One thing that I have trouble with for a long time is the Air Mix Servo on the Environmental System. It makes a buzzing sound when trying to switch vent outlets, and never quite gets to the end position. It is a worm drive servo, and the specific part that wears out is the bumper that the worm gear works against. You'd figure they would put a hard surface there, but its just plastic. When the worm gear moves out of its position it looses contact with a drive pin that is on the motors shaft. Then it is skipping in, and out of the worm drive, making that annoying buzzing sound. The fix for this one was to push the worm gear bumper closer to the worm gear to hold it in place. I took a tiny piece of 0.032" aluminum, and made a small spring to hold the worm gear bumper in place. That one works great. At the bottom left of the enclosure, on the left side of the worm gear you can see a gap between the worm gear, and the worm gear bumper. That is the problem. I filled the gap between the bumper, and the enclosure wall to push the worm gear bumper towards the worm gear.
RX300 Windows are unique in their misbehavior. There are times when the window goes down, but will not go up until the window is all the way down. Other times the window goes down, and does not go back up. Then there is another mode where you use the Auto Rollup feature, the window goes all the way up, hits the top, and then rolls down halfway, then only goes down. LOL! that one is the Best! Especially in a Thunderstorm...
This RX300 window system is microprocessor controlled, and networked. The master control talks to the other doors, and problems with the master controller will effect the other door controllers. Sometimes the master door control won't operate windows on the other doors, and you have to use the specific door control. There are a lot of interconnections, and all the buttons are soft switches, and not metallic conductors, thus a little more susceptible to contamination due to low current. The window controllers can get water in them which also causes problems.
The problem with the Auto Rollup was the Window Regulator Motor installation. When you install a new Window Regulator Motor you need to initialize it so that the Auto Rollup feature works correctly. If you skip this step the window motor will never work correctly. To do this you need to electrically hookup the motor, and controller before you install them into the door. They need to be separate from the window regulator. Use the Auto Rolldown switch to run the motor down until it stops. Then use the manual up switch to run the motor up 10 revolutions. Install the motor in the regulator at the middle of the window travel. Install the window regulator into the door. Then you will have to use the manual down switch to move the regulator to the point where you can install the window glass. Once you get the glass back in the door you need to use the manual down switch to roll the window all the way down. Then use the manual up switch to roll the window all the way up, and hold it for 5 seconds after the window closes. Then you can test the Auto Rollup feature before putting the rest of the door back together.
Probably the most annoying behavior of these windows is the intermittent behavior. They can sometimes work perfectly if the phase of the moon, and humidity are correct. They misbehave the most in inclement weather. I've had them refuse to rollup in rain, and freezing weather, and it motivated me to fix it. Turns out this is a worn out relay problem. The contacts on the relays are oxidized, and make intermittent contact. Sometimes works, sometimes don't... The solution here is to replace the relays. The trouble is they are obsolete, hard to find, and expensive when you do.
A couple days later I picked some parts from Ali Express, search for CR2-12V. I should get them in a week or so. Then we can fix that annoying window problem.
Update, Ali Express refused my order because they no longer have stock. The search continues...
I had some rattling noises coming from the front end. I assumed that this was the extremely worn struts, which made plenty of noise on their own. After replacing the struts, this rattling noise persisted. After some exploration I found that this noise was the links on the ends of the sway bar, called a stabilizer bar by Toyota. The ball ends were worn out, and bumping around. That is an off-the-shelf part at the Monster Truk store. So that was a fairly easy fix, four bolts, and the rattling noise was gone.
Probably one of the hardest problems I encountered, one that directly affected the State Inspection was a Check Engine light because of a small leak in the Evaporative Control System. This one has been big trouble, and has taken a lot of time. It is a vapor collection system that stores gas vapors in a charcoal can, then feeds these vapors to the intake manifold periodically. You can hear the engine surge slightly when the EVAP System opens the purge valve. Its basically a vacuum system that gets stretched all over the Truk. Fresh air supply lines go from the air cleaner to the EVAP Charcoal storage can, under the trunk stowage. Then a vapor line goes to the purge valve on the intake manifold. So this vacuum line has stretched across the Truk twice now. Then there is a line that goes to the Gasoline Fill Tube which is sealed by the Gas Cap, a part of the EVAP System. There are a couple other valves, and pressure sensors which monitor the EVAP System. The code my system gave is P0442, small leak in the EVAP System. I think I fix it, then a couple days later the light comes on again... Blarg...
Monster Truk is running a little better now, and got all his papers...
