Bluemarlin

Fair commnet, as in practice I agree with you on the last paragraph. In theory, it was more a point of principle, however futile.

Of course it's up for debate, especially if you bring Pareto's Law into play. The outcome of any Pareto analysis is not fixed and, like anything else, is subject to the data, criteria and goals that are set. So, if you merely look at short term climate change as a cost/benefit analysis for the UK, then yes, it would make no sense for the UK to follow any such strategy, either from a financial point of view, or one of effect on the global environment. However, if you look at it in the context of a world shifting towards renewables and clean energy, then the short term cost is irrelevant compared to the massive cost of playing catch up 20/30/40 years down the road, if other countries have already transitioned. Additionally, whilst our environmental impact may be minuscule compared to the likes of China or India, it's impossible to put any pressure on them if we aren't doing anything ourselves. In a financial context Pareto anylysis cares less about the science, and only about the best course of action. So, in a purely economic sense, the best long term strategy may well be to follow the global trends and try be ahead of the curve, or at least keep up with it, rather than be left behind. In that context, the most successful economic strategy might be based on taking the political temperature, rather than that of the planet. In short, the UK has little impact on what the rest of world does. We could do nothing and benefit financially in the short term, but risk being dependent on others for our energy further down the line; or we could accept the costs of following the trends, in an attempt to ensure some measure of independence and security. It's no longer about the veracity of the science, that's just something for internet debaters to throw back and forth in an idle moment. Politically that ship has sailed, as most governments seemed to have accepted it. It's now about political change, rather than climate change, and the economic effects of getting onboard or waiting at the station. That's just my opinion, and how I see it though.

I don't know what the reality is, but I do know that both sides use data in ways to suit their own beliefs/agenda. On the one hand environmentalists point to correlations between carbon emissions and climate change, which may or may not be proven science, and yet we spend money on it as though it is. Equally though, the other side point to historical climate change, before human influence, in order to claim it's simply a natural process, that has nothing to do with our activities. That's a bit like saying that forest fires have historically started naturally, and so they have nothing to do with carelessly discarded cigarette butts or bbqs. The reality probably lies somewhere in the middle, in that there are natural processes/cycles that affect climate, which we can do nothing to control, and we also produce emisssions that affect climate, which we can control. What we do know is that CO2 affects the planet's ability to dissipate heat. Logic would therefore suggest that additional CO2 production would require additional processing to mitigate any climate effect. This is largely done by the oceans, which ultimately impacts marine life as it takes on more CO2, and by forests, which are continually being reduced. As a conquence it makes sense to try and reduce CO2 emissions, but whether we're doing that in the most sensible and cost effective way is up for debate.

I use a damp cloth to wipe seats and plastic trim, with a weak solution of whatever car cleaner I'm using (currently some no rinse stuff). Then I give everything a wipe over with 303 aerospace protectant. To honest, it usually only needs brushing over with a duster, so I only need to clean about once a year, if that.

I can only speak of my own experience, that being that I notice no change in performance between fuel brands and E5/E10. I do however notice a difference in mpg bewteen E5 and E10, with E5 giving me anywhere between 3-5 mpg improvement. The worst I've found for mpg being Sainsburys, and the best being Esso E5.

To answer your question, provided that you have the space, then in theory you can. Ideally you'd need the batteries to be of the same size/capacity, and you'd need to size the connecting cables according to distance and power draw. That said, the ideal solution is to keep the existing battery topped up, either with a mains or solar charger, or running the engine every few days.

I think it's what they think they can get away with. My renewal quote was £880, up from £560. Shopping around wasn't much help, but a quick call to my insurer resulted in a reduction to £660 for the same cover.

Mine were done as part of the 12 year service by Lexus Battersea (now closed). If I remember correctly the cost was roughly an additional £150 over the price of the full service.

It's only confusing when it's solely referred to as air conditioning, which is used for cooling, instead of climate control, which uses air con to cool and the heater to heat, as required. I have mine on permanently, using the temperature controls when needed, and leave the system to do its thing.

Burger King crossed the line long ago for me, when they did away with the mushroom double swiss.

The trouble with that is that if they were successful in a real job they wouldn't want to get into politics. The only difference to today is that we'd end up with the failures instead of those who couldn't be bothered to try.

I feel the same. The "British way" seems to have turned into a system of either fleecing people or reducing service, whilst telling them that you're doing them a favour. I'd have less of an issue with ULEZ if they came out said it was a way to raise money, and less of an issue with the railways if they admitted it was about cost cutting. Whilst neither are ideal, I have a greater tolerance for unpleasant things if the need is expressed honestly, rather than being lied to and told that it's somehow being done for my benefit. I probably wont go as far as gluing myself to a ticket machine, and will largely restrict my protest against automation to continuing to march to the counter in McDonald's to place my order, and declaring my wish to pay by cash when they try to point me to a machine 🙂

You should be fine. Alternatively you could just adopt a lost/confused look and follow the signs for high vehicles and they might just wave you through anyway. That's what I did last time.

It depends on how thorough you want to be but, if it were me, I'd do the following: 1. Lift out all the coverings in the boot for the spare wheel and battery, to make sure there's no sign of any water ingress. Also feel the carpets under the mats, front and rear, for same. Older cars can sometimes suffer leaks, especially those with a sunroof or roof rails. 2. On a new (to me) car, I'd check oil level weekly, and lengthen that over time if I wasn't seeing any drop in level. Also, at that kind of mileage I'd look at interim oil changes every 10k, my local garage charges me around £50 labour if I take in my own oil and filter. 3. I'd also check over the underside for any signs of corrosion, as well as the fuel filler line (behind lining in near side rear wheel well) and brake lines. Mine's a 2009 too (450h) and, after I cleaned off the accumulated mud, was like new behind the lining, but took the opportunity to give everything a spray with Bilt Hamber rust protection while the lining was off. I also sprayed the underside and do that annually with ACF-50 to try and keep rust at bay, as it only takes 20 mins or so. Apart from that, if you're servicing at a Lexus dealer, you might want to look into the 10 yr plus extended warranty, which is available on cars up to 15 years old and 150k miles. For an RX it's about £560 a year, and includes UK and European breakdown cover. That's all I can think of off the top of my head, but I'm sure others will be along with additional ideas, experience and knowledge.

I was offered it once and, as they were only asking £10, I said yes. I don't know if they forgot to put it in, or forgot to charge for it, as there was nothing on the invoice.

In light of your post I checked mine today on a roundabout, and can confirm that the indicators cancelled with very little steering shift in the opposite direction, and certainly well before 0 degrees. So it would seem yours are performing normally.

Last couple of times I iidn't have too much trouble parking in French towns, even Paris. What I will say though is that public underground car parks tend to have very narrow spirals and very high kerbs. Makes the Shuttle carriages look roomy 🙂

If you're thinking about the 10 year plus extended warranty, then it might be worth looking into a longer service plan. You'll have to service at Lexus to maintain the warranty anyway, and you might get a discount if you commit to a longer plan. You can pay it monthly (interest free), so it won't cost any more, and it locks in the price against any future increases in service pricing. The plan is transferable if you sell, or can be terminated for a fee. You'll probably need to push the dealer to contact Lexus for details of the 10 year plus extended warranty, which also includes UK and European breakdown cover. It's around £560 a year for an RX 450h, and payable in 10 monhly direct debits.

Yes, I took mine out on an 11 year old car as a second owner. Doesn't even need a full dealership service history, but they may sometimes require an approval inspection prior to agreeing the warranty. Obviously subsequent dealer servicing is required as a condition.

I've got over 30 miles when it said zero left, and so my guess would be that 8its left is an uncounted reserve to help keep you out of trouble.

A local (non Lexus specialist) garage will no doubt be noticeably cheaper but, when I shopped around, I found that independent Lexus specialists weren't that much different to Lexus dealers. In the end I stuck with Lexus and took out a 5 year service plan and got a 15% discount, which made it around the same (possibly a little less) as the nearest specialist. Especially when you factor in the free hybrid health check and battery warranty. Part of the reason, and a benefit, was also that it enabled me to take advantage of the 10 year plus extended warranty.

There's a variety of underbody treatments available, ranging from a couple of hundred to several hundred pounds, depending on current state of vehicle, products used, and how thorough you want them to be. Personally I went the diy route, using Bilt Hamber products on the underside and wheel wells, followed by a final spray over everything with ACF-50. The whole job took around 4 hours, spread over a couple of days to allow for drying time. The Bilt Hamber stuff should be good for 2 or 3 years, but I give the underside a spray with ACF 50 annually, as it only takes about 15 minutes. The more thorough the better, but any kind of rust proofing is better than nothing, in my opinion.

I'm not sure what they can do under the circumstances. As I understand it, the motor insurance industry, following a profitable 2021, saw losses in 2022, with a loss predicted for 2023. The best any regulator can do is try and ensure that companies aren't exploiting customers for excessive profits, which is hard to do if they're posting losses. I'm not a fan of insurance companies but it appears the underlying issues, that have caused such steep insurance hikes, go beyond just simple profiteering from insurance companies. It would seem that parts shortages lead to not only higher costs, but greater incentives for theft, as well as longer repair times, which in turn leads to increased loan car costs. How much this is represented (or over represented) in premium increases is anyone's guess. I don't see the situation changing much anytime soon, so can only suggest that people shop around and give their insurers a hard time come renewal. My renewal quote was nearly £900, up from £560 the previous year, but was reduced to £660 after a phone call. Given that c18% increases were predicted for 2023 a year or so ago, that seemed about right. I'm not happy about it, and would have preferred a decrease but, short of a restructuring of how insurance is provided, coupled with a better approach to how car crime is tackled, I'm not entirely sure what can be done about it.

Brendan, I've just checked my warranty paperwork and the details it gives are: Warranty Provider: Toyota (GB) PLC Makes Covered: Lexus Vehicles Type of Warranty: Lexus Vehicles - 10 Year Plus Extended Warranty for approved used Lexus vehicles up to 15 years old, subject to 150,000 mileage limit. The administrator of the warranty is TWG Services, who administer it on behalf of Toyota (GB) PLC. If a dealer hasn't provided it before it's likely they've never heard of it, and will need to contact Lexus for details.

Water pump should be covered, but brakes not. That said, given that you only bought it 3 months ago, I'd complain to Marshall's about selling an approved car with worn brakes, and see if they'll replace them at no cost. What did it say about brakes in the pre delivery inspection report?