atlpug

I've just seen a report as well saying that investigators now believe a bomb caused the explosion. But...out of curiosity, has anyone heard of a hybrid battery exploding?

I've noticed this on my car - just got it 2 weeks ago with just over 300 miles on it - so I don't think my air filter is the problem either. Being in the south it's still been necessary to run the a/c most of the time - even on the cold mornings we've had if I don't run the a/c with the defroster the windows fog up. But if I take it off of recirculate so it's fresh air coming in, the smell goes away after 10 minutes or so.

Just took a look at mine and they seem to be the same size. Are you seeing a difference all over or in just one component (like seat depth maybe)? If there is an ipod jack, I haven't found it. I didn't think the 400h came with that capability - I thought you have to get an adapter type of thing (like a cassette adapter), but I may have misunderstood.

Thanks to everyone for all the analysis and payback calculations - wow! You guys are thorough! Guess I should've mentioned in my original post that I live in Atlanta - therefore rarely any snow or ice to deal with. I had wanted to purchase an AWD 400h, but evidently they are as difficult to find in the southeast as snow. So I have the FWD and am very happy with it. When I decided to go with the 400h, I knew I might not reach a breakeven/payback point while I have the car. But I'm ok with that - in my thought process, I realized that there are other benefits to the hybrid for me personally, maybe not so tangible as monetary payback, but important nonetheless. It's a great feeling to know that by choosing this car I've reduced my environmental impact somewhat, which I hope will make a difference in my daughter's future and beyond. My husband is now considering a hybrid for his next car - so I've made a choice that has others re-evaluating their choices. And maybe by purchasing a hybrid I'm sending a message to our country's leaders that I'm willing and ready to embrace alternative fuel choices. None of this is meant to be lofty - just saying that the process of moving to a hybrid for me started out as a way to save money on gas, but became something deeper than that. And to top it all off, I got a great car with excellent safety features, great performance, and enough cargo space that I'm not missing my cavernous Expedition!

I just bought a 2008 rx400h last week - it has the blue badge on the rear but not on the front. I didn't even notice it until I took delivery of the car - hadn't noticed it on any others I'd seen driving around town either. It's cool though - hope it won't be stolen!

it does seem to good to be true, and probably isn't entirely accurate if you were to do more complicated math to determine the mpg. But in my simplified way of looking at it, when i sold my expedition last weekend, the avg mpg on the display was 8.5. (for the type of driving i do, mainly city with stop and go and sitting at traffic lights, i could be at a stop light and watch my mileage literally tick downward while waiting on a green light.) so on the surface my avg mpg has tripled from 8 to 25 - i agree i'm blown away by it, especially since i just got the car last night. i did reset the avg mpg through the info screen after i left the dealership, then again after my husband drove it (he drove it like it was his bmw :chairshot: ) because i wanted to see the calculation reflecting my driving style (light foot and coasting). maybe that skewed the avg. calculation, i don't know, but i'm feeling good thinking in my mind that i've tripled my mpg.

Thanks everyone for the advice/input. Very helpful in making my decision which was...the 400h. Took delivery last night and love it - just doing my daily rounds this morning I'm seeing an avg. of 25 mpg - amazing considering that coming from the Ford Expedition I was averaging 8 - 9 mpg on the same roads and conditions. I can't believe I've tripled my mpg - mindboggling! This is a great forum - my husband and I were able to read what others have already experienced with their 400h's and that's been very helpful - great resource. :)

Hi - I'll shortly be purchasing either an RX400h or RX350. I'm really torn between the two in terms of will I see a big enough benefit to justify the additional expenditure for the hybrid. Briefly, my driving habits are 85 - 90% city, weeks can pass without me getting on the highway. Most of my city driving is within a 10 mile radius, the majority of my trips are short. In theory, it seems like the hybrid would be the better choice. In practice, I'm not convinced the extra cost is justified. I've been driving an Expedition for just over 4 years now (I know that's terrible for gas, environment, etc. and now I'm willing to try to atone for my sins), so even the 350 I think will give me a nice difference in mileage while being better for the environment as well. Any thoughts/advice/suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Also, these 2 cars are my only choices - there's no other hybrid I like, and the 350 from what I've researched gets the best mileage of a midsize SUV. So it's one or the other! Many thanks, :)