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Barry14UK

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  1. Well I started with the quote as previously mentioned for £2130 this morning and ended up with £1261.67 (including £44 for break down service), by late afternoon. So a saving made more than I ever earned in a day! This lowest quote was for Ageas via Compare the Market, with Ageas who I have used previously. It was interesting that comparison sites showed considerable differences for the same insurers
  2. Last year I paid circa £600. This was from AXA through Sterling Services. They have now quoted £2130 for renewal in mid May. I live in Devon and have not cost my insurers anything for years. I was rear ended in 2020 and T boned by a driver coming out of a side road into a main road in 2022, so neither accident my fault and other drivers insurers paid full cost. Best deal I have obtained so far is £1474-48 from RAC, also with lowest total excess. Saga weighed in with an eye watering £3759-56. So still looking and answering questions. It's time consuming going through various comparison sites etc answering mostly similar questions. How much easier it would be and time saving if there was a standard industry form listing all the questions insurers ask with ones that individual companies don't need answered blacked out so you only had to do this once for the majority of quotes from different companies.
  3. The special plugs fitted will comfortably do in excess of 80k miles, some people have gone 100K but in your shoes I would go with 80k. It is easy to remove and check a plug from the front bank. It's accessing the rear bank that calls for removing a lot of components and refitting afterwards. Unfortunately, my Lexus Dealer wouldn't to the service without plugs because although it had done only circa 40 K at the time, they were going by years.
  4. Have no intention of buying EV for a while so this is just looking ahead. Let's assume that the infra structure for charging greatly improves so that you rarely have to queue for a charger, which is what I have seen happen. The batteries (as currently available) form a large chunk of the total cost of the car. Furthermore, in due course this battery pack will need replacing at very high cost or at least some of the cells within it. Also, the initial cost is more than a comparable Petrol or Petrol Hybrid. Servicing is less expensive and less frequent and It seems highly likely that the UK Government will soon want to charge EV owners some form of road tax but not nearly so heavily as on ICE vehicles as they don't want to deter the change over to electric. A lighter, longer lasting and more efficient battery could make a great difference. Generally, EV cars seem to fall into higher Groups perhaps due to costly batteries and the fact that initial acceleration is quick. I wonder why it is that there are so many and quite low mileage eVs for sale. The following link shows the sort of cost for a replacement battery which second or third owners might have to budget for and how battery degradation could greatly lower the value of older cars. Unless you are going to cover mega miles, the purchase of an EV seems to me to be a brave one at present. https://bookmygarage.com/electric-vehicles/how-much-does-an-electric-battery-cost-uk/
  5. Some batteries are much better than others. I fitted a cheapo once and it needed replacing with another after 3 months. I wouldn't say Chinese batteries are bad because even some leading makes do Chinese made batteries but there is a better chance of longer battery life if you get one with a reputable name on it such as but not limited to Panasonic, Sony, Renata, .Energizer etc.
  6. That's unfortunate. Not all their staff are aware so hope this is not official Policy. I got the discount off a fairly small 25Lcompressor about 3 months ago when I handed them my card but the first salesman was unaware and had to check with his superior.
  7. My yearly is due in May I belive. Last couple of years I have been with AXA but gone through a broker which surprisingly was cheaper but they did get me a bit of extra discount for being a club member so worth asking.
  8. Different groups have franchises for Lexus and some allow discount while others don't. Just have to ask them.
  9. Fuel consumption will be worse in winter and if you do short runs or at high speed.
  10. My previous car was a BMW E39 (which I still have but expect to sell later this year). I changed to the top Premier model 3rd Series RX450h because of back problems. The length of the third series RX450h is the same as my E39 so probably a little shorter than the E38. The V6 in the Lexus is almost as smooth as the straight 6 in the Beamer petrol. 0-60 in both is about 7.5 seconds. However, there is a big difference between the auto gearbox which sounds like clutch slip in the RX, particularly with hard acceleration. So you just have to accept it and learn to live with it. As the RX is largely front wheel drive assisted by electric power on the rear, you do get a bit of torque steer when you boot it. Many of the spare parts are only available from Lexus and are quite expensive as being a much bigger selling car in the UK and Europe, there are far more alternatively produced parts for BMW. The RX handles well enough for a high high and heavy car and still has a spare wheel, albeit a slightly less broad space saver, one of the reasons why I ruled out a BMW SUV. brakes are good at lower speeds but don't match those of the E39 or E38 at high speed all with standard pads. As has been mentioned the 12v battery is low capacity and is expensive if replaced with the identical Panasonic or Yuasa equivalent AGM. A number of members have just replaced theirs with a much cheaper Fullflow Lead Acid one. (There are threads on this if you search for them. I couldn't get on with the Lexus Navigation so use a 6" TomTom with free updates and cameras mounted on a platform I fabricated. Sound though the ML system provides good sound in better spec cars but infotainment system lags behind current standard but probably equal to your E38. I plan to keep my car for a few years yet until the traction batteries in full EV vehicles are more advanced and the network of chargers improves.
  11. Last service on my 2015 RX450 circa 50K miles revealed rubber suspension bushes beginning to delaminate and to listen out for knocks.
  12. I wipe my blades with the solution that goes into the storage reservoir on the cars and gets sprayed onto windscreen.
  13. 12v Batteries need much more careful monitoring these days mainly due to all they have to do and if they go flat it reduces their life or can even cause them to no longer or accept a charge. If extra drain is imposed by leaving doors open for extended periods, the battery should be well charged before hand and immediately afterwards. I have always been careful not to leave the boot and doors open for long for this reason on my RX. However, I was surprised when my radio cut out after only 15 - 20 minutes to help preserve power in the 12v battery. It really needs to be connected to the hybrid battery, where provided, so it can draw power from that. I think the lack of use, especially through the Covid shut down caused a lot of damage to 12v batteries and Lexus emailed a general warning to regularly charge or at least they emailed me. As I have said on a previous occasion, bearing in mind what the 12v battery has to do, it is remiss of Lexus not to include a state of battery voltage indicator particularly in view of the fairly small battery.
  14. It's easier to drive into a tight garage than back in and suspend a tennis ball on a string so you know exactly when it touches your windscreen. If the garage width is OK, might it be possible to increase the door width and fit a wider door? I did this in a previous property I lived in but the garage was not an integral part of the house.
  15. I haven't had what you might consider and out and out sports car. Can't really see the point unless you have deep pockets and want a second car to track or drive in a few places where you can enjoy the experience. I have owned a number of what might be considered in their day to be sporting versions of a few cars. The first was an MG Magnette series 2 ZB. There were two Mercedes, an SLC and a W124 coupe, an Opel Monza, an Opel Commodore 2 door GSE, several Fiat 130 3200 2 door coupes and a Maserati Indy 2 door 4 seater coupe. All other cars have been general 4 door saloons. Due to back problem need SUV, so too late for sports car now. Have to live on memories of rides in Ferrari, Porcshe, Jensen, Peerless and a few others.
  16. Certain numbers have proved to be an investment like the one I purchased some years ago, kept for a few years and then sold at a good profit above the purchase price plus inflation. I subsequently bought another plate with a 1 prefix which has graced several of my cars. I could now sell for much more than I paid for it. I like distinctive plates, as stamp collectors like rare stamps, so each to his/her own.
  17. Well thank you again for searching. As it happens I have been told by the NHS Disability people that they will be coming to see how well various equipment they have loaned is working and I will see if they have any suggestions. I know I could purchase a lightweight foldable wheelchair to take my wife to the car and stow it in the boot but that means my assisting her from the wheelchair and into the car helped a little by a small step I bought remains the problem. Unfortunately, her legs have buckled on two occasions as she was getting from the Zimmer Frame into the car and even with a wheelchair this transfer part would be the same problem. If I can find something better, I will post, as maybe somebody else might be in a similar situation some day..
  18. Thank you. Yes I will try Mobility outlets but as this is probably a rare situation that few will have encountered for an RX thought it worth asking here.
  19. Sadly my wife has advanced Alzheimer's Vascular Dementia and I need to be able to get her to part time day care and to her and my appointments. She is finding it increasingly difficult to use a Z frame and get into and out of my RX. It looks like I will need to use a wheelchair and I appreciate it's probably a long shot but wonder how any members here faced with a similar situation have dealt with it. I have seen ramps used and a hoist on other cars and there are of course specially designed mobility cars that will take a wheelchair but I don't wish to part with my RX, particularly as the mobility need could be for months rather than a year or so. I should be obliged to learn whether any other person has met this situation and overcome it in their RX.
  20. I have a budget MIG welder which I have used for a few jobs and results OK if not pretty. I know I could do a better job with a better model and gas. You could fabricate all the steelwork yourself and fix in place with self tapping screws which is a method I have used, particularly where welding clamps can't be used. The self tappers can be removed later and and the holes filled with weld. You could hire a decent quality MIG welder and either do the job yourself or have a professional do that part of the job, which will save paying equipment hire as a Pro will have good equipment and welds will be better than a novice will achieve. When I did my last repair which was spot welding, I used 'weld through primer' so it could be worth asking a proposed welder if he wishes this applied before the plating is fixed in position.
  21. There are a number of aspects when assessing reliability and I think a lot depends on what is included/excluded and the weight given to these. Perhaps the 'What Car survey' is not likely to be sufficiently comprehensive to be taken as fair. Nevertheless, a member pointed out quite recently that the 3rd Generation RX was reported as being the most reliable SUV, whereas here the earlier versions get the number 1 position for most unreliable. Quite a turn around! https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/news/most-and-least-reliable-older-electric-and-hybrid-cars/ss-AA1bMNn5?ocid=BDT3DHP&pc=BDT3&cvid=7f3653a999cc45bbdb28dd73e74962d1&ei=51#image=25
  22. I think there is a rule about lorries having guards to help reduce the incidence of thrown up stones breaking following vehicle windscreens. This seems to be more effective in some cases than others. I would like to see it mandatory for ALL vehicles to have such protection. It would not completely stop damage but but would certainly reduce it,
  23. But this car is sometimes referred to as an estate. What makes it so according to what I have read is having roof rails which the vehicle in question has. I understand roof rails were only fitted as an extra, so this may be correct.
  24. It can depend how keen you are on a particular model,colour, trim, upper mileage and condition and how sales are going with a particular dealer. I was in this situation when I first seriously looked for a Premier RX450h 3rd Gen. I saw and drove a really nice car that met all I wanted. It had things like adaptive cruise, heated steering and a couple of other things that even few Premier models have. The asking price was circa £32K. I offered £30K cash on the spot. The sales lady said her boss would laugh at her if she put that to him. She came back to me offering about three hundred off saying someone else was enquiring after it. It was closing time and I said I would think about it overnight and get back to the main dealer the next morning which I did. However the car had been sold! I was very annoyed I didn't pay the asking price and have that car. If you are less fussy than me and more flexible on variables, you might be able to get a bargain as you will have more cars to choose from. How long you are prepared to look can also be a factor.
  25. Aheeeeem! I recently spent £560 with a main dealer for a full service and that was with club discount and without plugs. I was charged a further £100 for aircon regas, the gas being a non standard one.
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