2 Things I never use on the UX

[ALAW]

1) The steering wheel paddles. Never use them should I. Posted a long time time back about them used for regeneration I asked but didn't get much response, I had seen a YouTube vid saying they help in regeneration and in such give more mpg. Interested to see what you folks thinks now.

2) The EV button never pressed it. Should I use it. I spoke with someone who doesn't have a UX who asked how far can I go on EV. They used to have a Hybrid. 

[PaulWhitt20]

The paddles may be useful if you want to keep a higher “gear” to provide engine braking when going down a long steep hill. 
 

EV mode, if you want to move the car without starting the engine or if you want to sit in the car without the engine running but have the air con on or radio. If the traction Battery is full then when in ready mode and EV pressed it will run the air con and radio until the traction Battery want to start the engine to charge it up. 
 

I bet you don’t use ASC either. 

[Don C]

EV mode on the current gen 4 set up doesn’t amount to much but it will if we get a gen 5 version.  I haven’t got paddles on mine but I frequently knock the shifter over into “selective” to hold the car back on hills.  

[Spock66]

8 hours ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

The paddles may be useful if you want to keep a higher “gear” to provide engine braking when going down a long steep hill. 

A lower gear will provide engine braking.

[cruisermark]

Things I never use on my LS430:

Traction off button

Rear blind

Cigarette lighter

Manual Gear mode

[RONNIE W HODGEKINSON]

I too Never use the EV button or the Paddles.. i Just let the car do its own thing..Maybe i should experiment...

[ColinBarber]

The EV button is to force the vehicle into EV when it normally wouldn’t do it itself and is therefore inefficient. It is designed so you can move your vehicle in/out of a garage without generating fumes etc. For normal driving you shouldn’t use it, unless for example you wanted to cut emissions as you pass a school.

I’ve used it in the past to leave/arrive at my house at hours where I don’t want to disturb people however the EV mode on the UX is almost useless for this compared to other Toyota/Lexus hybrids I’ve owned as it is rarely available when first starting the vehicle - it seems to want the Battery charge level at be higher level than it typically maintains it at before it will engage EV mode. 

[stepppy]

1 hour ago, ColinBarber said:

.... It is designed so you can move your vehicle in/out of a garage without generating fumes etc. For normal driving you shouldn’t use it, unless for example you wanted to cut emissions as you pass a school....

That' exactly what I use it for on my Prius when I want to get the car out of the garage to wash it, but do not want the engine to fire up.  I have never had a time when it wouldn't go into EV mode in that circumstance.  I usually have 3 bars or more at the end of my previous journey which enables this to happen.

It bugs me when testers always say about the EV button can be used when going at slow speed, but only for a vey short distance and pretty much mock its ability ...... it's a Hybrid not an EV and the car will put itself into EV at low speeds automatically, usually more often than if you try and use the EV button 😤

[Navnan2]

As others have said the EV button and feature is a waste of space. I've never been able to utilise this feature as the conditions for it to work have so many conditions which I haven't been able to meet. It should be removed and £500 knocked off the purchase price 🤣

[ColinBarber]

4 hours ago, stepppy said:

I have never had a time when it wouldn't go into EV mode in that circumstance.  I usually have 3 bars or more at the end of my previous journey which enables this to happen.

Almost always worked on my wife's old Gen 4 Prius and my old IS300h but the UX, 9 times out of 10 will just state unavailable.

[malcolmw]

I was very surprised the other morning when, after scraping the ice off the windows, I was able to move our NX350h across the drive using EV mode only. Our previous NX300h would have certainly started the engine doing this manoeuvre after dropping out of EV of its own accord.

[Thackeray]

19 hours ago, ALAW said:

The steering wheel paddles. Never use them should I. Posted a long time time back about them used for regeneration

 

19 hours ago, PaulWhitt20 said:

The paddles may be useful if you want to keep a higher “gear” to provide engine braking when going down a long steep hill.

Back in the 1930s, brakes on cars weren't very good. They also suffered from "fade", which meant that if you applied the brakes continuously down a long steep hill, there would come a point when they didn't really work any more! (Or so I was told - fortunately I've never experienced this.) So it was pretty important that you didn't use the brakes continuously. Instead, people would change down a gear or two and use the resistance of the engine to slow down the car a bit and give the brakes a chance to recover.

The habit continued into the 1960s and 1970s when brake linings were beginning to become a lot more effective and less prone to fade. People have continued to use engine braking down hills even though the original reason for it scarcely exists now.

With a Lexus hybrid the situation is different again. When you apply the brakes gently, initially the only braking force comes from the resistance of the motor-generators. Instead of wearing out the brakes, the car generates electricity and stores it in the hybrid Battery. Press the brake pedal a bit more firmly and the actual brakes may come into operation as well. But for day to day gentle driving a lot of slowing down can be achieved from the resistance of the generators as they produce some electricity to save in the Battery. So to regenerate electricity use the brakes.

So what happens when you use the paddles to shift down to a lower gear ratio? As expected, you get some engine braking like on the cars of 80 years ago. But just as 80 years ago this resulted in less brake wear, nowadays in a hybrid it can result in less power being passed to the generator and hence less regeneration, not more.

[NemesisUK]

14 minutes ago, Thackeray said:

The habit continued into the 1960s and 1970s when brake linings were beginning to become a lot more effective and less prone to fade. People have continued to use engine braking down hills even though the original reason for it scarcely exists now.

Brake fade was a big problem when drum brakes were the norm. As the drums heated up they expand away from the shoes increasing pedal travel. Now with discs the norm heat isn't such an issue and in really heavy use the discs expand toward the pads. Friction material has, as you say, improved massively if at the expense of much more dust and wear.

[ALAW]

On 12/9/2023 at 10:42 PM, PaulWhitt20 said:

The paddles may be useful if you want to keep a higher “gear” to provide engine braking when going down a long steep hill. 
 

EV mode, if you want to move the car without starting the engine or if you want to sit in the car without the engine running but have the air con on or radio. If the traction battery is full then when in ready mode and EV pressed it will run the air con and radio until the traction battery want to start the engine to charge it up. 
 

I bet you don’t use ASC either. 

Paul I occasionally put the ASC on when I have my grandson in he likes to hear it i go into sport mode as well.

[ALAW]

13 hours ago, RONNIE W HODGEKINSON said:

I too Never use the EV button or the Paddles.. i Just let the car do its own thing..Maybe i should experiment...

Ronnie that is why i thought i should post and see comments. I was thinking same am i missing out on something

[RONNIE W HODGEKINSON]

3 hours ago, ALAW said:

Ronnie that is why i thought i should post and see comments. I was thinking same am i missing out on something

Brent ..Having owned quite a few automatic Cars I Must say That I Am Definately 100% not interested in Driving in Manual Mode....In fact have never even tried It...I Much prefer to let the car do all the work....Your a much safer Driver I Think when you have both hands on the wheel and don,t have to keep changing Gears Or Paddling about... Majority of More Mature Drivers would Rather have Automatic cars i Think...Just love mine...!!! Who Wants to break in to a sweat changing Gears..!!!

[LenT]

7 hours ago, RONNIE W HODGEKINSON said:

Brent ..Having owned quite a few automatic Cars I Must say That I Am Definately 100% not interested in Driving in Manual Mode....In fact have never even tried It...I Much prefer to let the car do all the work....Your a much safer Driver I Think when you have both hands on the wheel and don,t have to keep changing Gears Or Paddling about... Majority of More Mature Drivers would Rather have Automatic cars i Think...Just love mine...!!! Who Wants to break in to a sweat changing Gears..!!!

My sentiments entirely, Ronnie.

Although I’d driven plenty of autos, this was the first I’d actually owned.  I’d always thought selecting my own gears was the epitome of proper driving.

Did I get that wrong!!

The Lexus autobox is so good that I quickly realised that letting it choose the appropriate gear was a much more sensible use of my time - and far more befitting of my advanced years.  Not to mention kinder on my slightly arthritic left ankle.

I did try the paddles a couple of times, but it did seem a lot of effort for little gain.  I appreciated that they could provide engine braking down steep hills - but you don’t encounter many of them here in Northamptonshire!

[RONNIE W HODGEKINSON]

5 hours ago, LenT said:

My sentiments entirely, Ronnie.

Although I’d driven plenty of autos, this was the first I’d actually owned.  I’d always thought selecting my own gears was the epitome of proper driving.

Did I get that wrong!!

The Lexus autobox is so good that I quickly realised that letting it choose the appropriate gear was a much more sensible use of my time - and far more befitting of my advanced years.  Not to mention kinder on my slightly arthritic left ankle.

I did try the paddles a couple of times, but it did seem a lot of effort for little gain.  I appreciated that they could provide engine braking down steep hills - but you don’t encounter many of them here in Northamptonshire!

i Think Len.. The Days Like a Distant Wonder when we Enjoyed Driving the car Like We were in Brands Hatch going up and down the Gears Slightly Showing off to our friends and family are Well and Truly Over..It takes you all of your Resources Skill and Experience to Negotiate Down to the Local Chippy for a Fish Tea....But we can remember with fondness those Halcyon days When driving was a Sheer Pleasure..But stop the Bus..It Certainly is a Compl;etely different world we live in Now.. Driving in the city is now a nightmare Between Bus lanes Pedestrians walking in front of you And a complete Myriad of Warning Signs yellow lines and cycle lanes..Its No Fun Anymore... End of Rant..!!!!!!

[LenT]

36 minutes ago, RONNIE W HODGEKINSON said:

The Days Like a Distant Wonder when we Enjoyed Driving the car Like We were in Brands Hatch going up and down the Gears Slightly Showing off

Transported me back to the early days when I would double declutch - either because of a lack of decent synchromesh or just because I could!

However, I do recall once driving an Uncle about, who ran an auto repair shop, who said “What are you doing that for?”

”For the engine braking.” I confidently replied.

”Well,” he said, “You want to remember that brake shoes are a lot cheaper to replace than clutch plates!”. 

36 minutes ago, RONNIE W HODGEKINSON said:

Driving in the city is now a nightmare Between Bus lanes Pedestrians walking in front of you

Something I strenuously avoid these days for the reasons you state.  And the finest argument for an auto I can think of.  In fact, does Lexus even sell a manual any more?

[NemesisUK]

16 minutes ago, LenT said:

”Well,” he said, “You want to remember that brake shoes are a lot cheaper to replace than clutch plates!”. 

My driving instructor always said "Brakes to slow, gears to go"

[Don C]

On 12/10/2023 at 10:00 AM, RONNIE W HODGEKINSON said:

I too Never use the EV button or the Paddles.. i Just let the car do its own thing..Maybe i should experiment...

I live in the mainly hilly area of Derbyshire and if I’m following something or just going as fast as I need, I knock it over into the manual gate.  At “normal” speeds it defaults into position 4 which is often mistaken for 4th gear.  It works in a similar way to gears but it is actually level 4 of engine braking OR power if you are accelerating.  I drive mostly in normal mode and flick it into sport to pass something (and boy will it pass) but you can get a similar effect by using that manual shift.  Is it dangerous or distracting?   No is it thump, racing cars have similar things so I’m not having that.  It’s just different to drive with and it is quite effective.  Don’t knock until you’ve tried it they say but give it chance.  

[ALAW]

19 hours ago, RONNIE W HODGEKINSON said:

Brent ..Having owned quite a few automatic Cars I Must say That I Am Definately 100% not interested in Driving in Manual Mode....In fact have never even tried It...I Much prefer to let the car do all the work....Your a much safer Driver I Think when you have both hands on the wheel and don,t have to keep changing Gears Or Paddling about... Majority of More Mature Drivers would Rather have Automatic cars i Think...Just love mine...!!! Who Wants to break in to a sweat changing Gears..!!!

Same here Ronnie i absolutely love auto i too have had a couple and would never go back to manual whats more the wife loves auto too.

[Gary H]

When I had my UX, I basically used the ASC once, wondering what it was. Figuring out what the 'Yamaha motorbike-like' sound was, laughing at it and turning it back off again. I think other than once showing it to family for a laugh, I never used it again in the three and a half years I had the car. 

I never really understood the point of the EV button. I tried my best to figure out how to use it, but it always ended in one of two ways: 1) It would just double-beep at me and said it couldn't work. 2) It worked, but the moment I put so much as a centimetre of pressure on the throttle, it double-beeped at me and deactivated. So basically, it worked for a matter of seconds. As a result, I'd pretty much given up with it after the first six months or so and never went back to pressing it again. It was basically a button that just activated bleeping sounds of disapproval. 😕

Indeed - the flappy paddles. I think it was approaching it's first MOT before I plucked up the courage to play with them. I done it once, didn't really like it and didn't use them again! 😬

Finally...and this is on any car I've owned where it's been fitted - Sat Nav. 

[Lmafudd]

What about the CD player. It's so well hidden that it's hardly there at all!

[Bezzer]

 

First thing I do is turn off Lane Trace Assist each time I set off, don't use the EV button either.