What I don’t like about my NX

[BigcheesePaul]

So after owning it for approx 6 months, here’s what niggles me (love the car otherwise):

1. No where to rest your elbow when driving (previous car had perfect door card height for that). Elbows just ‘hang’ which is tiring on long motorway journeys (yes I’m getting old!)

2. Boot opens so slowly. Wish there was a way to speed it up.

3. What’s the point of the EV mode button? Just hovering your foot over the accelerator is enough to disengage it. 

4. Does the Battery meter for the hybrid ever show all full bars. Mine is always 2 bars short. 
 

Cheers

Paul

[Steve Oliver]

51 minutes ago, BigcheesePaul said:

So after owning it for approx 6 months, here’s what niggles me (love the car otherwise):

1. No where to rest your elbow when driving (previous car had perfect door card height for that). Elbows just ‘hang’ which is tiring on long motorway journeys (yes I’m getting old!)

2. Boot opens so slowly. Wish there was a way to speed it up.

3. What’s the point of the EV mode button? Just hovering your foot over the accelerator is enough to disengage it. 

4. Does the battery meter for the hybrid ever show all full bars. Mine is always 2 bars short. 
 

Cheers

Paul

Hi Paul,

1. Haven't noticed that at all!

2. I haven't noticed this either. It's the same speed as my previous car I'd say.

3. To prevent the engine starting, eg. First thing in the morning just to warm up. It doesn't stop it starting under normal conditions where it would anyway, like when you put your foot down. Not very useful I agree.

4. I've had it full bars a number of times, particularly after coming down long hills.

👍

[LordByronUK]

- We have an NX and I find I am able to rest both my arms quite easily on both arm rests, between the two seats and by the door. Actually I find them very comfortable, but my arms are fairly long so...

- Boot is a little on the slow side, but really never bothered us. I feel lucky just to have a boot that opens automatically.

- In the warmer weather and going down long hills while regen braking, it's more than possible to get a full Battery with all but the tiny bar full. I've had a 100% full Battery with all bars full when going down seriously long hills. You should try and do all your braking using regen and try never to bottom out on the charge meter, and when you get better at this you will find you get a full Battery more often and improved fuel economy.

- EV mode button is for a few situations like when starting in the morning when you don't want to engine to fire up. You can also use it when creeping around, and if you have an almost full Battery and the car is warm, it should allow you to go up into the second half of the eco section in the speedometer. However, you will need to have the car in ECO mode and be very light on the accellerator to keep it in EV mode. All in all, it does have it's uses, especially when you don't want the engine to turn on in quiet situations (i.e. car parks, starting up the car, waiting in the car when kids around ,etc, etc...) I will say this though, EV button mode works much better on my IS and in our NX.

[Ken R]

14 hours ago, BigcheesePaul said:

So after owning it for approx 6 months, here’s what niggles me (love the car otherwise):

1. No where to rest your elbow when driving (previous car had perfect door card height for that). Elbows just ‘hang’ which is tiring on long motorway journeys (yes I’m getting old!)

2. Boot opens so slowly. Wish there was a way to speed it up.

3. What’s the point of the EV mode button? Just hovering your foot over the accelerator is enough to disengage it. 

4. Does the battery meter for the hybrid ever show all full bars. Mine is always 2 bars short. 
 

Cheers

Paul

1. Can't say that I find this a problem and I rate the driving comfort highly. 

2. Agree that it is a bit slow but you get accustomed to it. 

3. It has its uses as others have detailed. 

4. Yes I have very occasionally managed to get all bars lit - after long downhill travel but the norm is that its two bars short of full. 

My gripe is that it only has a single reversing lamp. A car of this quality should have two! 

[C Mclean]

Main thing for me was that if I set the seat position exactly right for the pedals I found that I couldn’t get the steering wheel close enough, and vice versa. Bit the bullet and traded it in for an RX.

[ColinBarber]

21 hours ago, BigcheesePaul said:

4. Does the battery meter for the hybrid ever show all full bars. Mine is always 2 bars short. 

You don't really want to ever see it full because it means regeneration braking has to be disabled because there is no where to store the recovered energy. If you travel for long enough down a slope then you will see it but it is quite rare to see it in normal driving.

[DanD]

My feedback is the same as everybody else's.

I guess that if these are the only things you have found to grumble about, Lexus should be delighted!

[First_Lexus]

1 hour ago, DanD said:

My feedback is the same as everybody else's.

I guess that if these are the only things you have found to grumble about, Lexus should be delighted!

^^ Mine too, except my boot goes up and down quite quickly...depending on how hard I feel like raising or shutting it, as mine is fully manual! 

It’s definitely the best car I’ve ever owned. I absolutely love it, and appreciate it more the longer I own it. Superb!

[Martin J]

On 3/30/2021 at 6:13 PM, First_Lexus said:

^^ Mine too, except my boot goes up and down quite quickly...depending on how hard I feel like raising or shutting it, as mine is fully manual! 

It’s definitely the best car I’ve ever owned. I absolutely love it, and appreciate it more the longer I own it. Superb!

Also a fan of manual boot lids. When I ordered my NX, Lexus wanted £450 for a powered hatch, and the dealership did its best to persuade me. But having stood around and watched one doing its thing, while occasionally checking my email, I spent the money on a weekend in Venice instead.

Still love the NX - it's a perfect size, has been faultlessly reliable, and looks as fresh as if it was launched yesterday. 

[paulrnx]

My first NX had the convenience pack. Always thought I could go into the house and make a coffee whilst the rear hatch closed 🤣 It always felt way too slow for me. Coupled with a charging tray I never used but which restricted my access to the useful storage under the armrest, I specifically ignored any NX that had this feature when I bought this time around.

The one thing I do particularly dislike about an NX300H is the almost complete lack of performance. Sure they are ok in isolation when driven normally. Long motorway runs or fast A road trips which maybe require a bit of overtaking of slow moving lorries etc, are less ok. I counter this by always driving in Sport mode on these roads but this only makes the car barely adequate.

Luckily my driving is mainly short commutes and slower A road journeys due to 50 limits and congestion. If I was to ever go back to driving 25k miles a year with plenty of motorway and dual carriageway driving, I think she would have to go 😀

[Steve Oliver]

4 hours ago, paulrnx said:

My first NX had the convenience pack. Always thought I could go into the house and make a coffee whilst the rear hatch closed 🤣 It always felt way too slow for me. Coupled with a charging tray I never used but which restricted my access to the useful storage under the armrest, I specifically ignored any NX that had this feature when I bought this time around.

The one thing I do particularly dislike about an NX300H is the almost complete lack of performance. Sure they are ok in isolation when driven normally. Long motorway runs or fast A road trips which maybe require a bit of overtaking of slow moving lorries etc, are less ok. I counter this by always driving in Sport mode on these roads but this only makes the car barely adequate.

Luckily my driving is mainly short commutes and slower A road journeys due to 50 limits and congestion. If I was to ever go back to driving 25k miles a year with plenty of motorway and dual carriageway driving, I think she would have to go 😀

You'll be looking forward to the 450h then!

[Alex S. Driver]

Useful discussion - thanks. My wife's Avensis is due for replacement in the summer and we have an NX in mind. As ride comfort for motorway cruising is more important to us than performance on this car I'm thinking NOT a Sport or Sport+ but would appreciate any opinions offered.

[Zotto]

It sounds strange from a SUV owner, but coming from an Avensis, why not a sedan? Something like ES 300h...

[First_Lexus]

1 hour ago, Alex S. Driver said:

Useful discussion - thanks. My wife's Avensis is due for replacement in the summer and we have an NX in mind. As ride comfort for motorway cruising is more important to us than performance on this car I'm thinking NOT a Sport or Sport+ but would appreciate any opinions offered.

^^ I had a pre-facelift NX Sport, which had the standard suspension. I now have a facelift NX Luxury, also with standard suspension. When combined with seat comfort, which is excellent, the ride is good apart from the very worst potholes which do unsettle it - making it feel a bit ‘rigid’ in my experience. Even so, 90% of the time I find it very comfortable for cruising around in. As @paulrnxsays, the NX is no ball of fire from a performance perspective, but as you might expect it’s designed to waft about in rather than tear about in! I’ve now been driving for 35 years and never had a speeding ticket, so as you may guess that style suits me...😉

I did have an NX F-Sport for a few days as a courtesy car, and the ride on that was too firm for me. It was liveable, not really uncomfortable, but as a preference I’d rather sacrifice handling for comfort.

[Alex S. Driver]

1 hour ago, Zotto said:

It sounds strange from a SUV owner, but coming from an Avensis, why not a sedan? Something like ES 300h...

We first had an Avensis in 2002 when they made them as hatchbacks as well as saloons. We sort of, stuck with the brand due to keen prices. Now we want to get back to the hatch. 😄

[paulrnx]

2 hours ago, Alex S. Driver said:

Useful discussion - thanks. My wife's Avensis is due for replacement in the summer and we have an NX in mind. As ride comfort for motorway cruising is more important to us than performance on this car I'm thinking NOT a Sport or Sport+ but would appreciate any opinions offered.

The Sport is fine because it has the same suspension and same wheel size as the rest of the range. It is the F-Sport that has the firmer sports suspension. Not 100% sure post facelift, it may be possible to have sports suspension with a non F-Sport car. If you can get an F-Sport with adaptive variable suspension (AVS) this is fine because the Comfort setting is fine. Best to drive as many as you can and make your own choice.

[paulrnx]

2 hours ago, Steve Oliver said:

You'll be looking forward to the 450h then!

Yes I would like a faster hybrid  NX 😀

[Phil Catterall]

On 3/28/2021 at 10:49 PM, Steve Oliver said:

2. Boot opens so slowly. Wish there was a way to speed it up.

Got my Lexus yesterday, drove it 200 miles home mainly M11/A1(M)... Loving it - I think it may take eons for the "newness" to wear off on me, car is just one year old...

Slow tailgate not an issue for me - 4.5 seconds up, the same down. Never had an auto tailgate before on any vehicle.  Photo taken yesterday at Blyth Services on my way back up north. 

Cheers

Phil 

[Alex S. Driver]

1 hour ago, First_Lexus said:

^^ I had a pre-facelift NX Sport, which had the standard suspension. I now have a facelift NX Luxury, also with standard suspension. When combined with seat comfort, which is excellent, the ride is good apart from the very worst potholes which do unsettle it - making it feel a bit ‘rigid’ in my experience. Even so, 90% of the time I find it very comfortable for cruising around in. As @paulrnxsays, the NX is no ball of fire from a performance perspective, but as you might expect it’s designed to waft about in rather than tear about in! I’ve now been driving for 35 years and never had a speeding ticket, so as you may guess that style suits me...😉

I did have an NX F-Sport for a few days as a courtesy car, and the ride on that was too firm for me. It was liveable, not really uncomfortable, but as a preference I’d rather sacrifice handling for comfort.

 

8 minutes ago, paulrnx said:

The Sport is fine because it has the same suspension and same wheel size as the rest of the range. It is the F-Sport that has the firmer sports suspension. Not 100% sure post facelift, it may be possible to have sports suspension with a non F-Sport car. If you can get an F-Sport with adaptive variable suspension (AVS) this is fine because the Comfort setting is fine. Best to drive as many as you can and make your own choice.

Thanks both. Good advice to test drive a few. I had one a couple of times as a courtesy car and thought that it was just as you describe, Ed. I will make sure to check the suspension types in future. I have an LC 500 V8 for the exciting stuff so our other car needs to be as wafty and soft as can be, given that our ageing backsides will appreciate the comfort more and more as time goes by. 

[paulrnx]

Just now, Alex S. Driver said:

 

Thanks both. Good advice to test drive a few. I had one a couple of times as a courtesy car and thought that it was just as you describe, Ed. I will make sure to check the suspension types in future. I have an LC 500 V8 for the exciting stuff so our other car needs to be as wafty and soft as can be, given that our ageing backsides will appreciate the comfort more and more as time goes by. 

An NX is very tyre sensitive. The OE tyres aren’t that great with a bit of bump thump and poor secondary ride comfort (the way it reacts to small ridges, expansion joints, etc). Try a few on different tyres to get a feel for whether this is something you’d feel. Love the LC 500 V8. Had two V8s in the past and there is no better thing than a V8 under the bonnet.

[paulrnx]

16 minutes ago, Phil Catterall said:

Got my Lexus yesterday, drove it 200 miles home mainly M11/A1(M)... Loving it - I think it may take eons for the "newness" to wear off on me, car is just one year old...

Slow tailgate not an issue for me - 4.5 seconds up, the same down. Never had an auto tailgate before on any vehicle.  Photo taken yesterday at Blyth Services on my way back up north. 

Cheers

Phil 

Lovely looking car!

[First_Lexus]

48 minutes ago, Phil Catterall said:

Got my Lexus yesterday, drove it 200 miles home mainly M11/A1(M)... Loving it - I think it may take eons for the "newness" to wear off on me, car is just one year old...

Slow tailgate not an issue for me - 4.5 seconds up, the same down. Never had an auto tailgate before on any vehicle.  Photo taken yesterday at Blyth Services on my way back up north. 

Cheers

Phil 

Congratulations @Phil Catterall

I may be biased - especially for an NX in the best colour - but it’s a car that looks remarkably fresh considering it’s relative age.

 

[subria88]

4 hours ago, paulrnx said:

The Sport is fine because it has the same suspension and same wheel size as the rest of the range. It is the F-Sport that has the firmer sports suspension. Not 100% sure post facelift, it may be possible to have sports suspension with a non F-Sport car. If you can get an F-Sport with adaptive variable suspension (AVS) this is fine because the Comfort setting is fine. Best to drive as many as you can and make your own choice.

Only the facelift F-Sport has the AVS as an option with Premier/Takumi pack.

[royoftherovers]

20 hours ago, Phil Catterall said:

Got my Lexus yesterday, drove it 200 miles home mainly M11/A1(M)... Loving it - I think it may take eons for the "newness" to wear off on me, car is just one year old...

Slow tailgate not an issue for me - 4.5 seconds up, the same down. Never had an auto tailgate before on any vehicle.  Photo taken yesterday at Blyth Services on my way back up north. 

Cheers

Phil 

Phil,

are you going to give us a full report on your new acquisition ?

You gave us several postings prior to its collection and I was/am/are so looking forward to a detailed "what is like now"

It`s your first Lexus and your first Ecvt and it`s got more gizzmos than than Concorde 001, so please spill the Beanz !

Looks like your Parking Camera Software needs adjusting ---or did the wife park it ?

 

[Phil Catterall]

1 hour ago, royoftherovers said:

Phil,

are you going to give us a full report on your new acquisition ?

Yes, in due course John!  Just driving it home is not a sufficient journey on which to report in fully. Trouble is, the NX is now garaged until the V5C comes through - thankfully DVLA are pretty swift these days. I have a personal reg plate and last week when I insured the car I got the insurance company to send me a certificate for the personal reg starting from today when I assumed I would have it switched.  It turns out that while I have a retention certificate I need the full V5 in my hand to do the online switch. So its a bit risky taking it out until I do the reg switch insurance wise. So we'll run about in the Skoda Fabia until I get the admin sorted.  There are several things I need to check and change in the NX's menu this afternoon - one being the radar cruise control which is not to my liking as the 3rd step on the scale is too great a distance to the vehicle being followed. I think the 2nd step should be a more suitable distance gap.  

No, didn't back up or use the camera. I parked it myself like that purposely, to the left side of the parking bay - end of a row with a Mercedes on my offside, so allowing them Merc people plenty of room to open their doors not onto the side of my new motor!

The car is a minter with no marks on the bodywork or wheels and with a perfect interior, however there is a 1 cm long scratch on the windscreen on the passenger side, from what appears to have been a flying stone or some such. Not serious. I'll get a windscreen specialist to look at it to get an opinion. 

Cheers

Phil 

 

Edited April 3, 2021 by Phil Catterall
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