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2010 Lexus RX350 Rear Hatch Strut Replacement (DIY in Under 10 Minutes)

If your 2010 Lexus RX350 rear hatch has started drifting down on its own or beeping because it won’t make it all the way up, your rear liftgate struts are worn out. The gas charge inside them is gone, and they can no longer hold the weight of that heavy hatch. The good news: replacement struts come as a pair and the swap takes under ten minutes — no dealer trip required.

Here’s how to do it, including the trick for doing it solo.

Before you start

The single hardest part of this job is that the hatch is heavy. While you have one strut removed, the other has to hold the hatch up on its own — and if both are shot, nothing holds it. Plan to keep at least one old strut in place while you work the other, and have a floor jack ready as backup.

Step-by-step

1. Open the hatch fully and let one strut keep holding it while you start on the other side.
2. Release the top ball socket. Each strut end clips onto a ball stud with a small C-clip. Use a flat-head screwdriver to peel the C-clip back, then pop the strut end off the ball. (You can pry the whole socket off with the screwdriver, or peel the clip first — peeling the clip makes it noticeably easier.)
3. Support the hatch with a floor jack. This is the key to doing it solo: put the jack under the hatch and raise it so the post is going straight up and down, not at an angle. A straight post holds the hatch rock-solid; an angled one slips. Raise it high enough that the new strut will slide right in.
4. Pop the bottom end off the same way — pry the lower clip back and free the strut. Remove the old strut completely.
5. Prep the new strut. Look inside the ball sockets. If they’re dry (the replacements in the video came with no grease), wipe the old grime off the ball studs with a rag and add a small dab of grease to each socket. A little is all you need.
6. Install the bottom first. Seat the lower ball socket onto its stud and press until it clicks home — nice and easy.
7. Install the top. With the hatch jacked up high, the upper socket should line up so it slides right on. Press it onto the ball stud until the clip locks.
8. Repeat for the second strut, then lower the jack and test the hatch.

Pro tip: Raise the hatch higher than you think you need before fitting the new strut. The whole struggle in the video came from trying to lift and push at the same time — with the hatch jacked up high enough, the new strut just slides into place.

That’s it

A worn liftgate strut is a five-minute annoyance that turns into a daily one. With the hatch supported properly and a dab of grease on the new sockets, you’ll have a hatch that snaps up and stays up — and no more beeping. The exact pair used is linked in the parts box above.