gandalf58

Who was the anorexic test dummy they used when deciding where to place the drivers side right arm rest? lol

We had a 2004 RX 330, and one of the first things I noticed in the 2008 RX 350 is that the right arm rest is noticeably higher. They made so many little changes in 4 years, but missed some of the bigger ones. You wonder what goes through their heads.

Personally, I think the arm rest is fine just like it is and I'm neither anorexic or fat (but I am male). Nebraska99, by making a reference to 'anorexic', I'm assuming you think it's placed too close?

:( Is anyone else unhappy with a new 08 RX350? I purchased mine new in October of 07. Black with gray inside. Nav,etc. This car is loud. I have a lot of wind noise, road noise and a buzzing sound from the brake relay. I believed this was to be a great car. Today the door handle fell off when I was washing it. I attempted to trade it for a GS350 AWD and would loose $7K (I would have done $4K) to do the deal. What resale? My car has only 2350 miles on it. I can not believe I traded a BMW for this junk mobile. I will have to go to Benz or BMW!!!

Did I just get a bad one?

My uncle has the same RX, he purchased two weeks after me. This is his third RX and he too is having some issues.

Did Lexus hire unemployed GM and Ford workers?

What should I do?

I also have minor wind noise - from the driver's side window. If I lower the window just a fraction, the noise stops. The dealer replaced the window seal and the wind noise is the same (as is my solution of lowering the window a fraction). I know the seal was replaced because I had grease all over the inside/outside of the door and the headliner! The dealer quickly took care of removing the gease (mainly I was concerned about the headliner) but I had to take the car back in because I hadn't noticed it until after I got home.

Say, I have a minor buzzing noise on occasion that sounds like it's coming from the right front part of the car, is that from the brake relay? Other than these two fairly minor issues, my 07 RX is about perfect.

Not sure where Lexus gets their workers from here in So. Calif., but I find it interesting the Japanese go to all the trouble to make (mostly..) excellent vehicles, and then the local car dealers apparently find the ones that will work the cheapest.

With respect to BMW's. I unloaded a BMW M Roadster that had a number of ridiculous problems. Ie, both power seats would slide forward and stop with a loud 'clunk' under hard braking, both power windows moaned and groaned like they had 1/2 the power they required, the clutch would also make a clunk sound when depressing at low speeds, a glove box that would rattle around and a few other quality problems. Btw, the dealer reported everything was 'within spec'....as I recall, they couldn't produce these 'specs' for me. And you don't even want to talk to my brother in-law about his 7 series Bimmer..

I paid $35k. for my 2007 FWD RX 350, with the Premium Plus pkg., 18" aluminum alloy wheels, heated front seats, rain sensing wipers, headlamp washers, cargo mat and wheel locks. The MSRP, including delivery ($715) was $41,496.

Thanks to all of you for putting my concerns to rest. I agree that when first started the engine reminded me of an improperly adjusted push rod banging against a rocker arm.

This is my first Lexus and I'm not impressed, just disappointed in the quality in many areas considering it is a 40K vehicle. I'm reminded every time I open the driver's door.....it feels and sounds cheap like an older GM vehicle.

I will not buy another Lexus RX.

Somewhere on this forum, it was reported the engine noise was due to Lexus switching from a timing belt to a timing chain - saving us from having to spent the $800 to replace the belt every 90k miles (or whatever). If that's true, I'll put up with the noise to not hassle changing the timing belt (as I had to do with my old Acura and Miata). Just my opinion..

Especially since there is no such thing as an 07 LS400 lol

No 07 LS 400...In that case, it makes me wonder what filter they used...or, if they replaced it at all.

Now that my wife's RX is about to turn 10K miles, I called up the dealer to inquire about the service. $275 dollars to change the oil, and just check everything from tire pressure to wiper blades! What a rip-off!!

BTW, just an oil change was $40 so I'll end up getting that and inspect everything myself.

Just wondering if other owners are paying for the astronomically priced services every 5K miles or just doing the oil changes individually? Which next service is a 'must-do' at the dealer?

Thanks!

I just had the oil & filter changed on my 07 RX for $27.95 at the local Toyota dealer. This was th 10k service, but like most everyone else says, I can do the 'checks' myself. Insofar as rotating the tires is concerned, I'll have them rotated every other service, or 10k miles (they were rotated on the freebie 5k Lexus servicing). Rotating at 10k has worked fine on all my other vehicles over the years.

Btw, when the service guy entered my VIN, it automatically filled out the Toyota paperwork saying it was a 07 LS 400. I thought he may have entered it wrong but he didn't. Not sure what to make of that...maybe I've got a half-breed.

(I started a thread like this on another board which ended up morphing into a "Consumer Reports" BASHING discussion. Howze about if we leave that SIDE issue alone here? Let's declare it a DEAD HORSE.)

In a comparo of "Luxury Suvs," the RX350 comes out ahead of the MDX, SRX, X5 and MKX. The only vehicles rated higher are the 400h and Highlander Hybrid.

HIGHS: Ride, quietness, acceleration, access, fuel economy, fit and finish, reliability.

LOWS: Lacks agility.

Notable (to me) highlights on the Performance/Specs/Safety page are the best gas mileage (19 overall) AND acceleration (0-60 = 7.3 secs.: gotta luv that new 3.5 V6), braking, and curb weight.

However, they ALWAYS hammer the low beam headlights; "Low-beam HID headlights did not reach very far; but high beams were very good, with excellent intensity."

Are they really that bad? As a potential buyer, this is an issue for me with my 58 year-old eyes, one of which has a cataract.

We have a 2007 RX, and I haven't noticed the low-beam headlights being a problem (or even given them a second thought) for my 58 year old eyes (no cataracts, but lots of floaters!). Oftentimes, I think car reviewers feel they have to find a 'con' to report - particularly when they have so many 'pros'. We have had our FWD car for five months with zero problems.

Can anyone tell me what they are getting for actual fuel milage on a 07 or 08 RX350 2WD ? I don't want computer milage just actual fill to fill as these friggan commputers make it look rosie. I am going to be replacing my GX470 which is around 13 (yes a real pig on fuel).TIA RK

So far I'm getting around 18-19 MPG in suburban (granny) driving, and 27 in straight highway driving at 70-75 miles per hour. I found the computer is consistently 1.2 - 1.5 mpg higher than the actual mpg.

In any case, probably way better than the GX470!

I think I got a pretty good deal, I just purchased it on Valentine's day:

2007 FWD

Premium Plus Pkg

Navigation

18" Wheels

Heated Seats w/rain sensing wipers

Wheel locks

Cargo Mat

MSRP 44,146

Paid $36,777

Dave

How many miles on the car? Seems about $3k to cheap to be a new car

There was only 16 miles on the car!!! :D

Dave

I don't know how much the NAV is worth, but I bought the identical vehicle except w/o NAV for $35,000 - but that was two months ago when the dealers were pretty flush with 2007's.

I think I got a pretty good deal, I just purchased it on Valentine's day:

2007 FWD

Premium Plus Pkg

Navigation

18" Wheels

Heated Seats w/rain sensing wipers

Wheel locks

Cargo Mat

MSRP 44,146

Paid $36,777

Dave

How many miles on the car? Seems about $3k to cheap to be a new car

There was only 16 miles on the car!!! :D

Dave