2017 LC200 GPS system failing - Toyota quoting $6k repair

[DesertDoc]

Hello All,
The navigation in my 2017 LC200 has started to work only intermittently. Past 2 weeks often hangs with error message "lost GPS signal" which it then never reacquires. Toyota inspected and said unit itself is damaged (not antenna), needs replacing. 6 months out of warranty and they are quoting $6,000 for the repair as a replacement has to be flown in from Japan (presumably given the price quoted on its own 1st class seat) Has anyone had experience of this before? I won't be paying them $6k of course, but will need a solution. Any wisdom or personal experience to share on this is most appreciated.

 

[linuxgod]

I'd want to know more about how they determined it's damaged and that it isn't the antenna, for starters.

There is a self-test procedure somewhere in the nav unit, at least in my 2013. I do not recall offhand how to get into it, but it's there and it will test the various systems to help you diagnose what component might have failed. That said I'd treat the diags with a grain of salt if the problem isn't happening when you run the test. (and even then they're only moderately accurate)

If it's not the GPS antenna or the antenna cable, then I might suspect the GPS receiver inside the unit that is failing. I've not taken one of these apart, but I do play with electronics sometimes and most of this stuff is surprisingly modular if you open it up. You may find you can pull the GPS receiver board out and buy a replacement online. For instance the nav system in my Acura MDX died, and the dealer wanted $3500 for the replacement part. I took the unit out and replaced the failing DVD drive (basically a laptop drive) myself - I just googled the part # on the drive and bought one off AliExpress for $65.

Worst case you may be able to find one on partsouq.com or from a wrecked vehicle that's being parted out for quite a bit less

 

[hblx570]

escalate this irregardless of out of warranty.......get a second opinion.....call toyota customer service not stealer

 

[CharlieS]

If the rest of the infotainment works, grab a CarPlay solution (Naviplus, EC Offroad or Beatsonic) and use the navigation from Google maps or your preferred app. The factory nav isn’t that great anyway. Now that I have CarPlay I never use the factory nav.

 

[BlackMammoth]

I have to agree - use Carplay nav 100% of the time factory nav is just my "loading screen"

 

[Sandroad]

Hmmm………I can’t recall ever seeing that problem on Mud before. Dealers have a strong tendency to just replace stuff and not carefully test components. It sure seems likely to be a bad connection and not an electronics failure. Any chance of getting a second opinion somewhere?

 

[18Cruiser]

I tend to agree with the recommendation to go with aftermarket and use Waze, Google maps or whatever as the factory, while not horrible, is left in the dust by Waze and google

 

[2021 LC200]

Hello All,
The navigation in my 2017 LC200 has started to work only intermittently. Past 2 weeks often hangs with error message "lost GPS signal" which it then never reacquires. Toyota inspected and said unit itself is damaged (not antenna), needs replacing. 6 months out of warranty and they are quoting $6,000 for the repair as a replacement has to be flown in from Japan (presumably given the price quoted on its own 1st class seat) Has anyone had experience of this before? I won't be paying them $6k of course, but will need a solution. Any wisdom or personal experience to share on this is most appreciated.

This maybe the moment to go for the bigger vertical screen:

Vertical Screen Android Radios | Phoenix Android Radios

Vertical Screen Android Radios for selected vehicles

phoenixautomotiveinc.com

 

[JS22STL]

Get a second opinion - i recently had a issue with my HVAC rebooting. Mechanic suggested it was the AC amplifier (a $800 part) Lexus field support over-ruled him and made them replace the entire control unit that the stereo and climate controls are part of. The MSRP was $11,000 for the part. Guess what.....it didn't fix it. After back and forth and having my car for weeks it turned out it was the amplifier. Fortunately for me i was under warranty....find yourself a good mechanic that's excellent at diagnostics.

 

[gx2lc]

Hello All,
The navigation in my 2017 LC200 has started to work only intermittently. Past 2 weeks often hangs with error message "lost GPS signal" which it then never reacquires. Toyota inspected and said unit itself is damaged (not antenna), needs replacing. 6 months out of warranty and they are quoting $6,000 for the repair as a replacement has to be flown in from Japan (presumably given the price quoted on its own 1st class seat) Has anyone had experience of this before? I won't be paying them $6k of course, but will need a solution. Any wisdom or personal experience to share on this is most appreciated.

Hello do your issues resemble mine at all? For mine there is interference between my aftermarket head unit and the nav. If you don’t have a after market headunit maybe something else could be causing interference

Inconsistent factory GPS after Naviplus CarPlay install and ceramic tinting

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[DesertDoc]

Many thanks to all for your considered comment and sound advice, very helpful. The dealer tried replacing the antenna and cable but it made no difference, hence recommendation to replace the whole unit. After some discussion they have agreed to send the board for repair, waiting to get it back now. The unit is standard, no aftermarket fitted. If it doesn't work I will find out about carPlay, thank you for pointing me in that direction, hadn't heard of it before.

The wiring on the 200 seems very sensitive to any kind of aftermarket add-ons or being touched in anyway. I have a lightbar, onx6 30in. Wondering if this might have caused this. We will see what was wrong with the board and I guess this might answer this question. Per the dealer failures of the GPS are not common, but do occur.

 

[gaylon]

Many thanks to all for your considered comment and sound advice, very helpful. The dealer tried replacing the antenna and cable but it made no difference, hence recommendation to replace the whole unit. After some discussion they have agreed to send the board for repair, waiting to get it back now. The unit is standard, no aftermarket fitted. If it doesn't work I will find out about carPlay, thank you for pointing me in that direction, hadn't heard of it before.

The wiring on the 200 seems very sensitive to any kind of aftermarket add-ons or being touched in anyway. I have a lightbar, onx6 30in. Wondering if this might have caused this. We will see what was wrong with the board and I guess this might answer this question. Per the dealer failures of the GPS are not common, but do occur.

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