So, in the console of my 98 LX, there is a Lexus branded old school cell phone. And there's controls for it on the steering wheel. It powers up and dials, but of course, it's not activated so it doesn't work. It looks like a factory item. In my lurking and surfing of this site, I've not seen anyone else mention this thing. I was just curious if this thing was standard, or some sort of option? I'll probably remove it to make more storage room in the console, but I sort of like nostalgic old tech, so I may keep it in there just for giggles, or hang it on the wall in the garage or something.
98 LX470 factory cell phone?
- Thread starter nitsuj
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I had one of the old Lexus branded phones in my previous LX470 (98), and in (2) earlier LS400s. If I remember correctly, they were an option, but I don't remember seeing many/any without it when I purchased these cars at the local Lexus dealer. These were all analog based phones and just like the 1st gen "Lexus Link" couldn't be activated even if you wanted to.
You must find a way to use it again paired to your normal mobile #
This. for sure
Picture, or it didn't happen!
- Thread starter
- #7
I'll snap some pics later today if I get time. if not, tomorrow for sure. I'm sure I could cobble up a way to make it function with my smart phone. Perhaps convert it into a novelty bluetooth handset. I just hate to hack it up. Not that I think it's valuable or anything, it's just a neat piece of old technology. It's wired into the stock audio system. The touch tone sounds and beeps come through the audio speakers, and the steering wheel controls appear functional. In 1998, it was probably pretty slick to have a built in Lexus branded phone. BTW, this was a Florida car, so this might be one of those Gulf Coast option deals I keep reading about. My other car is a 2000 Mercedes E430, and it too has a built in mobile, but it doesn't have a handset. It's a speaker phone with emergency buttons in the console, and a dial pad on the stereo. It amazes me, that 15 short years ago, that was cutting edge, and only an option on very expensive cars. 15 years later, and every 8 year old has an iPhone in their pocket that makes that old technology seem like Flintstones props.
I've got one of these that I'm trying to fit an iphone into... She's a thing of beauty!
I'd love to see this thing, and your steering wheel. Take a pic of that too please, if you don't mind!
Hack that thing into a Bluetooth handset, steering controls and all. You'll be drivin' around with the coiled cored handset up to your ear like a boss!
- Thread starter
- #11
I'd be happy to. I'm away from the truck now, but I'll get a few pics later, tomorrow at the latest.
Dude, you should get a lifetime membership here if you can rig that thing to work.
I agree you have to activate that phone can't be much, no data or texting. It may not be possible though with the tech changes over the years. Keep us posted!
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- #15
My brother is a former Verizon tech guy. It tells me that the technology that phone uses is no longer supported. So it's either gut it and graft in the parts to make it a Bluetooth handset, or just hang it in the garage. I can probably use the space in the console more than I can use a novelty phone, so I think it's probably destined to be a garage decoration.
^^ He's right. I remember over 10 years ago, AT&T at first gently persuaded, then strongly cajoled, and finally cut off it's customers with 90's era cell phones. They were instituting new tech that was not compatible with their older stuff. At first AT&T offered discounts, then free replacements, then you got cut off. By 2005 or so when the final switch occurred, only maybe 1-3% of their customers had these old tech phones anyway. At the time, not only did I hear it on the news, but my uncle was pained and a bit upset as his 1996 vintage cell was going to become a brick- he liked his phone and didn't want to switch- but he did.
If the geeks are up to it (I'm not one, just proposing here) there could be two ways to go with this. One would be to adapt a Bluetooth transceiver in some way to cars existing mic/audio equipment. That way you'd get factory functionality for your smartphone.
The other way would be to make the handset functional by wiring in the guts of a cheap cellphone. Some things that come to mind are power compatibility, wiring in the audio I/O, and getting the keyboard and display connected. To a tech or an EE figuring the design out might not be so hard. Soldering and screwing it all together could be. Anyone out there up to it?
One could check with the shops in Hemmings that restore/update collectible car radios. IIRC, there are some that, for example, can take a '57 Bel Air stock AM Delco, gut it and give it BT or aux input and stereo output. New guts, but totally stock in the dash- yet compatible with smartphones.
One things for sure- Don't toss it! Folks wii pay a few hundred dollars for a tissue dispenser they'll never use to stick in the '64 impala SS. When these rigs get older there will be authenticity freaks who wii crave that old factory cell.
If the geeks are up to it (I'm not one, just proposing here) there could be two ways to go with this. One would be to adapt a Bluetooth transceiver in some way to cars existing mic/audio equipment. That way you'd get factory functionality for your smartphone.
The other way would be to make the handset functional by wiring in the guts of a cheap cellphone. Some things that come to mind are power compatibility, wiring in the audio I/O, and getting the keyboard and display connected. To a tech or an EE figuring the design out might not be so hard. Soldering and screwing it all together could be. Anyone out there up to it?
One could check with the shops in Hemmings that restore/update collectible car radios. IIRC, there are some that, for example, can take a '57 Bel Air stock AM Delco, gut it and give it BT or aux input and stereo output. New guts, but totally stock in the dash- yet compatible with smartphones.
One things for sure- Don't toss it! Folks wii pay a few hundred dollars for a tissue dispenser they'll never use to stick in the '64 impala SS. When these rigs get older there will be authenticity freaks who wii crave that old factory cell.
I too have (what's left) of the factory cell system... I have the wiring in the console and the buttons/mic on the steering wheel. What i'd love to do is find a way to wire the steering buttons into a column based stereo control or something like that... the weird thing is that there is only 2 wires coming out of this weird contraption. It'd be interesting to find out where they end up, what they do etc... Either way, i think it'll take a lot of hacking to make something like that work. It is an interesting piece of lexus history though. 
Cooler than a $2 bill
had an oem phone in an Acura Legend. It worked where no other mobile phones could get a signal. I had Verizon activate it in 2001 through a friend in the business...sometime after that he advised me they'd stopped activating old analog phones.Steve
Dang that's really cool, thanks for sharing the pics!
