DIY: Telescoping Column Motor Removal/Repair (2 Viewers)

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No u-joint on my 00 LX telescoping motor. Square flexible shaft. Great write up everyone.

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  • When a second go-round in upside-down mode got too frustrating, I found that the plastic cover around the steering column came off mine EASILY and safely. Removing the plastic had myriad benefits
Without and doubt! My first recomendation for satisfactorily doing this job: Take off the plastic cover, so you can see what you are doing.

Second recomendation: Do not only change/repair the motor; RENEW all the steering column´s greasing. If you put a new/repaired motor with the same old and probably hard grease, the next motor failure will be programmed.

No u-joint on my 00 LX telescoping motor. Square flexible shaft.
Exactly the same as in my one. There is no need for a u-joint in this mecanism.

A strange side effect of my repair I found out: After re-fitting everything, the horn only worked from time to time, sometimes it seemd to work better when pressing harder the "steerring wheel´s center part" (don´t know the english word), sometimes not. What I found out after long time thinking of a mecanical failure: There is no or bad ground on the steering wheel, although it is bolted to the steering column and the columns housing has perfect ground. It goes better and worser turning slightly the steering wheel. My (as to this moment only) conclusion: The grease I used for re-greasing everything (SKF grease for food-industry applications) is of less electric conductivity than the original yellowish Toyota lubricant.
 
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Just replaced the motor on my ‘02 LX470. The replacement took only about twenty minutes since I already removed the motor a couple of weeks ago. I did spend another twenty minutes figuring out why the motor would’t work. Turns out the connector I plugged into the motor was for the cluster dimmer switch! Yes it has the same exact plug as the telescopic motor plug, but is blue. I forgot that the plug was supposed to be white since I left the motor disconnected when I previously removed it.

Anyway my question is, is the telescopic column supposed to be really tight? Even after cleaning and re-greasing, I have to use a lot of force to move it. Also with the motor connected, it takes a second to move forward or back, is this normal? The motor itself moves the nut instantly when you move the switch but there is a delay in the movement of the column. Seems like it takes up the slack in the nut/bushing initially before moving the column

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While my tilt adjustment (recent motor) is instantaneous, there is a bit of a delay in the telescoping adjustment (original motor AFAIK). After I swapped the tilt motor out, I got used to instant movement and convinced myself for about half a day that my telescope motor had died, and then remembered that i need to hold it for a second before anything happens.
Haven’t looked to see if the motor’s spinning during that time or not, although that seems more likely than a programmed delay...
 
I just checked, the telescopic movement in my 200 series is instantaneous. No delay at all. Question is, is the delay in the 100 normal or is it caused by something else (worn slider bushing, tight column shaft or combination of both)?
 
@HRTROB: How did you clean it? Dismanteling the whole column, inner and outer tube, upper and lower shaft etc? Before I did this to my one, it was nearly impossible to move the telescopic movement by hand (with mecanical link disconected, of course). But after dismantling, cleaning, lubricating and mounting the whole unit again, it was moveable by hand without applying heavy force.

If you remove the plastic cover around the upper steering shaft (that one that consists of two parts, just behind the steering wheel), you can see that the telescoping spindle is attached to the column with a sheet metal bracket, and inside this bracket sits a small rubber bushing, I suppose that this acts as a damper. If there is too much play in this rubber bushing (weared out by time), this play absorbes the first movement of the spindle, delaying the steering shaft´s telescoping movement. Just change the rubber bushing, this part costs about 3 Euro (less or mor the same in $) at Toyota. It´s the piece I have marked in the screenshot.

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If there is too much play in this rubber bushing (weared out by time), this play absorbes the first movement of the spindle, delaying the steering shaft´s telescoping movement. Just change the rubber bushing, this part costs about 3 Euro (less or mor the same in $) at Toyota. It´s the piece I have marked in the screenshot.

I changed the bushing, still have the play. The bushing moves back and forth within the bracket (45761B in the diagram).
 
In my car the new bushing also is moving a little bit in the bracket, but when I compare the actual "change-telescopic-direction-delay/play" with the former one before I cleaned and relubricated everything, it´s much less now.

@Tim: Same question as I asked HRTROB: Did you dismount the whole steering column to remove the old grease?
 
@HRTROB: How did you clean it? Dismanteling the whole column, inner and outer tube, upper and lower shaft etc? Before I did this to my one, it was nearly impossible to move the telescopic movement by hand (with mecanical link disconected, of course). But after dismantling, cleaning, lubricating and mounting the whole unit again, it was moveable by hand without applying heavy force.

I did not dismantle it, I just cleaned the shaft and applied grease. It is movable but takes some effort. It’s not like a manual telescopic steering wheel that easily slides in and out.
 
I did not dismantle it, I just cleaned the shaft and applied grease.
Doing it this way is like chanching the motor oil without changing the oil filter :)

Your new steering column motor may work for a time, but it wears rapidly and the next failure is yet programmed.
 
Doing it this way is like chanching the motor oil without changing the oil filter :)

Your new steering column motor may work for a time, but it wears rapidly and the next failure is yet programmed.

Can you manually pull or push your steering wheel with one hand after dismantling and regreasing? How hard or easy is yours to pull or push? Because in your earlier post you said yours was impossible to move at first. Mine wasn’t that bad to begin with.

I already disabled the fold away function using techstream to prolong the life of the motors.
 
Can you manually pull or push your steering wheel with one hand after dismantling and regreasing? How hard or easy is yours to pull or push? Because in your earlier post you said yours was impossible to move at first. Mine wasn’t that bad to begin with.
Yes. after dismantling and regreasing the mecanism works fine and smooth - as it should be, I think. Before dismantling, it was very close to "impossible", it felt like if it was mecanically stuck; of course I had to move the inner tube to get it out from the outer tube and it could be done with some effort. But definitively too much for a small motor. I thought that I will find mecanical wear marks or some broken part, but there wasn´t either one. Only the aged yellowish "grease". After cleaning and re-greasing, I could move it on the working table, only by hand, in and out.

What grease did you guys use?
I think I mentioned that before; I use a special SKF grease for food processing machinery, it´s called the LGFP2. Probably there exists better products for this application, but not for me, because I suffer from MCS and have to avoid as possible every contact and smell of mineral oil based greases.
 
Just replaced the motor on my ‘02 LX470. The replacement took only about twenty minutes since I already removed the motor a couple of weeks ago. I did spend another twenty minutes figuring out why the motor would’t work. Turns out the connector I plugged into the motor was for the cluster dimmer switch! Yes it has the same exact plug as the telescopic motor plug, but is blue. I forgot that the plug was supposed to be white since I left the motor disconnected when I previously removed it.

Anyway my question is, is the telescopic column supposed to be really tight? Even after cleaning and re-greasing, I have to use a lot of force to move it. Also with the motor connected, it takes a second to move forward or back, is this normal? The motor itself moves the nut instantly when you move the switch but there is a delay in the movement of the column. Seems like it takes up the slack in the nut/bushing initially before moving the column

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Hey all, this post is outstanding. Thank you to all the amazing contributors. After reading this a few times, it’s still not entirely clear to me—if I wanted to get both the tilt and telescopic motors while I’m in there I would need two 89232-60022? Or is it a different # for the tilt?
 
Hey all, this post is outstanding. Thank you to all the amazing contributors. After reading this a few times, it’s still not entirely clear to me—if I wanted to get both the tilt and telescopic motors while I’m in there I would need two 89232-60022? Or is it a different # for the tilt?
Different
 
if I wanted to get both the tilt and telescopic motors while I’m in there I would need two 89232-60022? Or is it a different # for the tilt?

Different digit in the first half of the part numbers.

Telescopic, 89232-60022

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Tilt, 89231-60022

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Anyone ever replace the ECU for these motors? Any recommendations where to buy the ECU? Replaced both motors and not working so I think the ECU is next to change
 

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