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Hi all, Just acquired my first Lexus in the form of a used RX450H SEI Grey in the sense of the car, and increasingly my hair. Swapped after more than 10 years of Volvo ownership, although I still have one Volvo left. Amongst other things, I ended up with the car because I didn't want a Diesel (Fuel of Satan, not ideal for short journeys, don't want to add to the horrendous pollution problem of diesel) which pretty much rules out a used Volvo, Merc, BMW etc. I'm really happy with the car overall so far. Only niggles are I can't make any sense of the Satnav and get very inaccurate journey times when I do use it so I probably won't, plus I miss daytime running lights. I'm a bit disappointed to discover I can't just leave the headlights switched on permanently so have had to make do with them on Auto. I probably expected better economy too but will live with the 30mpg I'm getting.

I never popped my RX300 into S mode and even then I never felt it was slow - not like the NX300h anyway!

So now all you've just got to do is keep it looking like that :) - that ISM will make it much easier to clean and should last a long time... - did he advise you on products and maintenance?

AC not only should be on All-Year round, but it actually must. Steaming windows are just a little problem in comparison with replacing whole AC unit as it gets damaged when unused for long time. That would cost up to £1000 (or 20+ years of average saving on fuel) to repair. Have anyone actually have a figure what is MPG difference with AC on and off? I am sure that is like in a range of 0.1-0.5 MPG (there are some speculations that it could be up to 5%, but that is maybe for small engine and light cars, definitely not for relatively heavy IS.. I believe it woudl be far less than 1% from overall consumption) . Obviously, there are many things to suggest, but the easiest and cheapest as well would be simply... well turn on the AC! Few examples: You can buy sponges or containers which absorbs the humidity ~£7-19. You can leave your car engine ON after driving and heat the car for 15 mins, then open the windows and doors to ventilate it and the remove humidity this way (you woudl spend like £0.50 each time on idle fuel consumption). You can open windows when driving, but remember that in speeds excess of 40mph the air drag will consume more fuel than the AC. Regularly disinfect your ventilation/AC ~ £20 as you can see there are options, but not only they going to cost you more, they will be more time consuming and inconvenient. Let's assume the AC uses the whopping 0.5MPG - that would cost you a year maybe ~ £50 (in case of lexus this is surely going to be less). Buying several absorbing containers and constantly keeping you car well heated and ventilated, not only going to cost more, but as well going to be significantly more inconvenient. And all that assuming that your AC will not go wrong. As well by not using your AC you are letting for germs to grow in the condensations tank and that not only stinks when you finally use your AC, but can as well cause severe diseases.

Bluetooth connection is ok and I have managed to transfer my whole phone book automatically rather than one by one (android Motorola X)... But it did take a few goes and some persistence. Downside is if the phone signal strength is weak the car speaker diverts back to phone earpiece even though Bluetooth is still connected and I have to press phone speaker to hear the other person. I stream music via a sun visor FM transmitter, jabra cruiser 2. It connects to my phone via Bluetooth and I select an FM channel that is free. Works for me rather than look to hard wire anything. Hope that helps Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well according to a .com website not much:

I was told that the water pump is a known weak point, that combined with the touchscreen issues has made me consider getting the warranty for peace of mind. Yes, servicing is additional but the warranty does include European wide breakdown cover so it's pretty good for the money.

The 400h also has the eCVT gearbox at the front, quite a cleaver bit of kit, I was concerned when I heard CVT cos I thought of belts and expanding pullies etc but having watched various vieos and read up on them I find the system very robust. No belts no pulleys it's all controlled by the two front motor generators and the planetary gear systems that are always in mesh. Yes it's not a true 4x4 but it is when you need it via the rear electric motor/generator. I have no trouble towing a 1.7 tonne caravan around farmers fields used for holiday meets and club weekends. Can't say what it's like in snow as we've not had any significant snowfall. As to accellerating past slower vehiclesthe 400h is very quick, the response is almost immediate unlike my previous discos, ML and Jeep!

Hi, sounds like you could have a pocket of trapped air in the heater core. Have you had any work done recently such as a new timing/cam belt?

+1 for what Rayaans said. The importance of tyres cannot be stressed enough. I too am wondering why you may be having difficulty keeping up with traffic, as whilst the RX is no sports car, it isn't a slouch. Do you ever pop the gear stick over to 'S' mode to hold the gears longer when joining from a slip road or planning an overtake? That may give you the added 'pep' you need?

Hi, Ill address the RX300 first. You say its having trouble keeping up with traffic. Are you sure there isn't something wrong with the car itself? I had an RX300 before my current RX and it never had issues overtaking, in fact it was quite peppy. It does 0-60mph in 9s which is actually faster than the NX300h and barely any slower than my wife's IS300h so it just seems very odd that you find it troublesome in traffic. Anyway - to the matter at hand. The RX400h is not permanent 4 wheel drive. Its permanently front wheel drive until it detects slip, at which point the rear motors will start working to ensure it can get out of slippy situations. The front and rear axles are completely disconnected from each other and the rear wheels only start working when there is slip or you're demanding full power from the system. It will get you up a moderate hill with snow on it. My RX450h has the same setup i.e. front and rear are disconnected to each other and Ive had no trouble getting up hills with snow on them. Of course, if you want extra peace of mind, just fit all season tyres such as Michelin Latitude Tour HP or dedicated winter tyres when the time comes. The hybrid battery can be checked by Lexus. They do a hybrid health check to see if its functioning properly. You have to get this done if you have a Lexus warranty. There won't be any issues with short journeys unlike diesel cars. Hope that helped. Anymore questions, feel free to ask.

Defo carbon spoiler style looks way better than the OEM one imo. But what does it look like fitted is a different story. your white lexus looks awesome, always like the lexus styling. I'm getting itchy hands, wind deflectors to buy soon, thinking of a custom exhaust or induction kit, want a bit of noise. Power I don't care otherwise would've bought something way faster. Wife and 1 month baby needs convincing though ;) Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

Thats my plan, the car's a Jap import so has no history anyway, I'll do all the servicing myself and through my hand to any other work that needs doing, I plan on keeping the car a good while so don't see the point in paying crazy labour costs to get a service history.

Hi, I've got a 2002 IS200 Sport with Aeropack which I purchased brand new in July 2002. I used to do loads of miles but for the last 2 years I've resorted to using the train so my mileage is not that great. Since the car was new I've used it for towing a boat regularly and carrying alot of heavy things. The car has always been driven hard (ish). The car has just gone through it's MOT with no problems having covered just under 206,000 miles. Despite all the towing and hard driving etc the car is on it's original clutch and is still great to drive. The only problem I've had is with a faulty lamdor sensor on the cat. Other than that the car has been great and can only be described as awesome. It's totally original other than it's had a replacement battery. I intend keeping it for as long as I can and I'd like to think 300,000 will be achievable without any major problems (may need a clutch by then!). How on earth could I ever consider getting rid of a car that would cost circa £30K to repalce new and yet is now only worth about £1K. What a car! And 'Larry' still looks damn sexy!