RX400h

Your gas mileage will creep up over time. Ours went from an average of 21 to an average of 25 over a period of approx. 5000 miles worth of driving.

Although I haven't noticed a high-pitched sound when braking, I really like the jet turbine-sound that emanates from under the hood sometimes.

I believe that if you go to the Tirerack website and enter your make and model, you will see the OEM tire size, which doesn't initially show its speed rating. Of course, one should never replace an OEM tire with a tire having a lower speed rating. Not only may you end up with reduced performance, but you can also have a blowout if you take your vehicle to a track for high speed driving.

The only alternatives (with V speed rating) to the OEM Goodyears that Tirerack shows are three Michelins and a Yokohama. For some strange reason, the Bridgestone Alenza doesn't turn up in a comparison listing. However, if you search for them directly, they are listed in the correct size and speed rating.

The "V" speed rating that our OEM Goodyears carry, is way up there at 149 MPH max. Generally, tires having this speed rating tend to wear out rather quickly.

Dave

Back when the Goodyear GSD3s were introduced, the number of available sizes were rather slim. Those who tried them urged those who required wider sizes to wait; the tire is well worth it. After one year or less, Goodyear introduced many of the sizes people wanted, with more sizes to come.

I'm guessing that the RX400h tire size requirement is not extremely popular - hence its sizeot being available as a Fortera HL.

Believe me, Goodyear will come out with that size Fortera, eventually. So if you need tires right now, your choices are fairly limited. The Bridgestones appear to be a good choice for what's available.

In a not too long ago test of SUV tires, Consumer Reports noted the following:

"All-season truck and SUV tires

Among all-season tires, the Goodyear Fortera HL Edition (*est. $120) and Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza (*est. $120) run neck and neck in tire reviews. Both, experts say, are excellent SUV tires, and both tires are included in comparative testing at The Tire Rack. Editors say both ride well, but the Goodyear Fortera is rated slightly better for comfort and steering response. The Bridgestone tires have some features that are not easily tested, including a double-layer tread that's meant to improve traction as the primary tread begins to wear. As a result, the Alenza has one of the highest government treadwear ratings of 600 for H-rated tires and 700 for T-rated tires. Competing tires, including the Goodyear Fortera tires, have treadwear ratings of around 540. (Read more about government treadwear ratings in our Best Research section below.)

The Goodyear Fortera HL Edition gets high scores from three tire reviewers, and experts say this truck and SUV tire has an excellent blend of handling, ride and safety qualities. The Goodyear tire gets especially high scores from experts for wet and dry braking, and this SUV tire is competent on snow and ice, making it a good choice for mild winter weather. The Goodyear Fortera easily outgrips the Michelin Cross Terrain SUV tire (*est. $145) in tests at Car and Driver and in other SUV tire reviews.

The Goodyear Fortera HL Edition and Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza truck and SUV tires are both highly competent, and they compete head-to-head on pricing as well. We've included the Goodyear Fortera tires in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers, since we saw this tire reviewed by more experts (possibly because the Alenza is a newer SUV tire).

The Fortera and Alenza are both premium all-season truck and SUV tires, with corresponding high price tags. We found some tires in reviews, however, that come close in many aspects to the performance of these more expensive tires. The Kelly Safari Signature (*est. $90) and Dayton Timberline HT (*est. $75) are good budget all-season options. The Kelly SUV tire gets excellent scores for performance on ice and gets kudos from reviewers for low noise. Overall, however, the Kelly doesn't handle quite as well as the Fortera and Alenza truck tires. The Dayton Timberline is competent across the board, falling just short of the higher-end Fortera and Alenza tires, but outclassing tires such as the Toyo Open Country M410 (*est. $90) and Uniroyal Laredo Cross Country (*est. $85).

Another good budget tire is the Dunlop Radial Rover AT (*est. $85). Reviews say that the Dunlop tires deliver a smooth, quiet ride and perform well in braking tests, with the exception of icy surfaces. Cornering and emergency handling are good but not excellent. Dunlop offers a 60,000-mile treadlife warranty on the Radial Rover AT."

It looks you can't go wrong with either, with the Goodyears having a slight edge in the handling department.

Full article here: http://www.consumersearch.com/www/automoti.../fullstory.html

I would expect that if there was obvious alignment issues as evidenced by uneven tire wear, an alignment should be completed at no charge. Maybe I'm a bit spoiled by Lexus in general, but if I were the guy bringing my RX in for this problem, I'd insist.

In my opinion - yes, the dealership should check and align as necessary.

Last week we took our RX400h into the dealer for it's 1 year/15000 mile service. The dealer called and said the tires were down to the cord in spots and would need to be replaced. We were shocked, neither my husband and I had noticed this. Believe it or not, Kearny Mesa Lexus told us that they were going to replace the tires as a customer courtesy. It took them an extra day but they put 4 new Michelin MXV4 Energys on the car, no charge. What a great tire, by the way. Possibly Lexus knows about an issue with the OEM tire or the car?

So that must have been YOUR RX400h I saw blasting by me on 15 South, doing 110 MPH! Don't worry, I won't relay that info to the dealership...........

Seriously, I'm guessing that Toyota bought the Goodyears for an incredibly low price. Certainly, this is not indicative of the rest of their line of tires. As I mentioned previously, OEM tires are often much less durable than the best aftermarket tires. The same holds true for many OEM brakepads and other wearable components.

Tire cupping is almost always indicative of bad shock absorbers. Our Goodyears are looking good after 13,000 miles. No, they won't last 40,000 miles, but OEMs rarely do. In fact, I was looking at tire selections for my Mazda at a Discount tire shop not too long ago and the salesguy pointed out a few OEM tires that had 10,000 mile warranties. I'm not talking about super high performance tires, either. These were H-rated OEMs by Bridgestone, Michelin, etc. Apparently, longevity is not a concern of many auto manufacturers.

As proof, my Goodyear GSD3 tires on my Corvette are hardly wearing at all after 10,000 miles. These are ultra high-performance tires that are far superior to anything that goes on most new vehicles.

Anyone know where I can buy a replacement? The toyota dealer washed my car and lost my cap :(

Didn't they offer to find you a replacement?

Dave

Its hard to believe this dealer who is in effect saying Toyota designed a car that drains the battery in three days because of 'all the sensors running in the car'. Electrical problems are time consuming to trace, but its clear that something is draining your battery that should not be. I would call Lexus corporate and get some resolution, go to another dealer if you can because as i have said too many times, not all Lexus dealers are created equal, and when my trusted mechanic could not fix starting problems in a Ford truck, i took it to a shop that specialized in electrical problems and they fixed it in one hour.

I agree. Try another dealership.

This firmware would also have to include "lower battery life" with "better economy". Remember, the RX400h weighs 4600 lbs. Allowing it to use more of the battery's charge would result in having to replace the batteries sooner than the current 150,000+ miles.

I think the battery warranty is eight or ten years. Of course, you'd have to try to calculate whether the cost of new batteries offsets the higher mileage. It's funny how no matter how well some things are engineered, there's always someone who has a "better" idea. Many are well-researched, but the plug-in concept, I'm afraid, was not.

Dave

"Toyota has been tracking battery life of its hybrid cars, on sale in Japan since 1997 (and over here since 2000). The latest word is that the hybrid battery pack - note, not the ordinary 12-volt battery running "hotel loads" - is good for the design life of the car.

Engineers usually figure this at 150,000 miles, with an expected bell curve of low and high extremes.

The reason for this longevity is interesting, and it also augurs poorly for the plug-in hybrid concept. The greatest chemical stress on any battery occurs at its operational extremes, the last 20 percent before full discharge and the top 20 percent of full recharge.

To avoid these extremes and enhance life, Toyota's hybrid battery pack is designed to operate at 60-percent charge, +/- 10 percent. Under extreme conditions, this is stretched perhaps another 5 percent in either direction. Therefore, the hybrid battery pack spends most of its life at 50-to-70-percent charge, avoiding the detrimental effects of low or high extremes.

By contrast, a plug-in hybrid car gains range and performance by exploiting this plug-in pack to the fullest. As wth ordinary rechargeable batteries, it's likely to trade longevity for this capability."

Thanks, Steve. It is my pleasure to help out the forum and to meet so many incredible people.

Dave

Typically, when a procedure calls for turning the ignition "On", it refers to rotating the key from "Off" to "On", without starting the engine. This is part of my Corvette's procedure to reset the "Oil Life Remaining" display back to 0%.

Greetings,

Since wear out of tires leads to replacement, I searched for what options exist.

The revs per mile differ among the 4 and 5 star tires offerred at http://www.tirerack.com/

They range from 731 to 739 , about 1%. I assume I can ignore this as long as I get the

tires in a matched set. Anyone disagree?

The site has Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Blackwall as the best seller. If everyone does

their research, then I can assume it rates better than the others. Does anyone have a better

suggestion if I want a good traction tire for all seasons, i.e. rain in winter and 110F and dry in summer?

Sincerely,

Bill

Lately, I've been reading very good things about Goodyear (not OEM) tires. Consumer reports has rated GY tires #1 for the past couple of years. I don't have my mags handy at this time, but anyone who subscribes can check into this.

I do know that the Goodyear GSD3s (ultra high-performance tires) are not only the best tires I've ever driven on in the rain and on dry roads, but they also trounced every other high-performance tire in a recent Car & Driver test.

I could've sworn I saw an article about an IS diesel. Has anyone else seen this?

I think you'll find the stopping distances a bit longer than on the other cars you mention you've driven. My 400h replaces a 5 series (E39) BMW. I've just had to adjust my driving habits to accommodate. Think of the 400h as a truck. The latest Consumer Reports (came in the mail yesterday) compares the Camry hybrid with other Camries and other mid-size sedans. The Camry hybrid had noticeably longer stopping distances than the other Camry models. I assume this is at least in part because of the regenerative braking system and the complex integration with regular binders. It'll be interesting to see how Toyota deals with this aspect of the GS450h and the LS600h, which are really supposed to be sporty cars.

I agree. We have to remember what the 400h weighs: 4600 lbs. I'll bet that if an H2 were to try to stop quickly and didn't allow an incredibly long distance between it and the vehicle in front of it, there's be one squashed vehicle as a result.

I am spoiled royally by the Corvette - unbelieveably short stopping distances and seats that not only provide perfect lower back support, but also coddle from the sides. Everything is a compromise of sorts and our RX400h is no exception.

If you really want to know if your brakes are faulty, I recommend that you drive another h to compare.

My boss has an RX400h and discovered a possible problem involving the vehicle's airbags. He told me that he was driving the car recently and his 16 year old daughter was in the front passenger seat. He noticed that when his daughter reclined the front passnger seat fully so that it was virtually completely horizontal so that she could take a nap, that the indicator on the dashboard indicated "Passenger Airbag Off," or words to that affect. It is his recollection that when the seat is empty that message should be displayed. When the seat is occupied it should not be. Why, he wonders, would the airbag protection be deactivated when the backrest is fully reclined?

Anybody know?

Thanks.

Don't know but I can speculate with the best of them...

The sensor is pressure/weight activated and if she reclined all they way a large protion of her weight would be on the back of the seat and not on the bottom part (where the sensor is). Could be that she also shifted her weight so that it was not on the sensor.

I doubt that it has any connection to the position of the seat back.

Also, in that position neither the seat belt or the air bag are going to be of any use in protecting her from an impact... she should learn to sleep sitting up.

I agree 100%. Now, let me tell you a true story that happened one year ago.

My nephew, who was taking a break from being stationed in Iraq, went for a night out with one of his military buddies. As they were returning to base in his friend's Cavalier, my nephew decided to take a nap in the passenger seat in the fully-reclined position. Unfortunately, the driver lost control of his vehicle and it rolled over on a desolate road, not too far from the base. My nephew's head was pounded by the door and he died almost instantly. He was about 29 years old.

So please, never let anyone recline the seat while the vehicle is moving.

Most Lexus dealers don't do body repairs. Glad it looks like its resolved!

My dealer in Wilmington, DE also doesn't do body. Do you know why Lexus dealers have chosen not to have body shops? My insurance company sent me to a Chevy dealer (fat chance!) Found an independent shop to fix my front bumper ($3K - ouch.) They did a beautiful job.

My guess is that many recommend the Toyota collision centers for that kind of work. This is what we found to be the case for one of the three Lexus dealerships near us. One dealership recommended a Mercedes body shop and the other, the Chevy dealership shop. Keep in mind, though, that many Chevy body shops work on Corvettes and believe me, Corvette owners tend to picky after spending over $50K for a vehicle.

Hi Guys!! :)

I hope you're OK.

Click on THIS to watch a 'youtube' video of a 'Fifth Gear' road test/review of the GS450h.

Craig!! :)

Nice - thanks!

Car is VERY sensitive to highway speed, at above 70 mph mileage drops significantly at 80 mph and up it is down dramattically. Up to about 65 mph even gradual downhills are sufficeint for engine to shut down above 70 mph engine almost never shuts down. At 65 mph and less car can get great mileage with a little effort.

My God, who drives THAT slowly????? Obviously, you do NOT live in California! :)

Actually, I believe this is not a dealer-installed option. It IS odd that it is missing, however.

Thanks for the excellent review. I will certainly save it for future reference.

Dave

All that rain must boost fuel mileage! :) Seriously, people here in San Diego who drive 65 during off-peak hours will get rear-ended in a heatbeat. Most average 80 MPH during my morning commute. That being said, I must add that we average 24.8, while a couple of former coworkers could do no better than 16-18 MPG in their RX330s. My Corvette averages 19.5 MPG and is significantly lighter than the RX (3200 vs 4600 lbs). Still, sudden bursts of speed to 115 don't help achieve high mileage ;)

So far, we've racked up 13,000 miles after 14 months and have had zero problems.