BadBrad

Have now used 87 octane in the 2010 for 30,000 miles. No pinging and no problem. Owner's manual recommends higher octane for best performance (if you really feel the need to 5 more horsepower). Owner's manual also says can use 87 octane if that is all that is available. Blue die from jeans can be removed with leather cleaners.

The premium fuel "requirement," (the actual words are "required for best performance" and not "required or your warranty is void") is nothing but a marketing ploy to ensure the high priced Lexus makes something like 3.59 more horsepower than the lower priced Toyota pedestrian trash. If you are concerned that you car is slower in the quarter-mile for running 87 octane then lose 30 lbs. Run 87 all day, all year, and all decade. Your wallet will thank you.

The premium fuel "requirement," (the actual words are "required for best performance" and not "required or your warranty is void") is nothing but a marketing ploy to ensure the high priced Lexus makes something like 3.59 more horsepower than the lower priced Toyota pedestrian trash. If you are concerned that you car is slower in the quarter-mile for running 87 octane then lose 30 lbs. Run 87 all day, all year, and all decade. Your wallet will thank you.

Have been using 87 octane in my 2010 for more than 2 years. No issues.

Agreed - my 2010 sounds very nice. Lexus did a nice job "tuning" the muffler on this generation (I've both previous gens too - this gen is much better). I have one car that has a gnarly (think terrorized neighborhood ) exhaust tone when the loud pedal goes to the floor so I feel qualified to concur with your muffler opinion. :whistles:

Thanks for great post. Looking to do a oil change soon. Was interested in the type of oil filter you ordered. A friend of mine says the Lexus filter looks very flimsy so he uses a Fram which he says its constructed much better visually. Wondering if the Lexus filter can be cross reference to a Fram cartridge type filter? And if so do you have to number to Lexus so I can cross the number to other filter choices? Also have you looked into a KN filter for yours? Use the factory filter cartridge; you'll have greater peace of mind. I roam inside the world of home-garage engine builders, car builders, and sportsman drag racers. We know better than to use Fram. Most will use factory oil filters (if available) before going aftermarket.

Presuming you are talking about the oil filter housing on your 2010+ RX, I go 90 percent effort - hand tighten, using no wrench or other device of mechanical advantage. Take care not to damage the O-ring and lube it before installing the housing back on the engine block. Mine doesn't leak with this level of effort. I found the dealer and factory to overtighten this housing (typical of the gorillas in service departments).

I love the Weathertech. Best cargo mat I've ever purchased. There are some discount sites from which to purchase.

That entire housing movement thing is easily remedied by using an oil filter strap wrench in the tighten direction at the same time you open the housing.

I hold stock in oil companies; we stockholders thank you for reaching an erroneous conclusion.

Several years back my '06 RX started to fog over the headlamp covers. I read in a tips section of Car Craft Magazine to use Mothers Mag & Aluminum Polish (available at Kragens and Autozone as well as others) on the covers. Worked like a charm. Just rub on the polish with elbow grease; takes the haze out. Rubbing compound is more agressive than this product; I would only go to an agressive compound after this didn't work.

Never and no. Same answer for the last three Lexus I've own that reccomended premium fuel. The engine is the same as the Toyota Highlander; I believe that car reccomends only regular. Do a search here of this forum and find much written about this subject.

True, but I suspect the brainiacs at Lexus have a better solution.

It's hogwash. 15000 miles on 87 and no issues. 100,000+ on 87 on the last two that recommended 91 and no issues; and I've never heard pinging, preignition or detonation. I push these engines to maximum shiftpoints on a regular basis. The injectors make noise on cold starts; the noise dissipates as the engine warms. Two weeks back mine sat outside for 3 days at about zero degrees. When I started the engine I thought someone had swapped a diesel under the hood. Five minutes of driving and all was quiet. The injector noise cannot be mistaken for pinging or detonation, except by neophytes. You won't find a gasoline, internal combustion engine pinging at idle unless it was designed to do so, such as the single cylinder, adjustable compression engine used to test gasoline for octane rating.

Take 1 or 2 pounds PSI out of the tires; probably won't trigger the tire inflation warning. A size change in tire will potentially toss out your speedo calibration, alter your transmission shift points, etc. etc. Three percent deviation is about as much variation as the computer can handle. As for the firm ride, enjoy the fact that the car handles much better than the previous generations.