Bloc Heater

[grognon]

Hi,

I have the Lexus Rx400h 2007, did someone had install a bloc heater, if yes, was is good or not, if not, why?

My Lexus dealer says i don'y need it !

Thanks for your comments.

SC

[richard4u]

Hi,

I have the Lexus Rx400h 2007, did someone had install a bloc heater, if yes, was is good or not, if not, why?

My Lexus dealer says i don'y need it !

Thanks for your comments.

SC

if you live in alaska you need it - in miami not needed = your choice

[grognon]

Hi,

I have the Lexus Rx400h 2007, did someone had install a bloc heater, if yes, was is good or not, if not, why?

My Lexus dealer says i don'y need it !

Thanks for your comments.

SC

if you live in alaska you need it - in miami not needed = your choice

Weli live mid way, i live in Quebec ,Canada.

What do you think?

[lemon]

I put one in myself. Not extremely hard if you're somewhat mechanically inclined. Anyway, I find the engine heats up much faster on cold winter mornings than without the block heater. So it gets out of open loop and into closed loop faster (lower emissions better mileage), and you'll get heat into the cabin faster. Since it's heats the engine up faster, you may find it will go into electric mode sooner as well.

[SOMEONE ELSE'S GOT MY NAME]

Weli live mid way, i live in Quebec ,Canada.

What do you think?

Yes, in Canada, you will benefit greatly from an EBH. Your cabin heater will be way more efficient in the winter, and your mileage will be better. Your dealer can easily install it in Canada. We had to order ours from Canada, because the U.S. dealers parts list don't even show them. During cold Montana winters, we will run it for almost 2 hours prior to driving.

[spelunkerd]

I used Google and found step by step instruction advice with photos on how to install a block heater on a Lexus, written by a amateur from his home garage. Glancing though my favourites, I can't seem to find it off hand but you'll find it if you spend some time with Google. Bottom line is the job is easy with the right tools. You'll need a female torx kit and some metric sockets to get off some of the bolts, and you'll need a couple of hours of time to drain and refill coolant and get the job done. Don't try to do it without that torx kit, as there is very little room to turn a wrench. If you eat the studs with vice grips you'll be sorry. I found the block heater from a dealer in Calgary for about $45. Local guys wanted more so I went with the Calgary Lexus dealer. It's the same part used in the non luxury models, widely available. Apparently the tricky part is to get off the freeze plug without damaging the block, but mine came off easily. It was a fun little Saturday project. The freeze plug is in the front of the engine, just above the oil filter. You'll need a mirror to find it before you start taking off parts.

[lemon]

There was a really good write up here

http://www.greenhybrid.com/wiki/index.php/Highlander_Hybrid_EBH_Installation_Instructions

but it looks like the images are missing now...too bad. You can use vice grips to remove the studs if you can't find (or strip, like I did) that weird torx stud, because the block heater comes with it's own bolts to replace the studs.