Sybaris

Usually when I am on fast A roads or Motorways. The suspension and steering stiffens up which I prefer and the accelerator is quicker to respond. I don't find it worsens MPG as doing 70 in normal or S+ is still doing 70, just means when you slow down and speed up the car is a bit livelier and reacts faster. Official figures only gives it 28 MPG on motorways and I get in to the 30s.

I normally put the cruise on Motorways and leave the car in S+ and let it do its own thing on my NX and get 32-34 mpg

The getting used to it will come as I take it our more and more. I think Herbie said its the size of a Mondeo, which I once had many years ago. What I think I need to look at is avoiding those "breath in" situations where some how you end up passing through those tight gaps where you think "why on earth did I do that"? or taking the car down residential side streets with parked cars either side and oncoming idiots that don't slow down or let you pass. I may take your advice Parrot of Doom, I think it may be worth a few lessons in becoming more aware and how to avoid some of those brown trouser moments.

Anyone here an advanced driver and I am wondering if with a car this size and weight, its worth having a few advanced lessons to understand the handling characteristics of a 2+ tonne car. Yeah my test was over 30 years ago and I am no longer a boy racer and more mature and sensible behind the wheel but I probably have a lot of bad habits. I'm not going to push the car about but at that point where I think about safety a bit more than I used to. Narrow country roads and single track roads that I tend to avoid are a bit of a concern in this thing.

There seems to be a lot of variation (in the UK). I am still negotiating my RX but I see people quote from mid to high 20s in to the 40s MPG. If I can get in to the 30s with mixed driving and also for motorway runs, I will be happy.

What year did Lexus put the SOS button in? I understand that it became a requirement in 2018 but I have seen Gen 4s dated in to 2020 and even 2021 without this. Can it be retro fitted if its not there?

oh, was looking forward to that in those cold winter mornings

ah ok, sounds good though

Does anyone know if the UK version RX has heated wipers? Just found out that some cars do if you go in to the climate settings. Would be a hidden bonus if it has this.

Just a quick thought today. Insuring the car is something that we have to do. But I was thinking about the level of voluntary excess. So in the event of a claim, where you are liable for an excess, is there any point having a low excess as lets face it, the cost to repair is going to be in the high hundreds or even thousands. Is there any point in having a lower excess and paying a higher premium, where upping the excess to a point where it will still fall under a likely repair cost but enough to reduce the premium? (and then insuring the excess).

Did you ever see the episode of top gear where they cut the roof off a renault espase ?

It doesn't look like it, I don't think many people go for it and just work on the probability of 1 replacement in 3 years which makes it uneconomically viable.

Just curious, how many people think its worth getting tyre insurance? There are some 3rd party insurers such as ALA and Motoreasy (and others) that are offering tyre insurance for about £300 ish. Now the cost of a replacement tyre is somewhere between £170 and £250 for a 235/55/r20, depending on what you have on the car. The policies offer 3 tyres per year and run for up to 3 years. Now you could be lucky and never have to claim, but then again who knows and in that time you could end up claiming more than once and then it pays for itself. If you do think its worth while, who do you use and how easy was it to claim?

There are a fair number of test drives on youtube from the US where the RX has Michelins on them but I don't know which ones. They do may something in that wheel size.

Yeah that is a quirk of my personality, I tend to have a need to understand things and sometimes overthink things.

I guess I will figure it out as I go along. I just came off the motorway slip road thinking why wont this slow down.

OK So Update ! I took an RX out for a 45 minute test and my .... OH WOWWWWW does it move. Firstly it took me an extra 20 minutes to get out of the dealership and through 3 sets of temporary lights in the high street. Now you may say that is a waste of time, but it showed me how the EV mode would be really handy compared to burning up fuel on my current car. Then I took the thing on the motorway, just a junction and back and it flies. I don't know what "sporty SUVs" feel like but this thing was plenty fast. Yep no issue getting 60 -70. The issue was keeping it at 70 (manually, not with cruise). I came out feeling that I had been on a rollercoaster, probably the Motorway experience, where driving an unfamiliar and more powerful car for the first time at warp 7 was an adrenaline rush, but a good test. I took it on a fast and straight A road and 40-50 was fine there too. This wasn't the F Sport so I couldn't test the S+ but I used the basic S as an approximation and figured if that was ok then S+ would be fine. Hey even the flappy paddle shifters worked better this time. I can overtake those slow drivers and 2 wheeled (Insert your own language here) who think they can now ride 2 across in the middle of the lane. The eCVT, yes it does get loud and revvy when you accelerate hard, but to be honest, I could probably get used to it once I figure out how to drive it properly. Most of my driving is suburban and at 30-40 so I can't see too much revving. At slow speeds you don't hear it or I didn't notice it. Going to the local shopping centre, the supermarket and the inlaws is not going to get the eCVT screaming. The size. Yep its much bigger than the NX. Way bigger. My worry here is a) Parking the thing and b) when you go through tight gaps and some oncoming idiot tries to squeeze in beside you. I like to rest my elbow on the windowsill on my NX but it doesn't reach it in the RX. You can't really see the front on the passenger side of the car, this could be tricky in width restrictions. Does anyone with a 360 camera know if you can select a view where you could guide the car through and see what you are doing? Is the overhead view that accurate? Starting off from the lights, there seemed to be a slight jump for a second and then the car moves. Maybe I was doing something wrong. Braking. I wish they bloody told me it would take about twice the distance to stop. Didn't expect that. Overall its a good car, and makes my NX feel small and underpowered... which can't be right because up until now it felt like it has a lot of oomph. I think I am slowly detaching from my NX after this besides if keep it, its going to lose more £££ and I won't be able to make the change in another year or so. The biggest hurdle now is the shock of the bill but I think it will be worth it.

It's a pretty cool feature when you think about it. Not sure how much I trust it though if I took my hands off completely.

I am happy to change, just to the right car or at least to a car that I have confidence that can do what I want it to do, I am entering an unknown and I like to know what I am getting in to. You're right, there are a lot of answers to a lot of questions, but I can only get those answers by asking the people that have that knowledge. I agree Lexus make excellent cars, maybe too good, which is why I have held on to my car for so long and that's part of the issue. I have something that surpasses anything I have driven before and letting it go for something else that is an unknown quantity is from my perspective a gamble.

I'll be honest, I am tempted to walk away and stick with my traditional 6 speed auto. At least I know I can climb hills effortlessly and just press the accelerator and fly past what ever obstacle or hill gradient gets in my way. I'm not looking to throw the car about like an F1 driver, I like calm and relaxed but I also want the power on demand without a lag when I need it.

Whats the thing that holds you in the lane and you can keep your hands off the wheel for 10 seconds ? Lane trace or something?

Can I ask what people think of the Lane Keeping Assist? Does it keep you central in the lane (UK roads) or do you find it likes to hold closer to the edge of the lane?

The RX 2.4 Turbo is but the NX 2.5 is not turbocharged. Bet the RX goes like the wind.

I would love a Gen 5 but that's out of my budget. Besides they are not giving turbo's to the UK market now. I spoke to Lexus HQ about the new NX and they told me flat that the UK will only get the straight 2.5 and the US will get the 2.5 turbo. Doesn't seem fair, all those climate protesters ruining it for people that want to move faster. Pah, may save a few dolphins but loads of people will be late for work.

I'm not one to throw around corners, I take it nice and safe but I do like a nice straight sometimes to hit the gas though these days, being slightly more mature and sensible I drive much safer but its that burst I get from my 2.0 turbo that I love, shame they don't do a 2.5 turbo, that would have been spot on.