The touch screen on our 2014 SR5 stopped working properly, so I bought and installed just the digitizer, and now everything works. Below is a “how-to” guide.
First the details. Our 2014 SR5 has the non-JBL stereo with navigation, cd slot on top, with 57079 on the bottom of the faceplate. It’s a $5000 part from Toyota, but even an equivalent aftermarket unit with working steering wheel controls is about $1000. The factory head unit is made by Panasonic and the 6.1” display made by LG is part number LA061WV1-TD01. The touch screen is 2 components, the actual screen that shows the image and a clear digitizer on top processes the touches. In our case, the screen was fine but the digitizer had a dead spot. So I bought just the digitizer from aliexpress for $16.80 including shipping. My purchase shipped e-packet from China and took 2 weeks to arrive. I installed it today, so can’t comment on longevity.
Now, the caveats. I am not an electronics repairman or Toyota tech, so I’m not sure if there is a better or easier way to do this. I don’t know about other model touch screens or other model years. Also, there are fragile ribbon cables and exposed electrical components, so proceed at your own risk.
An overview is:
1. Remove the head unit from the dashboard center.
2. Remove the radio and navigation boxes.
3. Remove the screen and digitizer.
4. Replace the digitizer.
5. Reinstall the screen and digitizer
6. Reinstall the radio and navigation boxes.
7. Reinstall the head unit and the rest of the center dashboard.
1. Remove the head unit from the dashboard center.
1a. Remove the left and right vertical trim pieces that surround the left and right climate knobs. They attach with clips, so just grab it with your hands and pull straight back.
1b. Remove the climate control panel with the 3 knobs. It also attaches with clips, so just pull straight back. Again, there was enough to grab onto that I didn’t need trim removal tools. Don’t pull too far, as there is a connector. I unplugged the connector and detached the strain relief with needle-nosed pliers.
1c. Remove the head unit, which includes the upper air vents. Remove the 4 10mm bolts in the upper part of the image. There are also clips, so pull straight back, not too far, as there are many connectors. As I unplugged the connectors, I used a sharpie to add a unique dot pattern to both the female and male ends. This is probably not necessary, but I was trying to be careful. Some of the connectors connect to the dashboard and must be unplugged. Some of the connectors connect just the 2 boxes of the head unit so don’t need to be unplugged to remove the unit, but they all need to be unplugged eventually, so I unplugged them all now, including the strain relief connection.
2. Remove the radio and navigation boxes
2a. Remove the 2 boxes, frame, and metal plate to expose the screen assembly. There are 6 screws, 2 on the bottom that go into plastic, 2 on the bottom that go into metal, and 2 on top that are hidden beneath silver tape. The bottom screws are partially blocked by the bottom box, so I removed its 4 8mm bolts and removed it from the frame. The 2 black plastic tabs that screw to the metal plate do not need to be removed. The hazard switch connector needs unplugging. Gently pull the metal frame and plate away from the screen and dashboard – there are clips that need releasing. Do not pull far, as there are 2 ribbon connectors.
2b. Remove the 2 ribbon connectors. Flip the connector tabs up with your fingernail. This separates the frame and plate from the dashboard front and screen.
3. Remove the screen and digitizer. Unclip the 3 white ribbon cables on the dashboard end – it is easier to leave the ribbon cables attached to the center screen assembly. Unplug the mcx gps connector – black wire on the bottom right. Remove the 4 screws holding the assembly to the dashboard front (the screws are removed in the picture). There is no need to remove the 4 screws holding the back plate to the screen assembly. Now lift out the screen assembly. The clear digitizer should be attached to the assembly, but my digitizer was unattached, so it needed lifting along with the whole assembly.
4. Replace the digitizer. It’s the clear front piece that attaches to the screen assembly with a gold ribbon cable. First, remove the old digitizer. Flip up the cable connector tab and pull out the cable. The old digitizer had 1/16” strips of double-sided tape along the edge as backing between the front of the screen and the back of the digitizer, which should secure the digitizer to the screen (my old one didn't stick). The new digitizer did not have any double-sided tape, so I got some at a phone repair place. It's made for screens and needs to be heated to set. Carefully center the digitizer with the screen. If you don’t center the digitizer properly, you may have edge buttons on the touch screen that won’t activate (don’t ask me how I know this). One the digitizer is attached, plug the digitizer ribbon cable into the connector all the way and flip down the tab.
5. Reinstall the screen and digitizer. Set the assembly into the dashboard piece and reinstall the 4 screws. Reattach the 3 ribbon cables – slide them all the way into the connector and flip down that tab. Reattach the gps mcx connector.
6. Reattach the radio and navigation boxes. Hold the metal frame and plate close to the dashboard piece and reattach the 2 white ribbon cables – slide them all the way into the connector and flip down the tab. Carefully seat the metal plate into the dashboard piece so the clips engage. Then reinstall the 6 screws, 2 under the silver tape, 2 metal screws on the bottom, and 2 screws into plastic on the bottom. Reattach the bottom metal box into the frame with the 4 8mm bolts. Reattach the hazard plug. It’s easiest to attach the connectors that connect the 2 boxes now, so plug those back in.
7. Reinstall the head unit and the rest of the center dashboard. Hold the head unit close to the opening and plug in all the connectors and connect the strain relief. Seat the head unit into the dashboard with the clips, then reinstall the 4 10mm bolts. Reinstall the climate control panel (3 knobs), first plugging in the connector and attaching the strain relief. It should push until you feel the clips grab. Lastly, reinstall the left and right vertical trim pieces by pushing until the clips engage.
If you did everything properly, the touch screen should just work. I am not aware of any user-accessible screen calibration. Presets, navigation destinations, and bluetooth pairings are retained.
There is a touch screen test in the service menu if things aren’t working right. To get to the service menu, have the ignition on (engine doesn’t need to be running), press and hold the audio button, then turn your headlights on and off three times (really!). This brings up a new screen, with one of the options to test the touch screen. Of course, if the touch screen is totally not working, you can’t do this.
Hope this helps someone.
Bill
1F7
Edited 14Sep2018, attaching the digitizer to the screen more securely.
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