RX400h

Yeah, yah gotta love em! ;)

Haha, that's funny. I guess you're right; it's techincally a workaround just as changing the struts on the rear lift gate(which could open another can of worms with your warranty and the motor for the door) would be too, so let's briefly take a look at the root cause. The Lexus is performing just as the engineers designed it to. The problem at its roots is your garage; it's just not tall enough to accommodate the car. You're garage is the limiting factor, not your RX. So, the only "real fix" would be rebuilding your garage. Personally, I'd gladly take the $5 foam pad to save $5k-$10k on garage modifications and the nightmare of having to deal with contractors. ← To me, the root cause is Toyota not taking into consideration the average usable garage height. Our Nissan Quest van's rear hatch comes within one inch of the garage door. However, a 6 foot two person loading or unloading groceries may very well conk his head on the hatch. More than likely, (now that I think of it) Toyota figured that the advantage of head clearance outweighed the disadvantage of being able to open the hatch in a standard-sized garage. Hey, I'm giving them the benefit of a doubt here! Patt, I'll bet that if one were to open the hatch manually, there would not be an issue with resting it against a soft padding that is attached to the door. Closing the garage door while the hatch is in this position is another matter. I did this once while our van hatch was open and was rewarded with a couple of scratches. This happened despite the 1-inch clearance between the open hatch and the open garage door.

I have read time and time again that the RX400h "design intent" is PERFORMANCE. Toyota chose this direction because the majority of those buying SUVs place performance above all else. It's obvious to most who have read these posts that the majority of RX400h owners are thrilled or very happy with their new vehicles. I would venture to say that the vast majority of EPA numbers are NOT achieved. A good example is the mileage numbers of the Prius. According to Consumer Reports, owner satisfaction for this car is much better than average, despite the fact that few are achieving EPA numbers. The key here is to compare the competition to what you have. The new Mercedes ML-350 EPA numbers are horrible to begin with. Imagine what the actual numbers are! BTW, the Sienna averages the same fuel milage as the Honda Odyssey, despite its lack of cylinder deactivation. Perhaps you can get 18-20 MPG if you are gentle on the gas pedals, but neither vehicle shuts down at a stop, so during high-traffic conditions, expect those figures to drop drastically (as Consumer Reports has seen), whereas the hybrids such as the RX400h would only improve. Where most of us live, traffic is getting worse every year. If had to choose between cylinder activation OR self-propelling electric motors, I will always choose the latter.

This is what we call a "workaround". It prevents catastrophe but doesn't solve the problem at its roots. Still, it'll do for the time being. I think Patt may be right in that the mechanism that opens and closes the hatch needs to be limited. Otherwise, we could replace the pneumatic cylinders with shorter versions. This would work if it were not for the "power" part of the hatch.

Just to put things in perpective, Consumer Reports achieved 12 or 13 MPG (city driving) while driving a new Honda Odyssey recently. The Toyota Sienna was slightly higher at 13 or 14 in the city. Cylinder deactivation is great if you spend most of your driving time on the highway, but does nothing significant in the city. The average mileage (according to CU) of each of these vans is 19 MPG. I'm getting 25+ MPG average in the RX400h and it weighs about the same as a typical minivan without AWD. Another thing to remember (as SW pointed out) is that even modern engines have a breakin period whereas cylinder rings conform to their bores, allowing power and mileage to increase over time. Having a vehicle that generates 650 lbs-ft of torque (can spin all four tires if necessary), uses regular gas and gets over even 20 MPG is an amazing achievement in my book. Anything over 20 MPG is icing on the cake.

Last Friday as I returned home from the gym, I was asked if I would run up the street to pick up my son at his friend's house. "Sure", I said. "This will give me a chance to drive the 400h after not driving it for a week." What should've taken a few minutes stretched into 20 minutes, since the dad had just arrived home and wanted to check out the new car....but that's another story.... As I was driving home, I heard a tapping noise coming from under the dash. "Dang!", I uttered, hoping this wouldn't warrant a trip to the dealership after only one week! The next day, the whole family went out to lunch and on the way....you guessed it, the tapping noise surfaced. "You know", I exclaimed, "I was getting to love this vehicle, now THIS." "Well, you might want to try doing THIS", the wife said as she casually reached over and popped the sunvisor into its "catch". "How could that solve anything?", I said, pointing to the dash. "That's where the sound came from." "Just listen." she replied and we drove on. I figured that I'd purposely drive over rough pavement to challenge her solution. "Did you know that SW on the forum doesn't believe that my C5 rides as well as this SUV?" I asked. Before she could answer, we were driving over some rippled pavement and you know what? The tapping noise never was heard from again! Word to the wise? Don't forget to fasten your visor!!! PS I was able to blame this occurence on the wife since she's the one who forgot to latch the visor. :chairshot:

Fantastic news! I'll bet that I'm up over 27, based upon what's shown on the gas gage. Thanks for sharing!

Not only does the Corvette Forum have separate sections for the many generations of Corvettes, but there are also Z06 sub-forums. I bring this this up because it is not too uncommon. I vote for an RX400h section.

I'm not comparing the C5 to all Lexus vehicles, just the RXs. I drive them back-to-back quite often and the C5 feels just as comfortable traversing uneven pavement as does the RX. Of course, the C5's center of gravity is much lower, so rounding curves in the C5 can be completed at much higher speeds. Now maybe if I were comparing the C5 to an LS430.............

I recall that the manuals specifies 17.3 or 17.2 gallons.

Hey, I can sell my house here in CA and buy a 100-acre plot with six tennis courts, a bowling alley, four swimming pools and a guset mansion in Arizona. However, I'll take this puny 3-car garage house and its surrounding weather any day! (at least before I retire!) B)

Don't hate us for being different :D I promise I won't brag about my gas mileage too much! /ducks and hides ← Not to much to brag about from what Im hearing.......People say the mileage is not as good as expected..:cries: ← I've gone 250 miles on a half tank thus far, so I'd say that milage is very good, considering the tank size is only 17.2 gallons!

The 60s and 70s plastics were very susceptable to UV damage - much more so than the plastics that have been used in interiors for the last 20 years or so. I know because I owned a 68 Corvette for 22 years. Armorall skyrocketed to fame because their silicone-based formula protected the old type of plastics from crumbling in your hand. On the other hand, I knew a guy who had a Cavelier for 15 years. Its interior plastics were perfect at time of sale. Yes, plastics have come a long way from the 60s and 70s. Even the plastics in Hyundais are superior to those used during the muscle car days.

It's the same thing with Porsches. You can easily spend $80,000 on a Boxster!

Uh, have you checked the forum section title lately? It reads: RX300/RX330/RX400H SW mentioned that the 400hs may get their own section (makes sense), but until that happens, enjoy the company!

This is why I compared the ML350 to the RX400h - the cost. While technically, you can buy a stripped ML for 42K, it is unlikely that you'll find one anywhere.

The key is in the tires. The C5, like the BMW Z4 came factory-equipped with rock-hard-sidewall runflat tires. They produced slotcar-like handling but tended to transmit every small bump through the driver's spine.......enter the Goodyear GS D3 tires......MUCH smoother ride and much quieter. Their only drawback is a slightly less-crisp turning response. Try riding in a non-runflat C5 after riding in an RX and I think you'll "feel" what I mean. Getting back to interiors.....Check out the Pontiac GTO interior - right up there with the best of the Japanese.

I've read that Lexus sells more of this size and type (luxury) of SUV than any other manufacturer, including Mercedes. If this is true, then I expect the RXs to continue to outsell the ML line quite handily. The fact that the ML reliability has been at the bottom of the barrel for many years now doesn't help their sales, that's for certain. Regarding waiting lists: Some in recent memory..... The first Mazda Miata The PT Cruiser The Infinity G35 Coupe The 1997 Corvette The 2002 BMW M3 There could be some Mercedes models in the bunch, but I haven't heard of any.

That's old school GM. The new breed utilizes hydro-formed frames that significantly reduces welds and joints that would normally produce squeeks and rattles. My 2001 Corvette not only rides as well as the Rx400h, but also, like virtually all C5 Corvettes, is squeek and rattle-free after almost 4 years of daily driving. My seats are more comfortable than any others I've sat in, and I've been driven in Porsches, BMWs and Mercedes plenty of times. Now, about competition with Porsche: Both Car & Driver and Road & Track compared the new C6 Corvette against the latest Porsche 911. Both magazines voted the Corvette as the better overall sportscar. By the way, the new Chevy Cobalt is as quiet as the Lexus RXs. If you don't believe that, try one out. GM has come along way from the dark days of years past. They still have a way to go, but don't base your opinions on vehicles that were designed 20 years ago. As far as interiors go, the old saying applies to Lexus as well as it does every other manufacturer:

Horrible? Dang, we need to put you in a Dodge Neon for at least one week and then ask you again how the RX interior looks.:chairshot: I agree with Patt as to the unnatural "ultrasheen" of the wood trim that is commonly used. Keep the wood stuff in the house, I always say.....

Thus far, I have not heard of huge waiting lists for this gas guzzler, has anyone else?

I would disagree with you on that point, I think most people who are considering hybrids in general rank the decision criteria you'd mentioned in this order: power, fuel economy, luxury. And those considering the 400h specifically probably rank them as: power, luxury, fuel economy. Be honest, if the 400h didn't have the "neck snapping" 650 lb-ft of torque, would you have bought it ? ← Yes, because we wanted our next vehicle to be (in this order) Reliable Economical Tall Powerful If power were number one, we's have bought an SUV long ago. Remember, no SUV Lexus has ever introduced has generated the excitement that the 400h has generated. More power with lower gas milage would not have been nearly as popular as having both in one vehicle.

Leasing is considered to be a good choice finacially if the vehicle is used for business. However for most people, the better choice is an outright purchase. I'll bet the resale value remains high for some time.

Good point, Patt and Skyfish about the huge increase in torque that the RX400h has. Since I normally design fixtures and products that are not subject to large stresses, safety factors are a much less critical part of my job. BTW, I closely examined the RX400h wheels last weekend and I really like their design and paint quality. In fact, the exterior paint is also very impressive.

It is true that you cannot base any decision solely on facts and figures. However, I think we can all agree that they don't pay much attention to efficiency (fuel milage) when designing these behemoths. I for one, would not even consider buying a vehicle that has an EPA rating of 16 city and 20 highway. My Corvette is rated 19 city and 29 highway and is the biggest gas hog I own (as soon as I sell the Nissan Quest). Now, I would love to go to an MB dealership and wait until a bunch of salepeople come by before I point at the sticker EPA numbers in horror, gasping loudly!