wigs Posted April 18, 2009 Share Posted April 18, 2009 Ok so i'm new here and have been looking around for few hours. I'm at my wits end. Any help would be great Many things are wrong. drivers window is the only window that works, sunroof is stuck in the vent position, the instrument panel is completly black does not light up none of the gauges are working Radio is not working but hasen't for a few weeks, the headlights would stay on so i had to disconnect the batt. Now the go off like they should. When i turn the lights on the bright indicator is working as are the turn signal flashers in the cluster, mirrors don't work. That's all i can think of now. I had it the dealership because it did not start. My key was broken or something. New key and it starts and runs fine now. Anyway they quoted me a wiring harness for $3820.24. I really don't want to do that. Possibly somthing else i got the feeling they just wanted to throw parts at it. He said this might fix the problem. Any help would be great. From the searches it looks like other people are saying its the classic trunk wiring problem? Where to find a how-to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickatups Posted April 18, 2009 Share Posted April 18, 2009 Hi ..... well ... first, welcome to the club! geeeeeeez! sounds like you have quite a mess on your hands ...... I hope you are mechanically inclined??? we need to know more about your car ..... the model year, milage, and any previous service history (in a nutshell)??? did you buy your LS 400 in this condition ... or did all of this suddenly happen to it one day? let us know .......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wigs Posted April 18, 2009 Author Share Posted April 18, 2009 thanks for the welcome. Is a 1998 237,000 miles. I am the second owner first owner was a friend that i know very well. He did all the maintnece never had a problem with it ever. I have had it for about 50k miles with no major problems. I consider myself very mechanically inclined. The only reason it actully went to a dealer because i was 200miles from home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wigs Posted April 19, 2009 Author Share Posted April 19, 2009 OK got a little further. I was checking the fuses and found the 10amp MPX and the 10amp dome fuses burnt outso i found two i had laying around and popped them in the dome blew again as soon as I reattached the batt. So i put in a 15amp breaker i made and it just keeps popping. With the new fuses when i turn the key on the steering wheel moves like it should and the airbag light on the dash comes on. But now the climate control dosen't work, the front defrost button is just blinking. UGH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatingupblacktop Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 OK got a little further. I was checking the fuses and found the 10amp MPX and the 10amp dome fuses burnt outso i found two i had laying around and popped them in the dome blew again as soon as I reattached the batt. So i put in a 15amp breaker i made and it just keeps popping. With the new fuses when i turn the key on the steering wheel moves like it should and the airbag light on the dash comes on. But now the climate control dosen't work, the front defrost button is just blinking. UGH Welcome to the LOC! Obviously you've got something shorting somewhere. Have there been any mods done by the previous owner? Since you're a diy, I'd suggest tracing the circuits one by one for each prob until you find the source(s). It'll take some time but I'd check the relays/wiring/connections/proper grounds/junction boxes, etc. as well. If you're blowing fuses, you should be able to find what's creating the draw. For dead ciruits, check for continuity in the wiring and switches. Trace back to where you actually read power. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wigs Posted April 20, 2009 Author Share Posted April 20, 2009 Found the problem with the dome circuit. Wires are pinched at the drivers sun visor. what i found next sent me into a swearing frenzy http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195623 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195760 Found that it follows all the way across the top to the A-Pillar... http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195866 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195913 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195944 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195974 And made the turn down the A-pillar... http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240196058 All the way to the bottom of the apillar behind the glove boxes and stops about 2 inches before entering the main harness loom. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240196153 No more pics but tore the main loom open for inspection and went about another two feet into it and found that it did not go into the loom. Going to get a new/used harness and replace all the wiring from the main harness and all the roof wiring affected. Also took the sunroof motor out and tried to power it on the bench threw the gummy substance on the backside. The motor moves about a mm and then blows the fuse on my powered test light. This might be the origianl problem that started it all. Any idea what a new motor would be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eatingupblacktop Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 Props on some excellent investigative work and documentation wigs! Looks like a mess alright. Can't give you a price offhand. Shop around to compare with dealer's prices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wigs Posted May 13, 2009 Author Share Posted May 13, 2009 It's been awhile but finally got it all back together. I got a harness and motor from a used parts salvage yard and was the wrong one. Finally after weeks of waiting got another used one and was the right one. everything works execpt the sunroof. IT moves but can't get it to go into the closed postion. It will open all the way but when i go to close it, it goes past the closed and into the tilt up position? Is there some sort of adaption proceess? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curiousB Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 I would double check the fuses as well. For the wiring harness to burn like that somebody probably got frustrated with popping fuses and instead of fixing the root cause of the problem put in a larger rated fuse. Instead fo the fuse popping the wiring became the fuse... You got stuck with the results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wigs Posted May 13, 2009 Author Share Posted May 13, 2009 yeah, the fuses are ok, the current draw on the affected circuits are min., and all the fuses are the correct rating. so how about that sunroof closing problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curiousB Posted May 13, 2009 Share Posted May 13, 2009 I looked in service manual for '04 ls430 and couldn't find a procedure for adoption. I thought there may be a micro switch to detect closure but couldn’t see one. I think the "sliding roof system" ECU looks at motor current to detect closure. When the mechanism closes (reaches shut state) it senses an abrupt rise in motor current and stops the motor. It could be this detection circuit in the ECU isn’t working properly. In the '04 there is a safety reversal system that detects if there is a blockage and then reverses the motor. Not sure if your year has that feature but if it does it might be useful to test with a book or something fairly soft to see if once jammed the ECU detects and reverses. I’d bet this uses some of the same detection circuitry as the close detect function (ie motor current detect). Anyway I know this isn’t a solution but maybe lets you move the ball forward some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
90LS400Lexus Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 Wow, that is a nasty mess! Glad you found the problem. I am wondering... at any point, did you ever smell the wiring burning? Found the problem with the dome circuit. Wires are pinched at the drivers sun visor. what i found next sent me into a swearing frenzyhttp://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195623 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195760 Found that it follows all the way across the top to the A-Pillar... http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195866 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195913 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195944 http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240195974 And made the turn down the A-pillar... http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240196058 All the way to the bottom of the apillar behind the glove boxes and stops about 2 inches before entering the main harness loom. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y271/wigs...pg?t=1240196153 No more pics but tore the main loom open for inspection and went about another two feet into it and found that it did not go into the loom. Going to get a new/used harness and replace all the wiring from the main harness and all the roof wiring affected. Also took the sunroof motor out and tried to power it on the bench threw the gummy substance on the backside. The motor moves about a mm and then blows the fuse on my powered test light. This might be the origianl problem that started it all. Any idea what a new motor would be? Yeah, seems as though.... I am suprised that the car didnt burn up. :o I would double check the fuses as well. For the wiring harness to burn like that somebody probably got frustrated with popping fuses and instead of fixing the root cause of the problem put in a larger rated fuse. Instead fo the fuse popping the wiring became the fuse... You got stuck with the results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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