Taking the plunge

[DanD]

After weeks of agonising, and with the (useful) help of contributors to both the RX and NX forums, I am taking the plunge.

Goodbye RX! Hello NX!

On Saturday morning, our faithful 2009 RX450h SEi will be abandoned at our local dealership with 108,000 miles of trouble free motoring and replaced with a 16-plate NX300h with 15,000 miles on the clock.

Our "new" car is a F-Sport, sonic white with dark rose interior, with Premium Nav and panoramic roof.

Can't wait.

Edited January 30, 2018 by DanD
Amended incorrect colour reference

[First_Lexus]

What swung the decision in favour of the NX @DanD?

[DanD]

Various things:

- I no longer needed a car the size of the RX, even though the NX may not be that much smaller on paper, there is enough of a difference to make parking and driving along narrow lanes easier.
- I love the design of the NX, in and out. Also, while the RX was nicely kitted out, it is a much older design than the NX which now offers phone charging tray, LED lights, DAB, better Bluetooth connectivity, etc. I could have replaced our RX with another 3RX (a 4RX is currently out of my price range), but I wanted a change.
- Our RX was getting "old" and tired, with high miles. Cream interior looks lovely, but does not age particularly well, even if looked after. In particular the seat belts which are a pain to clean, and the carpets that have become discoloured in places.
- My dealer offered me a fantastic deal on a low mileage car with the exact spec and colour combination I would have picked for a new car, and without any significant increase in our monthly payments.
- I fancied a change, but wanted to stay with Lexus.

I expect that the car will be cheaper to run, but I also hope that I will not miss the performance of the RX!

[rayaans]

Best colour combo that's for sure..... 

But then I may be biased having 2 white on red cars haha

Post pics when you get the chance and let us know how you find it after you get to know it.

[paulrnx]

On 1/17/2018 at 11:16 AM, DanD said:

Various things:

- I no longer needed a car the size of the RX, even though the NX may not be that much smaller on paper, there is enough of a difference to make parking and driving along narrow lanes easier.
- I love the design of the NX, in and out. Also, while the RX was nicely kitted out, it is a much older design than the NX which now offers phone charging tray, LED lights, DAB, better Bluetooth connectivity, etc. I could have replaced our RX with another 3RX (a 4RX is currently out of my price range), but I wanted a change.
- Our RX was getting "old" and tired, with high miles. Cream interior looks lovely, but does not age particularly well, even if looked after. In particular the seat belts which are a pain to clean, and the carpets that have become discoloured in places.
- My dealer offered me a fantastic deal on a low mileage car with the exact spec and colour combination I would have picked for a new car, and without any significant increase in our monthly payments.
- I fancied a change, but wanted to stay with Lexus.

I expect that the car will be cheaper to run, but I also hope that I will not miss the performance of the RX!

Can't promise that! I think you'll notice a difference. It'll be when you're loaded up and have to accelerate within the 40-80 range that you'll really notice the difference. That said, I hope you enjoy the car. Sounds like a great spec and colour combination

[rayaans]

Tbh if you're only using it round town. I don't think you'll miss the power much. 

The only issue I had was that I have 3 kid - ones a 86kg one so it all adds up and the SUV is our main family car

[DanD]

Four days in...

...and I love the car. I find it extremely comfortable, I very much like the layout, the new toys (I had not realised that the car has radar cruise control) and the pan roof, and I am still in love with the looks and colour combination (I will post pics at some stage if and when it stops raining!). No issues with performance to date, and I find the car a lot "tighter" when negotiating roundabouts. However, I can see that the car does not like steep hills much, and I have not yet had rear passengers for any lengthy trip.

Two things I miss from the RX:

1. The relative silence. The NX does not have laminated windows so you hear outside traffic a lot more, and road noise is A LOT louder. Could be related to the Yokohama EOM tyres, which I will replace with Michelin Cross Climates when the time comes. No doubt I will get used to it within a few more days.

2. The NX door bins are tiny!!! - Not very wide and very shallow.

Two things I need to sort out / get sorted out:

1. Connected services. Are they worth the effort / hassle?

2. An annoying rattle coming from the back when playing "bassy" music. Another thread on this forum suggests that this may be related to the number plate (mine is fixed with screws rather than tape).

So far so good... :-)

 

 

[rayaans]

On 1/23/2018 at 10:35 AM, DanD said:

Four days in...

...and I love the car. I find it extremely comfortable, I very much like the layout, the new toys (I had not realised that the car has radar cruise control) and the pan roof, and I am still in love with the looks and colour combination (I will post pics at some stage if and when it stops raining!). No issues with performance to date, and I find the car a lot "tighter" when negotiating roundabouts. However, I can see that the car does not like steep hills much, and I have not yet had rear passengers for any lengthy trip.

Two things I miss from the RX:

1. The relative silence. The NX does not have laminated windows so you hear outside traffic a lot more, and road noise is A LOT louder. Could be related to the Yokohama EOM tyres, which I will replace with Michelin Cross Climates when the time comes. No doubt I will get used to it within a few more days.

2. The NX door bins are tiny!!! - Not very wide and very shallow.

Two things I need to sort out / get sorted out:

1. Connected services. Are they worth the effort / hassle?

2. An annoying rattle coming from the back when playing "bassy" music. Another thread on this forum suggests that this may be related to the number plate (mine is fixed with screws rather than tape).

So far so good... :-)

 

 

With the tyres, yes it could be the OEM Yokohamas but generally the NX is louder inside anyway.

Connected services - for me, no its not worth the effort. Even the traffic updates are unreliable and I haven't really used anything else. Connected services are a work in progress to be honest and I think they need to start putting some actual connected services in, like remote starting and warming up the car when cold via app etc etc. 

With the rattle, yes could be from the number plate rattling as the subwoofer is on the hatch. I would get some sticky pads of the foam variant and put them on each side of the number plate first along with the screws

[Ian J. Parsley]

I do use the Connected Services, but of course it depends on what you're looking for. I use them sometimes because I just want to type in a destination without knowing the address (which you can do on Online Search); and sometimes when I have a complex day ahead I use it to send the journey to the car in advance (although admittedly I haven't done that in a while).

On the bass, consider also changing the fader and all that. I have mine moved slightly forward.

[DanD]

I thought street view might be quite handy?

Still very much like the car. It is a lot more nimble than the 3RX and while performance is not as swift, I find it sufficient. Also, I tend to prefer the firmer ride. Admittedly, I have been on my own in the car for the past 10 days apart from giving the boys the odd lift (my wife is recuperating from an operation on her back).

Not yet had the time to fix the vibrating rear number plate, but I have turned the bass down a notch in the mean time.

MPG has been rather good - for me at least! - at 34MPG and considering 50% motorway.

[rayaans]

22 hours ago, DanD said:

I thought street view might be quite handy?

Still very much like the car. It is a lot more nimble than the 3RX and while performance is not as swift, I find it sufficient. Also, I tend to prefer the firmer ride. Admittedly, I have been on my own in the car for the past 10 days apart from giving the boys the odd lift (my wife is recuperating from an operation on her back).

Not yet had the time to fix the vibrating rear number plate, but I have turned the bass down a notch in the mean time.

MPG has been rather good - for me at least! - at 34MPG and considering 50% motorway.

Ah yes the street view - its very very handy..... for seeing how things looked 6-12 months ago 

Yes the NX is nimble compared to the RX but you're wife might not thank you when she gets in after her back operation for getting rid of the RX!

[paulrnx]

Stuck the edges of my rear number plate down with the sticky pads last weekend. Works a treat, had been planning to do it since I bought it 12 months ago. Kept putting it off thinking I'd put my private plate back on, then selling. Decided to just do it.

I think the Yokohama OE tyres are noisy. Mine is definitely quieter with two new Goodyears on the front. Much better small bump absorption too.

[DanD]

21 hours ago, rayaans said:

Yes the NX is nimble compared to the RX but you're wife might not thank you when she gets in after her back operation for getting rid of the RX!

Hmmm... she did pass comment on the way back from the hospital...

Thanks to the road noise, I pretended not to hear.