GSLV6

Just back from a few weeks in the lake District. Car averaged close on 35mpg on the motorway trip, and best I saw was on a cross-country run of 46 miles (return trip from Ambleside to Ulverston), where it achieved a remarkable 43mpg on mainly A roads. My RX3 at best might have got about 36mpg cross country, so the RX4 is significantly more fuel efficient. Must be the combination of the combined port/direct injection along with beefier batteries and uprated motors; whatever, it's proving to be almost as economical as our 1.8 VVTI Civic!

Despite booking mine in and having the tracker fitted, they made no mention of having fitted a geofence OBD device. I was told that "this is down the line", perhaps as they've not ordered enough?

Yes, because they're genuinely under the belief that steel plates prevent theft and don't seem to care about the headache and cost, even if the vehicle isn't taken, to the customer. Looks like if the software fix isn't out this year as promised I'll be investing in a high security aftermarket immobiliser that won't be easily defeated. That, plates and a disklok should all but disuuade or prevent theft.

Well, customer service called to ask if I was happy with my tracker fitting experience and I politely explained that whilst I was looked after fine, it doesn't change a thing about theft risk. Perplexed, the lady said she thought they wouldn't bother stealing it as a tracker was fitted, so had to explain 1) they won't know what's fitted; 2) there's no guarantee the police would free up resources to even bother tracing it before it was in a container somewhere bound for foreign shores and 3) it makes zero difference to insurance premiums currently. Equally perplexed, she went on to explain I'd got the steel plates fitted so the car couldn't be taken. With some patience, I explained that it doesn't prevent them damaging the car to find the plates there so the customer is left with the bill and raised insurance premiums with costs to repair damage estimated at an average £4.5K. She clearly couldn't agree this was the case so I was left to say that it was the last time I bought a Lexus. Their loss as hundreds of customers think likewise.

You may well be right there, its possible I misunderstood, but it was explained as a device which plugs into the obd port so can be easily removed (as was explained to me anyway)

This is exactly what I was told. Let's hope that the OBD device is not the final offering as all it does is prevent wireless hacks. My local centre was clear that further measures were in development for Q3

Yes, this is on the cards for end of this year for the UK. It's meant to prevent canbus attacks so finally we can sleep easier and hopefully benefit from lower insurance premiums.

I don't know which they fitted except it sounds like it's one of the Thatcham S7 models. All I have is the card which gives the serial nr and phone nr to call in the event you need the tracker activated.

Good condition, only used twice to fit a roof box. Been stored in my garage for a few years . Price £50 firm

Correct. It's not the S5+. It is, however, VHF based so easily traced within most urban environments by the police.

I had my tracker installed this morning. It's supplied by Lexus FoC for a 3 year period after which the customer will have to pick up subscription costs. The company is called "Tracker" and in the event you car's stolen, the police are equipped with the tech to track and find your vehicle. There's a card you receive with your unique tracker registration, they don't tell you (for obvious reasons) where the tracker is installed. You call the police, get a crime reference nr then call tracker and they supply the police with the details o recover your vehicle. No real time apps for customers unfortunately. It's only activated in the event of a theft. Next security update from what I gather is more to prevent wireless hacks so imho is a waste of time as you can do this yourself by going into your car menu and disabling the keyless transmitter so you have to have the keyfob and use the buttons to physically open doors and start the car. So...effectively, they are introducing one thing at a time a month or two apart with the next roll out for the canbus linked additional security in a month or two (some will already be booked in as it's on a customer list which is already active) with the higher canbus software changes a bit further down the line (Oct/Nov/Dec). My comment was "too little too late". If you've not had anything from your local dealer, best to contact them now to get yours booked in and on the conveyor belt.

Good luck with that Fred but don't hold out for a good price from Lexus. They offered me 5K less for my RX3 than they sold it for (robbing gits), prior to that telling me "it wasn't worth any more than that" despite it being £2K under book value. The only reason I went ahead was I lucked out on the exact car, in the colour I wanted, at the spec I wanted and with basically running in miles, and saved a heap of depreciation. Their pricing is quite rigid and I'd hazard a guess that to trade from an 18 plate premier with average miles to a new 5th gen RX450 equivalent will cost you your car plus at least £35K to £40K. A new RX450+ in Premier trim with say a protection pack and metallic paint will set you back £64K. If I traded mine now I'd have to give them £30K more on top of what I paid for mine for a new £70K 450+ F sport. Not a chance in hell I'd be remotely tempted. New IL4 is a more highly stressed, busier engine and as far as reliability goes the jury's out on those as whilst they work well in an ES, dropping one into a 2.2t car is asking a lot. Far more plastics under the hood from cooling system to valve covers and water pumps. It all is the extreme opposite of the robust over engineering of early 430V8's, 300IL6 and V6 motors and of course the 3.5L V6 which have all proved themselves in the long run, because they were built for the long term. Lexus does not seem to be making cars to endure as they once did. Don't even get me started on the fake leather....Even their Takumi master craftsmen are no longer required to bring on 12 year apprenticeship craftsmen for making the leather seats in the LS and RX models as they once were and things like panel gaps are not as good as the last generation cars. They're producing cheaper cars to manufacture and selling them for more with the same old mantra of luxury and world class standards, which they're not any longer.

I note you're not UK based in which case you may be getting cars where you are, from Toyota, that we aren't? I recently sat in a new ES "Takumi" spec car and have to say it was fantastic! Very high quality interior and way better than any current Toyota model I've come across, at least in UK spec. The only downsides to the ES for me are 1. It's FWD so was never a true replacement for the GS, and 2) it's so long! Not the car you want for supermarket car park spaces here! Would I buy one? Absolutely, and it was a toss up between that new Takumi spec model and the RX4. It was a very close call between the two but on reflection I prefer the driving position and hatchback load space of the RX, otherwise I'd have bought the ES. It is, though, as with similar toyota models, subject to the same CANBUS vulnerability as the RX4s and used prices for ES cars don't seem too strong partially as a result of that. I do agree with the youtube commentator though that Lexus quality has continued to deteriorate over the last decade. Interiors with fake leather, the loss of so much craftsmanship especially on the late 2000's up to say mid 2010 models and generally a cheapening of the interiors which still look swish but don't stand up to scrutiny compared with some earlier models. Paintwork isn't as good and nor is panel gap and I am not a fan of any of the latest generation models so for me, my current one will be my last Lexus.

It won't change for a good year or two until the number of attempted thefts decrease significantly. This should start to filter through with the proposed security enhancements and some insurers will offer discounts for a sold secure Gold or Diamond steering wheel lock fitted when the car is parked up, and if a tracker is fitted.

^^^^^ This

Depends on the condition of the auxiliary battery. If leaving a month, I'd certainly want to leave mine on a CTEK or similar charging unit to condition and desulphate the battery if needed, overnight and preferably for a few days. A healthy auxiliary should read around 12.6V on a multimeter when not under load or charging. Just about all of my auxiliary batteries over the years have struggled to hold charge when much over 3 years old, much past a few weeks if the car has been left unused. Last one I changed after lock down as frequently, it was left for weeks at a time and that didn't do it any good. Never had an issue since buying a CTEK which I leave it hooked up to if the car is left for a week or more.

Issues like this can frequently occur with a run down auxiliary battery. First thing I'd do, especially if it's a few years old, is change it otherwise you may have a repeat of the issues you've encountered

I think that the main reason for poorer RX5 sales is down to two things. Firstly, the unjustifiable price hike and secondly, the IL4 engines. Customers for the RX want refinement which just doesn't include a buzzy and louder IL4 working harder. They just don't pull as well from low revs unless you get the range topping RX500 turbo. There's cheaper, and frankly, just as capable competition in the Volvo XC90 for that which also come in quite a hotted up version. Comparatively, the post facelift models of the RX4 were their best selling, and possibly the best and most refined version of the RX. They've however made RX3's a very attractive option for those buying used as a really good late 2015 RX3 can be had for around £18K with low miles at dealerships. My old RX3 F Sport sold for £19K.

Indeed but they're still selling and judging by turnover, Lexus (locally) don't seem to have any problems shifting them.

I had this happen too, just a week or two after buying it. I only became aware of the vulnerability shortly before purchase, I wasn't warned about it by Lexus.....I picked it up on here first but still elected to go ahead on the promise of a fix, not believing that such a well regarded manufacturer would leave its customers out to dry. I registered just in case...

Not really as it was a quick fix solution to plug the gap between "do nothing" and the permanent solution. It was also a cheap option (for them). It's not wasted as such as it adds another layer of protection. I don't think they figured on it taking so long to get the steel plates out in the first place so as it happens, there may not be that big a gap between those being fitted and the software fix being rolled out. I know there's a lot of justified angst against Lexus but some of the other manufacturers in exactly the same boat have done exactly nothing to date.

Like all other 4th gen owners, I am as frustrated as anyone about the length of time it's taken Lexus to get to grips with this issue and do something about it. My dealership was very positive and convinced me that this is what Lexus Uk intend on doing and I received assurances that it would be dealt with this year in the form of an announcement following the roll out of the Ghost tracker fitting. Like others here, I commented to my dealership that a tracker would not affect theft risk, just aid recovery, which won't help insurance premiums but they made the point that Lexus UK want to see the completion of the roll out of steel plates and trackers up front of the CANBUS vulnerability fix and as there's a class action pending, I do believe that its in their interests to do what they say they will do. I also fully understand why they don't wish to make announcements online about this, in order not to provide any useful information to would be thieves. Lets wait and see, whilst not holding our collective breaths!

No, its just a tracker, one of the Ghost models. They're keeping details of the software fix off line and your dealer, if reminded, should be updating you of when this is due for roll out. I was told Q3 this year for that but it's definitely aimed at the canbus vulnerability.

I am surprised that there's any surprises that a 2.2 Tonne RXL only delivers 19mpg on "120mph autobhan" runs. Hardly real world average and that's been driven close to flat out! Combined average for mine is low to mid 30's which is about the same as the BMW X3 diesel my mate runs (he averages just under 35 combined), so I'd say that was as good as you could expect from a 3.5 litre 2.2 tonne brick.

Well, I'm having my Ghost tracker fitted FoC next week, so that's one step in the right direction and they called me...