the door handle is a great idea and handy, but it needs to work freely so the lock latch doesn't stop working.

It still gets me how different Japanese manufacturers use similar mechanisms in their cars. European cars are all quite different from each other, but Japanese cars tend to use very similar concepts between manufacturers. It makes working on Japanese cars so interesting. I've owned and worked on Supras, Mx-5s, Mitsubishis and now my RX and I still find odd things that are common to more than one car across different makes. It's almost like there's a door lock guy in Japan and they all go to him to design door locks for them, he just does something slightly different for each project. lol.

[SDi]

Problem solved.

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

On the lock assembly there is a piece of black plastic that is part of the child lock override button. This pivots on a pin. It would seem that it had jumped the pivots and was floating free. It can’t go anywhere as it jams the locking mechanism. With a small screwdriver it clicked back on the pivot. After reassembly everything locks and opens as it should. I can’t see how it popped off in the first place, maybe a previous owner slammed the door too hard. Anyway, saved the price of a door actuator.

Incidentally, the inside door panel comes off very easily with a plastic pry tool, but putting it back on is not so easy, it tricky getting the top part of the door trim over the metal of the door, opening the window helps a lot but its still difficult.

 

Hope this help someone.

 

steve

[Rutlandlex]

My MPG was 31 in the summer which then ndropped to 27 in winter.  I have recently changed my tyres to BF Goodrich Urban Terrains and it has dropped to 26 but at least if we get another beast from the east then I'm far more confident of not getting stuck than with the old Bridgestone Potenza RE031's.

Nice one with the door lock.  I love it when it's just a simple fix like that.