Sunglass Storage Box Won't Open.. Is One There?

[reikiwes]

Hey again. (I'm really getting my $$ worth with these forums. Thanks for all the valuable info, everyone!)

I see that there is supposed to be a storage compartment (for sunglasses?) behind the moon-roof controls. Mine doesn't open, if there is one there. I know on my Volvo, the sunglass holder was just a "dummy" if you got the sunroof option, and was only functional if you did NOT have a sunroof. Can anyone confirm if this is the case for the ES300 (2003)?

If there IS one there, has anyone had troubles getting it pen, and how would I do it without breaking it? All I can see to do would be to try to push a flat head screwdriver into the crack and pry it open, but this scares me.

What to do?

[SW03ES]

Its there, you should just have to push up and then it will open down...

[reikiwes]

Its there, you should just have to push up and then it will open down...

Looks like I'm going to have to be a bit more "forceful" about it. I pushed on it, but it doesn't budge. Up or down. I would assume pushing up on it, it would "give" slightly and drop. No such luck for me.

Perhaps someone left their $300 sunglasses in there for me!! (Or, more likely, their kid's $6.00 Mickey Mouse sunglasses with the ears, which is making it difficult to open. LOL!)

[Steve]

do you have the basic model ES?

I know the basic IS250 does not have a sun glasses holder and is just a blank plate

[reikiwes]

do you have the basic model ES?

You know, I don't really know. I've got a moonroof and rear power sunshade and in-dash 6-disc CD and tape, but no heated seats or navigation or raindrop detection, or ML radio.

Sounds pretty basic. If I look in the crack, I can see space behind the door, as if there SHOULD be something there, but that probably doesn't mean anything.

I just don't want to force it open and all my moonroof wiring pop out or something crazy.

[SW03ES]

Its definately there, its there in all ES models. There's just something jammed in there.

Try gently prying with a flat head screwdriver with the tip covered in a thin towel or electrical tape and see what you can do.

[reikiwes]

AH HA!

I GOT IT! Took your advice and got in there with a screwdriver. There was something in there all right! No $300 sunglasses, but TONS of business cards. Previous owner was a realtor, and it had about 200 business cards jammed in it, keeping it from opening.

Works perfectly now.

Thanks SW03ES!

So... now that I know the previous owner (purchased at dealer), I wonder if I should email her and ask why she traded it and what might be wrong with it, that she knows of? Would that be in poor taste?

[SW03ES]

Us pesky realtors lol.

I wouldn't bug her. I'm sure she just traded it because she wanted a new car. Realtors like to drive new cars.

[amf1932]

Us pesky realtors lol.

I wouldn't bug her. I'm sure she just traded it because she wanted a new car. Realtors like to drive new cars.

So what are you waiting for? LOL

[reikiwes]

Us pesky realtors lol.

I wouldn't bug her. I'm sure she just traded it because she wanted a new car. Realtors like to drive new cars.

Or, she wasn't selling any houses and couldn't afford it any longer!!

I don't know about your area, but here on the Gulf Coast our real estate market has dried up. I mean NOTHING is selling. I've seen houses selling in the mid-$200k's dropping $80k-$100k in price!!! I probably couldn't sell my home now if I tried.

I have a friend in Human Resources at a large company here in town that told me probably 25-30% of ALL his applications for employment are from former realtors.

Three years ago, our small beach town was nothing but real estate agents and mortgage officers. EVERYONE wanted to be a realtor here because the multi-million dollar properties were selling by the truckload. You couldn't sell one now if your life depended on it.

My neighbor was a realtor... a fairly popular one at that. She now "throws dough" at our local pizza joint making less than $9.00/hour. Heartbreaking, really.

When I bought my house two years ago, there were less than 2,000 homes on the market in our small(ish) city. Now, there are over 8 thousand on the market, last I heard.

Hope you are faring better. I think we're just getting hit harder because we are in a vacation/beach area.

[SW03ES]

Us pesky realtors lol.

I wouldn't bug her. I'm sure she just traded it because she wanted a new car. Realtors like to drive new cars.

So what are you waiting for? LOL

See the post below yours LOL.

Reiki,

The market is very slow, even here. Its not nearly as bad as in your area, Washington, DC is a pretty sheltered market because we have such an influx of people coming into the area and such an influx of people leaving. Its a very transient market, people come, spend 5-7 years and move on. So the good thing is that you always have a lot of people that have to sell or have to buy. Its also a terriffic time to purchase investment properties, I've just bought another one myself and I've been working with my investor clients doing the same thing.

Its exascerbated right now because this is a typically slow part of the year anyways. Its only going to get worse until mid-January.

The GOOD news about this for those of us in the business is this is going to flush a lot of the part timer, get rich quickies out of the business. This is a VERY difficult business and you have to live your life a certain way to ensure that you can survive the slow times. You have to put money away when things are really good to protect yourself against times when things are really bad. Unfortunately a lot of people don't do that, and thus they wind up having to get out of the business when things get bad.

You also have a lot of people who really have no sales skills in this business. They're used to the last 6 years when the houses sold themselves and listings sold in 2 days. Making a living was easy provided you were established (very hard to get started in a market like that). Now...you actually have to sell houses. It takes skills. Buyers are very afraid to pull the trigger, and they NEED you to sell them a house because right now it really is the time to buy. I see this all over the place with my listings, other agents show them and they just can't close their buyers. They want the place, but the agent has no idea how to overcome their objections and get the contract. Its very frustrating that I just can't do it for them...

So, at least for me things are okay and should stay that way. But, part of being responsible in this market is no new car. So, I'll keep my car (paid for) until the market turns around.

[ezthermal]

my car - 2012 IS250 AWD

I joined this forum as I came to this and other Lexus forums to get an answer to this question. I was stunned by some of the off the way UNHELPFUL responses... So - when I DID find a solution to my problem - I thought I'd come back and actually post what I did - to help someone else who was without their sunglasses for a couple weeks...

First - do NOT try to use a screwdriver - if you search for some photos of the holder - there are some on the internet - you will see why that will only tear up your car...

OK - my sunglasses really only fit in that small sunglass holder thing one way - otherwise it will not close. Well, it will close if you FORCE it... Well, that is what I did one day - I forced it to close... I was happy - my sunglasses were tucked away safe and sound... But - the next day when I came out - no matter how I pushed up on the cover - it would not pop open...

So - after reading and reading and doing internet searches it finally dawned on me (Uh, I am an engineer, duh...)... The way the closing and opening mechanism is designed - the cover must travel vertically up into the sunglass holding area to the point that it triggers the latch to either open or close. SO, what it did was - I PUSH on the lid/cover at the middle edge (side toward the rear window) with ALL I HAD - just my thumb and index finger - trying to push the lid up - and perhaps crushing my sunglasses... Well, it worked - the lid popped open... So - if it is stuck - it is probably because you FORCED it to close when your sunglasses were either too large or improperly loaded. So - go back and FORCE it to OPEN by PUSHING HARD on the sucker... Good luck... Z