Lexus is300h newcomer questions.

[DBIZO]

6 hours ago, ganzoom said:

Given our other car is an out of warranty Tesla, and a wasp got trapped in my helmet when going to work on my pedal bike yesterday.....been concerned about the 12V battery on our IS300H I have to confess is very very low down on the list of 'worries' in life :D.

Hmmm...might want to consider crashing on your bike to get some insurance payout to cover for your Tesla servicing?

[ganzoom]

6 hours ago, DBIZO said:

Hmmm...might want to consider crashing on your bike to get some insurance payout to cover for your Tesla servicing?

No chance of that, both got used today, the IS spends most of its time decorating the driveway :).

Glorious day to be out on the bike, going on half term break tomorrow, the last time the IS was driven was Monday, and now wouldn't be started till next Sunday.

[Mincey]

1 hour ago, ganzoom said:

 

 

Are there any Rozzers here?

[jay.pxl]

Hi folks 

I’ve also recently acquired a 2017 IS300h (FS) and have some random questions from a month of driving it:

- I’m pretty sure my model doesn’t have power fold mirrors on locking the vehicle.  But the mirrors did open once automatically when turning on the engine, does anyone know what triggered it?

- My previous Toyota Yaris had a neat coin holder that slotted into the cup holder, does anyone have an equivalent for their vehicle?

- I’ve turned off the keyless entry on my vehicle, is it fine not to use a Faraday pouch for the keys?

- From a MPG efficiency perspective, I’m I better off breaking early or taking my foot off the accelerator to slow down - I drive mostly in ECO.

Thanks in advance!

 

 

[Herbie]

54 minutes ago, jay.pxl said:

From a MPG efficiency perspective, I’m I better off breaking early or taking my foot off the accelerator to slow down - I drive mostly in ECO

The fuel difference between ECO and normal is actually quite low. I hated the way Eco felt. All it seemed to do was to apply some artificial resistance to the accelerator and I found myself just pressing on it harder anyway, so I quickly gave up on that idea and started driving in normal mode with hardly any difference in MPG at all.

The correct way to drive a hybrid is to anticipate the road and to brake very gently so as to get maximum regeneration to charge the traction Battery. I seem to remember reading that if you need to anchor on for an emergency or something then the hydraulic brakes come into play straight away, but under normal circumstances light braking lets the regen system do most of the work of stopping and the hydraulic brakes only come into play when either the car drops to about 7mph or the traction Battery is full and can accept no more charge.

[hieronymous]

3 hours ago, jay.pxl said:

- From a MPG efficiency perspective, I’m I better off breaking early or taking my foot off the accelerator to slow down - I drive mostly in ECO.

I have a 2021 300h F-Sport, available in our market, after 2 Prius’s, so my expectations were for a “better” Prius - I have not been disappointed!

The Prius community have a term for the best eco driving - hypermiling, and a number of techniques to achieve it.

Drive in eco mode - the accelerator mapping allows for drivers who don’t have a feather touch on the pedal.

Let the car do its thing, rather than push it with modes, paddles etc - the Toyota/Lexus hybrid synergy drive (HSD) is extremely sophisticated and will always beat the driver for best economy. It’s also very relaxing driving, but not for “sporty” drivers. Use smart cruise control with med/long spacing as much as possible, the HSD will always use optimum revs.

If slowing down is anticipated (e.g. red light) avoid the brakes, rather anticipate as early as possible and coast by lifting off the pedal. This gives 2 advantages - it maximises both the regen opportunity, and the possibility of timing the lights so you can avoid stopping. Most drivers don’t know that stopping then restarting uses extra energy (ever seen a locomotive struggling to get a big freight train rolling?)

If momentary slowing is required, except for a panic stop, it doesn’t matter whether you coast, or brake with the pedal, as light to moderate pedal use  provides regen only.

For best results, your number 1 enemy is speed. Routes with 50-60 mph limits give outstanding economy, 70mph motorways not so much. If the latter is unavoidable, cruise control is your friend. Big trucks travel at very steady speeds - sit in behind, but with good spacing.

My F-Sport is rated here at 5.8L/100km (49 mpg). Our speed limit is 100kph (62), our truck limit is 90, so the drivers do 90 GPS (95 on the Lexus speedo, just on 60mph). I cruise at truck speed, often tailing a truck at a distance, and my economy is typically close to 4.7L/100km (60mpg), and seldom worse than 56. The 300h is an amazingly efficient machine for its size - a much understated achiever...

 

[Moleman]

12 hours ago, jay.pxl said:

I’m pretty sure my model doesn’t have power fold mirrors on locking the vehicle.  But the mirrors did open once automatically when turning on the engine, does anyone know what triggered it?

 

Do you have a manual fold button on the dash?

If so fold the mirrors before switching off the car, and then press the button again once the car is powered down. When you go back to the car and start the engine, the mirrors open as you described above. 

[jay.pxl]

13 hours ago, Moleman said:

Do you have a manual fold button on the dash?

If so fold the mirrors before switching off the car, and then press the button again once the car is powered down. When you go back to the car and start the engine, the mirrors open as you described above. 

Thanks I’ll give this a go! I do indeed press the manual fold button on the dash.
 

I usually forget to close the mirrors (habit after 12 years push closing the mirrors on the Yaris) and with keyless off the process of getting to Accessory Mode can be cumbersome.

[DBIZO]

On 6/14/2022 at 7:32 PM, jay.pxl said:

Hi folks 

I’ve also recently acquired a 2017 IS300h (FS) and have some random questions from a month of driving it:

Well done!

On 6/14/2022 at 7:32 PM, jay.pxl said:

- My previous Toyota Yaris had a neat coin holder that slotted into the cup holder, does anyone have an equivalent for their vehicle?

No, I don't, but there is this one - I'm unable to justify an expense to hold coins. Nadex Coin Holder Pro, Fits in Car Cup Holder : Amazon.co.uk: Automotive

 

On 6/14/2022 at 7:32 PM, jay.pxl said:

- I’ve turned off the keyless entry on my vehicle, is it fine not to use a faraday pouch for the keys?

You probably don't, as long as the car is locked - even better, you can deactivate your fob's radio broadcasting, look up the manual, don't know by heart. If paranoid, lock the car with the physical key if the car is in the open and you don't know who might be sitting around to intercept. I sometimes do that at motorway service stations, when I cannot really get a comfortable reading of my surroundings.

On 6/14/2022 at 7:32 PM, jay.pxl said:

- From a MPG efficiency perspective, I’m I better off breaking early or taking my foot off the accelerator to slow down - I drive mostly in ECO.

Thanks in advance!

 

 

There is a very detailed response above already, but can confirm, yes, slow deceleration is best, followed by light breaking (it's regen). One of the limitations of the IS300h hybrid system (because it's now pushing over 10 years as a technology platform), is the limited regen power. What I also do, but maybe someone will weigh in against it, is that if regen / light breaking is not enough (or the speed is too high), I start applying engine break using the flappy paddle for manual downshifting to help deceleration without applying the break pads. There are no clutches and distinct gearsets in the transaxle, so the additional wear is minimal/negligible - or so should I think. 

And I'm on cruise control as much as I can, urban areas often too. In don't drive slow, yet still can achieve around 45 mpg on average. Under ideal circumstances, it's 50ish, rarely high 50s. Pushing on motorways it's low 40s, my worst in winter across Europe was 38mpg.