Considering RX450h

[Shiner]

I am thinking of changing LS430, after owning it for 11 yrs & becoming nearly bankrupt, for RX450h. Should I be worried about any car with highish  mileage and up to six years old? Any advice on model or what to look out for would me most welcome.

 

thanks

[olliesgrandad]

What is your budget?

There are plenty of cars out there just a case of finding the right one.  Full service history is important and you need to check that it has up to date hybrid health check documentation  (Hybrid batteries are then warranted for 10 years).  Avoid cars with air suspension as otheer folks here report unreliability. F Sport have firmer ride so if considerin . Advance spec (I have one) are luxury spec plus excellent LED headlights, pan or sunroof and post 2014 cars have ML sound system as standard.  I have done 11,000 miles in 4 months and averaged 34mpg tankful to tankful. 

Lexus warranty I would say is a must for peace of mind. 

[Shiner]

Thanks Les

I have air suspension on my LS430...and have had no problem.

Was thinking of Luxury trim, but after reading on this forum am leaning towards Advanced.

My budget is £24k to £26k for the right car. Probably last car I will buy at 72 yrs of age....

[Herbie]

We have a late (November) 2013 RX450h Advance and we love it. We paid just under £25k for it back in February with just over 33k miles on the clock.It has 95% of the bells and whistles that the Premier has but, crucially for me, no air suspension.

I've never owned a car with air suspension but have been a passenger in many and I really don't think it brings anything over and above 'normal' suspension in comfort or performance. What it does add is a whole new layer of complexity and expense to an already complex and expensive car.

[rayaans]

The budget is plenty to get yourself an advance model which was the best in terms of cost effectiveness as it came with a lot of kit for the same price as a Luxury, especially when Lexus had the "Upgrade to Advance for free" offer on.

The Premier does come with the air suspension. Whilst the 3RX air suspension is not as unreliable as the 2RX, it didn't make a massive difference in ride quality. 

Make sure you check the spec of the Advance as it got changed in 2015 I believe. As others have mentioned ensure a full service history i.e. every 10k miles. I wouldn't worry about the extended warranty on these. They were bloody bulletproof.

[Shiner]

Thanks for your help and reassurance. I am convinced the way to go is with Advanced. I will be buying from a Lexus dealer just to ensure peace of mind!

And will ensure full service history and hybrid health checks carried out. I shall also ask them to get the sellers permission to give me copies of all the paper work such invoices and work done.

I assume most people do when spending this sort of money.

As I only do up to 4000 miles per year air suspension is not that critical for me. A lot Advance models come with Panoramic roof. Will this present a problem when parked in sun  in summer months? And how often does one actually uses it? I am inclined to go for sunroof or none!.

I am happy to wait until the right one comes along.

[Guest]

We have had our 2014 Advance for three years now and it provides us with everything we need,we have the sunroof rather than the panoramic roof which i do use  a lot.

We took the extended warranty on ours which for less than a thousand  for two years was a no brainer imho and does give that peace of mind.

They are great cars and provide quality with space and the right amount of power.

Good luck with your search.

[The-Acre]

You'll really miss your LS!

[rayaans]

1 hour ago, Shiner said:

Thanks for your help and reassurance. I am convinced the way to go is with Advanced. I will be buying from a Lexus dealer just to ensure peace of mind!

And will ensure full service history and hybrid health checks carried out. I shall also ask them to get the sellers permission to give me copies of all the paper work such invoices and work done.

I assume most people do when spending this sort of money.

As I only do up to 4000 miles per year air suspension is not that critical for me. A lot Advance models come with Panoramic roof. Will this present a problem when parked in sun  in summer months? And how often does one actually uses it? I am inclined to go for sunroof or none!.

I am happy to wait until the right one comes along.

I do like the panoramic sunroof as it does let loads of light into the cabin, particularly if the interior is black. Its not really a problem when parked in the sun as they have a proper headliner type shade which doesn't let any light through whatsoever. 

You don't need the sellers permission if the supplying dealership remove all identifiable information. e.g. if they properly remove all names, addresses and telephone numbers using a thick black permanent marker, it will meet data protection rules

[Shiner]

Don’t start Phil...

all my friends are telling me I am mad!  But it’s 430...not 400 ...& has been a troublesome & costly love affair! I am ready to move on! And RX450h seems a damn good alternative. 

[Shiner]

Oh thanks Rayaan I was dismissing them, but will keep an open mind

[Gilbert Fudpucker]

Interesting views but .. if your LS is bankrupting you why go for an RX .. I have been running a 2011 450h alongside an LS600h and quite frankly there is little in the mpg between them .. I rarely get mid 30's in the RX normally around 28-30mpg and mine has the Panoramic roof which dosn't open nor can I fit roof bars because of it .. then there are the under trays front and rear so can't fit a towbar to mount my bike carrier without major surgery .. fortunately this vehicle will swallow a small whale !!

Not sure I agree with members comments regarding Air suspension .. as I have mentioned before and just a few days ago I asked about fitting Coilovers as find this RX of mine can be very uncomfortable over potholed roads whereas the same roads where I live in the LS600 (especially) , my X5 and Q7 all with Air suspension just soaked it up and bearing in mind the LS600 was a 2008 model and had no problems in 10 years .. so food for thought and for sure if I buy another RX its deffo going to have Air suspension and a heated steering wheel .. Lordy do I miss my LS !!     

  

[Shiner]

Gilbert

mpg isn’t what was bankrupting me..I only do about 4000 miles per yr....it’s the catalogue of failing things! Although my LS is in immaculate condition, and at the moment, everything works....Whoever buys it won’t it have to worry about replacing radiator,done this year, steering wheel motors, done last yr, spark plugs, still 40000 miles to go...but cam belt, water pump etc looming large in next 2 yrs!, exhaust showing signs of corrosion etc etc. Steering wheel wobbles and my Indy say could be the steering shaft as bushes are fine! So sadly time to move on!

[Gilbert Fudpucker]

Really sorry to hear that .. not often members have all those problems but as you say expensive items on the horizon and although my particular 2011 RX is far from perfect in a lot of respects it is without doubt along with the LS the most reliable car I have ever owned   

[Shiner]

What model of Ls did u have Gilbert? My friend has mk4 LS400 (1998 ) since 2002...

he’s only ever had to change his brake Calipers..nothing else....apart from routine service items  We hate him!

[Gilbert Fudpucker]

Ha.. i'm not surprised , mine was the top of the range LS600h RSR long wheelbase in Sable with cream interior , a 2008 model and as much as I was scared of the potential problems and cost of repairs I bought anyway , straight to the Lexus dealership for a check over , 10 years old and the techs were amazed once it was up on the ramps at how well it had been cared for and looked underneath but more so every toy worked perfectly , the Hybrid Battery health check was spot on and it was a dream to drive   

 

[graham8370]

22 hours ago, olliesgrandad said:

What is your budget?

There are plenty of cars out there just a case of finding the right one.  Full service history is important and you need to check that it has up to date hybrid health check documentation  (Hybrid batteries are then warranted for 10 years).  Avoid cars with air suspension as otheer folks here report unreliability. F Sport have firmer ride so if considerin . Advance spec (I have one) are luxury spec plus excellent LED headlights, pan or sunroof and post 2014 cars have ML sound system as standard.  I have done 11,000 miles in 4 months and averaged 34mpg tankful to tankful. 

Lexus warranty I would say is a must for peace of mind. 

7

Just to clarify the Hybrid Health Check; They will health check your system if your car is under 10 years old. If it passes the check they will give 12 months warranty on the batteries.

[olliesgrandad]

£26000 should get you a nice late series 3 advance spec car. I Paid £26600 for my 15 plate advance with 26000 miles. So my car was one of the last. Good hunting. 

 

 

[Gilbert Fudpucker]

Sorry for the late reply , Just looking at the warranty I have for my LS600h ,  Lexus will give you a warranty up to 10 years old or 140,000 miles maximum , however the " Expiry Mileage" could theoretically be in the hundreds of thousands of miles the car has been driven when the warranty finally runs out 

For instance you take out a warranty for a year on a Lexus which is 10 years old and has 100,000 miles on the clock , then you drive around the Planet 10 times and the cars mileage reads 348,600 +/-  at the end of the warranty period , Lexus will cover you for all of that mileage until the day the warranty expires , which to me is a good deal and does give peace of mind 

On the subject of Hybrid batteries .. no matter how old the vehicle is , simply get the Hybrid Battery Health Check at every MOT , too many of us myself included worry about Hybrid Battery condition as I did on my 2008 LS600 , having done my homework I have found it is an extremely rare occurrence although individual cells can drop out and rarely an Inverter goes pear shaped just ensure whatever Hybrid you purchase has that Lexus HBHC Certificate , so stress not !!  and you can all put the calculators away now i'm pretty darn close 🙂

[ColinBarber]

4 hours ago, Gilbert Fudpucker said:

and rarely an Inverter goes pear shaped

unfortunately the hybrid health check does not help you here as it only provides a warranty for the Battery, not the inverter, motors, pumps etc.

[Shiner]

Decision made. It’s going to be RX450H Advance. Preferably 2015 plate. Can’t stand dark interior so has to be ivory. Not bothered about the colour on the outside but preference would be Satin Silver or Burgundy or Grey ...in that order!. Would have gone for panroof but it can’t be opened, so has to be sunroof!

Really appreciating you guys helping out and good advice. I am grateful. And waiting for the right model to turn up...

[steveledzep]

Great, you won't be disappointed.  Had mine nearly two years now, the Luxury model but cannot fault it.

A pet hate of mine is silver (light) cars with Ivory (light) interiors.  Looks sickly and insipid to me.  Much prefer a strong contrast between exterior and interior.  I'd have preferred ivory on the inside of my burgundy RX but settled for black as everything else about the vehicle was "right".  Had an IS250C with ivory and Caddoxton Slate exterior, looked particularly smart with the roof down.  Have a good look before you decide.  Good luck ☺️.

[Shiner]

Steve

Thanks. I too was considering Luxury model, until I was alerted to the Advance...which has Mark Levinson, as does my current Lexus, so that decided it for me! 

Most likely to hold out for Burgundy but not many about...but on the inside...only ivory will do for me....

r u a Ledzep fan? A friend has been to every concert they gave in uk!

[The-Acre]

16 minutes ago, Shiner said:

Steve

Thanks. I too was considering Luxury model, until I was alerted to the Advance...which has Mark Levinson, as does my current Lexus, so that decided it for me! 

Most likely to hold out for Burgundy but not many about...but on the inside...only ivory will do for me....

r u a Ledzep fan? A friend has been to every concert they gave in uk!

One of the things you will really enjoy is being able to just slide into the drivers seat from standing, as opposed to getting into the car. Then when you stop you just slide out again!  I must say, the elevated driving position in these type of vehicles is excellent.

[steveledzep]

My budget was sub £20k so horses for courses.  Had ML in a previous IS250 and it didn't really impress me, car's not a good environment for serious listening in my opinion.

Yes, burgundy with ivory is a stunning combination, good luck with your search.  I wouldn't let a colour combination cloud my judgement where basic stuff like service history, mileage, condition etc. is concerned.

Yes, a LedZep fan, unfortunately I was in school when they did most of their performances 😢.