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I think Toyota is massively improving and Lexus is just getting a bit more Americans where they are (until recently) not very much bothered about interior wuality as much as us. Couple years ago I sat in brand new Camry and then next to it was Lexus ES, it was something like 10k euros (if not 11) in price between them and when you sit in Lexus (even ES) you understand why they charge more money for it, quality of materials not just better it is on a different level! Overall quality is hard to measure between Toyota and Lexus, every research though says that Lexus is still a better quality/reliability car.

****SOLVED! 👍🏻 So, in making the boot lid as light as possible (probably due to the added weight of the hybrid battery), it’s easy for people not in the know to assume it is a normal weight boot lid and slam it shut. So slamming over a period of years + thin panels and weld joints = cracks. At first I found a drop of water on the back of the light enclosure, the light fitting nuts were a bit loose plus water marks clearly showing on the top of the light fitting and foam pad. Then the crack caught my eye, problem spotted. Good old bit of silicone in the cracked joint, think my condensation issue finally done and dusted now.

Mike, I ordered 2 as will be putting one in my wifes car. Our cars end up quite often with wet mats (I have rubber mats so water stays on top), my two girls are making sure of it with their wellies! 🙂 They still learn how to respect the car! 🙂

Agree with all of this. I guess there are two types of issue that diligent buyers of cars will ponder: How likely is it to actually break down and need roadside assistance? How likely is it to develop minor faults? The two above are no doubted related. If a car accumulates a number of minor faults it could eventually lead to a physical breakdown. Although of course you could have a scenario where a car runs without problems for years but then suffers a sudden catastrophic failure of a major component. Ie cam chain or gearbox. A perfect example of the minor fault car was my ex E60 523i. Never left me stranded. Started every time. Lovely motor to drive all in all. However throughout its four years of ownership it had numerous faults. If unattended, some of the items below would have led to complete breakdown or more severe failure. 1) electric window motor failure. £250 (warranty) 2) boot wiring loom failure £520 (warranty) 3) Rocker cover failure £350 4) Ignition coils all replaced £350 5) NoX sensor replaced £300 6) Leaking radiator repaired £250 These on top of normal items such as service, brake discs, tyres etc. The failed (warped) rocker cover was the last straw for me and I decided to turn back to the sanity of Japanese car ownership. The guys on the infamous 'Bimmerforum' were quite pragmatic about the whole episode though. Far from defending the brand they were happy to accept certain German badged ownership can come as a shock to those migrating from Japanese brands. So back to the Lexus I bought my Gs250 in early 2019 as a 7 year old very low mileage car from a dealer for around £12.5k although they threw in a 3 year warranty. Quite expensive really considering the age and 'old hat' larger petrol engine. Especially when you could pick up a 3 yr old mid mileage Madza 6 for about the same. However, I paid for what I perceive as quality engineering and reliability and feel I have got decent value for money in this respect. Of course returning to the original point had I paid that amount for a 7 year old car that started developing niggles that the beemer did, or was compromised as far as quality of interior goes then I'd have felt a prize mug to be honest. I did so on the trust and belief that Lexus = quality engineering, no compromises and hassle free motoring. As the op has alluded to, if this is now apparently being challenged in places then it casts doubt over whether you should be paying a premium for perceived quality that isn't quite what it was. Maybe its a false alarm or maybe its a sign of what's coming. Await the next year or so with baited breath.

Mine already has a speed limiter fitted. I think it's set to 155 mph but it's never worked. I may go and test it later! John N

Wish to thank Herbs and Rob for replies. I am very conscious of how electronics have advanced and continue to do so, whereas when it comes to vehicles, I am just an old amateur spanner man better equipped to deal with more simple cars of a few decades ago. Those were the days when you only needed basic knowledge and simple tools some of which you designed and fabricated yourself. They did the job if crude like my welding. I therefore have to look to you members with much better electrical knowledge for information on this aspect nowadays and of course the internet. For my part, I am happy to contribute in the more limited way I can now. If the weather had been better it would have made outside projects more productive during restrictions. The guys doing my groundwork are working in a quagmire. ....unsurprisingly they have just decided to stop today.

I found that Lexus batteries are competitive and will fit perfectly.

So, if your expectations are not met it is a shocker? If a Lexus breaks down it is very disappointing as you dont see this coming. If a Range Rover does not break down it gives you thesame feeling as also this you did not see coming? When i grew up it was a regular sight to see men working on a car in the street as something went wrong. Same on cold winter mornings, the sound of cars not wanting to start. All accepted in those days as that was the standard of quality. Fast forward to 2021 and although the overall level of quality has risen considerably there are still differences between marques and even models of one marque. Besides a house a car will the the most expensive buy for most people and in my opinion it is unforgivable if it lets you down in a bad way. Take a look at the JD Powers list bottom 10. These companies deserve bankrupcy. Fully agree with you on the ISmk2/3 interior by the way!

When I bought my Luxury NX, I'd started looking at the Lexus dealers but eventually found one from a major non franchised dealer about £5k cheaper. It was 2 years old and had full local Lexus history (which I checked with Lexus for anything untoward) and one year of manufacturer's warranty to run. It has the navigation and convenience packs and now after 4 years of faultless motoring, I'm passing it to my daughter. Over this period I've lost £7k in depreciation, which I reckon is pretty good. Now looking for an RX450h Premier - seen a 2 year old one at £6k below dealer prices, 20k on the clock from a major premium car franchise and a year of Lexus warranty to run. Not fully checked it out but it is tempting. This time round I know I'll lose a lot more , simply because of the maths and the much higher starting price, but generally if I can get no more than £3k pa depreciation I'll be happy. The longer you hold onto it, the less you lose a year on average. My Jaguar XK that I sold recently fell into this depreciation target bracket too, again helped by getting a big discount at outset from the dealer. Good luck on finding the right car. There should be a few coming to market in the coming months - 2021 is a big year for PCPs and HP loans coming to maturity and, sadly, there will be some people who simply can't buy a newer car or afford to buy their existing one. Lockdown is restricting supply somewhat just now so prices are firming up. Be patient and the right model and deal with come along but don't be afraid to look outwith the Lexus network for cars less than 3 years old.

Yep, saw that, not an easy task as anti personnel mines were scattered at random as the Argentinians withdrew. I unwittingly walked through a minefield after being dropped in San Carlos Settlement and being told to make my way to Ajax Bay where the Scots Guards were holed up waiting for news of when they'd be going home. Didn't know about the minefield until my legs were kicked from under me and a soldier pointed his weapon at my head as he thought I was an Argentinian deserter. I told him that I'd been walking from San Carlos for the last 6 hours and he told me it was impossible as it was mined all the way. He would have been quite happy to shoot me as he was wired having gone through the hell of Tumbledown not long before. Eventually he pulled my ID card out of my pocket and began to believe me. We shared a bottle of rum that night and talked about what might have been!

Last Sunday I discovered that I was getting a medal for something I did in the Royal Navy over 38 years ago. Today I discovered that I am now a 'Lexus Enthusiast' instead of an 'Advanced Member'. Not sure I can take any more of this benevolence, my wife will be bringing me breakfast in bed next! My question is, what is the forum advanced, enthusiast thing? Does it change with time on the forum? What are the stages? I'm baffled.

So a few more updates Ive asked the Lexus dealer to postpone until March 1st so I can get it on the 21 plate. Additionally, Ive been looking for insurance on the UX300e. Its bloody cheaper than the IS300h at £455 🤣🤣🤣 No idea how they work that out lol

See here.. (It can depend on how one counts the speakers as some are double cone units..) https://www.marklevinson.com/in-lexus.html#es

YouTube video thing 😁

There were no engine/drivetrain changes on the series IV RX between MY16 and MY17. In fact the only material change on the 2017 (built from Aug/Sept 2016) over the launch specification was an automated braking function added to the Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Intelligent Parking Sensors system.

Hi Ken Much appreciated just checked these sites and got the required information Regards Gordon

Started the car, the warning is still there and checked also the shutters, they are in open position, good I guess. Will wait for a better weather to get under there as it looks like i need to remove engine lower/bottom cover to get access to shutters to clean them and check all the electrical connections.

The engine was updated for the RX4 late 2016/early 2017 which gave it a few extra ponies going from 297BHP to 305BHP or thereabouts. The newer version is also slightly larger and as it uses the same hybrid train as the older one, one assumes that with slight engine tweaks and the larger size it may also have been a little heavier than the outgoing 2016 RX3 model which had a max kerb weight of 2200Kg in Premium trim. It was 2017 that Lexus amended their fuel consumption figures, not that they were really much different to the outgoing model which claimed way optimistic fuel economy. Lexus released figures which amended earlier 54mpg claims back to 44mpg which some, with a following wind on the flat, claimed they could just about achieve although real world for mixed driving remains low to mid 30's. The higher CO2 would be a cost at a guess of the larger vehicle but with revised RX4 models claiming improvements over the outgoing RX3 in this area, not a lot of that makes sense. There is little real world performance difference between RX3 and RX4 models. Tests were conducted using the RX3 F-sport which was measured at 6.8 seconds 0-60mph and a standing 1/4 mile of 15.1 seconds. Lexus claimed I think closer to 8.5 seconds. The RX4 is claimed to be 7.7 seconds and was tested at about 7 seconds. Take all of this with a pinch of salt as the output such tests are HIGHLY dependant upon the fuel used and the altitude at which these tests were conducted so they could vary by a second and a half either way depending on where in the world you are and on the octane rating of the fuel used. Suffice to say for a large barge using a modest 247-250 BHP V6 with electric motor assistance, they are sprightly enough although due to the combined torque figures (note, these have never been released to my knowledge....quoted torque I think is for the gas engine only, although I may be mistaken on this) not in the same league as some of the competition as that is not what they are all about. Refinement and comfort over longer journeys is their forte, not high performance.

If you drill a hole in the shaft of the strut, when you close the bonnet that hole will enter the body of the strut and the oil and pressurised nitrogen will escape and then you will be trying to lift a 100+Kg Lexus bonnet unassisted. I'd recommend to order the cheap struts linked above, order the balls also linked above and you'll have a nice air-assisted bonnet that stays put again. Total cost £27 and 30 minutes.

Richard, After attention by Lexus my radio was code-free. The battery was changed many times - I had a fault I never found which flattened the battery. I carried a spare and got very fast at swapping it in. John

Yes, the designers seem to have thought of every eventuality. Whilst I'm sure that there is no maintenance required for the system, what would happen if some road debris got caught in it (straw, vegetation etc.)? The 'dealer' way, with no disrespect meant to them, is to replace a mechanism with new, so as to minimise the likelihood of the fault reoccurring, but I suspect that a thorough clean of the pivots and levers may well be enough to revive the existing one. This forum is not the place to emphasize how reliable Japanese mechanisms of this type normally are - I can't help thinking a 'foreign body' has hindered its movement somehow.

Hi John, thanks for the link, yes I have seen it, what a clever system it is! Tbh I didn't even know the GS has active grille shutters! The last car I had this system (manual operation though) on was Soviet car Volga GAZ 24! Anyway, will be keeping my eye on this item as I am waiting for a better weather! 🙂

Twas just a thought I had over breakfast matey.

Hi, The Toyota Prius 4th gen. (2016 onwards) all have 'active grille shuttering', so there might be some of their mechanisms in the breaker's yards, perhaps with some commonality with regards to motor drive mechanism. I've never heard of a problem with theirs, so the used spare parts might be cheap. If your grille follows this Toyota convention in the video below, then it seems it could be checked for functionality fairly easily.

No problem Barry, I really only know battery basics compared to some out there so I will watch your video with interest! As Herbie mentioned above the LED lights are pretty efficient, I'm not sure what the power rating of the LED units is but I would guess at 5-10watts each, so 10-20watts total, which is a total current draw of between .8 and 1.6 amps which given the capacity of your HV battery is not an issue. The charge controller will account for this so other than the occasional helpful neighbor it shouldn't be a problem. I'm not familiar with the 450h but I wouldn't be surprised if there was a fuse you could temporarily pull while building work is going on and its parked? Good luck with the building chaos, we've had scaffolding up since 4th Jan for a 1 week job - then all the roofers caught covid 🤦‍♂️ And PS - don't let the engineer bit fool you I get plenty wrong - met many non qualified engineers whos knowledge has humbled me.

So...... I got one! 😁

@ColinBarber thanks for the useful info. After finding nothing obvious in the dash I removed the camera. I wasn't expecting to find anything as the issue seemed to disappear after hitting the dash so I was convinced the problem was upfront. Anyway, the camera had aluminium oxide all over it. I pulled it apart (had to drill out some of the screws) and noticed that the two circuit boards inside the camera came apart really easily. Almost fell apart. They joint with a electrical connection thing. On reassembly the two boards clipped together much more positively. Aluminium oxide doesn't conduct electricity, but maybe it forced some of the components apart? Not sure. Anyway, so far it's worked perfectly since and not a penny spent. Always happy with that type of result. It's been a week now so pretty confident it's sorted. Thanks again.

That's correct Barry. They're LEDs so will take very little current, so little as to be negligible in this context.

Nice post Keith, containing good sensible and wise advice. Many thanks.

Stuart, I had a 98 model. The radio was coded and it lost its code one dark night in the wilds of Warwickshire when the battery died and had to be replaced without the benefit of keeping the power to the radio. Nobody had recorded the code in the manual and the previous owner could not help. The specialists who can deal with code locked radios said this was one they could not do. After an exchange of letters with Lexus HQ the service manager from Lexus Oxford came to my house (suit and LS) to remove the radio to take it to be fixed. After a week or so I drove to the dealer for it to be refitted. They said they would send an invoice but never did. I don't know if the service manager agreed with me that it was silly of Lexus not keep a record of codes to cover this not unlikely event of code loss or if it was a real administrative oversight. Whatever much better PR the Lexus HQ. John

Same colour as my old one!

There is also a guy Lawler on LW site who has manual for prefacelift model in PDf and for a small donation to charity may give uyou a copy . allthe torque settigs will be the same . as 2005

A pipe clip as well, very pro! Looks like a neat job even down to the PTFE tape. No need to turn off the water to re-align it, slacken the compression nut slightly with a cloth underneath, re-align and tighten 🙂

So you've all been on tenterhooks wondering how I got on.... I've just finished. From this: to this: The eagle eyed among you will notice that the new tap is not entirely vertical. This is because it leaked slightly when I turned the water back on and I had to tighten the nut on the tap (I should have got the stilsons or pipe spanner thing on the tap body - note to self, more haste less speed next time laddie!). I will check again later, and if there are no leaks, depending upon how many Brave Pills I have left (I got through a lot this morning) I may attempt to straighten it. If it works though, I may leave it and let purpose triumph over aesthetics. The tap does turn on and off by the way :-) Thanks everyone for your advice and as long as there are no puddles in the cupboard later, I shall treat myself to a very large glass of wine tonight!

Lead acid and AGM self regulate. That means that if you charge with a constant voltage, regardless of set current when the battery approaches full charge it will draw less and less current. The float voltage of AGM is 13.6V, while lead acid (wet) is 13.4 this takes a lead acid upto 2.26v per cell which is permissible and within spec for most (all?). The absorption voltage (which is the maximum charge voltage) is 14.7 for AGM and 14.8 for standard lead acid which is also so similar so as not to be an issue. The float voltage should be adjusted according to battery temperature. Flooded lead acid batteries are relatively indifferent to higher temperature charging, thats why the majority of old tech cars do not have a temperature sensor on the battery while most agm equipped cars will. An agm battery requires the float voltage to be lowered more than a fla for every extra degree in temperature. AGM batteries come with a maximum charge current recommendation, this is typically 0.2C-0.3C, so 0.2 x capacity, fla batteries are less intolerant of charge current and can often be charged at 1C (if not more) without damage. An overcharged fla battery will vent and require 'topping up' so one of big (marketed) advantage of an agm is that it is maintenance free. Regular cars will simply charge their batteries at 14.4V forever, this poses no real issue to a fla other than the need to very occasionally add distilled water, since an agm is sealed and cannot be maintained this 14.4 (2.4/cell) at some point may represent an overcharge - most information simply states that overcharging an AGM will dramatically shorten its life, likely because they have a pressure relief and so vent which means lost electrolyte(?) The charge system in an AGM equipped Toyota/Lexus will likely be doing a number of things. It will charge the battery to absorption voltage and then drop charge voltage to float voltage (where it will be maintained) these values will be altered depending upon battery temp (hence the additional sensor). Above a certain voltage charging will be indefinitely halted. The maximum charge current will be limited since a flat or low voltage lead acid of any type will draw a lot of current, enough that the electrolyte can boil, not such an issue if they vent and can be topped up - incidentally the gassing voltage for fla is 14.4V at 25deg C, at higher temps the gassing voltage is lower. The gas is hydrogen which is explosive at concentrations of over 4%, a normal cause of battery explosion is a single low (fluid) cell, the cell fills with hydrogen and at some point explodes. The other gas emitted by overcharge is hydrogen sulfide which is both explosive and toxic - filling up a car with that would be bad and likely another consideration for using an agm when the battery is located within the car. So from that blurb. You should NOT charge an AGM type lead acid using a regular charger (unless you know what your doing a little) OR install an AGM in a car which usually has a regular flooded/wet battery, the battery maybe overcharged which will at best shorten its life. You CAN install a flooded lead acid where an AGM has previously been used because the charging method is compatible this way round. AGM is maintenance free, a non sealed flooded battery is not. An AGM is able to be deep cycled to 80% without damage, a wet lead acid can be deep cycled to 50% without damage, an AGM has a lower self discharge rate (so can be left for longer with needing to be charged) I believe around half that of FLA. So another consideration when installing a FLA where an AGM previously was fitted is that you do not allow the car to sit idle for long periods otherwise you will shorten the life of your new battery. Apparently an AGM can accept charge faster than a FLA however I dispute that due to the fact that the don't like high charge currents but I'll leave that for others who know more. On the bench an AGM is technically 'better' in practice with this application I do not believe it is so clear cut. Thats charging covered, Now the biggest advantage an agm has, and possibly a very big tick in their favor for an OEM - They can be shipped as non hazardous goods and require no paperwork. Health and safety I'll leave to others. PS - apologies for interchanging terms so much, its late and I can't be bothered to go back and correct it all, maybe a few typos too so please forgive me. AGM - Absorbent glass mat FLA - Flooded lead acid WET - Flooded lead acid

I doubt it would work in that sort of way like a switch, ie, either wet or AGM. Irrespective of chemistry and construction, as a battery ages it will present different characteristics to the charging circuits (or I would think so anyway) so I would expect the electronics of the DC/DC converter to be intelligent enough see what it's dealing with and to act accordingly, automatically.

My latest lockdown mod split and paint the internal doors in the fog lights black very easy to do and I think it looks great!

I think it did and I bet scary maintenance too .... the 3ltr version was the simple BMC engine .... like the Wolseley 6/110 .............. the driving school I learnt with about 95% of the time was on an Austin 1100 .... the key to clutch engagement was the bonnet rising slightly the instructor told me Malc

OK now let me put your issue into perspective After a couple of weeks laid - up and being drenched by stormy weather, the old gal was fine going to hospital to pick up my partner ............... BUT towards the exit on the M2 in pouring torrential rain and lorry spray etc the wipers just STOPPED upright on the screen, dash lights vanished and blower stopped radio and headlights still working ..... what to do ...... carried on, off at the exit and by now the power steering was a little stiff on the junction, lights, roundabout etc ............ got to the hospital car park ok, challenging manouvering to park facing outwards ........ leave the engine running tho windows don't work but radio and aerial up&down does, so I turned off that battery drain ................... Call RAC Breakdown and Recovery ... they say about 30 mins ....... BRILLIANT....... maybe an hour later the RAC guy calls to tell me he's around the corner when WHOOOAH ............. the wipers start to work, dash lights appear and all seems normal ........... what a relief .... the RAC guy is still coming thankfully ......... puts his meters and computer all over everything and can't find anything wrong at all ............. telling me that if it hadn't self-healed he would have a better chance of finding the issue ..... thinking it might be a bad earth somewhere ( under the car -----in the pouring rain ! ) or just damp in there somewhere ............. telling me all the time that Ls400s never break down and I'm the highest car mileage he's been out to for a very long time ..... 232k miles All this while liaising with my indy mechanic who tells me we replaced the alternator on 6th January last year ( at 228k miles on original with the car ? ) and maybe the alternator belt had slipped off .... new belt then too ............... So I guess it was a damp issue from being effectively moribund for a while ... then driving thru' torrential stormy weather ...... thankfully the often understated " self-healing" took place Nowt wrong nor on-going I hope ....... let's see, she's going to be almost moribund for a while yet too ... no more hospital appts etc for a while Malc

According to this, our cars have some sort of active venting system? If so, I would have a look and make sure nothing is stuck in there.

We tend to take the lights a bit for granted and sometimes forget the actual purpose of them. The whole reason for the battery light to exist is to indicate that the battery is not being charged. Any time that light comes on, the battery is not being charged It's also worth noting that once the engine has fired and is running, the alternator takes the job of supplying the entire electrical demand of the car and also charging the battery and keeping it topped up. The fact that the battery light is on and the wipers are slower than normal is telling you that the alternator is failing. It could be as simple as the brushes need replacing or it could be more involved, but it's definitely not a happy little alternator.

Sun & planets like the Prius & the Auris hybrid. Hence no clutches or gear changes to go wrong.

You don't need it anyway because the fuse box has a lid so nothing can touch the terminal with the lid in place. Also, there is usually another terminal in close proximity that also has a permanent positive feed on it but has no red cover, just like the one in the photo below that I tapped into:

Things are coming along quite nicely. Service items done (oil, filter, air filter, plugs), usual Saab electrical gremlins largely sorted, paintwork given a little bit of attention, wheels refurb'd, vacuum hoses changed, throttle body cleaned etc etc. Still plenty to do though.

Had an interesting 23 years and friends tell me I should write a book but I might have left it a bit late. Every now and again I get reminded of another adventure that I've forgotten but too many of them include ladies and are not for the faint hearted 🤣🤣

Yep, Falklands related, was on a carrier for the duration but half way home I was detoured back down there to help with mine and ordnance clearance as I had previous experience. Never wanted to go back there again but someone, somewhere had other ideas and I went back another 3 times including six months in the Antarctic. Too many stories, too little time. I'd left the navy by the time the medal was awarded so didn't get the memo and the MoD was too tight to buy a stamp! Thanks for the info regarding the posts 👍

The service plans are good as the prices tend to go up every year and you beat inflation with the plan I havent bought an extended warranty for any Lexus yet and Ive had a few - no issues to date.

I`ve a 10 year Service Plan on my GS (not available now) at £34 per month fixed and interest free. A No- Brainer. And I`ve had the Lexus Extended Warranty too ( for 6 years)with many benefits like 2 free M.O.T`s and AA Membership covering you in any vehicle, and interest free. Again A No -brainer. Do a search on the Forum for both these items.

Chosen the Registration plate for the UX yesterday - I amused myself because Ive convinced myself it says O-zone xx70ZNE I mean itll be coming off to make way for the private number plate anyway so I wasnt too fussed. I need to get more information from the salesman about the Lexus charging point - for the time being Ill just use the 3 pin socket or a supermarket charger as its a second car Looking into ceramic coatings and leather coatings as well now that its nearly on the way, although I probably wont get to do this until atleast easter time I think Ill probably be selling the IS300h privately when the time comes. Its only done 19k miles and had 7 Lexus dealer services so would make a bargain for someone.

Perhaps too late to be of any help, but... When our car was serviced in late summer they said one of the rear shocks needed replacing (2015 GS Premier with AVS), at a cost of over £400. We had it done, and afterwards the "floatiness" that I complained about above was largely gone, so it could be that.