SOMEONE ELSE'S GOT MY NAME

Read the thread right below this one! It's on point: "Using Razr Cell Phone With Rx 400 H" The search toll is a wonderful thing :)

What part of Oregon? Mud flaps on the rainy coast? vs in the much more dry interior?

400h ?? No drive line to the rear axle, just an electric motor back there ... thus AWD is all there is for the hybrid ~ so it's 2WD or AWD. This terminology thing seems to come up regularly. But YES, folks are more helpful if they tell which model they have. Same helpfulness thing for area, geography and climate. 120 degrees with AC crossing mojave? ... flat ground? Winter snow in Fairbanks AK? A little detail goes a long way ;)

The 12V. is mearly to boot the ECU's. Thus, if you have 8 flashlight D cells wired up, even THAT would do the trick. Weird.

Some states in the U.S. have vacume on the pumps. Not so in Canada?

Never. It's really putzy compared to the amount of brake drag we get off the prius. We have the AWD so I'd think there would be twice as much ability to slow the vehicle down, despite its greater mass ... but it just aint nearly as much brake power generated ... so we don't bother with it. Using the brake peddle has a much greater regenerative yield.

I dig your running boards ... that's next on the list of honey-do's.

We have the '06 model, AWD. I'm thinking that may play into folks numbers. Best tank figured by the MFD was 31.5mpg. Doing the math myself, it calculated out to 32.2mpg (but this was deliberatly driving like an ol' grandpa). Life time average (after 22K miles) is 25.8mpg. My wife drives the 400h most of the time & she REALLY needs to get to that next red light Still, that's MUCH better than the 12mpg she was getting in the replacement vehicle ... the Range Rover.

Fear of law suits ... everone WANTS the functionality ... and everyone wants to sue for damages when they crash into someone while programming off the MFD. If you want to drive & punch buttons ... get everyone to write your legislator ... take away products liability rules so manufacturers don't have to pay out when folks hit an overpass ... thus ending up brain dead ... with a family wanting compensation for your injuries ... and then you're good to go! ;) As for returning the lock pick? As someone stated in the thread above, there IS a DVD hack that allows for parts of the old software to still run and thus utilize lock pick features on the newer systems ... but I guess it's a moot point if you've already returned it. Oh well.

I'd think the easies way to tell which you have is by looking at the MFD ... if the screen shows power going to both front & rear wheels ... you got AWD If not ... then ... well, you can figue that out too!

We right on the newest/latest/greatest ... but ONLY when it gets (my personal pet peave) the smart entry/ignition ... which it ought to have had back in '06.

This will enable your navigation functions, however your phone will still be locked when you are in motion. I've used this for awhile. Zube's wire cutting solution took me all of 20 minutes and works perfectly and affects nothing else. Jon The trick above, to access a hidden menu, to override the navigation lockout, used to work on my 06 GS. However, since getting a DVD update to version 06.1, the trick doesn't work any more. Do you have an update for the trick? It has been done by hacking the upgrade DVD ... you'll have to search around for the data as it's not at my finger tips.

Email them! Or ... you can just keep asking us ... then we tell you, "I think ... er, probably" Sometimes we responders tell you with absolute authority ... and it's absolutely wrong

Some have tried the 02 software to no avail. Corporate? How does one distinguish whether one Verizon store or another carries such a label.

:D That drove me nuts too! I took a hand towel and put in the bottom of the rear armrest. That solved the problem...no more banging...and you never know when you might need the hand towel. Brilliant minds think alike ... we did the same :^)

What do they say? "The squeeky Lexus gets the ...." Shmear a little silicone grease or spray, or slimy leather spray ... what ever suits your fance. Boom. Your done. To the dealer that says, "that's normal" ... I'd say, "I think I'll write to customer service to coroborate weather this is normal. See if he (while pee'ing his pants) changes his/her tune.

Yes, those pait dab thingies are hardly better than the gouge they cover. If you can find your color in aerosol, it will at least look a skoshe better. We managed to deeply gouge the rear bumper with the lowering garage door. The bumpers are that tupperware plastic ... at least in our case. Yea we covered the trench with gold paint but sheesh! The paint dabber just didn't do the trick. Should have 1st filled it with bondo. Oh well one more thing for the 'to do' list.

Maybe I can trust it wont jeopardize our electronics ... but i KNOW my wife won't let me dork-a-fy the 400h with the Hi-Q. And the Prius with the Screwdriver? ... I would REALLY look like I should be carrying a pocket portecter :D .

Yes, the lockpick permits full phone functionality while in motion. That's the reason I got it. Now that it's installed I can dial right off the screen while the car's in motion If you read up on it, you'll see that's one of the features they're advertising. They DO have a cheap version that only does the NAV, but you can do that over-ride your self (each time you need it) through the back door menues listed on posts here and elsewhere.

My Kenwood 2000 puts out 50watts on 440 and 100 throuh 160 meters. I'm afraid to run it mobile! Might blow out one of the on-board PC's don't you think? Besides, don't you think the Prius is dorky enough without the Hi-Q screwdriver antenna? :^)

Your sales guy's fears are NOT universal. Many WILL tell you where to get the work around. Here's the thingie you need to cure your grief. Works great, and you only have to be slightly a tech dork. It took a while for ours to arrive, so if you can muster a little more patience than you have for your dealer, you'll be ok http://www.coastaletech.com/DELUXE_LOCKPICK.htm

Actually, the Lexus RX350 has slightly more horsepower than the RX400h. The 400, however, has much more torque. I guess subconsciously, that's why I must have said "power" rather than horsepower ... because when you take the ICE power + electric motor power it equals more power, and skutes through the quarter mile in a quicker time than the strait ICE.

Usually the dealer posts these issues in their TSB's ... but I can't find this issue anywhere.

Hi subbu, Hint ... the "SEARCH feature is a WONDERFUL thing" Plug the word, "Badge" into the search function ... THIS thread will be first ... the 2nd thread will lead you to where you want to go. Go to the very last post (it will probably still be mine) an BINGO, you can buy and glue badges onto your SUB 'till the cow come home

Pragmaticly, here's another good reason to buy the 400h over the regular "gas-guzzler" - - - It's an article I just read, that contradicts the poo poo'ers that say hybrids are more expensive over the lifetime of the car, ie; creation to the grave. Many of us all ready knew that was bunk, but it always feels good to hear the experts say it. And in the case of Consumer Reports, it felt good when they re-visited the issue and had to do a retraction, finally admitting that the Prius was less expensive to run than a comparable sized car. Hybrid autos save money in long run, study finds By John O'Dell Times Staff Writer January 8, 2007 Hybrid vehicles are proof of the old saw that you've got to spend money to save it, a new study shows. In recent years, studies by Consumer Reports and others have shown that most hybrids won't save owners enough money on fuel alone to make up for their higher initial prices. But a new study by Los Angeles-based Intellichoice.com, which specializes in automotive cost-of-ownership data, says that hybrid buyers are still the winners when you factor in costs of financing, fuel, insurance, state taxes and license fees, repairs, maintenance and depreciation. "Across the board, we found that all 22 hybrid vehicles have a better total cost of ownership over five years or 70,000 miles than the vehicles they directly compete against," said James Bell, Intellichoice.com's publisher. "Hybrids are proving themselves to be an excellent alternative for car buyers," Bell said. "Even when factoring in the additional upfront costs for their purchase, the long-term savings hybrids generate makes them a sensible and attractive purchase." There is no better example, the study says, than Toyota Motor Corp.'s Prius. The study concludes that a Prius owner over five years will save $13,408 over a similar-size sedan that is not a hybrid. Prius, the five-passenger mid-sized sedan, is the most popular of the 22 hybrid models on the market today. It accounted for about 43% of hybrid sales in the U.S. last year and for about 60% of all hybrid sales since its introduction in 2000. On average, sedans of similar size to the Prius (non-hybrid cars such as Toyota's own Camry, Honda Motor Co.'s Accord and Ford Motor Co.'s Taurus) cost motorists an average of $33,305 over the first five years of ownership, Intellichoice found. Costs for the Prius averaged $19,897. The difference, the study says, is that hybrids retain their value better than conventional vehicles, have moderate maintenance and repair costs and, of course, there are those lower fuel costs. Hybrids also benefit from federal tax credits, which this year can range from $250 to $1,950 but were as high as $3,150 in 2006. The study based its gasoline prices on last year's average national gas price of $2.26 a gallon. The average dollar savings may go up or down with the price of gasoline, the study pointed out, but the percentage difference in operating costs between the hybrids and non-hybrids would remain constant. Because they carry both an internal combustion engine and an electric motor, plus a lot of complex electronics and oversized banks of advanced technology batteries to make it all work, hybrid cars and trucks are more costly to buy than comparable non-hybrid vehicles. The hybrid price difference — or premium — can be as little as $1,000 to as much as $5,000 for some luxury models. The higher purchase prices have kept many people from considering hybrids. Demand for the vehicles peaked last summer, when regular gasoline prices topped $3.25 a gallon nationally, but has declined as gas prices have fallen. The hybrids with the biggest five-year savings after the Prius were the new Honda Civic sedan hybrid, the Toyota Highlander sport utility vehicle hybrid and the Ford Escape SUV hybrid, Bell said. A quartet of "mild hybrid" pickup trucks from General Motors Corp. provided the least cost benefit over five years of ownership, with five-year savings ranging from $2,940 to $3,463. A mild hybrid is one that doesn't have an electric drive system to augment the internal combustion engine. Instead, it uses its electric power to enable the conventional engine to shut down when the vehicle normally would be idling. A "full hybrid" system such as in the Prius uses electric drive to boost gas engine performance and to enable the conventional engine to shut down at idle. Most also enable the car or truck to run on all-electric power for short periods at low speeds. The Intellichoice study, to be released today in Detroit during a media preview of the North American International Auto Show, comes at a time that more automakers are adopting some sort of alternative fuel or power plant strategy to help meet increasingly strict environmental rules and to maintain competitiveness as fuel prices rise. In addition to gasoline-electric hybrids, many automakers are adding diesel engines, which can offer as much as 40% more fuel economy than similar-size gasoline engines and are much cleaner than in the past. Several major automakers also are working on development of hydrogen-burning internal combustion engines or electric vehicles that use a drive system powered by electricity produced in an onboard fuel cell by combining hydrogen and oxygen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Any who, what really surprised me from reading RX-400h posts, not many here are concerned with the fact the car is cheaper to run, but instead, 400h owners are happiest about the fact that it has more power than its gas guzzlin' cousin, the non-hybrid version.