New RX450h Owner Questions (Oh No)

[jpower]

Hello - So this morning I traded in a 2005 BMW X5 which was totally battered, and got an RX450h Jan 2011 (not sure what get that makes me), it felt like pure luxury in comparison.  I have done a little searching on the forum, but also wanted to take the lazy approach of asking directly:-

1 - Fitting a towbar? Options, Price, self install possible with reasonable DIY skills not a mechanic level however.

2 - There could be times where the Lexus is not driven for a couple of weeks, or that it only has a short journey once a week for a couple of months -- will this likely lead to a flat Battery or can they be left fo a while without issue? If they are prone to go flat quickly best solutions?

3 - Tyre recommendations? I hear they are quite harsh on tyres, I can see from the MOT history of this one that there was quite a few failures due to tyres.

4 - Lastly - Watched some review videos, read some reviews but still unsure of when the electric portion kicks in, just wondering the best way to squeeze the eco out of this.

 

Appreciate any help.

[Herbie]

Hi and welcome to the club Jeegnesh. Let's see some photos of your new motor when you can!

1. I've never needed a towbar but from what I've read in this forum, I think it's a dealer-only supply and fit but I may be wrong so hopefully someone else will be able to clarify.

2. Yes, they can quickly go flat because they aren't very big and don't have a huge capacity. It's perfectly alright to accept a jump start from someone but don't ever use your hybrid to give a jump start. Some people use solar panels as a trickle charger if the car is parked outside for a while. I may even invest in one myself one day but for now, I always carry around a small jump start Battery pack.

It may be useful for you to have a read of a topic I started a while ago, about just this very thing:

3. Tyres. I have Goodyear Vector 4Seasons Gen 2 all round on mine and they're absolutely excellent in every way. Other people will recommend the Michelin Cross Climates. Technically, point for point and item for item, they are equally as good as each other but you may be able to get a better deal on the Michelins price-wise. For me it's Goodyear, Michelin, and a third choice would be Avon ZX7.

4. They aren't designed to be an electric car. If you try to run on batteries only, you'll only manage a couple of miles and then they'd be flat. Even if you manually select EV mode and do a standing start when, say, moving off from traffic lights, you'll only have to breathe on the accelerator pedal and you'll get a message that "EV mode is cancelled due to excessive acceleration" and you'll be thinking 'but I haven't even reached 5mph yet!'

The trick is to accelerate briskly up to speed and then just ever so lightly lift your foot off a bit so that you're just maintaining that momentum - that's when you can get the electric motors driving the car at 30 or 40mph. Anticipate stops so that you can do long, slow, braking which will help to keep the traction Battery charged up because when you press the brake pedal the motors turn in the opposite direction to become generators.

As you come to a stop at traffic lights or junctions you're probably used to putting the handbrake on and the car in Neutral, but don't do that anymore. Leave the car in 'D' and keep your foot on the brake. The hybrid system gets a signal from the brake pedal and won't charge the Battery if the car is in Neutral.

If you park up somewhere for any length of time but you like to listen to the radio, always keep the car in the READY state, which is the equivalent of having the ignition on. This is because the 12V Battery is only small and hasn't got much capacity and, believe it or not, just having the radio on for 30 minutes without being in READY (the equivalent of having the key in the ACC position instead of IGN) can flatten the Battery to such a degree that the car won't start. However, as long as the car is in READY, the petrol engine will fire up as and when necessary to keep the 12V Battery charged.

And finally, the most important bit - enjoy! 

[Barry14UK]

Hi I'm new to this forum too and relatively new to Lexus but Herbs is very helpful and offers good advice. As regards tyres, there is some difference of opinion on what is best and it will also depend on whether you wish to fit premium or more budget.  My own experience seems to confirm what most people feel about the Dunlop's that the car started life with in that they are particularly subject to 'stepping' on the rears and should be rotated (about every 5K miles I believe)  Like others say, this can make a sound that is rather like a wheel bearing that needs replacing. These Dunlops are generally not well liked and on my car at 4 years old and with circa 37000 miles on the clock show signs of perishing even though there is quite a lot of tread left.  I did mention this to Lexus Cheltenham when they serviced my car recently. (I wanted to get this service done on this occasion before I decide how much of the servicing I will do in future) .you need techstream .  Anyway, Lexus confirmed what I thought about the original Dunlops and said many owners had changed to Michelin crossclimates  and were more happy with them.

If you can't get any specific information on tow bars it could be worth seeking information from Westfalia.

When not on smooth roads my RX450h rattles a bit compared to my BMW E39 but is more comfortable which has become an important consideration for me.

 

 

[olliesgrandad]

I concur with the previous comments regarding tyres and have been running Cross Climates since last October and they are a vast improvement over the factory Dunlops. All my tyres are wearing evenly. 

In respect of hybrid driving please view the Lexus video on YouTube which will point you in the right direction. 

[flookyk]

Hi .. the towbars are readily for the Gen3 RX450h that you have, it is the Gen4 (2015? on) that are dealer only and only certain Model levels are approved for towing on those.

https://www.pfjones.co.uk/tow-bars.html

I have never heard of a RX450 Battery causing problems with being left for a couple of weeks, unlike the earlier RX400, which had a smaller Battery fitted to them.

Tyres .. mine were fitted with Pirelli Scorpion Verde All Weather and I replaced the front two over a year ago and they don't appear to have worn much in over 12,000 miles.

 

[Guest]

Another here for the Pirelli Scorpion Verde all seasons which i'm very happy with.

My RX came with a detachable tow bar fitted which was a dealer original fit from new and looking back over the receipts the original owner paid £1100 for this.(ouch)

[2ddesign]

Hi

I had my tow bar detachable fitted at Westfalia Bristol branch, cost £896.40. This, if so called "fitted" by Lexus would be £1100, so go direct.

Have Michelin Cross Climates which give a smooth ride with no noise.

[jpower]

@Herbie

2 - I'd actually seen your post re Battery which is what got me thinking. Love your little socket trick. Funny thing is I own the same DBPOWER pack as I needed it often on my X5.  I do really like your solution, although there a chance I am fixing a problem I won't have, so I will wait and see how she goes.  But I'd consider copying your little trick if needed. Meanwhile I'll use the front terminal to jump if I have too, hope not.  BTW - I assume the boot will open manual even with a low/dead Battery?

4 - Totally get you, I did try EV mode and it jumped out as fast as I turned it on, seen the Lexus video too, think I'll just drive and enjoy. I also own a Leaf so quite used to driving and using brake re-charge so I'll continue as I am doing, although not sure I can have eco mode on, it's so slowwwww on take-off.

@Barry14UK - Good stuff on tyres. What is techstream? Trust me compared to my e53 there is no rattle in the rx 🙂

@flookyk - Thanks for the towbar info, good to know it a ready solution, guess will have to just shop round for best prices.

 

[jpower]

Those towbar install figures are scaring me a bit.  I guess there no chance that I take the panel off and find a detachable tow bar point 🙂

[Herbie]

2 hours ago, jpower said:

I assume the boot will open manual even with a low/dead battery?

Nobody could really say for certain and I didn't want to disconnect my Battery (then have to reset stuff) just to find out, so it'll be fun finding out if I ever need to 🙂

The good thing is that the Battery pack is small enough to keep in the glove compartment so even if the tailgate won't open I should be able to reach the socket from the back seat and jump start from inside the car. Thinking about it I may have jumped the gun a bit by putting the socket there. It should really be easy enough to install a socket just under the rear passenger's air vent in the centre console and then I could perform a jump start from the comfort of the driver's seat.

Techstream is the diagnostic software used by Toyota/Lexus technicians in the dealer workshops. If you like to DIY and ever need to bleed the brakes, you'll need Techstream to help with that. It'll also do 'trivial' stuff like allow you to customise the amount of time the interior lights stay on; change the sensitivity of the auto wipers and lights and lots of other stuff to. There's plenty of Youtube videos on how to use Techstream so it may be worth having a look if you intend to use it.

You can officially and legitimately download Techstream from Toy/Lex websites free of charge and buy a block of time to use it, such as 1 hour, 4 hours, 1 day etc. If you do intend to use it you'll need to buy a miniVCI cable from eBay or amazon and almost always, these will come with a pirated copy of Techstream, so it's a matter for your own conscience as to how you run and use the software but either way, you'll definitely need the cable to connect your laptop to the car.

This is the one that I bought and I can confirm that it works well.

[rayaans]

11 hours ago, jpower said:

Hello - So this morning I traded in a 2005 BMW X5 which was totally battered, and got an RX450h Jan 2011 (not sure what get that makes me), it felt like pure luxury in comparison.  I have done a little searching on the forum, but also wanted to take the lazy approach of asking directly:-

1 - Fitting a towbar? Options, Price, self install possible with reasonable DIY skills not a mechanic level however.

2 - There could be times where the Lexus is not driven for a couple of weeks, or that it only has a short journey once a week for a couple of months -- will this likely lead to a flat battery or can they be left fo a while without issue? If they are prone to go flat quickly best solutions?

3 - Tyre recommendations? I hear they are quite harsh on tyres, I can see from the MOT history of this one that there was quite a few failures due to tyres.

4 - Lastly - Watched some review videos, read some reviews but still unsure of when the electric portion kicks in, just wondering the best way to squeeze the eco out of this.

 

Appreciate any help.

1) With regards to towbars, there are plenty of options out there for your particular vehicle as it is a 3rd gen RX. The 4th gen RX has issues with towbar availability. A quick google search should bring up plenty of options.

2) The 3rd gen RX doesn't suffer from Battery issues like the 2nd Gen. Mine never had an issue in 5 years of ownership leaving it to stand for 3-4 weeks. Best thing to do is invest in a trickle charger just to be safe.

3) Relatively speaking, no they are not harsh on tyres. 26-30k on a set is achievable. Obviously thats for the fronts, the rears should last longer. Michelin Latitude Tour HP were very good on this vehicle. 

4) I would leave the vehicle to its own devices. Contrary to what you would think though, keeping momentum, accelerating hard to a set speed and then coasting is the best way to achieve good economy.

[Spottedlaurel]

I can't offer anything on 1 or 2 of your list.

3. I wonder if they are too bad on tyres? I've just replaced the rears on mine, I suspect they were the original Japanese-made Bridgestones - they were badly cracked due to age (so much so I'm surprised the main dealer selling it let them go through like it) but still had quite a bit of tread depth and had worn evenly. Mine is coming up to five years old and has now done 26k miles. I've gone for the Michelin CrossClimates following good reports on here and due to this being my car of choice when the weather's bad.

4.I'm still fairly new to RX and hybrid ownership, I have the screens set-up like this so I can see how my driving style affects the economy:

Yes, this photo was taken on a private road! I find the trip info screen at full-size an easy way of seeing how much difference it makes when lifting the throttle just slightly, and it's satisfying to see those bars as high as possible. That MPG is what I get running around locally, with lots of cold starts and short-ish journeys, with no use of the A/C. I try and reset the trip meter each time I refill and then see how it's doing against the cruising range figure. There are the graphics on both screens which show the energy going backwards and forwards, but I prefer to work with numbers. When I bought mine at 24k it was showing an overall average of 30.6mpg, after a couple of thousand miles that's risen to 30.8. I did use Eco mode for a tankful or two, but the difference it made wasn't enough to persevere with.

[jpower]

Thanks for all the info. 

Surprised at 30mpg average - I was hopeful that it was going to be more.

[Spottedlaurel]

I got mine up to 35-odd today thanks to some longer A- and B-road cruising, probably 37-38mpg allowing for the 32 it had done up to that point. I had the odd occasion to make use of the lovely V6 as I was 'making progress', so not too bad.

Best way of looking at it isn't as being super-economical, just that the hybrid gives tolerable economy to a fairly big, powerful, very comfortable car. I really enjoyed the drive in mine yesterday, the family were on board and it was doing just what I wanted it to do. The Avensis 1.8 petrol I had before would probably have done low 40s on that journey, but would have been nowhere as pleasurable to drive.....

[Brian26]

Hi Jeegnesh, I have a September 2011 RX450h and had a detatchable Westfalia towbar fitted by my local auto electrician. From what I remember it was around £600 -  £650 fitted. There seem to be several brands available including Witter and Brink so you shouldn't have any problem with availability. As far as I know they all require the bumper to be cut but it's not that visible. I believe mine was ordered from P F Jones. As for tyres, if you will be towing say a caravan then the front tyres will take a lot of wear, after all it's effectivly a front wheel drive above around 15 MPH. I tow a 1750kg max weight van and my fronts will be lucky to make 2 years so I don't see a lot of point in putting expensive tyres on. I am currently running Avon ZX7s. They seem to have a reasonable balance between cost and wear and of course grip.

Hope this helps Bri.

[jpower]

15 hours ago, Brian26 said:

Hi Jeegnesh, I have a September 2011 RX450h and had a detatchable Westfalia towbar fitted by my local auto electrician. From what I remember it was around £600 -  £650 fitted. There seem to be several brands available including Witter and Brink so you shouldn't have any problem with availability. As far as I know they all require the bumper to be cut but it's not that visible. I believe mine was ordered from P F Jones. As for tyres, if you will be towing say a caravan then the front tyres will take a lot of wear, after all it's effectivly a front wheel drive above around 15 MPH. I tow a 1750kg max weight van and my fronts will be lucky to make 2 years so I don't see a lot of point in putting expensive tyres on. I am currently running Avon ZX7s. They seem to have a reasonable balance between cost and wear and of course grip.

Hope this helps Bri.

Towbar actually just for bikes, so shouldn't be such a big deal. Definelty more money then i was expecting though.

[Farqui]

4 minutes ago, jpower said:

Towbar actually just for bikes, so shouldn't be such a big deal. Definelty more money then i was expecting though.

Maybe give these chaps a call? - they aren't too far from you.

https://www.watling-towbars.co.uk/unusual_requests.html

I almost used them but eventually bought an OEM bar and fitted it myself.

[jpower]

11 minutes ago, Farqui said:

Maybe give these chaps a call? - they aren't too far from you.

https://www.watling-towbars.co.uk/unusual_requests.html

I almost used them but eventually bought an OEM bar and fitted it myself.

£729 fitted - Going to have to reconsider my options.

[Farqui]

Just now, jpower said:

£729 fitted - Going to have to reconsider my options.

Ah, that's a shame.

[Brian26]

Hi Jeegnesh, Just a thought I have a set of roof rails on my car. A set of bars and a bike cerrier will be a lot cheaper than a tow bar.

Bri

[olliesgrandad]

10 minutes ago, Brian26 said:

Hi Jeegnesh, Just a thought I have a set of roof rails on my car. A set of bars and a bike cerrier will be a lot cheaper than a tow bar.

Bri

Need to mind the caravan going under low bridges though 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[Lost it]

Is it only me?

Why do people by 3 litre and up vehicles and expect them to give you Mini 850 mileage figures?

Even if they are "Hybrid" that Battery still adds to the mass of the vehicle that has to be moved, it's still not the most aerodynamic of shapes and frankly it weighs quite a bit. Anything over 25mpg is a bonus. Fact.

So why would anyone think they are getting an economy car? It's a TANK you are running. Not a motorbike.

[Zotto]

Hybrid on RX 450h works a lot for good mpg. Without any hypermiling technique I have an average about 35 mpg.

[jpower]

Not expecting Mini figures, just better then by previous X5 and be nice if it could reach the advertised figures which I know they never do.

 

The roof rails, interesting, must say I feel kinda nervous about it. I'm pretty sure I'll drive them into a low bridge.

[olliesgrandad]

8 hours ago, Lost it said:

Is it only me?

Why do people by 3 litre and up vehicles and expect them to give you Mini 850 mileage figures?

Even if they are "Hybrid" that battery still adds to the mass of the vehicle that has to be moved, it's still not the most aerodynamic of shapes and frankly it weighs quite a bit. Anything over 25mpg is a bonus. Fact.

So why would anyone think they are getting an economy car? It's a TANK you are running. Not a motorbike.

Crazily at the moment I'm getting around 34mpg. 

My wifes Fiat 500 is only doing 40mpg....