Unhappy With 2008 Rx350

[wwest]

The RX350 has a viscous clutch, per Lexus HQ email I received. All the issues have been addressed. I corrected the brake booster noise (see my other post). I added Dynamat to the hatch floor, quarter panels, inner and outer door skins and the car is quiet. 8db reduction at 70 MPH (per a db meter I borrowed from the safety guy at work). (Yes, I tested the car before the install on the same road at around the same temp. etc) The doors now have a quality thunk like a German car!!!!!!!!!! Lexus HQ gave me a Ipod adapter and a hitch setup for no charge (I had to install them) due to all the issues my car had. Time will tell if the RX will be good. I am a very happy now and as time passes all the issues will be forgotten. B)

Simply go to the Lexus parts department and "buy" a replacement VC for the RX350...

They will be forced to tell you the truth of the matter.

You can buy one for an RX300 but nothing after.

[thehotline]

I bought a used 05 RX330 Sports Luxury (Nav, Mark Levinson, RevCam, B/Tooth, Leather, Roof,etc) last Feb with 90km (56K miles) on it and was very surprised how well it drove. The local dealership loaned me a demo RX350 with 5 000km on it while mine was being serviced and apart from the heated seats and the updated Nav it was very difficult to pick the differences between the two. My friends & family drove it & thought it was new until I showed them the odometer.

Mine now has almost 100 000km (60K miles) and I have only have a rattle in the cargo blind when the auto retract clips near the tailgate are not latched.

It is OK on fuel - I recently drove from Melbourne up past Sydney & back, a 2200km (1400 mile) round trip, and averaged 10.1L/100km (~23MPG) with luggage and 3 people in car with freeway conditions 95% of the way. Not bad for such a heavy car. My last car was a Holden Calais (www.holden.com.au) , which is almost identical to your Pontiac G8, with a 5.7L LS1 V8 and the best it ever got was around 9.5L/100km (~25MPG). I miss the raw grunt of the V8 but the pure luxury & refinement of the RX more than makes up for it.

All Lexus sold new in AUS are Japanese built and all RX's are AWD, although there are a few used Jap "grey imports" getting around that are re-badged Toyota Harriers. The local lexus web site will give you more info on our specs (www.lexus.com.au). You will notice that only 2 packages are available and options like radar cruise, homelink, sat radio, air susp & a few others aren't available. Build quality & reliability here has a reputation of being much better than BMW, Audi, Volvo or Benz (some models are imported from South Africa but I think X5 & ML are US sourced) and the RX has won the most sales of Luxury 4WD market here since it was realeased to the AUS/NZ market in 2003. The series 1 RX was never sold new here.

I am dissapointed to hear that your RX has issues. I called the previous owner of my car (she traded it on an Benz ML at end of lease) and she never had to have a spanner put on it. It is also worth noting that a new Sport Luxry model here cost around $90k with on-road costs ($AUD is almost on par with $USD at the moment) - I'm unsure whether that has an affect on bulid quality or not.

I'm happy to assist by comparing & sending pics of components, (eg brake booster, etc) if anyone wishes.

Good Luck.

[lqueral]

We have a 2009 red RX350 and it's even quieter than our old 2004 RX330, which I thought was very quiet. Solid as a bank vault. Wonderful vehicle. NAV works fine, although I haven't had this long enough to fully use and evaluate. The back-up camera is much improved. Better clarity and much better low-light performance.

[coachgns]

We have a 2009 red RX350 and it's even quieter than our old 2004 RX330, which I thought was very quiet. Solid as a bank vault. Wonderful vehicle. NAV works fine, although I haven't had this long enough to fully use and evaluate. The back-up camera is much improved. Better clarity and much better low-light performance.

Are you able to put in an address on the NAV while moving? Everyone says you can't, but I test drove an '09 and I was able to do it via voice commands. I'm wondering if the dealer had just hacked the NAV system, or if this IS something that can now be done in an '09?

[lqueral]

We have a 2009 red RX350 and it's even quieter than our old 2004 RX330, which I thought was very quiet. Solid as a bank vault. Wonderful vehicle. NAV works fine, although I haven't had this long enough to fully use and evaluate. The back-up camera is much improved. Better clarity and much better low-light performance.

Are you able to put in an address on the NAV while moving? Everyone says you can't, but I test drove an '09 and I was able to do it via voice commands. I'm wondering if the dealer had just hacked the NAV system, or if this IS something that can now be done in an '09?

>The 09 RX is my wife's. She says she hasn't tried doing that yet. She HAS entered addresses, but while stopped, just as she would do with the 04. I'll have to try it. I know there were "hacks" for the old systems, but I'm not sure about the new ones. One VERY nice change is the legal screen on the Nav. On the 04 you had to press the "Agree" button to clear it. On the 09 it clears itself after several seconds. Much better. There were hacks to get rid of the legal screen altogether on the 04, but I didn't want to mess with it.

[shamu3955]

Hi, I do have a feeling this fellow is angry, but all he says are not untruths. I too have a lot of noise in the car. Not what I expected from Lexus. I also have the Navigation sytem which is locked and can't be used to it full benefit while driving. He is also correct about the voice system. It understands nothing. I might as well be speaking a foriegn language. They really need to work on that or just take it out of the system. Tire wear is the worst I have ever experienced. All four tires wear on the inside and the dealer does nothing but suggest new tires on a car that has 14000 miles. Get real.

[maller009]

same problem with mine....the sales person told us that oil changes were included for 50k miles as well as maint. NOT TRUE!

i do like the rx but there are too many little things wrong with it that take up too much time and money to fix.

the noise and other rattling noises are a huge problem for me and lexus wants to charge to "diagnose" the problem.

for $50K we should not have these problems!

my husband has a 07 is250 and he has no problems at all!

[HawaiiRX350]

My 08 RX has has no serious problems, only a rattle from the rear hatch which was fixed. The wind noise is normal, as with any other vehicle. I am looking to purchase an 09 with Nav and AWD before the hideous 2010 RX arrives (looks like a Venza). Friends and family compliment the RX in everything it does. Hawaii purposely did not get any Canadian built RX's including the Pebble Beach edition.

[GoPlay!]

My 08 RX has has no serious problems, only a rattle from the rear hatch which was fixed. The wind noise is normal, as with any other vehicle. I am looking to purchase an 09 with Nav and AWD before the hideous 2010 RX arrives (looks like a Venza). Friends and family compliment the RX in everything it does. Hawaii purposely did not get any Canadian built RX's including the Pebble Beach edition.

When I test drove mine, I was disappointed with the road noise and the engine sounded like a mini-diesel engine to me. I really expected it to be super quiet like their sudans. The sales guy was nice and told me that it wasn't the quietest lexus he had but if I had to have the suv, it was the quietest on the market for AWD. My husband and I test drove 3 other suvs of the same size and the Lexus one was quieter and it just fit me. The step in and out, the seats, bla bla, and all that. After I bought it I was disappointed bcs the sunroof rattled like crazy. The first year I put 35k miles on and that noise drove me nuts. It took 3 trips to the dealer and they fixed it with a gasket thing and said it was common. Other than that, the hands free voice controls are great. I can't program our garage door to save my life. I feel sorry for the guy on here who sounds like he has a classic lemon law claim. I love this car and it is worth the $ to me (and my husband loves that I am not bugging him). My husband drives the bi-polar opposite, a Chevy SSR, it is loud and drives like a beast. It is fun but I am into a quiet smooth ride with the convenience of sitting up high for visibility.

I am now looking for replacement tires. The Michelin Energy mxv4s8 tires are done. The Michelin website said this tire has a 6 year warranty. I got 19 months out of them. I haven't seen the Japanese brand (mentioned in the forums) at our local stores. Are they a smoother, quieter ride compared to the original michelins? The mxv4s8 are around $218 each. Is the japanese one much more?

[BillyShaft]

I can't program our garage door to save my life.

I think I can help you on the Garage Door opener! New garage door openers use rolling code technology and need to be double programmed.

First you need to program homelink to emulate the portable remote.

Second, you need to program the homelink to play nice with the garage door opener (GDO).

1. Get the portable remote for your GDO and take it to the car with you.

2. Hold the homelink button you want to program for about 5 secs...the LED on the homelink will light steady.

3. Push the portable garage door opener button until the LED on the homelink flashes. It is ok if the garage door starts...dont worry.

4. Release the buttons.

You have just programmed the homelink to emulate your portable unit, but you have NOT connected the homelink to the opener and homelink will not operate the garage door yet.

5. Look on your Garage door opener motor...the one that physically cranks the door open. You may need a stepstool or ladder to reach it. On the back of the GDO, there is a square button. Mine is purple, but I have seen grey ones and white ones. Press it and the LED next to the button will illuminate.

6. Scramble quickly over to your Lex and push and hold the button you previously programmed. Release the button when the Garage Door opener lights flash off and on.

7. Now try the homelink button...it should work.

HTH,

~Brian