IS 220d Electrics/Ignition Dead

[Neville]

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help me. I have a 2006 IS 220d and several weeks ago I got to the car and unlocked the doors got in and it was dead. Security light flashes and the green back light on the start button is illuminated, no amber LED though. The clocks, stereo, everything is dead. I have checked the earth from the Battery which was a week old, replaced the fob Battery. Linkable fuse and all others are ok. Four auto electricians have looked at the car, 3 couldn't get communication as the ignition hasn't power and the fourth pulled codes  B2799 and B2281. Due to this I bought a second hand kit including engine ECU, body control, steering column, smart key and smart key module, key receivers, under dash fuse boxes, power control module, start button and clocks. Nothing changed. So I put all the original parts back on to the car. Any ideas would be much appreciated.

[jumbojake]

are either of the 12v or switched_12v  feeds alive  when you probe the fuseboards?

what reading do you get from the Battery, or perm 12v feeds with ignition off and on ?

all i can think is to trace back from dashboard fuseboard back to the Battery, so see where you loose the 12v to chassis... really sounds like a broken earth (unlikely), blown fuse (also unlikely) or dead Battery (more likely) .. but if you have had a few people look it over, I am sure they should have done the same

[Herbie]

32 minutes ago, Neville said:

Four auto electricians have looked at the car, 3 couldn't get communication as the ignition hasn't power and the fourth pulled codes  B2799 and B2281

If that really is the case then you should name and shame just who these so-called "auto electricians" are, because a true auto electrician wouldn't just rely on codes and give up when they "couldn't get communication".

They would start to do some proper diagnostic fault-finding and find out why this is happening, not just say, "It's not communicating so I can't do anything".

I see you're in Lancashire. If you're anywhere near Preston I can highly recommend Ribblesdale Auto Electrics on Marsh Lane:

https://ribblesdaleauto.co.uk/services/electrical-repairs/

If you're too far away or whatever, all I can suggest is to make sure the Battery is fully charged against the chart below and that ALL connections including the Battery posts, clamps, earth straps (including Battery to chassis and engine to chassis) and all alternator connections are clean and tight.

It sounds like it could be a main fuse so check for voltage in and out of the fuse block or check for continuity across the fuse - some fuses can look alright but have indeed blown.

EDIT:

Did you, or these so-called auto electricians, check what the error codes mean? It appears that B2799 has something to do with the keys and/or the immobiliser, which may explain a lot. The Youtube video below may or may not help, I don't know, but it may at least give you a starting point from which to Google further:

 

 

[steve2006]

Check for power i.e. 12 Volts on the two fuses on the top right of the picture.

I’d love to get my meter out on this fault.

 

[Neville]

Update... Thanks for the pointers. I've double checked all fuses and relays, checked and rechecked every earth I can find including those buried away bottom rear of the engine nearside. Tried the reprogramming but as the electrics are off has made no difference. I'm thinking it may be the key and I only have one which isn't the master. But surely if it was the key the dash would still work and say key not detected. Am I right in thinking this? Oh, and the only time the security light stops flashing is when I disconnect the Battery. Stays on when I enter the vehicle. 

[scudney]

The immobiliser/security light should in all honesty go out once you unlock/enter the car

[ColinBarber]

B2799 is an immobiliser error but not one related to the key - the ECU is detecting a wiring issue between itself and the transponder unit.

B2281 is signalling issue between the power source control module and shift lock control ECU.

 

I'd say you have an electrical supply issue - earthing, fuses (including the big bolt on ones on the understand of the engine bay fuse box, EFI relay, power source control module etc.

[Neville]

UPDATE.... found the problem to be the ID code box. With some fine fettling it's working now. YAY!!!

[Herbie]

1 hour ago, Neville said:

UPDATE.... found the problem to be the ID code box. With some fine fettling it's working now. YAY!!!

Glad it's sorted but what's an ID code box and what was actually wrong with it?

And in order to help other members save time and money, it would be helpful for you to give us pointers as to who the three auto electricians were who just gave up because there was no power.

[Neville]

It's the module that reads and checks the code from the key. It is located behind the top vent of the heater behind the dash. In an IS220, So it is not easy to get to. I've moved it so it is now behind the clocks therefore easier to get to in the future should I need to. As for what was wrong with it I think some of the conductive track was coming away from the PCB or a dry joint, couldn'tbesurewithouta magnifier. Anyway I ran some solder over some of the joints and for good measure heated it with a hairdryer (set to a heat you would not use on your hair) to stick the track back down.. (all the episodes of the A-Team I watched as a child were not wasted) and the cars is working as it should. 

 

As for auto electricians. Speak to people and get recommendations. I did in the end and found a brilliant one who put me on to the problem Mick Able Auto Electrician. Do not just find one on the internet. 

Hope this helps someone so they don't have to do all messing around I did.

[gerdiesel]

Thank a million for posting more in depth got me out of a hole today.

On 5/21/2020 at 8:36 PM, Neville said:

It's the module that reads and checks the code from the key. It is located behind the top vent of the heater behind the dash. In an IS220, So it is not easy to get to. I've moved it so it is now behind the clocks therefore easier to get to in the future should I need to. As for what was wrong with it I think some of the conductive track was coming away from the PCB or a dry joint, couldn'tbesurewithouta magnifier. Anyway I ran some solder over some of the joints and for good measure heated it with a hairdryer (set to a heat you would not use on your hair) to stick the track back down.. (all the episodes of the A-Team I watched as a child were not wasted) and the cars is working as it should. 

 

As for auto electricians. Speak to people and get recommendations. I did in the end and found a brilliant one who put me on to the problem Mick Able Auto Electrician. Do not just find one on the internet. 

Hope this helps someone so they don't have to do all messing around I did.

 

[gerdiesel]

have to admit ive been a mechanic going on 12 years and this one had me stumped, we have grown fond of relying on the scan tool and sometimes the brain just follows a set plan and we dont stop to really asses whats happening. now to move that id box where its easy to reach if i have further issues

[santeri]

On 4/6/2023 at 6:06 PM, gerdiesel said:

have to admit ive been a mechanic going on 12 years and this one had me stumped, we have grown fond of relying on the scan tool and sometimes the brain just follows a set plan and we dont stop to really asses whats happening. now to move that id box where its easy to reach if i have further issues

Hi, could you please tell me if this was accessible by just removing the head unit and the vents, or did the whole dashboard had to come off?

[Linas.P]

Whole dash has to come off.

I have not tried myself, but I reckon it would be possible to "loosen" the dartboard and fish it out through the went/head unit hole, but at that point you would be 90% there in dash removal. 

[santeri]

38 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

Whole dash has to come off.

I have not tried myself, but I reckon it would be possible to "loosen" the dartboard and fish it out through the went/head unit hole, but at that point you would be 90% there in dash removal. 

Thank you for the prompt reply!

My situation is pretty much the same as throughout the thread, the car has been left to sit for a while and now doesn't want to even turn the accessories on.

Remote locking works, but no lights on the Start button, no matter if the clutch/brake are pressed.

Security light flashing. 

Normal voltage on the Battery.

New batteries  in both fobs.

Not possible to read OBD2 (small floorlight next to it does work though)

 

Do you think the ID could be the culprit?

Edit: 2006 IS220D

[santeri]

Forgot to add, even the power seats are working, while the ignition isn't.

[Linas.P]

power seats are always on, so they only need Battery to be connected to work.

check OBD2 fuse, although you need to be in IG ON to be able to use OBD2, so if the car does not cycle power modes you can't read anything. In my case it allowed me to cycle OFF>ACC>IG and would let me start the engine, but engine would stall right away (IS250 auto).

It may turn out into boring task of checking all the fuses. Including combination fuse.

I assume you tried touching key to the start button (if batteries in key are good should not matter, but sometimes every little helps). 

Hard to say, but so far it sounds more like no power to ignition, rather than immobiliser fault. Immobiliser should only prevent engine from starting. Could be smart key module as well, perhaps not recognising the key is inside the car at all... although in that case I would expect it to say "no key detected" on the dash. 

[santeri]

24 minutes ago, Linas.P said:

power seats are always on, so they only need battery to be connected to work.

check OBD2 fuse, although you need to be in IG ON to be able to use OBD2, so if the car does not cycle power modes you can't read anything. In my case it allowed me to cycle OFF>ACC>IG and would let me start the engine, but engine would stall right away (IS250 auto).

It may turn out into boring task of checking all the fuses.

I assume you tried touching key to the start button (if batteries in key are good should not matter, but sometimes every little helps). 

Hard to say, but so far it sounds more like no power to ignition, rather than immobiliser fault. Immobiliser should only prevent engine from starting. Could be smart key module as well, perhaps not recognising the key is inside the car at all... although in that case I would expect it to say "no key detected" on the dash. 

Thanks.

All the fuses have been checked already apparently (not by me).

Press fob to Start button also didn't yield results.

I thought about no power to ignition, but my reasoning is that power condition can't be varifed until the immobiliser fault (transponder really) is out of the equation, which would allow for the power to come in, as I'm not getting an amber light on the button or any other. I also don't get the "key not detected" message. So my opinion is that from the cars current pov, the key just isn't in the car.

Edit: forgot to mention that the dash actually has some life in it, it allows me to cycle through on/off option for disabling that particular security feature, can't remember the name of it unfortunately, there's a dedicated button for it.

My biggest hurdle in deciding whether to mess with this, is that while researching this issue, I've seen many people claiming that Lexues won't allow you to replace individual modules, and that you need to get the full ECU+immo+key+BCM etc. kit. Is this correct, and how did you go about it in your case? Any dealership programming involved?

[santeri]

Apologies for the ramble, I just realised I unnecessarily reiterated many things you said in your last reply. 

 

Got me thinking, in a working car, if you enter it without a key and try to start it (or go to acc), will it always say "no key detected " or will it just stay dead?

[Linas.P]

1 hour ago, santeri said:

I've seen many people claiming that Lexues won't allow you to replace individual modules, and that you need to get the full ECU+immo+key+BCM etc. kit. Is this correct, and how did you go about it in your case? Any dealership programming involved?

I have replaced ECU kit - must be matching keys + ID box + steering lock, but as well they need to be matching part numbers to gateway and smart key module. So you basically just end-up buying whole kit anyway, ideally with 2 keys already. Engine ECU can be programmed via pins on OBD2, just one advice - be careful not to damage OBD2 port as replacing it is really annoying. The only thing that theoretically would need dealership programming would be keys, so just make sure to get kit with keys.

58 minutes ago, santeri said:

Got me thinking, in a working car, if you enter it without a key and try to start it (or go to acc), will it always say "no key detected " or will it just stay dead?

if the car was unlocked remotely, but key was never detected and and you try to start the car then it will say "no key detected".

Other option I am thinking about - faulty brake pedal, clutch pedal or gear selector switch i.e. car doe not recognise that you depress clutch, so it does not know you attempting to start it. 

Again I am not 100% sure how it works on IS220d, but on IS250 immobiliser does not cut power to anything, so everything in the car works, expect it cuts fuel like 0.5s after the start. 

[santeri]

23 hours ago, Linas.P said:

I have replaced ECU kit - must be matching keys + ID box + steering lock

Did you not need the steering column as well, as it has it's own module? I read this was the case and I'd be happy if it's not true.

  

23 hours ago, Linas.P said:

but as well they need to be matching part numbers to gateway and smart key module.

Could you please elaborate on this, just to be certain. Does it mean that if for example my SmartKey P/N is "123", the other one has to be "123" as well, or do the modules need to have some matching numbers between themselves?

23 hours ago, Linas.P said:

if the car was unlocked remotely, but key was never detected and and you try to start the car then it will say "no key detected".

 

Thanks for confirming that.

23 hours ago, Linas.P said:

Other option I am thinking about - faulty brake pedal, clutch pedal or gear selector switch i.e. car doe not recognise that you depress clutch, so it does not know you attempting to start it. 

I pray that it's actually the start button that's faulty 😄 

 

Finally, would you be able to confirm if the first post from here is accurate where it says that you can perform "handshake" between SmartKey+immo and the ECU, when putting in a replacement ECU? (not saying I need one at this point) https://www.clublexus.com/forums/maintenance/854715-used-ecu-swapping-and-programming-to-immobilizer.html

[Linas.P]

@santeri Sorry was away for some time

Immo + steering lock + keys are codded together. So not only they must be matching part numbers, but as well programmed to work together e.g. regardless of what is part number for ID Code Box it must be from the same vehicle as well as keys and steering lock, even if all part numbers match they are not codded together and won't work. It is basically the same as taking your keys walking next to another Lexus and trying to unlock it, just won't recognise the key. That is literally what happened to me - I have replaced ID code box with keys, cars unlocks, engine starts, but the steering remains locked and I get DTC for steering lock communication.

Then the rest of the parts must be just matching part numbers e.g. ID Code Box is 89783-53010 and matching Smart Key Module is 89990-53010. As long as they are matching part numbers they can be from completely different car. Say one from 2008 IS250 and another from 2006 IS220d. And there is some acceptable range but I don't know exactly e.g. in my case I had 53014 and 53011.

Yes engine ECU can be reset to talk to new set of keys and immobiliser by connecting terminals TC and CG for ~40min. Strangely I have not found the way to do it on the diagnostics computer.

[santeri]

23 hours ago, Linas.P said:

@santeri Sorry was away for some time

Immo + steering lock + keys are codded together. So not only they must be matching part numbers, but as well programmed to work together e.g. regardless of what is part number for ID Code Box it must be from the same vehicle as well as keys and steering lock, even if all part numbers match they are not codded together and won't work. It is basically the same as taking your keys walking next to another Lexus and trying to unlock it, just won't recognise the key. That is literally what happened to me - I have replaced ID code box with keys, cars unlocks, engine starts, but the steering remains locked and I get DTC for steering lock communication.

Then the rest of the parts must be just matching part numbers e.g. ID Code Box is 89783-53010 and matching Smart Key Module is 89990-53010. As long as they are matching part numbers they can be from completely different car. Say one from 2008 IS250 and another from 2006 IS220d. And there is some acceptable range but I don't know exactly e.g. in my case I had 53014 and 53011.

Yes engine ECU can be reset to talk to new set of keys and immobiliser by connecting terminals TC and CG for ~40min. Strangely I have not found the way to do it on the diagnostics computer.

No worries.

Thank you very much for going in depth with this. I think I almost have all the info that I need now to tackle this.

Did you only confirm that you SmartKey module had the same part number as your donor car, or did you replace it as well?

I will likely go to a scrapyard for the parts, as none of the current ECU kit listings on eBay have the ID box included. (I might ask them to include it though)

The dash is halfway removed already, so I will first have a look at the ID box, hoping there's a PCB issue that can be fixed like in Neville's case, instead of replacing the kit.

 

Wish me luck 😬

[Linas.P]

I have replaced it. 

Myself I simply contacted like 5 sellers on eBay who were braking IS250/220d for parts and ask them specifically for matching kit... and one of them agreed to go and get it for me. 

[santeri]

On 6/24/2023 at 6:49 PM, Linas.P said:

I have replaced it. 

Myself I simply contacted like 5 sellers on ebay who were braking IS250/220d for parts and ask them specifically for matching kit... and one of them agreed to go and get it for me. 

Hi Linas,

I'm still in the process of getting the parts. I read back all the info I gathered and there's still something that's not clear to me.

So for my sake and everyone else's who might have to go through this, could you please list all the parts you replaced from the same donor?

At this point I'm certain about:

Keys

ID Code Box

Steering Lock

SmartKey Module

 

 

Double Door Lock ECU?

Gateway ECU?

BCM?

Power Source Control  ECU?