On my way to work this morning, the master warning light came on. I have an 05 Prius with 87k miles. The icon on the MFD indicates a failure in the auto leveling sensor. Dealer is quoting me $636 to replace, which seems unreasonable to me. I should note that this is not a Toyota dealership, but it is the dealership where I purchased the car. I have had the car for just slightly more than 30 days. I have found the DIY guide for repairing the sensor myself, and am not opposed to doing so if need be, but $636 seems like a ripoff. I've read that you can buy replacement units from Lexus vehicles. Do these mount and connect properly, or does it takesome work to get them to function?
LAMP LEVELING CONTROL COMPUTER Prius 04 05 06 : eBay Motors (item 400103136976 end time Apr-13-10 06:23:08 PDT)
Thanks for the link, Jimbo! I'm gonna try fixing tonight, if that doesn't work I'll just buy that one.
Just wanted to give a quick update... I was able to fix the sensor last night by replacing two springs from a ballpoint pen (the originals were rusted and corroded). Hooked everything back up and it seems to be working. A few ?s for clarification: is the mechanical arm that attaches to the sensor supposed to be that tight? I could barely move the darn thing. How can I tell if the HID beams are in the right position? I definitely see a difference compared to before, and if anything it almost seems like they're TOO high now. I don't want to blind anyone! I'd love something like a "take empty prius parked x feet from wall and top of light beam should be x feet high" kind of thing.
is the mechanical arm that attaches to the sensor supposed to be that tight? I could barely move the darn thing. I did this repair several months ago and my "mechanical arm" was very tight. I tried to loosen it up with lube and repetitive motion, but it remained tight. I think it is supposed to be tight.
