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In my post I used tagged batteries, and soldered them in. This is by no means essential you can use standard CR2450 button cells fitted in the sensors and gluing the lids on with a hot glue gun or epoxy resin. Soldering gives a more reliable connections, but the current flow is so small it is not imperative. The cells can be bought on the bay for around 50 pence each if you order 4 or 5. These will last at leased as long as the original, and can be replaced again without the need for programming. John.

Today i managed to glue back both door handle covers, remove the satnav unit for further investigation, disconnect the TPMS system (no more warning light on the dashboard) and temporarily fix both front speakers. Alpine speakers will be fitted as soon as i find a suitable model. Also took my daughter for a quick spin :) She loves this car as much as i do.

Just found this comment on line! James Hannah 1 year ago (edited) They never stopped making the car. It's hugely popular in Australia...the dealerships are full of them...very popular with tradesmen. The 4.5 litre v8 diesel is a better option, far more economical. One thing to be wary of, is that they all leave the factory faulty. The rear wheel track is narrower than the front. When they changed the style at the front to incorporate the new engines the wheel track had to be widened. To save money, they didn't alter the rear axle. A company called Multi Drive in Australia manufacture a kit to repair this fault, so that the vehicle is safer and more efficient off road. But....try this instead? 

After 6 superb Land Rovers over 10 years in some awful weather I owned 2 Range Rover Sports from 2010-15 but I decided due to numerous issues and rising cost to change I'd try a Discovery Sport I suffered that for 9 months before I lost the will to buy anything built by JLR again and bought the Mitsubishi PHEV on the recommendation of a friend who's had 3 faultless Mitsubishi PHEV and found depreciation pretty low This friend has owned 2 RX in the past but recently had an NX and Mitsubishi PHEV - he also convinced me to buy the RC which scratched the luxury itch I missed on the Mitsy I've had the PHEV since September 2016 and it does everything I ask of it at a fraction of the price I paid before It's not luxurious like the RX and if they sold a PHEV version I'd definitely be interested but they don't so I'm sticking with the Mitsy I now visit the petrol station about the same number of times a year I visited the LR dealer and apart from annual service never see the Mitsubishi dealer Worst tank was 34 mpg during a week touring Cotswolds without recharging Usually I only go down to mid 40s if running out of batteries. My average since purchase is low 80s Last week I tackled some of the worst weather I've seen ever without a fault so that's another requirement ticked off my list https://vimeo.com/album/5019985 The only thing that stopped me was vehicles stuck on main roads until I took side roads I have fitted winter tyres as it comes with summer tyres and no decent all season were available at the time but Michelin cross climates are available to fit now and getting good reviews I like the RC luxury but I'm actually thinking of selling it because the Mitsubishi is more comfortable and practical so gets used most of the time The PHEV was massively discounted when I bought it and I got big tax rebate running my own business so cost me peanuts Sorry for the long post - unfortunately I can't offer much insight on the RX but happy to answer questions about the Mitsy

I’d have given £15k after an extensive (and satisfactory) test drive. 😜 @Warrington guy, you see, my flippant post will prevent anyone else complaining about why you didn’t sell it on the forum! 😀

IMHO the Outlander is more an NX class vehicle - the RX is in another league The Outlander PHEV was launched January 2013 in Japan and so far not heard any reports of reliability issues or battery failures although with a 5 year warranty/8 year battery it's not something I'm worried about The Outlander has the best range of any PHEV at the moment AFAIK - it certainly did when I bought mine By contrast a friend sold a 4 year old RR Sport recently (cost over £80k new) with balance of LR extended warranty and 2 weeks later the crankshaft snapped costing £18k to repair - warranty claim has been rejected as it's apparently a design fault and not covered and I know lots of similar cases on forums. My Discovery Sport had 22 issues in the 9 months I owned it and delivery was delayed from Sep to Dec due to factory quarantine during build but nobody would give me much information The friend who got me on to Lexus and Mitsubishi bought the 1st gen UK Outlander in 2014 and had no issues. He bought the facelift in 2015 because he prefered the styling and had no issues with that one. He's now on a MY18 because he fancied the EV button/EPB but still had no issues - his cost to change have been very impressive - I lost £22k in 2 years on my last RR Sport Lexus were voted most reliable brand https://www.whatcar.com/news/reliability-survey and Outlander was voted most reliable large SUV https://www.whatcar.com/news/reliability-survey-7/ so I've got all my bases covered

Finally got round to cleaning it and got rid of the snow and salt I've had it 10 days now, and still find little things in it that I never knew it had I think I like the interior,but I'm not sure.

Very nice enjoy! You missed a bit - under the seats lol - thats where you find the £1 coins!

@First_Lexus Hi Ed - once again I know what you are going through. IMHO on a car at that price and mileage with it being in Lexus hands for so long and again now, I think it would be advisable to reject the car before any other issues arise. The freebies you are receiving are only sweeteners so you keep the car. If Lexus replace the car FOC it would really confirm them to be the superior car manufacturer that they are. You will recall it took 11 months for Honda to replace my CRV - but they did so and I will always praise Honda for doing so and also, the quality of the CRV. I bought the NX as Honda did not manufacture a hybrid CRV at that time. I believe this is coming next year. I certainly have no complaints with my NX. Best of luck with your problem(s).

Haven't tried a Merc hybrid C class but had a 17 reg C200 Sport as a loaner for a couple of months while my IS300h was in for body repairs - in comparison to the IS 300h a horrible car. In summary, the engine (the 2l turbo petrol) was totally uncivilised, noisy and harsh - I actually thought they had delivered me a diesel when I first drove it. The 9 speed auto box was never in the right gear and took an age to shuffle to a lower gear when I wanted to accelerate to the point that I then had my foot to the floor waiting for it and so when the car found the gear it lurched off - all very unsettling and felt quite dangerous when approaching (but not having to stop ) at junctions/roundabouts waiting for the right gear. The sat nav screen looks like a cheapo tablet just "stuck" to the dash - awful design. The dash was largely black plastic - not a nice solid plastic (like the Lexus) but '70's like black plastic that creaked and groaned! The sat nav itself was laggy (for those that complain about the Lexus sat nav the Merc is not a patch on the Lexus) - takes an age to enter the various menus and to enter a destination and the spaceship thing on the centre console to use the system is totally unfathomable - and by the time it reroutes for a wrong turn you are getting hopelessly lost - and the routes it selects were just terrible in comparison to Lexus or Google maps. The (fake leather) seats were also very hard and uncomfortable for long journeys. Not surprisingly fuel economy was about 25% or more (especially around town) lower than the Lexus. I was so glad to give it back when my Lexus was repairs were finished.

"I now visit the petrol station about the same number of times a year I visited the LR dealer and apart from annual service never see the Mitsubishi dealer" I find this line to be the most succinct adverse comment I have ever read about any vehicle. Many thanks Muddy.

https://www.amayama.com/en/part/toyota/4863059015?currency=826&q=

@Warrington guy Dave just pretend no one will notice........... 🐀

Flytvr .im banned form the forum . Don’t own a Lexus anymore .😩😩😩😩

Unfortunately the ball joints on the UCAs are not replaceable you have to replace the complete unit.

Oh no Carl.... Just watch this thread now unravel into one from before you were a member! Let's just say it got closed....

It is the silver covered unit on the RHS of the engine - standing at the front of the vehicle looking into the engine bay. The following is part way through the procedure for removing/replacing the inverter. If you just want to remove the cover and check the ECU connections then I don't know if you need to follow all the previous procedures of removing the wipers and motor etc. or whether the bolts are accessible and cover removable with everything else in place. You will see the MG ECU connectors on step 26 on the next page. http://workshop-manuals.com/lexus/rx_400h_awd/v6-3.3l_(3mz-fe)_hybrid/hybrid_drive_systems/power_control_system_hybrid_drive/voltage_inverter_hybrid_drive/component_information/technical_service_bulletins/page_2739/ Read the procedure from the beginning - you need to isolate the hybrid battery before going near the inverter.

Yes, I saw on the DS & RRS that you'd bought a RC. I now have the car we should have bought when I sold the RRS and bought the DS. The DS was the wife's choice & I let her have her own way since I'd just bought the Evora. In the end though it was the wife, who'd had enough of LR & their dealers, who said one day in Dec "let's dump the DS and get the RX"

Sorry yes thats correct. They are under Ball Joint & Track Rod end Boots. Not Car specific. Or you may be able to retain whats on your existing UCA's and transfer them. Don't always match.

If replacing front UCA's with a cheap Chinese or Taiwan brand I suggest that you buy new Ball joint covers and replace the existing Rubber which disintegrates in less than a month or as someone said when "just hanging on the garage wall" The unit will then be OK for a while. www.southwalespropshafts.co.uk posts quickly once you've got dimensions.

Wow.....for the front LBJ I would go OEM, the last ones I bought were around £120.00 a pair. Front UCAs are stupidly expensive from Lexus at around £500.00 EACH so better off with some decent after market ones. Don’t quite understand the upper anti rollbar ball joint problem unless this means the drop links? Exhaust you have covered. Springs I would replace them all not just the broken/bodged ones.

Opinion seems to be divided about whether it is worth pursuing Lexus. I'll throw this in to the mix: Screen shot attached from www.oemlexusparts.com (US site ) which suggests that a spare wheel is available (item 7) for the RC-F although why 2 parts are shown at wildly different prices is a mystery. Shipping costs are likely to be high and there is no guarantee this info is correct.I would think that the GS-F item would be the same although the site lists nothing for the GSF. The fact that this is being offered indicates to me that a spare wheel does exist in planet Lexus. We just need Lexus UK to acknowledge its existence and ship a few over from Japan for us. As JonP said the lack of spare wheel might be a type approval issue but my cynical mind thinks the lack of spare wheel on UK cars might be something to do with : a) not having anywhere to put it now as the space is full of electronics b) additional cost and weight. c) revenue for Lexus dealers in periodically replacing the gunk as it probably has an expiry date. d) revenue for Lexus dealers in replacing tyre pressure sensors after the gunk has gummed them up when it is used. Note also on the US site the costs for pads and discs. Has anybody managed to source pads for an RCF at a reasonable price? Graham

Jimi, If you can solder you might want to follow' instructions by Britprius posted here on replacing the batteries. Costs pennies and you will not have to feed any new codes into your system. Search for "Lexus GS Gen 3 TPMS" thread. John

I bought some 'non-lexus' mats from ebay for mine. They fit fine - just don't have the lexus logo.

@Chris Skelton too right mate about the roads they are getting worse. I knew about the rear track problem after watching an Aussie review of a troopy. Makes them a pain to handle in the sand apparently. There's a huge debate about what's best for offroad etc but I'm quite content with a manual gearbox. Manual 80 series are usually double the value in the UK and rare as. That vellfire looks awesome.

@caldera Andy my money is on your battery, all sorts will get thrown when there on the way out 👍 Big Rat

@Chris SkeltonI love the look of that ! Now if there is a Transit Van version I’m in 😁 🐀

I can book mine in anytime next week.......................

No issues with mine Andy, it was parked up a little longer than normal due to the weather, no warning lights for me...........

I must agree, it does look great. Really utilitarian, like a G class or Defender. Will last you a lifetime if you want it to. I hope you plan to use it off road or take it on adventures.

yes i have heard of shortages. Luckily my local shell had a fresh delivery. Won't be long before they will get their delivery.

Still waiting for the postman to deliver my studs Silly weather has delayed them.

Thanks Graham, I shall follow your suggestion and make a noise to Lexus, and keep on making it. I also fancy a free block drive.

I'd have the Outlander in a heartbeat but it wont tow my caravan (too heavy) the RX will. I can't wait till Toyota/Lexus get out of the stone age and start to produce a descent PHEV, after all they did it with the Prius a good while ago. I've given up waiting for an all electric model.

A good review Muddy. This is why you SHOULD NOT buy a PHEV - it is a long clip but he makes some interesting points - below that is a sponsored clip which shows how good the PHEV should be! You must make up your own mind. Now for the other side:-

wheels spin up, and TC allows a reasonable amount of spin before killing the power. Could very well be down to tyre choice, I'm currently running winter tyres, which are worse and the summers are low rolling resistance yoko's. My last car was a similar nightmare until changing tyres. think the rears on the non F-sport / premium cars are 225, so reasonably wide for the weight / power. My summers only have one season left so will look at pilot sports...

Isn't this down to type approval? If the vehicle was approved for sale without a spare wheel Lexus can't supply one without breaking the terms of the approval? They could get one approved when they get a model revision updated but they still wouldn't be allowed to supply one for older vehicles?

The Outlander is good if you can make most of your journey within the EV range. Once the engine is running it isn't that economical. From a luxury and comfort point of view the two aren't really comparable.

That is a very daring colour combination - must say it looks great in the flesh but I bet those seats are hard to clean! Yes, the NX forum is quiet. The NX is a hit in the UK, sells quite well but as always, not much goes wrong. The VW forum on the other hand is always busy, many more cars and a lot more problems.

Very good question. In the IS-F it was a case of 'Look - somebody is looking at the car'. In the RC-F it's a case of 'Ooooo, that person isn't looking at the car'. I think mainly good attention. Kids will video the car, people will slow down on the motorway and on the rare occasion that I park up in a busy place, people will engage in conversation about the car. I suspect that a lot of the looks are along the lines of 'What is that!?' - in a positive way! Boxster is a great car. Like my RC-F my Boxster was a second car, so it was a special occasion every time I drove it. The engine in the Boxster was great - especially when it came on song and made that special noise (which I can't describe). F cars are totally different beasts to a Boxster. The V8 is central to the package. You'll get refinement and performance in one package. You'll also get utterly ridiculous reliability - no RMS or bore scoring issues. Stuff like that is unheard of. In the RC-F the car will get the recognition that ALL F cars deserve. Finally, you won't see many on the roads!

Calipers on both models are the same 4 piston versions so wheels will fit.

Friend has a Diesel C300h AMG Premium Plus hybrid. Was similar in spec and colour to my old F-Sport IS300h - Grey/Red leather and similar spec/toys. Merc looked OK, IMO and the interior was alright too, but the growling diesel engine spoilt the drive and the auto box wasn't the best. It was quick though, much faster than the IS, sub 6s 0-60 and with decent diesel shove mid-range. Seats were OK, but the "Leather" was very grainy and plastic feeling, and that was the Cranberry leather upgrade! I still don't like the stick on screen on the dash either. And he had loads of issues getting phones to work with it. Ride was poor IMO, very stiff and crashed over any imperfection around town (better on smooth motorways) and that was on the std 18" wheel. Couple of things it has, which I liked/wished the lexus had. Electric boot open/close. Adjustable thigh support for seats. Memory seats on passenger side. Biggest benefit was that it would do an easy 55mpg+ on motorway, even thrashing it, it wouldn't get below low 40's. drive lightly and it would top 60mpg+. I'd love for the IS to get anywhere near those figures in F-Sport spec!

You're probably right but I to balance that against the fact that my FiL was on his last legs and my wife and I were caring for him for the final 3/4 months of his life and the stress associated with this. My real issue is that the franchised dealer advised against me supplying them with a reconditioned transmission as they couldn't give any guarantee - hence the 'new' box from Lexus that clearly wasn't such a unit - outrageous imho

Maybe don't sell?!

This is what you need then .. GENUINE LEXUS JAPAN 2015-2017 RC F-SPORT SAPPHIRE CRYSTAL GLASS PREMIUM CLOCK https://lexusboutique.net/collections/rc-300h-2015-2017/products/genuine-lexus-japan-2015-2017-rc-f-sport-sapphire-crystal-glass-premium-clock

Isn’t it pretty? Should offer a good competiton to the likes of Volvo XC40, Jaguar E Pace and Audi Q3 surely .

I think you may find that hourly rate is for sitting in reception excluding tea and biscuits but plus VAT :)

Hi all. Mark you are kidding some berk ran into you, not to much damage i hope and all the work put into getting the car clean. 65mike

Oh no Mark sorry to hear that, was it a big knock/much damage?

Is it just me, or does anyone else just see a stormtrooper in this photo? 🤔