RX400h

This reminds me of an amusing (but true story) that happened many years ago. The parking lot of the company for which I worked, was "cleaned" every Tuesday at 8:00 - a time when the parking lot was 80% full. The "cleaning" method used by the Mexican immigrants was to walk around the lot with a leaf blower, blasting sand onto every vehicle within its range. Of course, many people, including I had washed their cars over the weekend and come Tuesday late morning, had sand-covered vehicles to get into later on. Eventually, side windows would develop scratches from the sand getting embedded in between the glass seal and the glass. Well, as any car-respecting person would do, I complained to the person who normally dealt with the building owner. (our receptionist). When her boss, the CFO of our company found out, he blasted me, saying "Nobody cares about getting a little sand on their cars, so drop it!" I immediately sent an email to everyone, asking them if they were concerned at all. 25 people responded and their replies were immediately forwarded to the CFO. In addition, I took pictures of the scratched glass in one of my cars and told the recptionist that if the "cleaners" don't move their cleaning time to when the parking lot was unpopulated (like on the weekends or super-early in the morning), we would be asking for money to replace car windows. Needless-to-say, the CFO was furious, but after all was said and done, the sand-blasting was done on Saturdays. The lesson learned? Be persistent to ensure that the type of incident you described is not repeated. Don't back down. I was an 8-yesr employee who was up against a 2-year CFO. He was the one who backed down. The voice of the "crowd" was just too loud for him to ignore. Dave

Because of the glass, I would use a vacuum on virtually everything that even looks to have debris on it. Depending on the severity of the damage, this sounds like it could be a very expensive mistake by the parking lot cleaner. Good luck.

Thanks. I know for sure that my coworker's was defective. Hopefully, this isn't widespread. I still need to check mine if I can remember..... Dave

Good point. I'll have to double-check mine.

I changed my oil again in the RX. Lesson learned today: NEVER buy the 5 gallon container of oil. It is almost impossible to NOT spill the stuff when trying to pour it into a funnel. One of the problems is that the oil fill opening is about 8 inches down in between a few other components, making it hard to pour oil into it. The other thing that is not convenient is the fact that the bottom of the funnel I used can't sit inside the hole sufficiently so that it can stand up on its own. You must hold the funnel while pouring the oil in it, meaning that manuevering a giant 5-gallon container of oil to pour accurately is out of the question! Ah, but these little "challenges" are fun. Oil cleanup, however, is not.....! :chairshot:

A woman at work just had her ES330 in because her side view mirror would not pivot after she shifted into reverse. I just checked my mirror and it doesn't seem to be doing this anymore. I need to peruse the owner's manual to make sure that what what I think is not happening is actually supposed to happen. I never even thought of this until my coworker mentioned it. She had to leave her car at the dealership for almost one week while they acquired the part. Anyway, I thought I'd give everyone a heads-up in case it is something that is a common problem. Dave

The good news is that there really isn't that much maintenance to do on these vehicles besides changing the oil and rotating the tires. Still, later on down the road, you may very well need to have a service manual and I'm guessing that the only one available is the factory service manual. I'm also guessing that it is likely to cost a pretty penny.

You may have to invest in a service manual. Most include electrical diagrams that may be of help. Good luck.

omg thats right up my alley. I wasnt invited because i dont own the hybrid, but i really really want to go.... maybe i should just show up anyway and act all confident like i belong there. :D The dead giveaway would be the "RX330" badge on the rear of your vehicle as you pull into the parking lot full of hybrids ............ I can see it now as "Devin" from the old weekly series "Knight Rider" announces...."Guards, would you kindly escort the RX330 owner back to his vehicle?"

I haven't see anything here in San Diego, but would be interested in attending if offered.

That's very good, considering that an RX330 or 350 often average less than that without ANY load.

"A hybrid model is guaranteed to be part of the mix as well, although this time it may be reserved for seven-passenger models only. Utilizing a blend of electric motors and the more powerful 3.5-liter V6, the next-generation RX hybrid should have more than enough power to deal with the added weight of two extra passengers." Better fuel mileage could happen if they are somehow able to lighten a larger, 7-passenger SUV; this I gotta see!

Thanks for the tips. I will try them out within the next two weeks. The other thing I did not mention about the K&N oil filter is that a fairly extensive test by bobistheoilguy.com found that only a few oil filters out of the many tested provided both minimal pressure drop and excellent filtration properties. I noticed when I switched from an OEM AC Delco to the K&N in my Corvette, time-to-running pressure (about 40 psi) became noticably faster, along with reduced-duration piston slap noise. Granted, I don't know how the Toyota filter compares, but my guess is that the K&N is a "step-up" in reduced pressure drop, compared to the Toyota OEM. What this means is that internal engine components get lubricated a bit faster during the crucial seconds of startup - the time when most engine wear occurs. By the way, I do have a filter wrench that is very similar to the one you have shown. I did find that you normally need to use both hands to use it effectivly - one hand holds the wrench on the filter, while the other hand cranks the socket wrench. With the K&N filter, one hand is all that you need to loosen the filter. Dave

The K&N filter may not be as inexpensive as the OEM filter, but its welded-on nut makes installing and removing it a much easier task. I'm due for another change in a couple of weeks and I'm glad that nut will be there when I go to loosen the filter. It is in the most remote area of the engine I have ever encountered in my 32 years of changing oil and filters.

It's amazing that with the price of gas, auto manufacturers still feel the need to make bigger, faster, heavier, and thirstier vehicles. I believe it would be a huge mistake if the future hybrid RXs are larger and get poorer fuel mileage. Give us a hybrid van that is much more efficient than a 3-ton SUV. By the way, the new Acura RDX (smaller version of the MDX) was recently tested by Road and Track magazine. It averaged 13.2 MPG. When is Honda going to wake up and notice how poorly the Mazda CX-7 is selling. Yes, they both are faster than most SUVs, but average mileage is going down and THAT is very bad timing for the US. Okay, I'll get off my soap box now.

Keep in mind that there will almost always be a dramic improvement when worn tires are replaced. Back a few years ago, we had Sumitomo tires installed on our van after the worn Michelins started sounding very "rough". We were in heaven for at least one year, as the new Sumitomos were much quieter. Unfortunately, that didn't last long and after two years, the Sumis were ready for the scrap pile.

Thanks for the info! Dave

Well, at 0 rpm, the motors combine with the ICE to produce a whopping 650 lbs-ft of torque - enough to spin all four tires, if desired. The temptation is there, believe me.......

Actually, stop & go driving increases fuel mileage in the RX400h. Notice that its EPA city mileage is much higher than its highway mileage. You can easily average only 18 by driving 80 MPH for extended periods of time. With our mixture of city/highway, we average 25. Of course, when I drive the vehicle, it probably gets 18, but my wife balances this out with much more "reserved" driving. I can't seem to let those BMW X5s pass me by........

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.