RX400h

Actually, I can say the same thing about the Bridgestones - MUCH better handling compared to the OEM tires. Another thing to consider is unsprung weight. The lighter the components, the better the ride. For this reason, I shy away from heavier wheels and/or tires. Dave

This is one of the reasons why I chose the Bridgestones: http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresult...;speed_rating=Y Every review by owners of SUVs were very positive about them. Even owners of RX330s were very impressed. I'm sure the Toyos are good tires as well; it's just that with so much positive feedback on the Bridgestones (and an incredible price of $600/4)m I just couldn't pass them up.

I've driven in many Mercedes vehicles and I'm not sure what you are talking about. Lexus is known throughout the industry as having one of the best interiors. Audi does a good job, but I'm not impressed with Mercedes. The lights-again-not the interior but reading lights-check this ones and you'll know what I mean. Lawyers would eat that up and go directly at Toyota's juggular on that one. As I said, what makes sense to the average person does not necessarily make sense to a lawyer. I can almost guarantee you that you don't trim a tree that hangs out over a sidewalk, some jogger will wack his or her head on a branch and sue you for failing to provide safe passageway. It doesn't matter if any normal person would see the tree limb and move out of the way. Again, lawsuit-happy gold-diggers could care less if their actions cause the rest of us to suffer daily. If you get only 14-18 MPG with an RX400h, then you are driving like a maniac, pure and simple. I drive very briskly and my wife, as an average driver and we average 25 MPG. My previous coworkers, who both had RX330s, average 16 MPG. Both are VERY conservative drivers. I blast past X5s all the time and STILL average 25 MPG. I guarantee you, I am having fun when I see the look on their faces! "Affording" the gas has nothing to do with it. I refuse to waste my money on gas for a vehicle that can't get better than 14 MPG in the city. Even my Corvette gets better than that. The German SUV manufacturers were caught flat-footed by the RX400h. How embarrasing to Porsche that an RX400h is faster than their Cayenne S, yet trounces it when it comes to efficiency. Where is the high-level engineering? It's at Toyota!

I guess you never read anything about the first-year Mercedes SUV. It was so full of squeeks and rattles that sales plummeted for years. I don't think they ever fully recovered from the bad press they received after that fiasco. Even today, Mercedes Benz has one of the worst reliability ratings of any carmaker. I think if you were to poll RX400h owners, you'd find that the majority of them have few-to-no rattles or squeeks. Ours is virtually perfect in that regard. My interior lights turn off after a few seconds of closing the door. Not being to use the GPS protects Toyota from getting sued by all the sue-happy leeches out there. It's sad that there are so many, but they are there, waiting to sue after a collision that happened while they were entering an address in the NAV system. The ML500 gets 12 MPG in real-world city driving - no thanks! Yes, other gasoline-only vehicles are quieter during brisk acceleration, but that is a small price to pay for the extra power and twice the fuel mileage if the RX, IMO. Have you ever compared the "real world mileage" to that of any competing SUVs? The Mercedes and Volkswagens are horrible and the BMWs are not far behind. I'd go broke driving any one of the German SUVs, believe me. It sounds like you never test-drove your RX before you bought it. While this is not the vehicle for everyone, it is rated #1 by Consumer Reports for very good reasons. I kindly suggest that you buy the Mercedes and don't forget to wave to us as we pass you at the gas station.

I agree with Gordon; many of today's luxury vehicle seats are loaded with electronics and related safety components. I believe that the RX400h seats were designed to accomodate anyone who weighs anywhere from 90 to 290 lbs. Unfortunately, we who are in decent shape, end up with the bench-style seats. Perhaps we should let Lexus customer service know that adjustable side and thigh supports would be much appreciated. Dave

I recently had the 2-inch hitch installed and am planning to order the 4-bike rack that Northern Tool sells for $119. The local Sports store sells them for $200. Since I need to mount four bikes at a time, my options are somewhat limited. Dave

The book says the cargo area only looses one inch (higher floor) due to battery storage. I was under the impression that the back seats are taller,not the floor itself.

Some SUVs have ultrasonic range snesors that beep more frequently as the object gets closer. Even better would be a distance measurement display (you can buy the kit for about $100) that tells you what the distance is, fairly accurately. I agree that it IS difficult to judge using the camera or by looking back. The best vehicles for judging distance of objects behind you are small pickup trucks, IMO. However, having a large vehicle that is somewhat tall almost guarantees that backing up will be tricky. Even my Corvette rear end location is tough to judge when backing up. I always allow much more than enough room. Dave

We have no complaints with the way ours work although sometimes when I adjust the rearview mirror, the wipers will be activated briefly.

We love this vehicle - safe, smooth, quiet, great gas mileage, and fast!

Hello Chris and welcome to the club. I still have my C5 and enjoy it immensely. Aggressive city driving does cause the fuel mileage to plummet and I've seen 16 MPG. But as you've stated, highway mileage is stellar. The RX400h is at its best in the city, but that kilowatt-charged silky power is addictive on the highway, that's for certain. Anyway, enjoy them both and feel free to ask us any questions! Dave

The Alenzas are incredibly quiet, probably the quietest tires I have ever owned! Side note: While I was driving to LA this afternoon, the outside temperature didplay jumped to 102 degrees. Coincidentally, this occured very close to the Anaheim wildfires. For a while, I thought the sensor was malfunctioning, but when I returned to San Diego, the display read 82 degrees. Dave

Well, I just had my new tires balanced, installed and aligned, and a trailer hitch installed. The service advisor recommended that I call the Lexus customer service hotline to ask what can be done to compensate me for the premature tire end-of-life because of the too-low tire pressure specification. I am awaiting their response, but in the meantime, I did not have to pay for the tire balance and installation. Normally, the dealership to which I take the RX does not "help out" with tire or brake problems after 1 year of ownership. The service advisor did agree that our oem tires would last longer if they are pressurized higher than 30 psi. I'd estimate that my tires would've lasted another 6 months, had I inflated them to 35-36 psi from the beginning. Regarding the Bridgestone Alenzas: VERY quiet and great handling - highly recommended (so far)! Dave

What, pray tell, was the gas mileage of the GX470? I shudder every time I see such a huge vehicle!

Typically, premium is required for high-compression engines. You'd think that the RX engine doesn't need to have bumped-up compression, since it is supercharged by many kilowatts of power. Regarding ambient temperature and its effect on the grade of gasoline that is required, I recall driving in Las Vegas in our Nissan Quest when the ambient temp was up around 110. The V-6 engine pinged horribly on regular gas. When we returned home to San Diego, the engine ran great (75-85 degrees F). This is why I am surprised that LexRex was getting lower gas mileage during cold weather months. I wonder if friction had something to do with it?

One thing that'll confuse almost anyone is the noise that comes from leaving the right side of the sun visor unlatched. It really sounds like the noise originates in the dash somewhere. The first time it happened, I was baffled until I pushed in the visor. In the rear, check the tools for changing the spare tire. Other than those two sources, our RX has been noise-free. It is unlikely that any of the noises you hear is unfixable. Dave

I think that's what he was saying!

The RX350 did 0-60 MPH in 6.8 seconds - not shabby, but not as quick as the RX400h, which has axle torque equivelent of 650 lbs-ft - MUCH more off the line than that of the RX350.

According to our manuals, "Select Octane rating 87 (Research Octane Number 91) or higher. For improved vehicle performance, the use of premium unleaded gasoline with an Octane rating of 91 or higher is recommended." The octane numbers many of use see on the gasoline pumps are an average of motor octane number and research octane number. "What octane number should you buy? Modern fuel-injected engines have engine management systems that can adjust to burn almost anything. However, if the octane rating is too low, the engine management system will have to richen the mixture and !Removed! the timing to prevent destructive knock, resulting in lowered gas mileage. As you increase the octane rating of the fuel, you will hit a point where the engine management system can run the engine at optimum levels. At this point you have best gas mileage and best power. If you continue to increase the octane rating of the fuel, the engine management system does nothing, so all you are doing now is burning more expensive fuel for the same result. So, buy the lowest octane number that you can and still get your best gas mileage. In the winter, or when it's very humid, you can often lower the required octane number. In very dry heat, for example in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, S.California, you will most likely need to raise the octane level a bit to get best gas mileage." This is also true of my Mazda MX6-GT turbo's fuel requirements. Even though 91 octane gas will allow the engine to produce maximum horsepower, using lower octane gas will not hurt the engine as long as its knock sensor is functioning properly. As the statement above indicates, driving in colder weather allows many vehicles to run perfectly well on regular (87-octane) fuel. I have been using 87 octane gas for almost two years now and have never heard any pinging or experienced any problems. Power is more than adequate. However, during Summer, it may be wise to use higher octane, especially for trips to cities like Las Vegas. BTW, we average 25 MPG consistently and that's with my weekend heavy foot-driving. Dave

After driving a 2006 RX400h for more than 40,000 miles, Car & Driver managed 24 MPG with many a lead foot and 27 MPG after being driven by editor Pat Bedard in Arizona for four months. They did make a couple of mistakes in that they assumed premium gas is required (we all know THAT is not true) and they calculated payback of extra cost based upon gas prices of $2.39/gallon. Here in California, even regular gas is costing us almost $3.00/gallon. Regarding the blazing 0-60 time of 6.6 seconds, C&D commented that the Rx400h is as fast as a 340-hp Porsche Cayenne S. This time is definitely better than that possible by the RX350. Some of the drivers noted that the transition from all-electric to gas&electric was not always smooth and that "the transition from regenerative to hydraulic braking was often disconcerting because a small increase in pressure on the brake pedal might produce a large increase in deceleration." That's kinda funny because I rented a Maxima for one month, a couple of years ago and I can assure you that the super-touchy gas pedal response was FAR more disconcerting tha anything an RX400h can do! In conclusion, C&D wrote, "Despite its quirks, our RX400h turned out tobe a spry and fuel efficient luxury SUV, which is a rare combination in this price segment. For some people, that will be more than enough to justify the premium over an RX350." Dave

Rey, Since I want to negotiate an alignment, I will take them to the dealership for install - hopefully, this week. Regarding Tire Rack: I have had them drop-ship my Corvette tires before and the shop that mounted and balanced them did an excellent job. This time, however, I wanted to get a good look at the tires before they were mounted, so I had them shipped to my house. I like them! BTW, I am not sure that I want someone who is totally unfamiliar with hybrids, driving my RX. Maybe someday.... Dave Tom, What can I say, I'm a car guy who has been deprived of new tires for too long! Dave

After supper, my son announced that there were tires outside my front door. "My God, they're finally here!" I announced as I sprinted for the door. Yes, they do look great and I can't wait to try em out. It may be a little while, however, but not longer than a week. All I can say is "Yeeeehaw! Dave

I was just told by Tirerack that the Bridgestones will be in this week. Where did you get your info?

I will look for it - thanks!

The first generation Prius still fetches a decent price as a used vehicle and you may want to check prices of used RX400hs. The batteries should last 150,000 miles, according to Toyota test results and long-term hybrids in Japan. Therefore, if you don't pile on the mileage, resale value should be good, IMO. Still, you may want to discuss this with your accountant, as well. Dave