Brcobrem

Looks like I'm able to post now. Thanks.

Here's that link I promised a month or so ago:
"1999 Rx300 Antenna And/or Motor Replace/reapir Complete Instructions"
https://us.lexusownersclub.com/forum...-instructions/

One (added 02/24/19) note about the lexusownersclub "how-to":
It's really not necessary to unbolt the big heavy spare tire cover lid. Just lift it up, and tie the fender cover up out of the way with a rope, making sure that you do first remove the little interior-colored pine tree push plug inside the rear door (seen when you put the seat down), and remove everything else that holds that interior fender cover in place (see the "how-to" link above). Btw, in this pic, my white rope is looped behind the black rope that holds the spare tire lid up via the roof drain channel. And yep, that white fiberglass will give you a bit of an itch




I bought the mast on eBay for about $19US delivered. Works like a charm now. There were a couple diversions on the mast replacement:

The new mast would not be pulled into the motor as expected. That required me to disassemble the motor. There was a broken off piece of the old mast's white nylon gear strip in the motor that need to be extracted. I also added a little silicone grease to various surfaces and gears. It's available inexpensively in little tubs in your plumbing supply isles.

During reassembly, I did notice a little white water corrosion on the screwed in black ground wire at the bottom of the motor assembly frame (galvanized steel looks like) . I lightly sanded off the deposit on the connector and motor frame surface before reassembly. <02/24/19 Note: See my 02/24/19 post at the above hyperlink for a "how-to" to fix this water corrosion issue.> After full reassembly, I noticed that the black plastic/nylon part that you see on the fender (where the mast goes in and you turn down the chrome nut to secure the mast) had a small gap in it around the top (I didn't over or under tighten the nut). So I took the nut off and the plastic off over the top of the installed mast, then carefully applied an 1/8" (or smaller) bead of silicon RTV <water soluble home exterior "Window Door and Trim Sealant"> (by finger) along the edge of the <rubber gasket on the back of the mast Grommet mast hole on the fender. I didn't use too much RTV <sealant> because I didn't want it to squeeze out past the plastic/nylon part and be visible when I put the part back down onto the fender surface and re-tightened the mast nut. <The clear DAP brand sealant I used comes out white, but then turns clear as it dries (that's handy to see where it is). Don't worry about the sealant that gets squeezed out when you turn down on the mast nut: You'll have about 5 minutes to use a wet paper towel/cloth to wipe off the excess sealant before it starts to dry.> One spot it did seep out a bit, but I just folded a stiff piece of cloth and wiped it from sight before it dried. Hopefully that will stop the little leak that ran down the outside of the mast assembly.

Btw, anyone know a link for the parts and/or service manuals for this 2000 RX300? I' refer to the correct parts by name and number of I knew them.

Regards,
Brcobrem

sktn77a

iTrader: (2)

You may not have needed the silicone - there's a tube on the bottom of the antenna to drain off any water that get in there.

Brcobrem

Hi sktn77a,

Thanks for the reply!

Actually, there are two drain tubes as I recall. One is a drain for the inside of the motor, and the other is for the mast casing if I recall correctly. I had to pull those tubes out of the lower fender area to get the motor out (ie. they don't come off the motor). In my situation, the little bit of water was coming in under the uppermost edge of the black plastic part (I could run a piece of paper completely under the top of the plastic part. I suppose the water then dripped down on the outside of the plastic motor casing and eventually ran down to the lowest part of the motor frame, which is where the ground wire attachés.Sorry I didn't think to take a pic for posterity.

Regards,
Brcobrem

AngieWKy

I need to know how to get inside where the antenna motor is. I just bought my Lexus 2 mo's ago and while it is old ..its a '99 but still really nice and rides good...it does have a lot of little things that need repairing like my antenna, O2 Sensor, along with a few other things but I knew prior to buying. Anyways my radio will only pick up 1 local station and its driving me insane. Not sure if the Disc Changer works cause I don't own a music CD anymore. As of now I am connected to a Jabra (broadcasts your muaic or phone calls over a radio station) via blue tooth from my phone and stream pandora. But I want to fix my radio for obvious reasons. I found a replacement antenna on Ebay for about $20 but it looks as though it has a wire that need a to be plugged in and I cant figure out how to get to the motor without pulling the side panel off and I havent found a place to even attempt to remove it. I can hear the antenna motor when I first get into my car and when I shut the motor off....but it is very loud so I have a feeling it is torn up as well...but for now if I could just get an antenna in there I will be able to listen to more than 1 station. I know it sounds insane but I took a clothes hanger and stuck down into the antenna opening (gently) just to see if it made a difference without having a new one and being plugged up and it worked very well lol. Anyone feel like helping? I don't know much about working in a car but I am going to learn!! My husband works way too much and when he is actually home and feels like working on stuff I have plenty of more important things in need of repair lol. So if anyone can and will help me out I certainly appreciate it!!!

salimshah

Welcome to Club Lexus.

Mast can be swapped out [see the instructions in the DIY] without any getting behind panel(s). If something is stuck on the intake of the cable, or you need to replace the motor, then you have to take the interior back panel off. You can open enough and hold back the panel.

Salim

Brcobrem

I did this job for the second time and finished yesterday. Here are some pics you may find interesting or useful:


There's that little hole where the interior-colored christmas tree plug/fastener needs removed.




The 2 plastic clips come off no problem. The metal ones may pop off and/or need reformed before re-assembly.




Plumber's silicone grease for the motor and a tack puller to pry out the christmas tree plugs. If I had to buy grease, my research shows Super Lube's "SILICONE LUBRICATING GREASE WITH SYNCOLON® (PTFE)" would be perfect.




Just a pic of the work area. Btw, the white teeth point towards the front of the vehicle when you insert the mast cable down into the mast (for the radio to pull it inside when you turn the radio off).




I have a plastic jug shoved under the fiberglass to help hold it up.




Here's the mast/motor assembly with the water drain tube still attached.




You can see the motor mount holes on either side of the black flex tube.




Make sure you re-position the (e.g. tan) piece UNDER the rubber molding.




Notice the clear sealant I used on the grommet's rubber seal is still white because it's not dry enough yet. I suggest you allow the sealant to dry overnight BEFORE raising the mast again.




The sealant has set up and is now clear.




Of course it had to rain so I waterproofed the area with a baggie and some packing tape to allow the sealant to dry overnight. Again, keep the mast down and allow the sealant to dry overnight is my recommendation (so the mast doesn't move around until the sealant is dry).


And for everyone patient enough to get this far on this elongated post . . . here's the instructions that came with my mast. There's no copyright anywhere so I'm claiming fair use here (with my added note about the teeth pointing forward) :


HTH !

::END

TrueGS300

Same situation here. Just picked up an 01 and it needs a mast. Motor is working. This will be the third one I've done on an RX as I am a tech. Its not hard to do, just accessing it that throws people off. A few tips. I like to unscrew the exterior part with needle nose pliers, or a screwdriver if its easy enough, and remove the black cover to make removing the motor assembly easier. Once inside, there are 10mm bolts accessible from the spare tire side holding it in. You will want to unplug the electrical connections but not try to remove the rubber tubes. They aren't meant to come off. There will be room to pull it out enough to work on. You must open the motor and extract whats left of the broken plastic from the old mast. Reassemble and mount the motor, then turn the key and radio on, let the motor go to its up/on position, then feed your new mast into the hole from the outside. (Pay attention when installing the motor which direction the gear grabs the teeth on the mast so when you insert the mast, you have it facing the way it needs to be for the motor gear to grab the mast teeth.) Then while guiding it, have someone turn the radio off and guide the mast down as the motor retracts to its down/off position.