Lexus RX450h fuel efficiency/MPG 2013 model

Ken83 · July 17, 2019

Hi All,

I am seriously considering an RX450h F-sport for my family car. The perks being the extra space (we currently have a 2005 1 series 2.0 diesel), safety, comfort and the savings from hybrid.

The only thing I'm a bit concerned about is the real life MPG I'm likely to get from this vehicle rather than the manufacturers figures. My wife uses the car to drop the kids off at school every morning and I generally use it at the weekend running into London on the A13 from Essex.

I was just wondering what kind of MPG people with this car get doing similar driving? My current car says (though it never seems to change on the dash) that I get on average 36 MPG so just trying to figure out how much more expensive the RX will be to run.

Thanks

Ken

Herbie · July 17, 2019

We have a 63-plate RX450h Advance and my average is 32mpg according to the onboard computer.

That's dropping my wife at work and picking her up later, plus a couple of local journeys for me as I pick up/drop off work during the day.

You've got to remember that it's a 3.5 litre V6 petrol engine and the car weighs about 2 tons, so that's actually a very good figure for what you're driving around in.

Ian M · July 17, 2019

Likewise about 32 mpg for me, a bit less in winter but still 30.5 or thereabouts.

olliesgrandad · July 17, 2019

According to my mpg app which was reset when I changed phones in October I have averaged 33.15mpg over 19202 miles. Lowest mpg on a tank was 29.28(only one ever time below 30 and that was when I topped up after 126 miles in November so not a fair comparison) and highest 37.04.

C Mclean · July 17, 2019

Getting on average 36mpg on rural/suburban roads.

tayaste · July 17, 2019

My 2019 RX f-sport has averaged 31mpg real mpg, but that’s early figures as it doesn’t get used very often. In fact it’s only had 1 decent long run but even that was with a lot of stop start traffic. I’ve still not put 1000 mile on the clock yet. Time will tell, but, I’ll be happy if it remains at/or above the 31 I’m getting at the moment.

jumpingjehovahs · July 17, 2019

I’ve got a 2010 model and I see around 30mpg usually, but that’s with sitting in traffic for over 20 mins then a short blast up a dual carriageway. Not exactly peak economy run.

The best tanks I’ve had I managed 37mpg which is on “extra-urban” 30-50mph runs. On the longest runs it has done (Cambridge to Glasgow) I saw about 33. If I drive a little slower it’ll see 34/5 on a run. Best full tank I’ve ever seen was 430 miles, Worst was 280. Economy is always worse in winter.

It’s all down to how you drive it and regrettably I’m just as addicted to the shove of the V6 as I am to the creeping around in silence of the electric motor.

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Barry14UK · July 17, 2019

There is clearly some variation depending on driving style, road conditions and time of year and also if your journey involves steep hills. I recently recorded my best result on a journey from Surrey to Devon on a Sunday when traffic was not very heavy for latter stage and I used cruise control for around speed limits for much of the time. I got 35.6 carrying my wife and a lot of kit, perhaps equal to carrying one more person. Tyres were set at 2.7 bar. I probably could have done a little better with higher inflation. Now on mixed local journeys it's 32.2mpg. Worst was for short journeys in winter when the figure was around 28mpg.

If all figures mentioned in this thread for the 3rd Generation are considered, there is not a great difference bearing in mind aforementioned variables.

Ken83 · July 18, 2019

Hi All,

Thank you all for the replies, they've been very helpful and I'm going to go and have a look at the car this weekend.

Is there anything in particular you would say I should look out for? Also, is there any way to check the health of the Battery with the onboard computer or are they pretty solid? The health of the Battery as its my first ever hybrid (and with it being 6 years old as well) is also something I'm thinking a lot about.

Thanks again,

Ken

Herbie · July 18, 2019

Don't worry about the traction Battery, they're great.

If the car has been serviced at Lexus then it will have had a 'Hybrid Health Check' every year as part of the service routine. Even if it hasn't been serviced at Lexus, you can have a hybrid health check done as a stand-alone item for about £60 and it's well worth it. As long as it passes all the tests they cover it for a year. Get it done every year and they cover it right up to it being 15 years old.

Teshoo Lama · July 18, 2019

I'm averaging 36mpg, with AC. My best tank has been 39. I drove like a pensioner to get that number, mind.

I'm still in the honeymoon period, where hypermiling is fun, rather than tedious. I'm sure I'll get bored and stop bothering, for the sake of 4mpg. As people suggest, I think the car itself will get you 32 with regular sensible driving, which is fantastic for a petrol vehicle of this nature.

If hypermiling is your idea of fun, I found this guy's presentation and driving videos very helpful:

chris_fletcher · July 18, 2019

65 plate F-Sport averaging 35.1mpg over 2 years of ownership. Warm eather improves things and for the last 2 weeks went back to eco mode and got 37.8mpg vs previous 2 week averages of 34-36mpg in "normal"

jumpingjehovahs · July 18, 2019

The above post on hypermiling reminds me, this is my absolute best effort. It was absolutely exhausting, but over exactly 20 miles I managed the below figure.

It can be done and I daresay you could get 40+ out of it every day if you really wanted to. But you’d be a broken man by the end of it, the concentration required is intense.

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Teshoo Lama · July 18, 2019

30 minutes ago, jumpingjehovahs said:

The above post on hypermiling reminds me, this is my absolute best effort. It was absolutely exhausting, but over exactly 20 miles I managed the below figure.

It can be done and I daresay you could get 40+ out of it every day if you really wanted to. But you’d be a broken man by the end of it, the concentration required is intense.

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That is absolutely phenomenal. What's your best "between fill-ups" figure?

Barry14UK · July 18, 2019

It's known that the 4th Generation has better fuel consumption than the 3rd Generation (which is what OP is considering) and all models benefit from having a few thousand miles on them to fully loosen up.

As regards tyre pressures as mentioned in the posted video, it would be inadvisable to considerably over inflate above recommended pressure for load and speed. To do so means more wear in the area of the center of the tyres and loss of grip and detrimental handling in addition to a more uncomfortable ride. (The RX450h has quite a narrow section tyre for such a high and heavy car). Also, driving to achieve ultimate mpg by following the fuel used gauge regardless of speed would in many cases lead to holding up other motorists wanting to travel at a more constant speed and for many would also detract from the driving experience.

Teshoo Lama · July 18, 2019

3 minutes ago, Barry14UK said:

It's known that the 4th Generation has better fuel consumption than the 3rd Generation (which is what OP is considering) and all models benefit from having a few thousand miles on them to fully loosen up.

As regards tyre pressures as mentioned in the posted video, it would be inadvisable to considerably over inflate above recommended pressure for load and speed. To do so means more wear in the area of the center of the tyres and loss of grip and detrimental handling in addition to a more uncomfortable ride. (The RX450h has quite a narrow section tyre for such a high and heavy car). Also, driving to achieve ultimate mpg by following the fuel used gauge regardless of speed would in many cases lead to holding up other motorists wanting to travel at a more constant speed and for many would also detract from the driving experience.

Agreed about the tyre pressure. 36psi is the recommended Eco option in the manual, and strikes me as a good balance of economy, grip and ride quality.

I think one of the rules of "hypermiling ethics" is you don't disrupt or annoy other drivers. So I think as long as you're maintaining good lane discipline, I don't see a problem with taking your speed down a notch. On more minor roads, sometimes I find people (Audi drivers) get annoyed at a long, smooth regenerative brake to a red light, but I invariably coast up alongside them moments later.

Barry14UK · July 18, 2019

"I think one of the rules of "hypermiling ethics" is you don't disrupt or annoy other drivers." Agree. I was thinking more of the roads down here in Devon for example which have a lot of hills with limited possibilities to overtake. We are already held up by lorries, tractors, caravans etc., and being baulked by hybrids accelerating and slowing when they don't need to do so is something else to contend with.

jumpingjehovahs · July 19, 2019

That is absolutely phenomenal. What's your best "between fill-ups" figure?

My very best “full to empty” is 37 MPG which I’ve seen about 5/6 times. I’ve done over 20000 miles in it in the last year and I think my overall average is about 32.

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TRWeasle · July 19, 2019

I'm very new even for a newbie, both with Lexus and with a hybrid car.
The type of driving makes an incredible difference to consumption.
On the motorway the fuel consumption is similar to any other large car, but in the city as long as it is not too congested and that you can keep recharging the hybrid Battery you're laughing. Once, when things were at a standstill and my engine came on to charge the hybrid, things got painful.

My 2012 RX450 h over 8 fills has varied from 33.0 to 28.9 mpg with a lot of motorway driving.

May I suggest you have a look at Fuelly -and maybe join in-
http://www.fuelly.com/car/lexus/rx450h/2013

Nigel-Lexus Owner · July 19, 2019

On 7/17/2019 at 8:55 AM, Ken83 said:

Hi All,

I am seriously considering an RX450h F-sport for my family car. The perks being the extra space (we currently have a 2005 1 series 2.0 diesel), safety, comfort and the savings from hybrid.

The only thing I'm a bit concerned about is the real life MPG I'm likely to get from this vehicle rather than the manufacturers figures. My wife uses the car to drop the kids off at school every morning and I generally use it at the weekend running into London on the A13 from Essex.

I was just wondering what kind of MPG people with this car get doing similar driving? My current car says (though it never seems to change on the dash) that I get on average 36 MPG so just trying to figure out how much more expensive the RX will be to run.

Thanks

Ken

Hi Ken,

The RX450h is a very reliable car. Get a good example with Lexus service and the only time you need to go to the dealer is for the next service.

All the best

Teshoo Lama · July 20, 2019

Lancashire to central London yesterday. That was driving fairly normally, with some coaxing of the hybrid system. Proper hypermiling, if that's your thing, I'd say 40+ is eminently possible.

Ken83 · August 30, 2019

Thank you all for your time and post - much appreciated.

I'm now torn between the IS300h and the RX450h. My preference would be the RX but it's a little more expensive to buy and run which is the reason i'm even considering the IS at all.

Will let you know my decision as seeing a good example of an IS tomorrow.

Again though, thanks so much for your help!

Ken

TRWeasle · August 30, 2019

Whichever model you buy, I think you like it. The IS does seem to be significantly less of a boozer at the pump than the RX -taken from a quick glance on Fuelly.com

Have fun!

olliesgrandad · August 30, 2019

4 hours ago, Ken83 said:

Thank you all for your time and post - much appreciated.

I'm now torn between the IS300h and the RX450h. My preference would be the RX but it's a little more expensive to buy and run which is the reason i'm even considering the IS at all.

Will let you know my decision as seeing a good example of an IS tomorrow.

Again though, thanks so much for your help!

Ken

Is is a great car. GS even better, My 2015 GS300h luxury was better on fuel than my 2014 f sport IS300h and very luxurious

Lager shandy · August 30, 2019

With the RX it comes with the angel and devil sat on each shoulder .whispering in your go on you know you want to .then there's the angel now keep that needle in the green zone you silly boy think off the mpg 😇😈.ive been getting 30-38 mpg depending on who I'm listening to .