2014 RX450h Premier Buying Advice Please

Nigel-Lexus Owner · January 16, 2019

59 minutes ago, Herbie said:

Depends how you drive it - I've often had 390-400 out of a tankful

So you do not plant your right foot to the bottom then. I can't resist that powerful acceleration.

My wife drives the RX during the week as I have one of the best cars for work ( a company diesel car which returns 60 mpg) and when I managed to get an excuse to drive the Lexus, I can not stop myself to feel that power of smooth acceleration. Maybe I will grow out of it one day( I hope not)

GSLV6 · January 16, 2019

400 odd miles is roughly 30mpg from an RX (65 litre tank). I usually top up when the indicator tells me that I have about 50 miles left in the tank and once topped up (brim full) I get between 330 anfd 360 miles before I'm back to the same point, so roughly 400 miles sounds about right. However, that's mixed driving and nothing extreme. Last year whilst in Exmoor for 3 weeks the tank was emptied in under 260 miles. That's the price you pay when lugging 2.3t plus luggage up and down very steep hills (worked out at under 20mpg). The hybrid adds nothing to climbing hills but you burn more juice to lug all those batteries and motors about. If I lived somewhere like that, the RX wouldn't be for me. That's where diesel makes more sense.

jumpingjehovahs · January 16, 2019

Depends how you drive it - I've often had 390-400 out of a tankful

Another one for 390-400 miles a tank. Even in this much cooler weather it very rarely drops below 360 miles. The worst I’ve had was 330 and that was because I turned Eco Mode off and drove it like I stole it!

Sent from my Iphone using Tapatalk

Herbie · January 16, 2019

3 hours ago, GSLV6 said:

The hybrid adds nothing to climbing hills but you burn more juice to lug all those batteries and motors about. If I lived somewhere like that, the RX wouldn't be for me. That's where diesel makes more sense.

For the last 14 years or so we've had our cars converted to LPG and when we changed to the hybrid it was one hell of a shock how much fuel it uses. I'd go back to LPG in a heartbeat but although it's technically possible to convert a hybrid I wouldn't be brave enough to have it done. The hybrid is such a complex car that I really don't see the point in adding another layer of complexity to it - it would be an absolute nightmare trying to sort out a non-start fault.

If only Lexus did a petrol-only version of the RX450h - I'd have one in the blink of an eye and get it converted.

GSLV6 · January 17, 2019

I can understand the raised eyebrows with real world mpg V's makers claims which are done according to EU stipulated rolling road tests, but the real purpose of these tests is to determine things like tax band and to offer customers a comparason, like for like, between new cars. On average, if you take the claimed mpg and multiply by 60 to 70% that lands you closer to actual combined mpg.

The mpg of a GS300h I borrowed was actually pretty good at 45mpg, given it's 2.5 litre 4 pot engine. That's at least 15mpg more than I got from my 2.5 litre 6 pot bmw petrol.

The RX again is pretty good really when judged not by claimed mpg, but when you sit and consider what other 3.5 litre V6 hauling around a 2.3 tonne mass, with high frontal area would let you see close to 30mpg avarage. That's as good as the BMW X3 and X5 diesels, and on flat mixed driving that average can easily hit high 30's with care.

Whilst not an economical car, anyone with the money to buy one generally has the finances to run one without resorting to LPG conversions which with the complexity of the car in the first place and cost of the proper conversion, I'd have thought wouldn't pay dividends at least not where an RX is concerned. I would never consider it as I don't do a big mileage in the first place, perhaps just 7 or 8K miles annually.

I prefer thinking of the RX like I do my BMW GSA1200 bike....one of the best all rounders going, with a great driving position, great comfort, decent handling and a real do-it-all nature. Not best in any one area but possibly a vehicle that'd be hard to better by anything else on the market all things considered. MPG, whilst not the lofty figures claimed, are actually pretty reasonable. They certainly better my previous Volvo S60 2.5T, BMW 325 and on average, even my Lexus GS300.

Oh, I never use the ECO mode. I usually have it in sport mode and find very little difference in economy but prefer not to have that awful lag between the pedal being pressed and anything happening. Best I've seen on a 20 mile mixed drive was 44mpg average. Worst was about 18mpg over several days where I was hauling a 500Kg payload up and down some pretty extreme hills!

Spottedlaurel · January 17, 2019

I'm realistic about the economy side of things, and it should be a price worth paying for the overall driving experience. It's for the latter reason that I'm buying it and my mileage has dropped a bit this year for various reasons. Anything above 30mpg is tolerable and circa 35 would be fantastic - I doubt my other cars get much better than that (including the Camry 2.2 which I'm using almost all the time at present, as I prefer it to the Avensis) and it has only been recently when I had an Avensis diesel that I got 40-50mpg.

Current Avensis petrol gets around 40 if I've had some decent long runs, otherwise high 30s. It was significantly less than that in France last year, 4-up and full of luggage.

My tiddly little 1973 Datsun 1200 is probably the most economical car in my current fleet but that weighs almost nothing and has rather less useability and comfort than an RX.

Of the cars I've had which offered a similar feelgood factor due to a bigger engine (Nissan 300Cs, Camry V6, LS400 Mk3 and numerous straight-six Datsuns) I doubt any of them would crack 30, and some were probably nearer 20.

Spottedlaurel · January 20, 2019

Brief update - my Advance collected yesterday and I've been enjoying wafting around in it.

All good so far! Still getting used to the hybrid side of things, but I'm planning on keeping this one for a while so that'll come.

Was interesting to compare it with a customer's 2010 SE-I that they had at Tunbridge Wells:

Have since seen a couple of others when I was driving around over the weekend. I haven't got used to what mine looks like yet, they're not particularly common around this way.

Herbie · January 20, 2019

1 hour ago, Spottedlaurel said:

Still getting used to the hybrid side of things

The trick is to not baby the car, which is exactly what I was doing when we first got ours. Accelerate briskly to the speed you want and then just back off slightly to just maintain that speed - you'll soon get the hang of it.

The most I've ever managed with ours was a 50-mile journey that achieved 41.8mpg but I've never been able to replicate that, with my average being 31.5mpg.

Above all else - enjoy!

BlackCat · January 21, 2019

Congratulations on your new car Nigel!! It looks beautiful, superb!!

Ian M · January 21, 2019

Welcome to RX ownership. As I am sure you're discovering, they are a nice way to travel.

31.4 is my average mpg over the last year or so, so you ought to fall nicely within your expected range.

Spottedlaurel · January 21, 2019

Thanks all. I've been getting around 31-32mpg so far. Just as importantly I'm enjoying the whole driving experience.

Spottedlaurel · February 6, 2019

Nearly three weeks into my RX ownership and I'm getting used to it, and just as importantly enjoying the overall experience. Fuel consumption has dropped a little due to short journeys and the recent cold weather. Looking forward to some longer trips.

Ride is a little firmer and more jiggly than I'd have expected. Maybe I need to experiment with tyre pressures? The TPMS display tells me I'm at 2.4-2.5 all-round - I'm driving mainly on rural A- and B-roads not hammering up and down the motorway, so I could go a bit softer? Perhaps also the tyres I have are a factor? New Bridgestones on the front and part-worn Dunlops on the rear. My other RX drives have been of a Premier and an F-Sport so I can't directly compare it to any others.

Still getting used to how it gathers speed without the usual audible signals. It's only when I realise how easily I've got up to 60 on a stretch of road I drive very regularly then use one of my other cars and see how hard they have to work to do the same thing that I can appreciate it.

Got a slight issue which I'm in communication with the dealer about. When I was giving it a good clean-up I took advantage of the height to wash the salt off underneath and have a bit of a look at it myself. Maybe I'm wrong, but the shape of the central exhaust silencer didn't look right to me:

Appears to have taken a bit of a clout, and it certainly wasn't me - I took a photo of the rear subframe when I first viewed it and the damage is just visible then.

Assuming it shouldn't be that shape, it makes me question what sort of treatment the previous owner gave it and whether it will fail prematurely due to that seam being distorted and opened-up.

I'd be grateful if someone could poke their head underneath theirs and say whether I'm right or wrong about the damage - if possible I'd like to see a photo for comparison.

As that length of exhaust is more than just the silencer, and not something I'm likely to get replaced for £50 at ATS, I don't feel this is something I should just forget about.

Or am I being too fussy? Maybe it wasn't overly expensive for an RX, but it's hugely more than I've ever paid for a car before and I hoped that buying an approved Lexus would give me some peace of mind which I don't quite feel at the moment.

Spottedlaurel · February 23, 2019

A little bit has happened since I last wrote about my RX. I wasn't happy about the exhaust but they didn't want to fix it. I then found that one of the undertrays had been scraped, with the clips broken and it then secured with a cable tie - not something I'd have expected or hoped to see. In fairness they did offer to replace the undertray, but it raised questions about how the car had been driven and cared-for.

Fortunately I was in the period/mileage when I could ask for an exchange, so that's what I did today. With a bit of additional deposit and a small amount extra per month, I've just brought home a six-month newer 2014 Luxury:

Very happy with it, drives really nicely. Fractionally lower spec than the Advance, but the only thing of significance I'll miss is the LED headlighting. I have a personal preference for this bumper style and the metallic Celestial Black paint which highlights the shape well.

Just one previous owner who'd bought it new at Guildford and always had it serviced there. It's covered 24k and the overall feel and visible wear and tear is commensurate with that.

Strangely, this one has brand new Dunlops on the front and older Bridgestones on the back, the complete opposite to the Advance - Motorline's different branches obviously have differing views on what they fit.

Difficult to know why - and maybe it's my imagination - but it seems to drive better, with a supple but tight feel with less rattles. Maybe the lack of panoramic roof, or just tyre pressures?

It was showing 30.6MPG when I collected it and I again managed just under 32 on the cruise back home (in sport mode).

A few very subtle differences noted, like the switch panel above the rear view mirror being slightly higher (so I won't now get annoyed by the bit of plastic that obscured the top of the view seen in the mirror) and it has lane-change indicators giving four flashes from one gentle push - I'm sure the Advance didn't do that.

Hoping for more typical RX ownership from now on and looking forward to a few years of relaxed driving.

Herbie · February 23, 2019

Good luck with this one Nigel, I'm sure you'll love it.

olliesgrandad · February 23, 2019

The lane change flasher duration can be set up in the car menu. Ive reset mine to 7 flashes.

Spottedlaurel · February 23, 2019

Thanks Herbie, I already do!

Useful info Les, thanks. Maybe it was set to 'off' in the Advance? I have to confess to not having read or even looked at the manuals yet, so there's probably all sorts of handy features I'm missing out on.....

JeffL · March 2, 2019

On 1/16/2019 at 7:32 PM, Herbie said:

For the last 14 years or so we've had our cars converted to LPG and when we changed to the hybrid it was one hell of a shock how much fuel it uses. I'd go back to LPG in a heartbeat but although it's technically possible to convert a hybrid I wouldn't be brave enough to have it done. The hybrid is such a complex car that I really don't see the point in adding another layer of complexity to it - it would be an absolute nightmare trying to sort out a non-start fault.

If only Lexus did a petrol-only version of the RX450h - I'd have one in the blink of an eye and get it converted.

https://bolton.usedcars.lexus.co.uk/en/used-lexus/Lexus/RX-200t/20-Luxury-mqbwd9f

Lexus Bolton have a petrol 200t for sale at £28K with about 9k miles on the clock! It's been for sale for a while so price might be negotiable.

Herbie · March 2, 2019

3 minutes ago, JeffL said:

https://bolton.usedcars.lexus.co.uk/en/used-lexus/Lexus/RX-200t/20-Luxury-mqbwd9f

Lexus Bolton have a petrol 200t for sale at £28K with about 9k miles on the clock! It's been for sale for a while so price might be negotiable.

Sadly, well out of my price range - and I'm not sure about just a 2.0 litre engine either. Having had an RX300 previously and feeling that that 3.0 litre engine was underpowered, I can't imagine what this would be like.

Spottedlaurel · March 2, 2019

Bristol have one of those 2-litre RXs for sale as well. They seem to be a bit of a curio, apparently 238bhp from a turbocharged '4'. I wonder if the turbo is sufficient to give it the torque that modern multivalve engines lack? It strikes me it would have to work hard to haul the RX around and that economy would suffer as a result.

First week in with my new 64-reg Luxury, all very good so far. Doing everything I hoped it would and my first tankful worked out at 33.5mpg. Cleaned it up today and no nasty surprises, indeed I was impressed at how tidy it is.

JeffL · March 3, 2019

13 hours ago, Herbie said:

Sadly, well out of my price range - and I'm not sure about just a 2.0 litre engine either. Having had an RX300 previously and feeling that that 3.0 litre engine was underpowered, I can't imagine what this would be like.

12 hours ago, Spottedlaurel said:

Bristol have one of those 2-litre RXs for sale as well. They seem to be a bit of a curio, apparently 238bhp from a turbocharged '4'. I wonder if the turbo is sufficient to give it the torque that modern multivalve engines lack? It strikes me it would have to work hard to haul the RX around and that economy would suffer as a result.

First week in with my new 64-reg Luxury, all very good so far. Doing everything I hoped it would and my first tankful worked out at 33.5mpg. Cleaned it up today and no nasty surprises, indeed I was impressed at how tidy it is.

Yes, it is more than I would want to pay and I had the same thoughts about the engine size versus the size of the car but also thought it should/could be lighter in weight than the hybrid as it won't be carrying all those heavy batteries? As an interesting exercise, just for the fun of it, I'll start a new thread, see if we can find anyone on the forum who owns one 🙂

March 3, 2019

I do prefer the look of the RX with the rear pipes on show as with the 200t,should all be like that imho.

Spottedlaurel · June 8, 2019

A very small update on my RX. Even the substitute Luxury I got to replace the Advance had an issue with a noise from the rear end, which got worse on the lumpy rural lanes around where I live. Following a tip on this forum a few weeks ago I bought some anti-squeak tape - basically self-adhesive rubber/butyl with a felt face. It was cheap off eBay, just over £2 posted for a 500mm length.

Having put my son in the boot one day (on a private road, genuinely) he worked out that the noise was coming from the tailgate latch area. Looking at it, I could see that the plastic hinged flap which seals around the bottom fastening was quite polished, suggesting it was rubbing against the tailgate part of the latch mechanism.

Two little strips of the tape were applied to the flap and now I have silence! Any other noises I can hear are stuff inside the car, at least it's not the rear seats which I had initially thought were the problem.

Since getting this one in late February I've only done a couple of thousand miles, due to a fairly short work commute and having my older cars to use now the weather is (mostly) better. All good so far, I seem to get 32-35mpg depending on whether I've managed to do some longer journeys or it's just been local running around.

Now focusing on next month's holiday in France, that's where it will really excel with the family and luggage on board and wanting to cover a big distance in a day. Looking forward to having a bit of power on the hills and mountains - the torque-less Avensis 1.8 petrol I took last year was not good for that.

It needs a couple of tyres, so I'm looking at the ever-popular Michelin CrossClimates and getting the almost-new Dunlops swapped to the rear. It currently has Bridgestones on the back which may have been there from new? They still have a reasonable amount of tread but certainly look somewhat aged and not something I'd be happy about subjecting to a few hundred miles of 81mph autoroute travel. Budget aside, it's a shame all four don't need replacing but the front Dunlops were new when I bought it and it'd be a terrible waste to get rid of them.

If my local Lexus dealer will do them for a sensible price then I'll take it down there and get a summer health check done while I'm at it. The MoT and service isn't due until later in the year and it would do no harm for someone other than the dealer who sold it to me to give it a once-over while I'm well within the warranty period. They can also price up a service plan for me, it should be eligible for the 'essentials' package as it'll just be five years old by that time.

Still happy with my choice after a few months. The particular car I ended up with is perfect for what I want out of an RX, it's only now that my local dealer has had anything which I think would have been a good alternative. I do wonder how I'd have got on with the Mazda 6 2.5 and Subaru Outback I'd also been considering, I think they'd have been good in their own way but not better (I don't need the Subaru's off-road capability). Toyota have since launched the Camry here which wouldn't have been much of a stretch on the monthly payments, but sadly there's no estate version so that's ruled out.

In summary, I'm quite content to live with mine for the next three years and with how slowly I'm adding the miles it should be well worth purchasing outright at the end of the agreement and keeping it long-term.

P.S. Is there a way of changing the original thread title?

rayaans · June 8, 2019

On 3/2/2019 at 8:23 PM, Herbie said:

Sadly, well out of my price range - and I'm not sure about just a 2.0 litre engine either. Having had an RX300 previously and feeling that that 3.0 litre engine was underpowered, I can't imagine what this would be like.

On 3/2/2019 at 10:07 PM, Spottedlaurel said:

Bristol have one of those 2-litre RXs for sale as well. They seem to be a bit of a curio, apparently 238bhp from a turbocharged '4'. I wonder if the turbo is sufficient to give it the torque that modern multivalve engines lack? It strikes me it would have to work hard to haul the RX around and that economy would suffer as a result.

First week in with my new 64-reg Luxury, all very good so far. Doing everything I hoped it would and my first tankful worked out at 33.5mpg. Cleaned it up today and no nasty surprises, indeed I was impressed at how tidy it is.

The 200t engine is pretty good in the 4RX tbh. Much better than the 201hp 3.0l in the RX300 was anyway.

It has similiar torque to the RX350 in the states, and a much lighter front end.

LexusFanBoy · December 31, 2019

On 6/8/2019 at 7:15 PM, rayaans said:

The 200t engine is pretty good in the 4RX tbh. Much better than the 201hp 3.0l in the RX300 was anyway.

It has similiar torque to the RX350 in the states, and a much lighter front end.

But will it hold it in time?

Coming from an 2l bi-turbo 525 BMW, I am afraid that smaller engines on big cars are destined to fail in time. First 150k km would be fine, after that .... ?

LexusFanBoy · December 31, 2019

On 3/2/2019 at 11:07 PM, Spottedlaurel said:

Bristol have one of those 2-litre RXs for sale as well. They seem to be a bit of a curio, apparently 238bhp from a turbocharged '4'. I wonder if the turbo is sufficient to give it the torque that modern multivalve engines lack? It strikes me it would have to work hard to haul the RX around and that economy would suffer as a result.

First week in with my new 64-reg Luxury, all very good so far. ..

I wonder what is the life of such a small engine on such a big car. Fuel is one thing, repairs and reliability are more important for me.

Wonder how reliable will it be after passed 200k km.