Ok, so my front passenger door actuator in my 1998 Toyota Avalon went out to the point where I could feel and hear it clicking, trying to turn the gears, but it simply did not have the power to do so. I searched the internet and went through just about every page on this forum looking for an easy fix since the Toyota dealership wanted to charge us $300 to repair it. I finally found a fix for a Lexus with similar designs but the latch assembly and actuator housing was completely different and was on my own once i got the latch assembly out. So I figured I would detail my steps so anyone else with an Avalon could use this as a guide to fix theirs.
I did not take pictures of my processes but I will post links to the Lexus forum I found where detailed pictures are shown for the process but are only good up to where the window glass is removed. I will also post links to other helpful threads and websites.
If you're going to attempt this fix using my post, I am not responsible for any damage you may cause to your car. Proceed at your own risk. This fix only pertains to 1997-1999 Toyota Avalons since they have identical designs.
TIPS & TOOLS: Here are a list of the tools I used through out my fix. I believe these to be absolutely necessary to easily complete this fix without damaging parts.
- Chilton manual for a Toyota Camry(works for the same year Avalon and some Lexus). This can be found at any Auto Zone, Checker, or similar auto part stores. Very helpful and I recommend having one if you're like me and want to fix things yourself.
- Screwdrivers, flat head and phillips.
- Socket wrench, 10mm, with an extender. Some bolts are only accessible through access holes and require a socket wrench extender of at least 4 inches.
- T30 torx head driver. I used a T30 torx bit from a tool set with a 1/4in socket wrench fitting. The bolts the T30 bit are used for require lots of torque to loosen and a socket wrench makes doing this easy.
- At least one or two compact LED flashlights. I keep a few around because they are handy in tight locations such as door compartments. You're going to be working in locations where you will be blindly working or possibly have an inch gap or so to see what you're going.
- A telescoping mirror. Makes it easy to see around corners and objects that you cannot move.
- Small ziplock baggies. I find it very helpful to as I'm taking screws and bolts off the car, label where they came from, and what step I am on so i don't end up with extra screws at the end or forget a step and have to spend an hour going back. The steps that I will be listing below are from the labeled baggies that I used and this project would only have been possible with these bags since there are many places where things can go wrong.
- Masking tape
- FINALLY the motor I bought off ebay that is a direct replacement to the factory motor currently in the 97-99 door actuator. A few mods had to be made along the way and I will describe what I had to do when I get there. The motor is a Mabuchi FC280PT-22125 and can be found on ebay, sold by tag16c. The FC280PC-22125 will also work, I believe the PC comes without the brass collar but the PT can easily have the brass collar removed using some wire cutters and a hammer to punch out the collar.
Step 1: Remove the door lock and window switch panel. Start at the top and use a flat head screw diver to pry the top off and the bottom will slide right off once the top is free. Disconnect the lock and window switch and set the panel aside. Under this panel is one bolt, remove it.
Step 2: On the armrest is a plug, remove the plug and the bolt behind it.
Step 3: Near the front of the door, by the hinges, remove the two screw covers and the screws behind them.
Step 4: Around the inside door handle and tweeter is a trim piece. This piece needs to be removed but proceed with caution. Behind this trim piece is a white plug that is secured to the door frame, this plug is difficult to remove and be careful not to force anything too much or you may break part of the trim. Once you get the trim off, you should probly remove that white plug from the door frame and keep it with the trim. It will make it much easier to put back on later.
Step 5: Near the back of the door, by the latch, on the door panel itself, is a protective cap. This cap should be the same color as the door panel and is removed by pressing the center of the cap in, then pulling out. This cap is there to help keep the door panel secure to the door frame by a white bracket. You may want to remove this bracket with the protective cap so it does not fall out later and you lose it. Also, located along the bottom of the door panel are 4 screws, you will need to remove these. Pulling the bottom of the door panel out, you should disconnect the wires running to the light and seat heaters if you have them. Now the door panel can be removed from the door itself. Just get a hold of the armrest handle and slide up. It should come off rather easily. Set it aside so you do not damage it.
Step 6: With the door panel off, you should now see a protective vapor barrier covering the entire inner workings of the door secured by black adhesive. I found it helpful to, as I pulled the plastic barrier off, starting at the top right near the latch, take a razor blade and cut the adhesive so half remains on the barrier and half still on the door. This way, you can easily put this vapor barrier back in place without any tape or extra adhesive. You'll only need to remove half of this vapor barrier, just enough to expose the metal shroud on the door, wire connections, and such. You can remove the whole barrier but it is not necessary. Next, remove the 3 screws on the outer edge of the metal shroud and the 10mm nut in the center and set the shroud aside.
Step 7: Put the keys back in the ignition and move the window up/down just enough so that you have access to the glass retaining bolts. There should be two of them, both 10mm in size. Once those bolts are off, keeping the window in that same spot, move around to the outside of the door and grab a hold of the window. You will need to remove the window in order to gain easier access to parts of the latch assembly. This is a must. The window should come up and out easily, sliding one end up, then the other worked well for me. I set the window on a towel on a level surface so nothing could potentially knock it over.
Step 8: Securing the outside door handle to the door, are two bolts, accessed though holes in the door frame, about 1in in diameter. This is where the socket wrench extender comes in handy. Remove these two bolts, both 10mm, and move on. Having the door handle loose will come in handy later.
Step 9: If you look inside the door, you should be able to see the latch assembly, this is where the actuator is located. The latch assembly is covered by a plastic shroud but should be behind a metal bar. This metal bar is the window glide track and is held in place by a bolt and a nut. The nut is located near the top of the door, the bolt at the bottom. Remove them and the glide track should slide off the rubber window cushion rather easily. It will make things much easier if, once the metal glide track is removed, grab that rubber cushion and pull it up through the top of the door, where the window once came through. Tie it using zipties or string so that it is out of the way of the inner door working and you now have a clear view of the door latch assembly.
Step 10: The plastic shroud on the door latch assembly is held in place by one phillips head screw. Remove this screw but do not try and remove the shroud just yet. You wont have any luck at all getting that off till later.
Step 11: Using your T30 torx bit, remove the 3 bolts securing the latch assembly to the door. These are accessed from the outside, not the inside. It should be obvious where they are. 1 is above the latch and 2 below. You may also find it easier to at this point, detach the actuators wiring from the door frame. In my car, the actuators wiring was coated in a black sheath, but yours may be different. You can check by disconnecting one set of wires, then press the lock switch and see if you can still hear the lock mechanism in the door in question. Do this till you locate which set of wires it is. The long black length of wires is directly connected to the latch assembly and will need to come off with the assy itself. Just make sure all the frame attachments to the wires are off and loose. Makes it easier next.
Step 12: There should be 4 connecting rods running from different locations to the latch assembly. These rods are from the inside-handle-to-latch, inside-lock-switch-to-latch, outside-handle-to-latch, outside-lock-to-latch. All 4 of these rods will be disconnected from the latch assembly. It should be noted that the rods from the inside handle and lock switch disconnect from the latch assembly at the latch assembly, and the rods from the outside handle and lock disconnect at the outside handle and lock. The rods are held in place by plastic clips and should be easily visible, accept for one, the inside-lock-switch-to-latch rod clip is behind the plastic shroud and will be disconnected in the next step. These rods are removed by pushing the clips off the rod, then sliding the rod out from its hole. You will be working in tight places here and the rod from the outside handle is extremely difficult to get off. This is where having the outside handle loose comes in handy and you may want to push the outside handle out of its location to get the rod off easier. BUT make sure the rod to the outside lock is off before you do so. I masked off the edges of my door handle in masking tape so nothing got scratched.
Step 13: Once the three rods are disconnected, that may take some time btw, you should be able to move the latch assembly down to where there is more space in the door and the plastic shroud should be able to slide off a little now. With the plastic shroud loose, you can now unclip and remove the inside-lock-switch-to-latch rod and the latch assembly should be loose. Removing the latch assembly from the door may require some turning and twisting as it is very cramped in there. But once out, you should be able to take that plastic shroud off and see the arms and levers of the latch assembly.
Step 14: Take the latch assembly over to a work bench. On one of the arms, you will see a plastic rectangle with a cross in the center, this holds two of the arms together and you will need to rotate this plastic piece 90deg in order to lift the silver steel arm off. My little plastic piece got pretty mangled after this so dont feel bad if you tear it up a bit. Then turn it over to you are now looking at the face that sits flush with the door frame. You should be able to see 6 screws. 2 of which are on the brass plate, and do need to come off, and the other 4 are around the edge of the gear housing, which is where the actuator motor is located. When the 6 screws are off, you will want to pry off the top of the gear housing, which will take some maneuvering. What I did was first get it pried loose about 1mm or so. Then, you will need to get a good grips on it and lift it up a little bit more, trying to tip the back end up and get it at a 45deg angle to get it loose from one of the arms on the latch assembly. This step was pretty difficult as I did not want to force anything but there is not much you can break inside the gear housing. Don't take a hammer, chisel, and vice grip to the gear housing trying to get it off tho. Be strong with it just dont bend or break anything.
Step 15: Once the gear housing is off, you will see the actuator motor, it will look almost identical to the Mabuchi one off ebay, two gears, one attached to the motor, and another long one with a larger gear attached to it. Remove the three screws that secure the plastic piece the black and blue wires run to, lift that piece off, remove the long gear, then pull the old motor out. Disconnect the factory motor from the terminal plugs.
Step 16: Using either a gear puller, or the crude method of using wire cutters, a hammer, and a nail, remove the white gear attached to the factory motor. The white gear is sitting on a brass sleeve. If you can, remove the brass sleeve with the white gear. It will make things easier when you put it back on the new motor.
Step 17: On the factory motor, there is a plastic cap that the terminal plugs run into. You will need to remove the terminal plugs without damaging them since the new motor does not come with terminal plugs. You can remove them by pulling them out with pliers, OR by prying off the metal tabs and removing the plastic cap then punching them out with a hammer and nail. The later method is better for preventing damage to the terminal plugs. I tried searching all over for new terminal plugs or pins so i did not have to modify the factory ones but I was not able to find any. Once the plugs are removed, you will immediately notice that the factory terminal plugs are round, and the new motor has rectangular holes. You will need to carefully sand down one side of the male end of the plug making sure to leave the collar part intact so it seats well. Only one side so it fits snug in the new whole, and so that it makes a good contact with the brushes inside the new motor. I used a dremel to sand down the plug, it made it much easier and faster. If you do sand down too much like I did on my first plug, no worries, just add a little but of solder to the part where you sanded down too much and it will fit just fine. Especially if you slide it in while the solder is still warm and mailable. You might want to remove the plastic cap on the new motor when you insert the new terminal plugs. It is possible that an edge of the terminal pin can force the brushes inside to motor out of place and that youd have to get a new motor if they broke. If you've got the terminal plugs in just fine and they are secure, then the rest is a cake walk.
Step 18: Force the old gear with brass sleeve on the new motor, making sure not to damage the coils inside. I set the motor on the edge of a table, with the small metal knob sticking out the end of the plastic cap on the table. The small metal part sticking out is the end of the motor shaft and if you hammer the gear on, with the force transferring to the shaft only then you wont damage a thing. If you hammer it on with the force transferring to the terminal plugs, you will break the terminal plug housing and will need a new motor.
Step 19: When the gear is now on the new motor, you will notice that the terminal plugs, when attached to the wires, restrict the new motor from sitting in the old housing. Even though the two motors are of identical manufactures and dimensions, they still do not fit. I used my dremel to sand down a small canal for the terminals to fit in and it worked out great because this canal kept the terminals on real nice and snug. I forgot to mention that on the old motor, there was a little plastic thing around the old terminal plugs and over the tip on the plastic cap. This wont fit on the new motor and you wont need it so throw it out.
Step 20: When you have got the canal sanded down just enough so the motor fits when connected to the wires, you will want to start reassembling everything. One thing I did notice and thought was really strange was the polarity changed between the two motors. They are made by the same company and are nearly identical but when I connected the wires to the motor the way they were from the factory(with yellow on the top terminal as the negative terminal, and the green on the bottom as the positive terminal) the latch assembly worked backwards and I had to disassemble everything again and switch the polarity so that green was negative and on top with yellow on the bottom as positive. You may want to pull the extra yellow wire you now have as slack through the grommet fitting so it does not get in the way of the motor sitting correctly.
Step 21: Now reassemble the gears and latch assembly to take it over to the door, reconnect the wires and test that the whole thing works correctly. Press lock and make sure the arms and levers move into the locked position, and vise-versa.
Follow these steps in reverse to reassemble everything and you've just fixed your door locks for $10 when the dealership will charge you $300, obviously the huge mark up is for labor since this project took my whole Saturday and Sunday since I had to self teach everything and realize the polarity was switched on the new motor.
Again, I would highly recommend as you do these steps and remove screws, nuts, and bolts, put them in ziplock baggies and label where they came from, what they are, how many there are, and what step you are on(i.e Step 1, Step 2) then stack them in order so as you reassemble everything you just take the next bag on top, read what parts they are, and you wont end up with the wrong size screw in the wrong size whole or extra parts. Thats the worst feeling when you realize you have 5 or 6 screws left over and you forgot a step that requires you to take the WHOLE thing apart to fix. My recommendation, take your time, use the chilton manual when you can or other forums with pictures, and walk away when you are frustrated. ALWAYS walk away when you starting getting upset with what you are working on. Have a side project you can work on when things might now be going the way you want.
If you are a slow worked like me, I would recommend starting this project early in the morning and possible have another car available just in case things run longer than expected and you have to pick up where you left off the next day. Once the window, door panel, and latch assembly are off, you cannot drive the car since the door will not be able to shut and secure. Any questions?
Here are the sites I found helpful:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NEW-r...ht_1895wt_1165
Possible free fix for door lock actuators (worked on my 98 anyway)
http://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-s...ators-diy.html
97-99 Toyota Avalon Door Lock/Actuator $10 fix
Linear Mode
