I bought this Lexus because of you, Scotty...
And it's a beautiful car that rides very nice, but I may have gotten the "limited" lemon edition (I did that once with a Mercedes too), as I have had to replace or service almost everything except the tranny since I bought it four years ago. It's a 2004 ES330, got about 135,000 on the odometer, and the current problem started with an intermittent failure of the key to unlock the doors. The next thing was a Code B1242 and the key quit functioning altogether but then the B1242 just went away and hasn't come back, although I still can't unlock the doors with the key, and then the key would not even work manually in the door lock.
While this was going on I had already been working on the driver's door for some time. It started with the window regulator needing replaced, did that, then one of the cables on the door actuator snapped, replaced that, and then the locks started acting up.
The real come-to-Jesus moment was when I was installing the replacement actuator and had the door panel off and the switch was connected but just hanging down. The locks were not working at all except from the inside switch, and somehow I let the door close, and it locked and I was locked out of the car and COULD NOT get in. I called a locksmith, and he tried for a long time and could not get in either. He gave up and after he left I couldn't think what to do except to get a hammer and smack the crap out of the door handle, and I did and finally there was a brief beep like when the alarm goes off and then the door opened.
The lock and handle were toast, so I got another handle at the junkyard and took that cylinder to (another) locksmith and had him key it to my key. Got it back, installed it in the door handle and installed the door handle (which needs some, ah, cosmetic work but it's in there) and...nothing at all has changed. I still can't get the locks to work. The battery in the key fob is fine--the light lights up so it's not that.
Oh! and I almost forgot to mention, the car will not start now. I am not sure if that is related to this current problem or something else. I get no codes at all now; I use Blue Driver and it's not telling me a damn thing.
I tried a procedure for re-learning the key to my car, and it had no effect. I've racked my brain for about a month now with this.
I had AllData and pored over it and watched YouTube videos as usual, and I am thinking maybe it's the body control module for the doors, which is in the right rear of the behind the door panel? But I'm not sure, and I have had so many variables and different issues in this general area of the door and door panel I'm half silly from it and can hardly remember what I did anymore and when.
BTW, I'm not a mechanic---the worthless misfit that WAS my mechanic took off somewhere and left everybody high and dry, and out of necessity and not having a clue where to take it, I just started doing it all myself. I've replaced a bunch of stuff and learned a lot on the fly, and I really love cars and working on them, but sometimes like now, I'm just at the end of my (very limited) expertise and am at the point where I will struggle with it for awhile and get so discouraged, the other night I just burst into tears and boo-hooed, it was so lame. But then, I am a girl so I have that excuse. Forget about keeping a manicure, but I can live with that.
Can you offer some guidance before I take the hammer in my hand again and finish the job ?
For starters, it's a 20-year-old car (16 years old when you bought it) and there is plenty of opportunity for things to go horribly wrong with a car over that period of time no matter what the make and model. When looking at something that old, or any used car for that matter, the condition of the specific one you're considering is at least as important as picking a model known for reliability. Was it cleared by a good mechanic before purchase? That's something Scotty has always made clear needs to be done.
Probably the thing to do is troubleshoot the starting problem since if the car won't start the power locks are pretty much irrelevant. See the site FAQ section on diagnosing a no-start condition.
Here's an example of the kinds of things that can go wrong with a car that is considered very reliable, due to age. (Another Lexus. Yes, it is 10 years older than yours, but this gets across the kinds of things that can go bad on an otherwise reliable/bulletproof model simply due to age.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ry1WZ7EVtjI
I did bring my former mechanic with me when I looked at it. He said he could see nothing that stood out to him, which was that the battery needed replaed, that was it.
OK, thanks.