foxtrot722

Rear Power Door Auto Closes. Impossible to stop by holding.

2007 RX 350, 160,000 miles,

I read the post referencing the failing struts. My problem seems to be a little different. The rear power seems to lift just fine using the remote or the button inside. Considering the possibility of weak struts, I assisted lifting the door and attempted to hold it in the fully open position. It still started to auto close. Somewhere around the 50% closed position, I attempted to stop it from closing. I held it enough that I saw the top hinges starting to flex. It was not possible to stop it from closing by holding on to it. I tried this several time and got the same result each time. I thought there was a torque or something that provide a safety measure to prevent injury of damage to something if the door hit a obstruction while closing. So I believe there might be two problems, one is the auto close part and the other is the door not stopping or reversing with it hits a obstruction.

Thoughts and suggestion?

Thanks,

kcknebel

Hi! I think it still might be related to weak struts. They seem to last about 70-80K, and if it is hot, it exacerbates the problem. The struts may be putting tension on the motor and the motor then reverses. I believe I had the same type of behavior until I replaced mine at 73K. If the struts are new, then this is a different problem. It's a cheap fix, otherwise.

foxtrot722

You are correct, further investigation found the right side had failed completely. Ordered a set from Amazon. Delivered for $40.93. Easy to install and works great. On installation tip is to find something to support the weight of the door in the full open position, The new struts are slightly longer and removing both of the old struts first makes the install a little easier.