Rhub

Thank you Graham - much appreciated!

I thought I would complete the saga of tackling the whooshing noise which I had located to the lower window seals on three of the doors. I experimented with various diameters of black tubing which I bought on Ebay and discovered that 11 mm external diameter fitted best on two doors and 9 mm on the other one. I used a Stanley knife to trim the ends so that they would fit nicely on the bit of black sponge which was at the end of each channel and simply slid the tubing in to make a nice fit. I have posted a couple of photos. In one you can see how the ends were cut. In the other you can see the process of pushing the tubing into the channel and how it is completely invisible once it is in place. It does the trick by exerting a bit of extra pressure on the original seal so that it sits snugly up against the glass. The job took about ten minutes to do all three windows. The windows still work perfectly and the awful noise has gone. The car is an absolute delight to drive now.

Thanks Paul.

Cheers Herbie - I've ordered some.

Thanks for the suggestion about gummy phledge. I will certainly give it a try. At Herbie's prompting, I have attached a file with a brief recording of the noise. Every five seconds or so, I was pressing the tubing down so that the noise stops. You should be able to detect the difference but I apologise for the quality of the recording which was made on my phone. Intermittent whooshing

I said I would let you know how I got on with tackling the noise issue I was struggling with. Well, here goes. I went out with a mechanic from my local trusted garage and he could hear lots of road noise but didn't think there was anything else to worry about. We had the car up on a ramp as well and he confirmed that the wheel bearings were absolutely fine and that the car was in exceptionally good condition for its age. I therefore decided to bite the bullet on buying new tyres and went for four Michelin Cross Climate which several people on various forums, including this one, recommenced as quiet tyres. I am very pleased with them and they are definitely quieter than what I had on before BUT there was still a whooshing noise which I didn't think should be there. I couldn't identify where the noise was coming from other than it was near the side window. I wondered if I could stuff something in the widow seal to see if that made a difference and found some little polystyrene packaging chips which fitted snugly in the channel along the bottom of the window. I was convinced that it made the car quieter bit was obviously entirely impractical! My next move was to buy some black tubing off Ebay which I cut to the right length and fitted in the channel. I bought 15mm external diameter and this lay quite well half in and half out of the channel. I've attached a photo of how it looks. When I first went out to see if it made a difference, I was disappointed that I could still hear the whooshing but I then noticed that a bit of tubing had lifted it up. I put a finger on it and it was a true revelation! The noise stopped instantly. I had discovered the source of my irritation. For whatever reason, the window seal in the driver's door was not providing a proper seal. I got my wife to drive the car while I did the same with the other doors. It turned out that the windows in the passenger door and the rear door on the passenger's side were also noisy. The rear door behind the driver's seat was fine. I have spoken to the parts department at my nearest main dealer and was not surprised to learn that the seals are over £100 each and that the labour to replace just one would come to about £200. I don't think this is an option! So, I am sourcing some slightly smaller diameter tubing which I think will be less obtrusive and which I hope will still perform the same role as my original tube. I know that this all seems highly unlikely given Lexus's reputation for the quietness of their cabins. I am as bemused by this as was the man I spoke to in the parts department. He had never come across this problem before. All I can say is that I have incontrovertible evidence now that I have not been imagining the problem. I have been able to make a recording which clearly demonstrates the difference when the tubing makes a snug fit and when a little bit of it lifts up. Even my wife, who has been watching my antics in amazement for the last few weeks, now admits that the difference is stark. I hope this may be of some interest to somebody else who is unfortunate enough to experience the same problem at some point in the future. I cannot believe that I can be the only person in the UK to have worn window seals?

I don't want you to think that I am an obsessive nerd about this but just out of interest I downloaded a free decibel measuring app for my phone and used it to compare sound levels in the Lexus with those in two other cars I have access to. I did the same course along a stretch of motorway at 70 miles an hour with the phone in the same position fixed to the dashboard. I know that this isn't scientifically valid but for what it's worth here are the results. There is virtually no difference between the three cars. The average level was 74.7 dB in the Lexus; 75.8 in a Subaru Legacy estate; and 75 .7 in a Megane coupe. So the Lexus is very slightly quieter. However, I think this explains my frustration since the Subaru in particular is a noisy engine with a slightly sporty exhaust. I was expecting the Lexus to be much quieter than that car. There is no doubting the lovely quietness of Lexus's engine but perhaps this is where my problem comes from. The quietness of the engine makes the 'normal' road level noise seem all that more intrusive.

Thank you everyone for your help. The tracking is fine as it was checked at my request when the car was MOTed before I bought it. I had asked for this because when I road tested the car, it had tended to move to the left when you took your hands off the steering wheel. I accepted the dealer's view that it wasn't actually 'pulling to the left' but was simply responding to the camber of the road, which, I was told, I would have to expect with a heavy car with big tyres. The MOT garage reported that the tracking was spot on. I am pretty sure it is not a wheel bearing. I have been out with my brother-in-law who knows about such things and he doesn't think that this would explain the noise. I am, however, aware from other sources that it can be very hard to detect this issue in its early days. I will keep it on the list of possible solutions. Also, I don't think it is a brake noise but will keep this in mind. I agree with jumpingjehovahs that the sun roof is quite a lot noisier with the cover pulled back but this isn't the source of my problem. I think I am going to put a set of four new tyres on the car (probably Michelins or Goodyears) and take it from there. I can get the wheel bearings checked at the same time. I will let you know how I get on.

Thanks Herbie, that's really useful to know. I've just looked them up and found this review in Auto Express. Interestingly, they came first for lack of cabin noise and they are well priced compared to the Michelins. https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/accessories-tyres/92869/goodyear-vector-4seasons-gen-2

Thank you everyone for your suggestions. I tried lowering the windows a little and using the sunroof (thank you Welland) but there is no change in the noise. Different road surfaces alter the intensity of the noise but even on a really smooth surface, there is still a constant whooshing. This afternoon I used masking tape all round the driver's door to see if it would improve the seal but it didn't make any difference at all. I think it must simply be the noise from the tyres and perhaps it is the fact that I have different brands on the front and back as Olliesgrandad says that is causing the problem. The Bridgestones are rated E/E/71 dbs and the Falkens are C/A/70 dbs. I may have to bite the bullet and buy a set of four matching tyres but what do you suggest from your experience? I can't find any tyres that are quieter than 67 dbs (Goodyear Efficient Grip). A couple of Michelins are 69 dbs (Cross Climate and Primacy 3). Your views would be very welcome.

I've just bought a 57 plate RX 400h with 112,000 miles and an impeccable service history of ten main dealer stamps. I love the drive but am surprised and disappointed about how much road noise there seems to be. There is a constant 'whooshing' noise as soon as you go faster than 20 miles an hour. The tyres on the front are brand new Falken Azenis and there are two good Bridgestone Potenzas on the rear. I'm not sure whether the noise is the tyres but it seems a good place to start. I can't detect anything wrong with the door or window seals but it definitely sounds like more noise is coming into the cabin than you would expect.The nearest analogy I can provide is that it sounds a bit like the noise you get in a fast train because of the air pressure. Am I expecting too much from the car in terms of its quietness? I would be very pleased if some more experienced drivers of these cars could let me know what is normal.