rbh1515

I just traded in my RX400h for a new RX350. I had the hybrid for 15mo. During that time we had to have the hybrid batteries replaced because of failure. This happened only after about 2 months after buying this car new. We were getting pour mileage before the battery failure and there was only slight improvement after replacing the batteries. Its my wife's car and we live in the midwest. She drives predominantly in the city, short trips. The salesman at Lexus convinced us that these were the conditions in which the car really shined. This winter my wife was getting 17 mpg on the computer (which means it was really getting about 16 mpg). The dealer said finally that if she drives short trips in cold weather, the hybrid system doesn't really kick in until the engine warms us, thus a lot of the time she was just driving the engine. I personally think there was something wrong with our particular car, because it seemed to run a lot on the engine in cold weather even after the engine warmed up. In cold weather I could never get the car get moving from a standstill using the battery now matter how slowly I would try to accellerate. I would even try turning off the heater and seat heaters. I would come to a stop sign and the ICE would keep running for 20 sec. I don't know if our car was a lemon, or if the dealer was clueless on evaluating the situation. I even tried on multiple occasions to get Lexus USA involved and they were totally worthless. So, we got a great trade in the other day on a new RX350. I like how it drives much better. Rob

I have to agree with you. I have owned our 400h for about 7 months now. The hybrid battery system has had to be replaced. I get at best 23mpg--driven about 60% in the city. I don't have rattles, and the car drives nicely, but it is not what I would expect from a Lexus. Also, my dealer is really subpar when it comes to dealing with a hybrid vehicle, and when I have questions and call Lexus corporate it takes over a month for someone to call me back. I bought the car because it seemed to make good sense for short trips in city driving. I wish I had gotten the Mercedes diesel. Live and learn. rob

The main point to my reply is that similar problems do occur with these hybrids--it happened to me within a month of owning my car. A problem similar to the poster of this topic. My dealer is a big Lexus dealer in the area, but has been very subpar. When I was shopping for an SUV for my wife, I was looking for something that would be reliable and get great mileage (for an SUV). The Mercedes was my other choice, and in fact there was an article on the internet comparing the mileage of the two, and the Mercedes diesel won out on a cross county trip. Mercedes' diesel engines are extremely reliable--I have owned them in the past and put on well over a 100k miles with no problems. I thought I would be getting an even more reliable car with the added benefit of environmental friendliness. So far I am not impressed. Maybe its just my car, but after being on the web and going on forums, I'm hearing of more and more problems with these hybrids. After replacing the batteries on my car, the dealer had to "re-initialize" the system--I believe thats the term they used. The paperwork is very vague, and the second time they didn't even give my any paperwork. I'm sure they are worried about the Lemon Law. My wife's mileage is 21-22mpg (as measured at the pump--the computer overestamates by about 1.5mpg). She drives predominantly in the city--not highway. This is where the hybrid should shine. If I were to do it over, I would have bought the Mercedes. Rob

Doubt it has anything to do with the theft. We bought our 2006 400h last Nov. Everything was fine for the first month or so. Then the mileage started dropping into the low to mid teens! And about a month later we got 2 messages like you--one was check hybrid system. We called the dealer and they said to drive it in. They had no idea what it ment. They had it for a week--they had to replace the hybrid battery system. After getting it back our mileage still stank--mid teens. They did some work on it twice--I think they finally re-initialized the system or something like that. Of course they never reset the power windows or moon roof which we had to take care of later, but the mileage now is about 21-22mpg. Still not very good but better than mid teens. I need them to look at the system again--one of my friends at work has a 2005 and he gets 25-28 mpg. Thats what I would like to be getting. We'll see. I'm a bit nervous with this car. Are we going to have more problems? My other consideration was the diesel Mercedes SUV which would probably gotten better mileage. At the time I was worried about the reliability of German engineering. Oh well. If I could do it again I would have gone with the Mercedes. Rob

Ouch! :chairshot: Was yours one of the early ones? A 2006 or 2007? Ours is a 2006 that we bought in Nov 2006. Not sure when it was manufactured. Rob

We bought ours in November. After about 1 month the hybrid batteries had to be replaced. Sometimes the milage has been good--mid 20s. On a number of occasions the mileage for no explanation has gone into the mid teens. When this happens I notice the cars drives differently. Less power. Won't start out from a stop with the battery etc. The system has been re-intitialized a few times which has rectified the situation each time--but then it will re-occur. Currently everything seems fine, but I'm worried how these cars are going to be long term.

We have the same car (2006, Flint Mica with the black interior--love the combo). We recently had a good snow storm in Milwaukee, and it did great. No problems. Rob

Followup on the antenna--Lexus never did get back to me. My dealer followed up for me. :) News not great IMO. He said that if you buy a 2007 with XM from the factory, the antenna will be the same as what I have and it will be installed fairly similarly with a wire exposed. No clean sharkfin antenna or anything nice like that. He said that this is problably the end of the rx400h design cycle and that it will go thru a redesign, so no nice antenna setup. I thought I was buying a Lexus--everything first class----not. Rob

I bought a 06 a couple of weeks ago. One difference is that the front passenger does not have lumbar support control on the 06. Mine also does not have the Navigation system--I really wasn't interested in the Nav system. I already have a portable Garmin c330 that works great and can be bought for about $399. The only other thing is that the 07 can be ordered from the factory with XM radio. I got $3000 off list on mine (Flint Pica with black interior--which I love) and I got exactly what I wanted on my trade. So it worked out well. Rob

The inside antenna does sound better--I wonder if the reception is OK? When I bought my Lexus and the dealer said they would install the XM, I assumed (since it was a Lexus), I would get a really professional installation. I control XM thru the radio, although it does show up as TAT1 and TAT2 which is a bit strange. But the antenna looks like a job I myself would have to do if I was installing as a DIY type job. I have to come clean....my previous car, or should I say vehicle, was a Hummer H2. I was the primary driver and my wife had a small 4 seat convertible. The kids are getting bigger and the back seats were getting smaller in her convertible. She needed a bigger car, so we traded in the H2 and she is driving the Lexus. The hybrid really makes sense since about 80% of her driving is city. It is interesting to compare the H2 and the Lexus. Of course the MPG is very different. The H2 came with a radio that was XM ready just like the Lexus. It had Bose speakers and sounded great. The installation difference was night and day. 3 years ago my Hummer dealer added the components needed for XM when I purchased the vehicle. When I toggled thru the bands, it came up as AM, FM and XM, as it should. As for the antenna, it was a 2 day job (at no cost to me) and they drilled a hole in the roof and put in a great looking antenna with no wires showing. The H2 had standard 2nd row heated seats, stardard separate stereo for the passengers in the 2nd row, and I could customize all the various options easily myself--with the Lexus, the dealer has to do this. The dealer treated me like royalty and everything was first class. The Lexus dealer is very nice, but not quite at the level of the Hummer dealer. I'm waiting for the Lexus dealer to really impress me. I also called Lexus to inquire about the new factory installed antenna for XM. They said they would get back to me in 2 days. No call in 2 days :( Rob

I just got my new 400h a few weeks ago. Its a 2006, and the dealer added XM radio to it. The XM radio works well, but I'm not happy with the antenna installation. The installer used the small magnetic antenna that sticks up on the roof. A wire comes out of the antenna, and goes over a few inches across the roof and then goes under a seal for the roof rack. Its not a professional looking installation IMO. I expected to have a nice antenna (shark fin type or other) with no wires showing. My previous car was a GM product that the dealer added XM radio to, and I got a perfect installation that looked and worked great. I know that for 2006, XM radio was not a factory option, and that for 2007 it is a factory option. Does anyone here know what the antenna setup looks like in the 2007 cars? Anybody with a 2006 have a nice antenna installation on a 2006? Rob