katzjamr

A 400h owner in Illinois posted this experience with his 4 month old rx at 5900 miles. "Last week with no warning the car stopped suddenly as i was accelerating from a stop. I heard a loud 'clunk' from under the hood, and a lot of warning lights came on (HYBRID SYSTEM FAILURE, VSC SYSTEM FAILURE). The engine was still running at fairly high RPM but the car would only move about 2 mph, it seemed like the rear wheel motor powering it only. The car was flatbedded to the Lexus dealer. It was late in the day and the hybrid tech had gone home. The service tech called the next morning and said Lexus was flying in two engineers and not to touch the vehicle until thier arrival. After 8 days the car was repaired. There was in internal short in the inverter, requiring replacement of the inverter, hybrid cooling system, and battery pack. The dealership mentioned this was one of the most expensive repairs they ever performed. The cost of the parts alone were valued at $10,000. The 400h is now running fine. This owner was satsified with the dealership service and the long warranty on the hybrid system. Makes you think twice about ever purchasing a hybrid system that is out of warranty! This post came from the ClubLexus forum as a point of reference, i post it just for information as we are all interested in how our vehicles perform. I continue to be very happy with my 400h.

there is a 2wd highlander hybrid... .. .

I dont tow however i do agree that everything over 60mph is a mpg killer. Also, alittle off topic but in the gas mileage vein, i have been parking outside recently over night in the Pacific Northwest where the morning temps are about 50F. This combo of cool weather and the need for the ICE to run alot longer if i want heat for the cabin is costing me 4mpg on shorter morning trips. I think a cool battery pack might be less efficient too for some reason but im only guessing on that. Winter should be interesting.

The people at the Stevens Creek parts dept and sales floor were helpful, I was on hold and spoke to both of them, not everyone is familiar with their promotion. Here is the number for the Stevens Creek Lexus dealer, 1.866.743.3324 see if you can get more accurate info than i did.

I saw a post in another Lexus forum about Sirius radio. Both Stevens Creek Lexus and Longo Lexus in cali are running a serious Sirius promotion that includes free installation and 9 months no charge of satellite radio service. From what i am told this also includes the components and it works thru the nav display. They are putting this on every new Lexus they sell and will install it on cars they have sold that are already off the lot. I have no affiliation with them and live in washington, i did call and verify all the info with them. They will install the Sirius radio in cars they didnt sell however those will not be included in the free promotion. They are part of the Penske automotive group and have a special relationship with Sirius.

Welcome, as you already know its a great community of people here. If what you call ScotchCal is the clear plastic protective shield, i would definately put it on the HID headlights also, its an expensive replacement when i arock chips them.

Rex i always appreciate your posts, however i have a question about the oil info the Bellvue dealer gave you. I got my 400h from their sister dealership in Tacoma as the waiting list was much shorter. Their service people have told me on two occasions that the Castrol engine oil shipped from the factory and used in their oil changes is a synthetic blend. True its not 100% synthetic, however it does incorporate the best characteristics of both the dino oil and synthetic.

I am aware that CR has a state of the art test facility and they even lease it out to other testing organizations who lack those resources, however a '2 minute and 40 second' city cycle is not a realworld test for a hybrid. What it is is a short trip that is a gas mileage killer in the 400h. Also 60 F is rather cool for this battery and my experience with cool seattle mornings with the heat on and no AC, (55 F) is that temp is also a further drain on the hybrid system, i.e. the ICE runs much longer. Those cool mornings have cost me a surprising 4 mph on short trips, add in that CR testers are not used to the 'hybrid' style of driving and their 16 mpg result is not that surprising however wrong it is from real world results.

ulonghorn: also glad you are safe. I am reading accounts if people going a distance of only 50 miles in 25 hours on the freeway the traffic was so bad. Many people did run out of gas in that ordeal as they crept along. The hybrids obviously fared much better in that situation even with the ICE running to keep the battery charged.

I was in a two hour nasty traffic jam on a friday nite solid stop and go, and coasting, or electric motor creeping at about ten mph and it was no problem. Cranked up the stereo, and the AC and made the best of it.

I have noticed this for some time however lately it seems to be happening more: the engine is on but no consumption is showing on the energy screen. I'm talking about the one on the NAV not the speedo. This morning i went for about five blocks right after a cold startup, nothing on the screen but i could feel and hear the ICE running. On the way home tonite same thing. Its not a big deal, perhaps that is why the mpg display is about one mpg high.

Thanks Jashev, it helps to have someone confirm what i thot was happening. Today things seemed smoother even tho they were short trips and the ICE was cold. I'm hearing it may take two tankfulls to adjust to the premium.

Ok so i won some money playing blackjack and gas has actually gone down about ten cents a gallon in Seattle recently so long story even longer i went for Chevron premium after my last tank of midgrade. After 100 miles of mixed driving, no AC, my average has gone from 26/28 to 28/30 mpg. The wierd thing is, and im not imagining this, it seems to me when the ICE kicks in like it does for battery charging or acceleration needs it is LESS smooth. Not the jerking surging problem people report, just not as silky smooth a transition as it was with regular gas. I will do at least two tankfulls of premium to see if this settles down.

Linen may not be the term you wanted to use, real Linen is not a cleanable or durable fabric, and has no fade resistance. The black leather is a better choice, have you tried wrecking yards that specialize in Lexus. An auto upholstery shop can do the rest of the interior. Just wondering was this a Katrina flood car? Also how many miles do you have on this engine.

Sorry to hijack the thread however im curious, Hendjaz, you posted in another forum regarding your trip in the new 400h you brought home from the southwest. How did that go for you.

I feel grateful that for whatever reason my 400h has been smooth at all speeds. I think it takes two to tango, and if Lexus wants to respond by ignoring the issue, i would take it in five times for the same problem, or how ever many you need in your state and invoke the lemon law. There are people who have reported that the surging/jerkiness improves with miles, or they get used to it, and they used a higher octane gas, i dont know if you have tried that. I personally feel these should run on a good quality regular... .. .

I agree rex, their articles are biased. I used to hold them in higher regard but this has opened my eyes. Perhaps i just had them on too high a pedestal. Good to have a reality check i guess.

I had my seats reupholstered in the ford exploder that was replaced by my 400h. A friend took out the seats and i have the airbag lite on the dash since the seats were removed. We have replaced the seats and plugged everything backin. To get rid of the dash lite i removed the battery cables and reconnected them. This woked for my problem, however i never had airbag deployment. Some repair shops and certainly the dealer have the ablity to reset your system.

I think they use Castrol Blend for a couple reasons. They say it fights sludge, a previous toyota problem, and i would want the better lube characteristics of the synthetic in my 400h since it starts and stops so frequently. Also in an emergency if no Blend was available you could probably put in some dino if you needed oil. Dino blend is probably more reasonable priced than full synthetic. I have been using Quaker State 4x4 oil in all my trucks, it is a dino blend and it has been a great oil, cutting consumption by half in older engines and protecting the rest since they were new.

First of all let me say Patt you are one hell of a hybrid driver, my consistent mpg is 26 to 28. Also i am doing this from memory but it seemed to me when i had Lexus set personal settings there was some way they could set the AC to keep from going to recirculate first. The reason i keep it off (unless im following a diesel truck or i need max cooling) is the fans are quieter in the recirc off mode.

to monarch regarding the fluid in cvt, it is the world standard type, the toyota mechanic i talked to said its expensive so im thinking its synthetic. he did repeat that under normal driving there is no reccomended cvt oil change in the first 100K, and he further said they have trained hybrid specialists do the work as even changing fluid in an incorrect manner on a cvt can cause improper shifting. Just one mans opinion, from a toyota tech, not gospel.

i had lexus change the setting to your preference booyah at my first oil change. my dealer will not charge to have them change settings as long as you dont ask for a new setting every week.

Thanks for the help, so i can polish the wheels with Zymol?, i like that for the paint, and i assume the maguires car wash product i use is ok on the wheels too... .. .

This might be too easy but when it is inoperable, are the doors locked? In some rx's the passenger doors must be unlocked before the rear will open.

Dang i trusted the guy at the auto parts store regarding the wadding polish, he knew there was clearcoat on the wheels but swore the eagle one product was safe, uses it himself. I will give them a call, and go pay him a visit...