Es 330 Side Mirror Problem

WILLIEP · July 14, 2010

I own a 2005 ES 330 that I bought new. It has been a great car but lately I've noticed that the side mirrors won't go up or down anymore. Since neither mirror goes up or down, I've ruled out the motors. The common component is the up/down control switch. Has anyone else had this problem? If so, what was the fix and cost?

Also, The alloy wheels have been corroding over the past few years. It started out very gradually after the car was a little over a year old. It happened so slow that I didn't make an issue of it. But last year I checked with Lexus and they said that I would have to buy new wheels since the car is out of warranty. I also read that in '05 they changed the wheel plating process and it had some problems. If this is true, why should the customer be left holding the bag for their engineering mistakes. Also, why would Lexus want one of their later model cars being seen with the wheels rotting off? I thought Lexus prides itself on it's fit and finish image.

pj8708 · July 15, 2010

I own a 2005 ES 330 that I bought new. It has been a great car but lately I've noticed that the side mirrors won't go up or down anymore. Since neither mirror goes up or down, I've ruled out the motors. The common component is the up/down control switch. Has anyone else had this problem? If so, what was the fix and cost?

Also, The alloy wheels have been corroding over the past few years. It started out very gradually after the car was a little over a year old. It happened so slow that I didn't make an issue of it. But last year I checked with Lexus and they said that I would have to buy new wheels since the car is out of warranty. I also read that in '05 they changed the wheel plating process and it had some problems. If this is true, why should the customer be left holding the bag for their engineering mistakes. Also, why would Lexus want one of their later model cars being seen with the wheels rotting off? I thought Lexus prides itself on it's fit and finish image.

The problem is probably not the motors or the mirror swithch, but the possibility that the toggle post in the switch has been put in the center position, thus turning off the automatic up/down function of the outside mirrors.Slide the toggle post to either the left or right and the mirrors should work. It seems highly unlikely that both mirror motors would go out at the same time.

I have an 05' with OEM chrome wheels and they have begun to corrode slightly due to the abundance of salt and ice melt we use here during winter driving. Chrome is more sensitive to this corrosive environment than alloy, so I'm pretty sure it is not Lexus fault.