RX450h Air Supension & DAB

[James_1970]

Am looking for a RX450h with air suspension as it seems to be more reliable than the older versions (1st gen RX)  and I like the idea of smoother ride and the car hunkering down at high speeds.

I also want DAB.

The question I have is how do I know which models have it?
I am looking at 2009 to 2013 cars which seems to span the new series in 2012 when the models changed.
From what I understand, 2009-12 cars definitely have DAB & air-suspension in SE-L form - is this correct?

If I look at post 2012 facelift cars (which I prefer) , I am struggling...
It seems like the range-topping Premier Model definitely has DAB & air-suspension yet when I called a sales chap at Lexus he said it is down to what options were chosen.
So what about the post 2012 LUXURY/ADVANCE models?

Appreciate any help

 

I

[rayaans]

1st Gen RX <2003 didn't have air suspension AFAIK

2nd Gen RX 2003-2009 had air suspension but was notoriously unreliable. This was only on the RX300 and RX350. The RX400h did not have air suspension on any grade

3rd gen RX (2009-2015) had air suspension and DAB on the SE-L and facelifted Premier models.

Advance and Luxury models from 2012-2015 have standard suspension. They also have DAB

Word of warning though - DAB is crap - honestly, FM sounds better

[James_1970]

Thanks Rayaan,

do you know if the air suspension is good and worth having in r450h?

and does anyone successfully use an add-on DAB module in the RX?

[ChrisM]

I have a 2009 RX450H SE-L that has air suspension and DAB. I find the ride comfortable as does my wife. My son-in-law, who drives a C class AMG, was impressed with the ride.

I see in the service history and repairs that a strut was replaced, but that may not be indicative of a problem across the range.

With regard to the DAB radio I must confess to not using it a lot as I do not travel long distances regularly and tend to use the CD or Hard Drive for my music. 

[James_1970]

Thank you for the replies - very helpful

[rayaans]

On 07/12/2017 at 1:50 PM, James_1970 said:

Thanks Rayaan,

do you know if the air suspension is good and worth having in r450h?

and does anyone successfully use an add-on DAB module in the RX?

Not really worth having unless you load and unload regularly as it drops itself using a button in the hatch.

There's barely any difference to the ride - the Premier is marginally smoother than a Luxury but not by loads and you certainly wouldn't be able to tell that it had air suspension

[JFB2]

I bought a 2014 Luxury, therefore without the air suspension. I was a little worried about the long-term implications of air suspension – while not being any kind of engineer, I just couldn't imagine an air system being as reliable as traditional suspension.

However, the ride is by far the worst quality of my RX. Hampshire's roads are generally appalling and the RX's ride is pretty much constantly unsettled, brittle, crashy, agitated, etc. Only on smooth asphalt is the ride what I would call good. It's rather embarrassing giving friends or relatives a lift – after the first few ridges, troughs, sunken manhole covers and general coarseness of your typical B road, the glory of the near silent powertrain is overshadowed by the poor ride. 

I wonder if it's perhaps the make of the tyres, as other owners seem not to notice as much as I do. (They're inflated to the correct pressure. I checked that.)

So if the air system is better, even marginally, go for it. 

[rayaans]

13 hours ago, JFB2 said:

I bought a 2014 Luxury, therefore without the air suspension. I was a little worried about the long-term implications of air suspension – while not being any kind of engineer, I just couldn't imagine an air system being as reliable as traditional suspension.

However, the ride is by far the worst quality of my RX. Hampshire's roads are generally appalling and the RX's ride is pretty much constantly unsettled, brittle, crashy, agitated, etc. Only on smooth asphalt is the ride what I would call good. It's rather embarrassing giving friends or relatives a lift – after the first few ridges, troughs, sunken manhole covers and general coarseness of your typical B road, the glory of the near silent powertrain is overshadowed by the poor ride. 

I wonder if it's perhaps the make of the tyres, as other owners seem not to notice as much as I do. (They're inflated to the correct pressure. I checked that.)

So if the air system is better, even marginally, go for it. 

What tyres are you on? Tyres certainly make a huge difference to the ride.

To be honest - its an SUV and will ride rougher on battered roads. The laws of physics means the suspension has to be harder than on a car with a lower centre of gravity to be able to pass safety tests and anti-rolling ability. 

Having said that, I had the F-Sport and it was firm but not hard. The Luxury was better when I tested it but the handling wasn't as good so I opted for the F-Sport. 

You won't find any other SUV from the 3RX era rides much better unless its running on much smaller wheels

[JFB2]

On 12/12/2017 at 3:43 AM, rayaans said:

What tyres are you on? Tyres certainly make a huge difference to the ride.

To be honest - its an SUV and will ride rougher on battered roads. The laws of physics means the suspension has to be harder than on a car with a lower centre of gravity to be able to pass safety tests and anti-rolling ability. 

Having said that, I had the F-Sport and it was firm but not hard. The Luxury was better when I tested it but the handling wasn't as good so I opted for the F-Sport. 

You won't find any other SUV from the 3RX era rides much better unless its running on much smaller wheels

I'm on Bridgestone Duelers, 19". They're made in Japan, and the Japanese won't even have heard of a pothole (their roads are silky smooth) so not the best people to be supplying the UK market. I've seen all the discussion about the benefits of Michelins, but I'm hopefully not due a tyre change for a few thousand miles yet. They were newish when I bought in October. 

Is it possible for the shock absorbers to have gone? The car's done 65k miles. 

As a matter of interest, we've just arrived in LA for Christmas and rented a Hyundai Santa Fe. The roads here are pretty similar to the UK – potholes, coarse surfaces, sunken manholes, general neglect – and the Santa Fe takes them in its stride. No crashing or brittle ride. 

I sometimes worry that the interior trim of my RX is going to shake itself apart. So far I've noticed an occasional rattle inside the tailgate, a buzz on the rear edge of the drivers door, vibrating rear seat and a sort of creaking noise from inside the dash on the passenger side on certain road surfaces. I haven't the energy at the moment to take the dealer to task on these... particularly as they come and go according to temperature and road surface.

[rayaans]

10 minutes ago, JFB2 said:

I'm on Bridgestone Duelers, 19". They're made in Japan, and the Japanese won't even have heard of a pothole (their roads are silky smooth) so not the best people to be supplying the UK market. I've seen all the discussion about the benefits of Michelins, but I'm hopefully not due a tyre change for a few thousand miles yet. They were newish when I bought in October. 

Is it possible for the shock absorbers to have gone? The car's done 65k miles. 

As a matter of interest, we've just arrived in LA for Christmas and rented a Hyundai Santa Fe. The roads here are pretty similar to the UK – potholes, coarse surfaces, sunken manholes, general neglect – and the Santa Fe takes them in its stride. No crashing or brittle ride. 

I sometimes worry that the interior trim of my RX is going to shake itself apart. So far I've noticed an occasional rattle inside the tailgate, a buzz on the rear edge of the drivers door, vibrating rear seat and a sort of creaking noise from inside the dash on the passenger side on certain road surfaces. I haven't the energy at the moment to take the dealer to task on these... particularly as they come and go according to temperature and road surface.

Unlikely on shocks going. 

I hate the bridgestones with a passion. Poor ride comfort and they have really bad grip to top it off. Mine spins the wheels on every junction. 

The santa fe has small wheels and very large sidewalls. It's also probably not very dynamically capable.

The point of the RX since its launch in the 1990s was to give a car like feel to an SUV. 

You could always drop down to 18" wheels but the RX rides pretty well on most roads but the speed does need to be maintained. It gets worse the slower you go.

[JFB2]

27 minutes ago, rayaans said:

Unlikely on shocks going. 

I hate the bridgestones with a passion. Poor ride comfort and they have really bad grip to top it off. Mine spins the wheels on every junction. 

The santa fe has small wheels and very large sidewalls. It's also probably not very dynamically capable.

The point of the RX since its launch in the 1990s was to give a car like feel to an SUV. 

You could always drop down to 18" wheels but the RX rides pretty well on most roads but the speed does need to be maintained. It gets worse the slower you go.

The Santa Fe is pretty rubbish dynamically – the RX feels taut and agile by comparison, and the seats are incomparable, but they are at very different price points. 

I agree on speed – the faster you drive the RX, the better the ride. A bit weird thinking about it.