Rx400h "gs/es Hybrid" Steering Wheel Upgrade *pics*

[cduluk]

Hey guys :D

As some of you may already know, I’ve done a few “personalized” projects on my Rx400h, one of which being the staining of the interior wood trim and steering wheel. Although the added “red” tint to the wood finish looks a lot better than the factory brown stain, I thought the steering wheel design still needed some more upgrading. I’ve never really liked the style of the Rx400h steering wheel and radio & phone controls, so I started thinking of some ways to upgrade.

Here’s the factory Rx400h steering wheel, wood, and radio & phone controls:

My problems:

1. The “brown” stained wood is bland

2. The radio and phone controls are boring

3. There’s nothing separating the style of the controls from the Rx330/350.

But one steering wheel style I’ve really admired is found on the 06-07 Lexus GS models.

The wheel “itself” is of the same shape as the Rx wheel, but the radio & phone controls and the airbag were changed slightly. A similar style is also found on the 05-06 ES330 model as well, but the buttons are painted a “silvery/gold” color.

Immediately I imagined the GS wheel and controls in the Rx400h cockpit- and I knew I had to find a way to make it happen. But I had a few concerns, one of which being the possibility that the wheel radio & phone controls from the GS might not be a direct plug & play into the Rx400h clockspring, and the obvious concern being the safety of using the GS airbag in the Rx400h.

But I thought I’d give it a try- buy the materials and see if it could be done. <_<

So the project began. The first job was finding the right steering wheel, radio & phone controls, and airbag-, which immediately became an instant challenge.

I looked at pictures of the interiors from both the GS and ES models. The steering wheel, controls and airbag from the GS looked to be a perfect combination, until I looked closely at the grain of the wheel’s leather. The leather grain on the GS wheel is plain, with no pattern at all. It doesn’t match the airbag or the rest of the dash in the GS or RX. Someone at Lexus screwed up here…

But the wheel’s leather grain on the 05-06 ES looked to be a perfect match. :)

So I would have to buy the steering wheel itself from an 05-06 ES330, the radio & phone controls from the 06-07 GS, and the airbag from the GS or ES (since they’re the same).

After about a month and a half of searching on eBay, I finally came across an 06-07 GS steering wheel in decent enough condition to act as the radio & phone control donor.

I took the controls off of the GS wheel, and painted the units’ covers and buttons with a special “soft-touch” paint. Ever feel one of those flash drives, phones or presentation boxes with that “soft” finish? I found this special paint online that gives any surface that same soft feel! It’s called “soft feel paint” by Alsacorp. It’s a three-part clear, can be applied using an airbrush, and dries with a matte finish, with EXCELLENT durability. I’ve painted my window switch buttons and cruise control stalk with the stuff too- it’s very addicting! ;)

Then I found an 06 ES330 steering wheel with the gray wood (which has the perfect burl grain I was looking for) with the black leather.

And I bought an airbag for the 06-07 GS, brand new, on eBay.

I first started on the ES wood wheel. I masked off the leather and stripped the clear and gray stain so I could see the bare wood. I then stained the wood with the same red “stained glass” paint I used on the rest of the wood trim in my Rx400h, and followed this with 8 coats of a two-part, hard, gloss clearcoat. Wet-sanded & polished the finish, and re-finished the leather as well.

Then the moment of truth; would this combination of steering wheel, controls, and airbag work in the Rx400h?

I removed the negative battery terminal on the Rx400h (so the car’s computer wouldn’t give me an airbag warning code) and removed the factory airbag. I removed the factory radio & phone controls, and compared the RX and GS plugs (that hook into the clockspring). I immediately noticed that the plugs were the same size! But then I looked closely… The square plugs have several “pin holes”, maybe 10 or so which the wires connect into- but the plug from the GS controls had one additional wire than the controls from the RX! Damn!! I thought… I really didn’t want to, but I knew I could take the controls apart and re-wire it- but I had to figure out which button was mismatched. So I plugged it in anyways, connected the new airbag (which has the same plugs and components), and turned the car on. Surprisingly, everything worked!!! EVERYHTING, even the lights. I have no idea why there’s an extra wire in the GS plug (the button circuits and locations are the same, so theoretically there shouldn’t be…) but apparently it doesn’t make a single difference

So I installed the ES wheel, GS radio & phone controls, and the GS airbag. Presto, it was done!! Took the car for a little drive, tested everything out one more time, and everything works :D No warning light for the airbag, no problems at all. And here it is 3 days later, and everything still works A-OK. In the back of my mind I knew the controls from the GS would be a direct plug & play on the Rx400h since the buttons are in the same general locations. It wouldn’t have been economical for the Lexus steering wheel engineers to make two different circuitry and plugs. <_<

So I really think the upgraded controls fit the Rx VERY well, much more than the factory set does IMO. The chrome “sliver” between the buttons on the radio & phone controls matches the chrome sliver under the navigation screen and the ones I added on the side AC vents. The GS radio & phone buttons are “flat” (vs the raised Rx400h factory ones) which match the buttons on the nav unit- I mean, why didn’t Lexus use these controls on the Rx??? It’s a PERFECT plug & play, and it looks much better, much more luxurious IMO… It really differentiates my steering wheel from the Rx330/350, which is what I was after. :)

It might not be such a plug & play on the Rx330 and Rx350 however since these wheel controls lack the “display” button (it’s just blank). I’m not sure if the plugs’ wires would match up, but you could give it a try. :) There are different controls (combinations of buttons) available on the 06-07 GS models based on whether or not they have nav and bluetooth- so it might be very possible. But I can say for a fact the controls for the 06-07 GS’s (with nav, voice recognition and bluetooth) are a direct plug & play into the 06-08 Rx400h clocksprings B)

[cduluk]

So here are the results on the Rx400h :)

Enjoy and please comment!

[cduluk]

[thelazydogsback]

You're a frekin' madman ;)

Doing all the work for what most would consider a minor change - I hope you put this same patience and passion into your day job!

Now if you can only totally replace the center console (especially the silver side w/the vents) - then I'm sold B)

[cduluk]

You're a frekin' madman ;)

Doing all the work for what most would consider a minor change - I hope you put this same patience and passion into your day job!

Now if you can only totally replace the center console (especially the silver side w/the vents) - then I'm sold B)

haha, i'm definitely obsessed, that's for sure lol :D

After everything though, i'm not taking that much of a financial hit. I'm selling the factory Rx400h airbag and the spare parts from the other steering wheels i needed to make this one. I'm hoping to recover at least 3/4 what i payed. <_<

The way i see it is- i don't spend a lot of time partying (like most other 20yr olds) so i'd may as well spend time doing engineering stuff :) I'm keeping up with school so all is good, i can continue to be Lexus insane

[lemon]

Sweeeet, dude. The new steering wheel looks a lot classier than the one originally in the RX - the little chrome trim does it and the overall look of the buttons is nicer. I guess you won't know if the airbag really works unless you crash (knock on wood).

Good job.

[muffalones]

That does look so much better! It's hard to believe that your car could get any cooler, but that did it.

I had an '07 camry before I bought my rx330 and I noticed right away that the radio controls on the RX looked really boring and dated compared to the camry. Your new wheel blows the camry's away. Nice job!

Can I clutter another one of your topics with questions? ;) How do you take the steering wheel/airbag off? I asked a friend of mine today and there is no way what he said was right.

And it's nice to know of a 20 year old who can have fun without being drunk or high all the time. I'm 29 and the only reason I can afford a Lexus right now is because I don't spend all my money on booze like all of my friends do.

[cduluk]

thanks guys :D I think it was worth the effort too :)

I was a little worried about the airbag switch, until i compared them. The metal 'body' and plugs are exactly the same. The only difference is that the GS black cover has wider 'wings' (to accompany the larger radio & phone controls). I'm pretty much 100% sure there won't be a problem.

Hmm, taking the steering wheel off is a bit of a challenge at first, but after removing and installing them maybe 20 times, you learn to do it in your sleep lol. The hardest part is getting the tools needed. You need a puller, appropriate bolts, the appropriate torx bit, and ratchet set.

You need to remove the neg terminal of the battery before starting, so the computer doesn't get confused. Then remove the plastic "covers" on the left and right side of the steering wheel to gain access to the torx screws (that hold the airbag on). After they're removed, you can remove the airbag and unplug it. At this point you need to remove a rather large nut holding the steering wheel onto the center rod. When this nut is off, you need to pull the wheel. It's hard to explain "how to" pull it, but the process is generally universal for all wheels, i'm sure there are pics online everywhere... Just pull until you hear the 'pop', then remove the puller and the wheel should pop off. Just remember where the steering wheel is centered, so when you're done working on it, you can install it centered.

I have all the tools you'll need, if you want to borrow them for a few days that'd be ok with me :)

[lemon]

Don't forget to do the ISC reset if you've disconnected the battery.

[cduluk]

Don't forget to do the ISC reset if you've disconnected the battery.

Everything's running great, i don't think it's affected by that. I've had the bat disconnected a few times working on the steering wheel project, everything's still A-OK <_<

[SW03ES]

I like it! That is a much better looking wheel than what comes on the RX.

I looked at pictures of the interiors from both the GS and ES models. The steering wheel, controls and airbag from the GS looked to be a perfect combination, until I looked closely at the grain of the wheel’s leather. The leather grain on the GS wheel is plain, with no pattern at all. It doesn’t match the airbag or the rest of the dash in the GS or RX. Someone at Lexus screwed up here…

Actually thats how its supposed to be. If you look at all the new Lexus vehicles the leather on the wheel is perfectly smooth with no grain. Its buffed so its extra soft. If you actually drive one of the new cars with the buffed steering wheel leather it does feel VERY nice.

Way too much time on your hands though ;)

[lemon]

Don't forget to do the ISC reset if you've disconnected the battery.

Everything's running great, i don't think it's affected by that. I've had the bat disconnected a few times working on the steering wheel project, everything's still A-OK <_<

The car will still run just fine after disconnecting the battery, but the idle speed control WILL need to be reset. There is a TSB from Toyota stating just this (basically, if you disconnect the battery or run it below 7 volts, you HAVE to reset the ISC). The car will run, but the engine will idle too long and/or more often than it should, thus affecting your mileage. But whatever, it's your car. It is quite easy to do by yourself, though.

[SW03ES]

That soft touch paint is really cool. My only issue with that wheel was the plastic they used around those switches was hard and shiny...but that paint solved that...

[cduluk]

thanks for the compliments SW :D You're right about the leather, it seems all the newer models have it :( I have checked GS steering wheel (that i used the buttons from) and felt the leather- it's indeed 'smoother' <_< I just wish it matched :( lol

And yeah, the soft touch paint is AWESOME. I painted my key with it, and it's been maybe 2 months and there's not a single scratch or ding in it. It's extremely durable and resists getting shiny with friction. It's like magic :)

And lemon, do you know how to reset this ISC thing? I looked at my avg mileage tonight, i'm averaging freaking 18mpg!! That's not right lol.

[lemon]

And lemon, do you know how to reset this ISC thing? I looked at my avg mileage tonight, i'm averaging freaking 18mpg!! That's not right lol.

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/lofiv...php/t58930.html

The TSB is for the dealer, and references hooking up the special Lexus computer. However, the actual procedure can be done without the computer as detailed in the post. Evidently, the computer is mostly needed to make sure the coolant temp is over 180. I have a Scanguage II, which I used to confirm my coolant temp, however, any amount of spirited driving using the engine and not just the battery should raise the coolant temp to 180 and then you can peform the procedure.

I can 'almost' guarantee your mileage will increase after you do the ISC reset.

[cduluk]

K, i tried the procedure but there's one problem. When i have the car in drive with my foot on the accelerator, i cannot get the needle out of the '0' range. The engine revs, but not very much. What's the prob?

[cduluk]

Well i tried it again assuming the needle shouldn't leave that "0" range.

I drove the car for about a half hour so the car was warmed up.

When i got home, i turned the car off. Then turned it back on.

I switched the nav screen to the 'energy screen' showing the battery display. I noticed i had 6/8 bars (in blue as they normally look).

I put the car in drive, but while keeping my foot on the brake i held down the gas pedal with my other foot for about 30 seconds. At this time, i noticed one bar was added (to make 7/8 bars) but they all turned light green!??!!

I let go of the gas, put the car in park and turned the car off.

I turned the car back on, and tapped the gas until the engine came on. Still 7/8 green bars. It sounded very ill, like there wasn't enough gas or something... But i let the engine die out, and turned the car off.

Then i turned the car back on, and still green bars :(

Why are the bars now green instead of blue?? Oh boy, did i do something wrong?

[lemon]

Well i tried it again assuming the needle shouldn't leave that "0" range.

I drove the car for about a half hour so the car was warmed up.

When i got home, i turned the car off. Then turned it back on.

I switched the nav screen to the 'energy screen' showing the battery display. I noticed i had 6/8 bars (in blue as they normally look).

I put the car in drive, but while keeping my foot on the brake i held down the gas pedal with my other foot for about 30 seconds. At this time, i noticed one bar was added (to make 7/8 bars) but they all turned light green!??!!

I let go of the gas, put the car in park and turned the car off.

I turned the car back on, and tapped the gas until the engine came on. Still 7/8 green bars. It sounded very ill, like there wasn't enough gas or something... But i let the engine die out, and turned the car off.

Then i turned the car back on, and still green bars :(

Why are the bars now green instead of blue?? Oh boy, did i do something wrong?

In my post about how to do this, I think I mentioned that I could not get the energy meter to move very much - nowhere near 50% even. Still it worked for me. Having green bars is not a problem. First two bars are purple. Up to six the bars will be blue and the last two will turn everything green. If I park my car with the battery full blue, the next morning I usually run into the green as the engine charges the battery when it's running during it's warm up cycle.. If you drive the car for a short while, it will drop back into the standard blue where it normally stays.

[cduluk]

Oh, that makes sense!

So it's probably safe to say i did the procedure right? Even though the needle didn't get out of that 1cm "0" range? When i had the car ON and stationary, the needle was in the middle of this 1 cm range (resting place). When i held down the brake and accelerated, it moved up maybe 1/4cm, still in this "0" range.

The battery did seemed to get charged. How can i find out if i did the procedure correctly? Should i have kept the gas pedal down longer until the battery was "fully" charged? Or is 7/8 good enough?

[lemon]

Oh, that makes sense!

So it's probably safe to say i did the procedure right? Even though the needle didn't get out of that 1cm "0" range? When i had the car ON and stationary, the needle was in the middle of this 1 cm range (resting place). When i held down the brake and accelerated, it moved up maybe 1/4cm, still in this "0" range.

The battery did seemed to get charged. How can i find out if i did the procedure correctly? Should i have kept the gas pedal down longer until the battery was "fully" charged? Or is 7/8 good enough?

I was just having another look at the TSB, and it 'appears' the ISC reset might only have to be done on 2006 models. Regardless, it sounds like you did it right - whether you needed to or not is the question. Wait and see if your mileage goes up I guess.

The needle on my power meter barely moved when I did the procedure.

You've never had you battery meter in the 'green' before? Weird. Or maybe it's weird that mine does it very occasionally and like I said, usually first thing in the morning IF the car has been parked with six bars the night before.

[cduluk]

Nope, never had it turn green before. Also never 'noticed' it turning purple when it gets low, but i 'could' just not remember...

I've never seen the battery display more than 6/8 bars before, never had it fully charged. People say it's normal... But i like this method to get the battery fully charged :D I like having all the power i can get hehe :D

I just hope it's not harmful for the car, to hold down the brake and accelerator at the same time?

[lemon]

Nope, never had it turn green before. Also never 'noticed' it turning purple when it gets low, but i 'could' just not remember...

I've never seen the battery display more than 6/8 bars before, never had it fully charged. People say it's normal... But i like this method to get the battery fully charged :D I like having all the power i can get hehe :D

I just hope it's not harmful for the car, to hold down the brake and accelerator at the same time?

Nope, as you found out, the engine management computer (or whatever) won't allow a whole lot of power to the system when the brake and acclerator are fighting each other. On an older car the engine would have rev'd up and, voila, brake stand. Most newer cars won't let this happen. I know my wife's 2007 Impala is exactly the same. If I keep my foot on the brake and mash the gas pedal, barely anything happens.

You might try parking your vehicle overnight with the traction battery at 6 bars, then driving very spiritedly the next morning. You may find you bump into the green zone. Mine has only ever been up to seven, never eight during those circumstances. Like I said, the engine runs continuously when you first start it to heat up the cats etc. I think it's charging the battery at that time, too and any power to the drivetrain is purely from the engine, not from the traction battery, which is why I can usually enter the green zone at that time.

[cduluk]

You're right! After driving for a while (after having 7 bars) it decreased by one and they turned blue again. I swear i've never seen them green, i guess because i've never seen the battery go up to 7 or 8 bars before today

I "reset" the MPG calculator in the nav menu before my trip (after starting with 7 bars). When i got back home (to school and back, maybe 7mi each direction 35-45mph) i had averaged 28.5MPG!! Maybe because there was more power from the battery meaning less power needed from the engine?

When i got back, i had 6 bars. I did the procedure again. After maybe 40sec or so, it went up to 7 bars, but even after another minute, wouldn't go up to that 8th bar I was afraid to keep it going any longer...

I think it's pretty interesting how this gets your battery charged. I didn't know there was such an easy way to do it! :) Maybe the 08 doesn't need this procedure to reset the ISC or anything, but it certainly recharges your battery. <_<

nice find lemon :D thanks!

[lemon]

You're right! After driving for a while (after having 7 bars) it decreased by one and they turned blue again. I swear i've never seen them green, i guess because i've never seen the battery go up to 7 or 8 bars before today

I "reset" the MPG calculator in the nav menu before my trip (after starting with 7 bars). When i got back home (to school and back, maybe 7mi each direction 35-45mph) i had averaged 28.5MPG!! Maybe because there was more power from the battery meaning less power needed from the engine?

When i got back, i had 6 bars. I did the procedure again. After maybe 40sec or so, it went up to 7 bars, but even after another minute, wouldn't go up to that 8th bar I was afraid to keep it going any longer...

I think it's pretty interesting how this gets your battery charged. I didn't know there was such an easy way to do it! :) Maybe the 08 doesn't need this procedure to reset the ISC or anything, but it certainly recharges your battery. <_<

nice find lemon :D thanks!

I don't know if it's such a good idea to charge your battery in this manner. Like I said, I find that a spirited drive in the CITY (not the highway) with lots of jackrabbit starts will bump my battery into the seventh bar (when it goes green). Might not be such a good idea to be doing 'brake stands' to charge the battery. I believe Toyota would prefer it between 20% charged and 80% charged because they found that the lifespan of the battery would be longer than doing complete charge and discharge cycles.

[cduluk]

Good point <_<