Spottedlaurel

They look very good, glad it all worked out for you. Regarding the reverse camera, when you say slow how slow do you mean?

Surprisingly little weight difference. 140kg = a couple of kids/one adult passenger and a bit of luggage? Just looked on HowManyLeft - it says at the end of 2018 there were 22 F Sports, 48 Luxury models and three "S 2wd Auto". I can't immediately think of any other Lexus/Toyota that uses the same engine. I presume this model makes sense for markets where tax bands are based on engine size (back in the '80s there were a lot of JDM models available as 2-litre turbo that we got with bigger engines).

Bristol have one of those 2-litre RXs for sale as well. They seem to be a bit of a curio, apparently 238bhp from a turbocharged '4'. I wonder if the turbo is sufficient to give it the torque that modern multivalve engines lack? It strikes me it would have to work hard to haul the RX around and that economy would suffer as a result. First week in with my new 64-reg Luxury, all very good so far. Doing everything I hoped it would and my first tankful worked out at 33.5mpg. Cleaned it up today and no nasty surprises, indeed I was impressed at how tidy it is.

Thanks Herbie, I already do! Useful info Les, thanks. Maybe it was set to 'off' in the Advance? I have to confess to not having read or even looked at the manuals yet, so there's probably all sorts of handy features I'm missing out on.....

A little bit has happened since I last wrote about my RX. I wasn't happy about the exhaust but they didn't want to fix it. I then found that one of the undertrays had been scraped, with the clips broken and it then secured with a cable tie - not something I'd have expected or hoped to see. In fairness they did offer to replace the undertray, but it raised questions about how the car had been driven and cared-for. Fortunately I was in the period/mileage when I could ask for an exchange, so that's what I did today. With a bit of additional deposit and a small amount extra per month, I've just brought home a six-month newer 2014 Luxury: Very happy with it, drives really nicely. Fractionally lower spec than the Advance, but the only thing of significance I'll miss is the LED headlighting. I have a personal preference for this bumper style and the metallic Celestial Black paint which highlights the shape well. Just one previous owner who'd bought it new at Guildford and always had it serviced there. It's covered 24k and the overall feel and visible wear and tear is commensurate with that. Strangely, this one has brand new Dunlops on the front and older Bridgestones on the back, the complete opposite to the Advance - Motorline's different branches obviously have differing views on what they fit. Difficult to know why - and maybe it's my imagination - but it seems to drive better, with a supple but tight feel with less rattles. Maybe the lack of panoramic roof, or just tyre pressures? It was showing 30.6MPG when I collected it and I again managed just under 32 on the cruise back home (in sport mode). A few very subtle differences noted, like the switch panel above the rear view mirror being slightly higher (so I won't now get annoyed by the bit of plastic that obscured the top of the view seen in the mirror) and it has lane-change indicators giving four flashes from one gentle push - I'm sure the Advance didn't do that. Hoping for more typical RX ownership from now on and looking forward to a few years of relaxed driving.

Interesting to hear about RX ownership elsewhere in Europe. Are they a common sight in Sweden?

Derby still have this car for sale, it's now down to £22,994. Cambridge have been reducing the price of their white Premier and Bradford have knocked a couple of hundred off a smart silver F-Sport they've had for over a month now. Bit of a shame about that last one, it ticked a lot of my boxes and if the salesman had indicated there was a bit of room for negotiation then I'd have gone to see it, but he was adamant they price their cars competitively and didn't need to do that sort of thing..... Other cars appear on AutoTrader and then go very quickly, so I guess there's a still a good market out there. For whatever reason the odd one hangs around for a bit. In an ideal world I wouldn't still be looking at adverts, but due to being in a situation where I'm looking at exchanging what I bought last month I need to know what's available out there.

I don't know, it's probably a personal thing - I don't dispute that technically a 450 does do those things better, but I have several older cars on my fleet and I enjoy them all for how they do things. I still regularly drive my 1993 Camry and much preferred it to the 2015 Avensis when I had that. I think it's really good to see Michael commit to a job which I imagine a lot of owners would ignore.

Sounds like a goodun and well worth the TLC you're giving it. I'd love to try an older 300 or 350 now I've got used to my 450.

I recently bought an RX450. Despite being low miles and slightly newer than you're considering, it had picked up some impact damage to the exhaust and a scraped undertray held on by a cable tie. Maybe a previous owner thought it was more of an off-roader than is really the case? As such, I'd say do give the underside a good look as well as the interior, bodywork, service history etc. In the current cold weather with lots of short journeys and cold starts, having to let it warm up while I clear frosty windows, I'm getting something like 28-29mpg. On longer runs I'm getting more like 32-33mpg. On the one I bought when I picked it up it was showing an average of 29.6mpg. Because of the exhaust issues and questions that raised about how it was looked after I'm now looking to exchange it for another model, and the alternative car is showing a more healthy 31.8mpg average.

When I recently bought my used RX from a Lexus main dealer the salesman was saying people with cash in the bank are using their finance options as the costs are so low. Sell your car privately, or to a local trader who retails similar age vehicles or the likes of WBAC? I did that last year when the main dealers wouldn't offer more than £2500 for my clean 2010 Avensis estate, in the end I went to a local guy who gave me £3400. I've had my last three cars on a PCP. I suppose the downsides would be if you want to get out of it early and you haven't put a decent deposit down you could find yourself in negative equity, keeping yourself to whatever mileage allowance you've chosen, or if you let it run the full term, want to hand it back and there is any damage and you have to get into a debate over what is fair wear and tear (there is a guide to this within the pack they send you). Good luck if you go for it, the ES appeals to me too. The issue of not having a really well-specced, non-sporting model isn't exclusive to Lexus.

Sounds like a nice example you've just let go, wish I'd known about it 3-4 weeks ago......

An interesting discussion. After seeing an NX a year or two ago and liking the look of it I got thinking about what Lexus offered that would be an alternative to my daily driver Avensis. When I changed cars this time last year I wasn't in a position to stretch to a modern-ish Lexus of any sort other than a CT, but they are too small and I soon realised this would be the case with the NX too, so I ended up with a petrol Avensis. A year on and doing less mileage I have just been able to buy an RX. It's all that Lexus do that offers the space and versatility I've been used to. A shame there is no estate version of the IS or GS (or new ES), but maybe they wouldn't be popular enough in America or Japan? The one thing that surprises me about it is that the ride isn't quite as cushioning as I'd have hoped. I would happily trade a little handling sharpness for the sort of ride offered by the LS400 or various examples of Camry I've owned in the past. I still own and run a 1993 Camry estate. It's a rather tatty but mechanically sound thing which my wife dislikes quite intensely, but having persevered with repairing it after it got written-off several years ago I'm loathe to let it go. I much preferred driving it to the Avensis and it still acquits itself well against the RX. It's only a 2.2 manual so it has very modest levels of kit, but it has an incredible feeling of built-in quality that I don't think Toyota/Lexus will ever match despite what they might say. The comments made by Jay about his Gen 1 RX rang true with me - when I had a 1997 Camry alongside the older version there seemed to be very little progress and I ended up selling the newer one. For a while I had five Camrys all at the same time, so I was in quite a good position to compare their strengths and weaknesses....... I disliked the 1.8 petrol engine in the Avensis, very characterless and no torque. Other modern, 4-cyl petrol Toyotas I've driven seem to suffer the same thing (my wife has a 2010 1.6 Auris). The previous diesel I had was a more relaxing thing to drive. Admittedly I haven't tried any Lexus with a 4-cyl engine, and maybe the combination of hybrid running gear and better levels of refinement mask the issues I perceive, but the idea doesn't enthuse me and that was another reason for choosing the RX. I'd still be interested to try an NX, maybe I'll get one as a courtesy car at some point. It could offer a good option for me when I don't have two teenagers to carry around. Sounds like it needs an upgrade with the new RAV4's running gear though?

Nearly three weeks into my RX ownership and I'm getting used to it, and just as importantly enjoying the overall experience. Fuel consumption has dropped a little due to short journeys and the recent cold weather. Looking forward to some longer trips. Ride is a little firmer and more jiggly than I'd have expected. Maybe I need to experiment with tyre pressures? The TPMS display tells me I'm at 2.4-2.5 all-round - I'm driving mainly on rural A- and B-roads not hammering up and down the motorway, so I could go a bit softer? Perhaps also the tyres I have are a factor? New Bridgestones on the front and part-worn Dunlops on the rear. My other RX drives have been of a Premier and an F-Sport so I can't directly compare it to any others. Still getting used to how it gathers speed without the usual audible signals. It's only when I realise how easily I've got up to 60 on a stretch of road I drive very regularly then use one of my other cars and see how hard they have to work to do the same thing that I can appreciate it. Got a slight issue which I'm in communication with the dealer about. When I was giving it a good clean-up I took advantage of the height to wash the salt off underneath and have a bit of a look at it myself. Maybe I'm wrong, but the shape of the central exhaust silencer didn't look right to me: Appears to have taken a bit of a clout, and it certainly wasn't me - I took a photo of the rear subframe when I first viewed it and the damage is just visible then. Assuming it shouldn't be that shape, it makes me question what sort of treatment the previous owner gave it and whether it will fail prematurely due to that seam being distorted and opened-up. I'd be grateful if someone could poke their head underneath theirs and say whether I'm right or wrong about the damage - if possible I'd like to see a photo for comparison. As that length of exhaust is more than just the silencer, and not something I'm likely to get replaced for £50 at ATS, I don't feel this is something I should just forget about. Or am I being too fussy? Maybe it wasn't overly expensive for an RX, but it's hugely more than I've ever paid for a car before and I hoped that buying an approved Lexus would give me some peace of mind which I don't quite feel at the moment.

Thanks all. I've been getting around 31-32mpg so far. Just as importantly I'm enjoying the whole driving experience.

Brief update - my Advance collected yesterday and I've been enjoying wafting around in it. All good so far! Still getting used to the hybrid side of things, but I'm planning on keeping this one for a while so that'll come. Was interesting to compare it with a customer's 2010 SE-I that they had at Tunbridge Wells: Have since seen a couple of others when I was driving around over the weekend. I haven't got used to what mine looks like yet, they're not particularly common around this way.

Good luck! A couple of the wheels on my forthcoming Advance should have been refurbished today, it'll be interesting to see how god a job they've done. Fortunately mine are the earlier 7-spoke type, so no diamond cut finish to worry about. One of the diamond-cut wheels on my Avensis was suffering a bit around the rim from kerb damage, but otherwise they were in good shape after four years and 60-odd thousand miles.

I'm realistic about the economy side of things, and it should be a price worth paying for the overall driving experience. It's for the latter reason that I'm buying it and my mileage has dropped a bit this year for various reasons. Anything above 30mpg is tolerable and circa 35 would be fantastic - I doubt my other cars get much better than that (including the Camry 2.2 which I'm using almost all the time at present, as I prefer it to the Avensis) and it has only been recently when I had an Avensis diesel that I got 40-50mpg. Current Avensis petrol gets around 40 if I've had some decent long runs, otherwise high 30s. It was significantly less than that in France last year, 4-up and full of luggage. My tiddly little 1973 Datsun 1200 is probably the most economical car in my current fleet but that weighs almost nothing and has rather less useability and comfort than an RX. Of the cars I've had which offered a similar feelgood factor due to a bigger engine (Nissan 300Cs, Camry V6, LS400 Mk3 and numerous straight-six Datsuns) I doubt any of them would crack 30, and some were probably nearer 20.

Thanks for that advice Nigel. Haven't tried a full-on acceleration run yet. At present I work on a site which is located along a nice big former WWII runway, so I will have the opportunity to play at some point! From those I've driven so far I can see there is more than adequate 'go' for my needs, and it should be very relaxing driving around well within its limits knowing that it has plenty of power (and traction) to get out of a busy junction or roundabout, safely overtake, etc. Driving in France and maintaining progress on long autoroute inclines and in the mountains will be much better than I found with the Avensis (especially the 1.8 petrol that I'm part-exchanging). Once the novelty of the V6 has worn off I'll be doing my best to keep the MPG up. My usual rural commute is fairly short but not very interesting with some slow stretches past busy junctions, so getting in tune with how to efficiently use the hybrid system will keep me occupied. Herbie, your figure of nearer 400 miles out of a tank sounds good to me and something I'll be aiming for. Everything appears to be in place for me to collect it on Saturday AM. Looking forward to it!

As reported in my own topic, I have now taken the plunge and bought a 2014 Advance with 31k. Even after a bit of smoke and mirrors on the part-ex value of my current car, price was significantly under £25k. What isn't immediately apparent from online ad's is the current availability of 3.9% APR finance at main dealers. I believe this is nationwide and is on offer during January. As it did for me, it could make owning one that bit more achievable and/or allow a higher value model to be purchased.

Alex, when I've picked it up you're very welcome to visit sometime soon and have a play with it (and the other automotive rubbish I have here). You're right, it will be a long week and I must now stop the regular AutoTrader searches which have been filling my time recently. That being said, I don't think I'll find anything else better-suited to my wishes Herbie, thanks for your words of encouragement. I look forward to picking mine up when it's been prepped and it looking as good as yours! Looks like you have the cream interior - in some respects I would have liked that, but for practical purposes black is better for me. The only significant thing I'm missing out on is the M/L stereo, but the standard equipment sounded pretty good to me and better than I'm used to in the Avensis.

Conclusion reached. I didn't end up buying the Premier or F-Sport, but a 2014 Advance instead: 2014 Lexus RX450h Advance by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 2014 Lexus RX450h Advance by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr We headed off down to Tunbridge Wells to look at the attractive 2015 F-Sport they had. It was a lovely example but we just couldn't get the numbers to work out. Nearly gave up with a view to moving onto another dealer (luckily there are a few down that way, so we had options), then they happened to mention an Advance that had just come in. For some reason they thought I was fixed on wanting the F-Sport so didn't offer it as a more affordable alternative. As soon as they mentioned the price and mileage (31-odd thousand) we asked for the deposit to be transferred across as it was clear it would be a more realistic option. I didn't get as much for the Avensis as I'd hoped but the logistics of ending my current finance on it and swapping it over to the RX were much easier than me trying to sell it on myself. Two owners from new, just had a service and MoT carried out with a couple of new front tyres - it now has Bridgestone Dueller H/Ps on the front and Dunlops on the rear. A few little bits and bobs to be sorted but nothing major and I'm hoping it will be ready for collection next Saturday - can't wait! What was good about seeing both cars on the same day was being able to compare the driving experience. No complaints about either of them, I'm sure the Advance will be more than adequate for my needs. Happily my wife seems to be on-board with it. She could see that it offers a rather more special driving experience, there's plenty of room and it's very comfortable. Our 2-hour journey to/from Norfolk gave ample chance to compare it with the Avensis and she could see how much more relaxing it will be. The Toyota is a perfectly capable car, but it's not an RX..... I'm going to enjoy learning how it all works, and I suspect there'll be things I shall be discovering for many months. Going to make sure my 13-year old son comes with me to work out the tech side of things. I ended up breaking one of my stipulations in that it does have a panoramic roof. I was concerned about the possible loss of headroom, but it seemed to be fine. Overall I like the look of it a lot in black, with the F-Sport bumper giving a slightly sharper look and I prefer the 7-spoke alloys to the updated model's 15-spoke diamond-cut wheels (easier to keep clean too). It has the boot liner and rear bumper cover which are good for practicality - the lack of the latter on the F-Sport had given rise to several scratches, and I do tend to use an estate for its intended purpose. More news to come hopefully next weekend......

Going to a view a 2015 F-Sport tomorrow (serious enough about it that I paid a holding deposit), and giving myself time to look at one or two others including the white 2014 Premier at Cambridge on the way home if it doesn't work out.

Thanks Paul. I'll send a reply to your message shortly.

Really interesting comments in your post. Until now I haven't been considering the Sport model as strongly in my quest for an RX, wondering whether its firmer suspension would be slightly at odds with the general RX driving experience. However you seem very happy with it. I mainly drive on rural East Anglian A- and B-roads, which can be a bit lumpy. With lots of miles behind me in the likes of Avensis and Camry I'm not used to nor looking for the ultimate in roadholding, but it would be interesting to know whether the Sport offers a good compromise between ride and handling (within the limits of a big, tall car). There are several examples out there at present available with good spec and in may favoured colours at a decent price, I think I need to get some viewings organised.