HASSELBLAD

Mike, be assured there is NO problem at all towing with the RX400h .

Anyone who tells you differently has never driven such a rig!

My Post above was absolutely true.

I now have an RX 450h and it continues the Lexus tradition of quality, refinement and utter reliability.

We have, thank God, just got rid of our Range Rover.......... three years of awful reliability and appalling mpg! Never again!

I bought my 450h from another dealership.....but Guildford has been excellent

I also bought my IS250C from yet another dealership....and Guildford has been great.

Colin Searle runs an honest outfit there and the General Manager, Wendy Preston, sets a first class example to the whole company.

I was quoted in excess of £1300
Do not go for a cheap alternative........there isn't one that does the job properly. The wiring is real problem with cables going right back to the computer in the front end.

If you have a Lexus warranty, get a written statement that a non Lexus bar is covered.....I couldn't.

Also, if you have air suspension, only one bar fits from third parties and that worked out to be nearly as expensive as the official Lexus one.

If you do go for a Lexus fit, Guildford are excellent and have done this fit before...so they know what the problems are.

Remember, when you sell the car, a bar will be a real negative on a luxury car and whatever you pay for it goes when the car goes.

I calculated that a dedicated but older tow car would be a better bet and it gave the advantage of a second car.

It is a problem area but Colin Searle will tell you the truth.

That sounds good, Mike.

We got stuck in a serious accident last week. Stationary, crawling along, queuing for nearly an hour and yet over the 70 mile trip we averaged 37mpg.

Don't know how to help on the ride question......I always set my pressures well down to book minimum and on air suspension find the ride is very acceptable and far better than an X5 we had. Maybe you should reduce them a bit each week until you are happy and then check mpg whilst keeping a monitor on tyre edge wear?

On my 400h I didn't find that one or two psi affected mpg or wear at all.

You might find that rear pressures are the more dominant factor.

It's all in the wheels and Tyres.

Check for the lowest recommended pressures and set to no more than that.

Always better on smallest wheels and highest sidewalls.

Hi Mike, good to hear that you are enjoying your new RX450h.A truly excellent choice, in my opinion.

If you are exploring the mpg potential, perhaps a quick read of my posting 'Lies, damned lies.....' to another member (who used to live in Haselmere) will help in someway to get the best out of this beast. I would guess, however, that after five years with a 400h that you are more than capable already.

Ours continues to be a dream! Absolutely no problems of any nature and is now going like a bat out of hell! Mind you, we don't get 55mpg when clogging it!

I was going to have a Lexus towing system fitted to this new car (we had one on the 400h) but the price is prohibitive and the towbar vanishes with the car when we sell it! So, we bought a low mileage Honda CRV already fitted with a bar. Good little 4X4 but the difference when compared to the 450h is remarkable. We only get 30 mpg running solo and sub 20 pulling our trailer. The lack of performance is most marked and the refinement totally incomparable. And it is a much smaller car altogether. Mind you, compared with the Freelander that comes visiting us every week, it is a real dream!

Our 'new' Range Rover is still a pig, with awful reliability, shocking mpg and frankly a bit of a waste of time. It will be going soon!

I also bought a 'new' IS250C from Lexus and am surprised with that too. Very refined and in spite of running on low profile tyres it is realy very smooth and tranquil. Without a shadow of a doubt, it rides far better than my Bentley Continentals ever did and makes my son's new Aston feel as harsh as an old cart!

However, there is no way that it can match the 450h for mpg.

I don't think that Sussex breeds good reliability or mpg! We took the car to the Lake District for a week and its mpg up and down much bigger hills than we have in the South Downs Park, was astonishing. On the Motoway trip going up there, we only did 31mpg but once there, the average was 42mpg. Admittedly it was leisrely motoring but it all adds up.

How is your insurance? I have a deal for a Multicar policy with Aviva and for the 450h, the Honda 4x4 and the IS250C I am paying just over £500. Given that the two Lexii (the Japanese insist that is the plural!) are very high group rated, that doesn't seem too bad.

Keep enjoying that hybrid.

I have an IS250C and it is fitted with a pump/sealant for repairable punctures.

Is a Spacesaver available? If it is, do I also need a new boot floor cover?

There is a properly shaped boot well for a wheel but with the roof down, there is very little clearance.

Local Lexus dealership is 'all at sea' on this one! Claims there is no easy answer and is referring to Japan.

Well, I have mine now.

A genuine Lexus supplied wheel and tyre fully fitted into the well and covered with a polished aluminium fully customised boot floor plate (even has an IS250C logo ) and the whole lot overlaid with a quality fitted carpet, made to my own template.

Really does look the part and true Lexus quality.

What is it about a Lexus that makes them so much better than the rest? Today I borrowed a friends 05 plate BMW X5. He said "When you've driven it you won't want to go back to your Lexus" My LS is 6 years older than his X5 but apart from the price difference there's no way I would swop. It just doesn't compare. I know it's a different type of vehicle and all that but the quality just wasn't the same. And the LS equipment much much better. Glad of the experience though, it's made me appreciate what I've got more.

I was however very grateful for the loan!

Phil

WELL,I DID and I DID!

Any one had this problem? I was on holiday in Spain driving on the motorway doing 70-80 mph when vehicle lost all power. Luckily no one was injured I had 3 kids and partner in vehicle at time. Vehicle started again and drove for short distance and cut off again and displayed hybrid system fault. Had vehicle towed to Lexus dealers in Spain who diagnosed fault as hybrid converter and repair bill of 6000!! Absolutely gutted don't know what to do, would really appreciate help, advice,

Well, I hope I am not raising false hopes BUT exactly the same fault arose on my 2008 RX400h.

Took it to Lexus Guildford who recognised the condition-----NOT as a Hybrid fault------but simply a standard 12 volt Battery intermittency. Lexus had already issued a 'new' bigger capacity Battery and that is what was fitted. Free of any charge.

We kept the car for another three years and it never occured again!

Over to you?

Hi Richard,

You make some important comments and your reference to other makes of vehicle are very useful.

I cannot get my 450 down to 24mpg and my 400 did better than that with a 1.5 ton trailer on. Nevertheless, I can imagine conditions ,as you describe, where such low figures do arise.

I find comparisons very valid and the poor figures you mention for other 4X4s, so be it smaller and lighter, are a great guide. We have a new petrol Range Rover and it is into single figures during cold weather and on short stop start runs! Our almost new diesel Defender is better but not by that much!

Our diesel Discoveries were disastrous and at motorway speeds real guzzlers.

There is no doubt that a well driven hybrid is considerably better than a SIMILAR vehicle. I note that Mercedes has now followed Toyota/Lexus with a hybrid 300 car and estate.

Sorry you are having some sort of difficulty with your local franchise. You are too far away to use Lexus Guildford but they are truly superb. Colin Searle is THE man and he doesn't give you any bull! Just first class service and straight from the shoulder advice. He is delightfull.

Enjoy your motoring

I've just bought a RX400h (after having owned an RX300 for 8 years of its 12 years of life, without a single incident or breakdown), where can I find out about the 'hybrid driving technique' referred to earlier in this topic. I changed to a 400h because of the poor fuel economy of the 300.

Hi,

To find a bit of help, do the following.

1. Go to the Home page for the RX300/RX400h/RX450h Forum.

2. Scroll to the bottom of page 1 and find page 5 (I think it is on page 5).

3. Go to the Heading....'Lies, damned lies etc' submitted by Allister.

4. Go to page two of the Replies and scroll to the first HASSELBLAD reply.

5. Read on from there to the end.

That is about the RX450h but nearly all of it applies to the 400h too. My 400h was excellent and my 450h even better. With coarse, slow diesels I used to get 26mpg and with our much nicer Range Rover petrol we get 17mpg.

The notes referred to are not exhaustive but hopefully they will help a little in showing how a hybrid genuinely can give very impressive mpg.

We're getting 30mpg on average from our 450h. That's over 10,000 miles on a mixture of motorway and urban - and driving carefully. We did slightly better with the 400h. We're disappointed with the mpg based on the hype at the showroom when we bought it. They said we should get at least 34mpg. Is anybody getting that or is it an urban myth?

Hi, no it's not a myth at all.

I can get anything between 28 and 55 mpg average on the same run of around 100 miles.I have a running average of 34mpg for cross country use over the last four months.

Given that the car is in excllent condition and that the tyre pressures are correct, then it is all down to driving methods.

The 450h does have a TOTALLY different engine to the 400h ( it is an Atkinson cycle engine as opposed to an Otto cycle unit) but we found that it was only 1/2 mpg better in most conditions. Having said that, I never got such very high mpg figures on long cross country runs as the 450h returns.

Over the same terrain, our Range Rover does 17mpg and is not as quick. It also makes far too many trips to the dealership for repair work!

Our 400h went 5 years without a single problem and the new 450h seems to be going the same way.

hello

I am considering buying a RX 450h spring of next year and am just wondering if the mpg in people's cars

are still around the 30mpg.

thanks

Hi Jason, These FULL hybrids are , as mentioned by others, quite remarkable. However, to maximise mpg you do need to understand the car and how to drive it in order to get into the higher 30's.

Take a look at what I suggested in response to 'Ltes, lies and....' a few weeks back on the RX450h forum.

My own 450h is typical but is not a lot different to my 400h. Trogging around (10 mile trips) about 32mpg. Longer runs 34/35mpg and on long cross country up to 55.1mpg ( yes, 55.1 mpg). It is all in your comtrol! Motorway averages also benefit from the hybrid system ( everytime you take your foot off the accelerator, energy piles back into the battery for free) and on a 300 mile very quick trip we averaged 32mpg.

Our newish Range Rover (petrol) does 17mpg and our diesel Discovery ( awfully coarse and slow compared with the 450h!) did 27mpg.

Tyre pressures are very important (no surprise there) but after that it is down to using the hybrid system intelligently.

Jason

Hi,

We have just bought an '08 RX400h at the beginning of Jan. Since then on urban driving we are getting average MPG figures of somewhere between 14 and 21 mpg. We have owned the RX 300 and we used to get 21-23mpg so we are really baffled by this. I took a note of the mileage just to check back and we did 280 miles on a full tank till the fuel light came on. Using my calculations, a full tank is 17 gallons so maybe a 2 of that is in reserve. So that would be 280 miles on 15 gallons which is 18.6 average which checks back to the figures the car is giving me. I understand that when it is cold (as it has been recently) then it can use more, and that we live up a steep hill, but surely the braking on the way down should regenerate enough power to help.

Is anyone else getting such poor MPG on their car, I'm just worried that there is a fault with the hybrid system and we only have 2 more months on the warranty.

That is simply appalling and something is very wrong.

I sold my 2008 RX400h last October and it had NEVER averaged under 31mpg in 5 years of ownership. On non Motorway 100 mile trips, it readily reached 39mpg and if I put my mind to it and used the hybrid system to best effect, 42 mpg was always there for the taking. I used to get 26mpg dragging a one ton Ifor williams trailer!

Take it straight back to the seller=======lots of things could be wrong and maybe your hybrid energy retrieval system is just not functioning. If you need help ( and it sure sounds like you do) go to Lexus at Guildford and ask for Colin Searle. He's a man who knows what he's talking about.

Assuming that you already know how to get the best out of a Hybrid, check engine condition,tyres, brakes, handbrake, exhaust recirculation system etc, as for any car. Check how far the car will run just on its fully charged high voltage Battery. Watch the display to ensure the traction Battery is being charged up and that the SAME level of charge is there the next morning.

I assure you, far better consumption is achievable.

Good luck and take a peep at my earlier exchanges(late 2012) on the RX450h.They might help.

My one year old RX450h is averaging a genuine 32mpg at the moment and has logged (still on the display) a best 120 mile trip of 55.1mpg.

Your 33.4mpg is good and compared with many non-hybrid cars, it is excellent.

The reason for the wide variance in consumption figures has been explained on the Forum many times but one unrecognised major reason, is that of how the Hybrid works.

If you simply charge everywhere and slam the brakes on hard, you will be little more than a 3 litre+ petrol car. Still a lot more economical than a petrol Range Rover or Discovery (15 to 20 mpg) but way off what a Hybrid can really achieve.

Use the 'scavenging' abilities of the 400h and 450h and you can, on the right roads, get double the best from non Hybrid cars of a similar size and spec.

The choice is yours.

Some might say that they bought the Lexus to enjoy it and that is valid enough. But once bought, the major 'controllable' expense is petrol. For a great many drivers that is very important and the reason why it is well worth fully understanding and then exploiting what the Lexus Hybrid has to offer.

I can get remarkable mpg figures out of mine! I am delighted.

Happy with my 400h. I just did a 300 mile foggy trip from Surrey Hills/Hog's Back to Snape/Aldeburgh - Round trip 300 miles via blocked Dartford Tunnel/A3 Guildford and took

5 hours and 45 min, 70/80+'s at times and i see my mileage is 32.2 mpg on regular unleaded @52+ mph average. I also have quite a bit of petrol left in the tank.

Sat Nav warned me of traffic blocks well in advance and Audrey Hepburn or whoever was offering guidance did not intrude. Happy with my first longish run in a 55 SE- L model

with full service history. Shame the 450h Head up display isn't a retro fit.....

That sounds pretty good to me and not untypical of a large hybrid. Your average speed speaks for itself.

When I took our diesel Discovery on a run up to the Lake District we averaged 26 and it perfomred like a lump of lard!

By the way, if you're tired of Audrey Hepburn, I'll have her in my dashboard anytime---just say the word (I am right on your doorstep and I have a spanner!)

I never drove the rx 400h but I bought two months ago a 450h premier and i must say that I am very pleased with this car, I really love it. I used to have performance cars (BMW and more recently Porsche) and I can see the philosophy of driving a Lexus antage hybrid. Driving in eco mode is a pleasure. Of course it is not as powerful as a Porsche or BMW but that is not its purpose

You are so right.

It is ALWAYS the RX that vanishes off our drive and much more exotic machinery is simply left to rot!

The hydrid system and particularly the HUD in the Premier makes it just so delightfully easy to drive. I certainly do not miss my Bentley GTs one little bit. And I am being truly serious.

The RX450 also lacks rear wash/wipe although it would be interesting to know if it is needed. It certainly is on the RX400.

Hi Duncan, Where did you get that one from? The RX450h does have rear wash/wipe

What 450h have you got? I think you should take it back and get a refund?

I recently had an RX450h for a week after someone drove into my car in my client's office car park. I was expecting to find the RX450h better in lots of small ways but oddly found that my RX400h seems better in some ways. There were a few missed opportunities on the RX450h design too like the omission of he driving mode dial used on the CT200h. Here's what I thought in case anyone is contemplating the move up from 400 to 450. I'm not so keen now. Will probably keep my 400 longer.

Against RX450h

Styling boring (but smart) compared with RX400h.

Slower!

Quieter, which is kind of nice but I like the sound of the RX400 when pushed hard.

Eco mode on/off fiddly on steering wheel button. Why wasn’t CT200h style dial used?

Prefer RX400h touch screen over new mouse style navigation.

No audio display if audio not selected on touch screen.

Passenger temp buttons hard to find because of swept dashboard styling.

Display changing on set cruise control is a pain.

Is there a folder up/down button for MP3s?

No wired aux in?

No sunroof

For RX450h

Pool lights

Keyless entry and smart start

Auto fold in/out wing mirrors

Seat moving in/out on seat belt/start

Quieter

Smoother

LED interior lights

Reversing sensors with camera

3d sat nav view nice

Bluetooth connection for MP3s

Slightly better economy (30ish vs 28ish)

Bigger boot

Single rear mat covers centre of floor

Bottle holders in front door pockets

Perhaps concentrating on Facts and not simply expressing opinions could be more fruitful.

1. The Rx450h does,of course, have a sunroof. It actually has a choice of two types. You just have to choose the model and/or option.

2. The RX450h also offers ACC

3. The RX450h also offers PCS (which has given me an Insurance reduction).

4. The RX450h also offers HUD, which is one of the most relaxing and useful features I have found.

5. The Rx450h is considerably more economical in certain road conditions and never less than 10% better.

6. Measured on a Race Logic data logger, both versions gave 7.2 for 0-60. The 450h does it with such aplomb that it seems slower.

7. There is a rocker switch just in front of the joystick for selecting files or scaling the sat nav map.

8. The rear seats in the RX450h both slide and recline.

9. The spare wheel is inboard so does not become a heaving filthy mess and cannot be thieved with a pair of bolt cutters.

10.The RX450h uses an Atkinson cycle engine and allows for much lower CO2 emmissions, which offers a much reduced VED.

I could go on but those are SOME of the facts and not my opinions.

Out of interest what is the significance of the 'spindle grille'?

Hi there, only a personal one.

I never quote actual figures or make comments on a car that I have not had detailed experience with.

My RX is not a 'spindle grille' and whilst Lexus say there are only very minor cosmetic differences, I prefer not to assume that the cars are mechanically identical.It does,however, seem that they are.

I did use a 'spindle' F Sport for a day and clocked up a goodly mileage and still averaged 36mpg----------so, it does seem that Lexus is, as ever, telling the truth.

No more than that but many thanks for asking.

I wonder... would you also expect a noticeable difference in consumption depending on the type of unleaded used?

Hi Dan,

I have only ever used regular 95 Ron in my 400h and now my 450h. My 400h was at least 10% less economical than the 450h and in some road conditions it was returning considerably less. Nevertheless, for its size and performance it was excellent!

The 450h is a larger car but does enjoy some very significant energy saving design improvements. I find they work admirably but you are not the first to have difficulty exploiting them.

I still suspect that your car is failing somewhere and I would check on a rolling road for overall performance and then have Lexus confirm the two start up systems are definitely doing their job. The 400h did not have these.

I have just come in after a 110 mile trip at mostly very busy motorway speeds, heavy commuter traffic and quite a bit of stop/go queing.I still averaged 35mpg and that is quite poor for this car. My tyres are at 35psi cold and it was 95 RON fuel.

Have you checked your computer? My 450h reads 1mpg high and my 400h was 1.5mpg high. They can also read low.

You didn't say if your car has a 'spindle' grill? If not, then all the above is valid.

I've had five RX's over the years and generally more than happy. I did have a dicky 350 (bad fuel consumption <20mpg) and ended up trading it in for a 400h after three months which served me very well for 85k and five years.

I bought a new 450H on the basis on better consumption and more power. However it is averaging 30.8mpg over 10k against the 400h 's 32mpg despite being driven with carpet slippers.

The garage don't know what to do about and seem to think this is a common problem. On top of that it is much slower , apparently down to the rebalancing of power between front and rear axles which avoids a steering problem with the 400h.

All in all I am quite dissatisfied with the situation, especially as I still have access to the 400H and it continues to delight. Any solutions??

Hi there, It does seem quite strange and I would be suspicious of what the dealership is saying.

Assuming that you have cleared extra weight, tyre pressures, types of petrol and your computer accuracy out of the way.

My 400h was definitely poorer on economy than my 450h.and by quite a bit!

It is true that by changing axle loadings during hard acceleration that the 'twitch' of the 400h has been eliminated but there is no performance degradation. My Race Logic data logger puts both cars at almost spot on 7.2 secs up to 60.

There are a couple of genuine enhancements on the Atkinson cycle engine (the 400h is on an Otto cycle unit) that help considerably with consumption and particularly so in cold weather. One bleeds a little hot exhaust gas into the mixture during warm up and the other uses exhaust heat to warm the engine block up quickly.

If one or both of these are malfuntioning then your mpg would suffer.

Otherwise, have the car checked for BHP on a four wheel drive rolling road and see if it satisfies the near 290bhp claimed.

One small question, is your car the 450h with the 'spindle' grill?

Hi Allister, yes you got a good deal.

Lexus Guidford may not be the best priced for new/newish cars, as they enjoy an excellent trade due to being virtually in London commuter country. Not having to pay the Congestion charge can be worth some £12000 if you keep the car just three years.

I bought my RX from Lexus Derby and my IS250C from Lexus Leicester. They had the right prices for the right cars.

However, I use Guildford for absolutely everything else. Their service team is without flaw and fabulously LED by Colin Searle. He is the best Service manager that I have ever met...and eclipses Bentley, Mercedes, Jaguar, Range Rover and BMW offerings with ease. A great guy.

They also have a splendid sales team and a very proffessional support facility, all LED by a quality setting Wendy Preston. After five years, I have yet to have anything at all to moan about and believe me, I love to moan!

I've not used the Hinhead tunnel yet but it does sound to be a huge improvement.

Now, as for feeling 90............!!!!! My Dad is well over 90! He now lives alone, cleans, washes, prepares his meals and looks after his third of an acre garden. He is sharp, argumentative based on factual data and can hold his own in most age groups. He uses the Internet constantly and runs all his financial services on it.

He also still drives and drives well!

So, choose another reference point, young man.

Take care

Cliff

Hello Allister,

No, 35 psi is not a problem. I am running at about that pressure too.

If you want to get every last bit of mlleage from a gallon, then the higher pressure will help but it is much more important to get the driving style right.

Today, Lexus Guildford lent me a new petrol GS250. I really could not squeeze any more than 26/27 mpg out of it. Having picked my RX up in the afternoon, I readily did 38mpg over the self same 50 miles!

I have been passing Haslemere all day long!

I remain delighted.

By the way, sorry to hear that you have been in hospital and I do hope you are now well.

Best regards,

Cliff

l have a '59 reg SE-I at 32k mls and the rear nearside seat has developed an annoying rattle which is noticeable on all but the smoothest of surfaces (and there are not many of those left given the state of our roads!).

I can see the seat juddering in my rear view mirror when I am on my own in the car although obvioulsy not when one of the kids is sitting on it. I know the Lexus is extremely quiet anyway which means the rattle/judder is all the more annoying and more reminiscent of driving an old van. If I get hold of the seat and give it a good tug there does not seem to be any movement in it until I am on the move.

Lexus have looked at it and say they have repacked the bolts and also fed the leather (!) saying it might be the leather creaking but all to no avail. To be fair they have obviously given it a go and given me a loan 2012 equivalent for the day which was eerily silent compared to mine.

Has anyone else started to have this problem two or three years in or should I just put it down to the car entering mid life when rattles tend to appear?

Thanks

Michael

This may not be your solution, Michael but it worked for me.

The rear seats both slide and recline.

Set both adjustments so that you are NOT at the limit of either. In other words, the mechanism is in an intermediate slot-----these seem to be tighter than the full extension slots.

Not an ideal solution but it may go a long way to solving your irritating rattle. If it does work, you need a new 'rack' segment at the base of the seat back.

Good luck.