Here's the situation - My 2014 Land Cruiser (115K miles) began having electrical problems recently, with the battery going dead occasionally. I took it to the dealer who has done my service for years, and they diagnose it as a bad battery. Same problem repeats within days. Back to the dealer and now I just got a call that there has been a water leak (source unknown, but suspected to be from a replaced windshield in 2019) that has caused corrosion in the main wiring harness. They say the whole harness needs to be replaced for a cost of about $13K. Has anyone ever heard of this happening? Can a wiring harness be repaired instead of replaced? Any thoughts would be appreciated!
Dealer Recommending $13K Repair
- Thread starter RGMCFA
- Start date
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Lots of people with water in the kick panels and corroded wiring connectors there. Source could be a windshield, possibly overflowing sunroof drains, or even a bad seal between the plastic cowl cover and the windshield letting water into the recirculate vent above the AC blower motor in the dash.
Unlikely you need a whole harness, but you will need someone experienced in repairing wiring, helpful if it's specifically toyota.
Keep in mind toyota isn't in the habit of fixing even one bad wire in a harness, they'll just say to replace the harness. Could be minimal damage, but it could also be significant. See whether they will get you pictures. I assume you'll have pictures of white multi-pin connectors with originally-tin connectors green in color from corrosion.
Obviously you'll also need to find the leak source as well. If the damage is only on the passenger side it may just be the cowl.
There is a lot on this, you'll need to search. Terms should be water leak, electrical gremlins, etc.
Unlikely you need a whole harness, but you will need someone experienced in repairing wiring, helpful if it's specifically toyota.
Keep in mind toyota isn't in the habit of fixing even one bad wire in a harness, they'll just say to replace the harness. Could be minimal damage, but it could also be significant. See whether they will get you pictures. I assume you'll have pictures of white multi-pin connectors with originally-tin connectors green in color from corrosion.
Obviously you'll also need to find the leak source as well. If the damage is only on the passenger side it may just be the cowl.
There is a lot on this, you'll need to search. Terms should be water leak, electrical gremlins, etc.
I would take it to an indy mechanic, preferably one that specializes in LC, for a second opinion. As bloc noted, more than likely it is a section of the harness that needs to be replaced. There are a number of outlets that specialize in just this specifically. In addition, even if the entire harness is to be replaced, I do not see it costing anywhere close to $13k.
I was told on this forum this is not common, get a second opinion, lol.
If you can bypass a couple wires yourself and clean the usable connections then it's not hard to fix yourself, ask me how I know.
First thing is to find and fix the leak.
If you can bypass a couple wires yourself and clean the usable connections then it's not hard to fix yourself, ask me how I know.
First thing is to find and fix the leak.
I got curious and did some digging.
On my go-to discount parts site:
Engine room harness, goes through firewall to kick panel area, $3,464 ($4,609 retail)
Dash harness $3,079 ($4,097 retail)
DS floor harness $1,733 ($2,307)
PS (same)
A lot of the supposed cost would be in pulling the dash, complete interior to get the carpet out, etc.
On my go-to discount parts site:
Engine room harness, goes through firewall to kick panel area, $3,464 ($4,609 retail)
Dash harness $3,079 ($4,097 retail)
DS floor harness $1,733 ($2,307)
PS (same)
A lot of the supposed cost would be in pulling the dash, complete interior to get the carpet out, etc.
A vendor on mud makes harnesses for around $500. Just saw the ad pop up in the vendor section.
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If a full harness is needed, insurance will likely cover it. In my adjuster days I covered lots of wiring repairs due to water intrusion. The damage from the water is covered, but not what causes the leak.