Starting (Click) Issue

[Rob-Halifax]

Been away for a few weeks in the sun, came back to lovely cold UK and my GS won't start, it just goes click. The Battery is fully charged and I've tried it in Neutral and Park.

Before I went away, it had occasionally been doing the same, the odd time it would just click, remove the key and try again, started fine.

Now, just a click.

Before I go ahead and (try to) change the starter motor from the donor car, I've heard tell of an inhibitor switch, basically, the car still thinks it's in gear. Surely, if that was the case, it would not click at all, it's my understanding that the inhibitor switch will stop the ignition from working if it's not in park or neutral?

Anyone suggest the next course of action, i'm not looking foreword to trying to change out the starter if it can be avoided.

Cheers

Rob

[messi]

Sounds like starter motor, common issue on Toyota/Lexus

[ROYT]

Most likely the starter contacts, easy if the motor is accessible,not so easy if it's like the LS400.

Contact kits available from Lexus or aftermarket

[wendle]

I might be completely wrong but I am sure I read somewhere
about this problem, some body solved it by rocking the car, not sure if it was
a manual or auto car though.

[TigerFish]

Does sound like a solenoid issue. I have a link in my sig to a tutorial I did for overhauling the starter. I would overhaul rather than a straight swap from the donor car only because you could end up with the same issue very soon with another old/unknown condition starter.

p.s. Yeah, the inhibitor would stop it clicking as well. Once it clicks, it is a direct feed from the Battery to the starter so the inhibitor would do naff all at that point.

[Rob-Halifax]

Lol Rick, I love the way you make use of those very technical terms (naff all)

Is there any how to's out there for getting to the starter and removing it? I know it's a bitch to get to on the LS400, i'm hoping I'll have better look with the gs.

Cheers

[TigerFish]

There probably is one out there somewhere, but I didn't do one when I did mine (not sure why I didn't). It is a right royal pain, not a lot of room to work in. All I can recommend it that you have plenty of extension bars and wobble bars. I found it easiest to get to the nuts by running very long combos of extension past the gearbox from the propshaft end, wobble bars helped get round any tight spots. I guess if you are skinny enough, you can wangle things around the gaps, but I'm certainly not a bean pole.