Facebook marketplace Lexus RX400h SE-L, what could go wrong?

[LincolnLovin]

The engine coolant looks to be low and there appears to be a drip directly under a radiator hose so I suspect that may be the cause. I've booked the car into my local garage to get a coolant change and general investigation.

Luckily the inverter coolant level looks spot on and there's no leaks near it.

[LincolnLovin]

Further investigation indicates coolant at the bottom of the radiator. Common problem on the RX series as far as I can see, I’ve updated the garage and asked them to take a look instead of the coolant flush.

Hopefully it’s just a hose but I suspect it’s the rad, not the end of the world and I’m glad I caught it before another long drive.

Edited by LincolnLovin on Thursday 10th January 19:04

[aaron_2000]

Hoofy said:

LincolnLovin said:

84 miles done today to the zoo and back and 32 mpg indicated. Not bad for a 1.9 ton brick.

Sounds about the same for a V6 turbo diesel I've got on loan at the mo.

I've seen more than that from a 3.0 V6 TDI Touareg, 32 isn't bad though for a V6 petrol, not bad at all. Infact it's more than my ST170 which is much lighter.

[LincolnLovin]

Mmmm overall I’m happy with the MPG, any ICE powered car is going to seem thirsty compared to the Leaf but I am happy with the performance so far.

[LincolnLovin]

Confirmed it needs a new radiator, I might get them to check the car out in total for peace of mind.

[aaron_2000]

Are these CVT? I always assumed they were which is what put me off.

[Truckosaurus]

aaron_2000 said:

Are these CVT? I always assumed they were which is what put me off.

Yes, all the Lexus/Toyota hybrids are (effectively) a CVT. It's not really an issue for a daily driver hybrid that you are not expecting to be a sportscar,.

[LincolnLovin]

aaron_2000 said:

Are these CVT? I always assumed they were which is what put me off.

Yes indeed, it means the V6 never sounds that amazing but it does the job.

[Register1]

aaron_2000 said:

Hoofy said:

LincolnLovin said:

84 miles done today to the zoo and back and 32 mpg indicated. Not bad for a 1.9 ton brick.

Sounds about the same for a V6 turbo diesel I've got on loan at the mo.

I've seen more than that from a 3.0 V6 TDI Touareg, 32 isn't bad though for a V6 petrol, not bad at all. Infact it's more than my ST170 which is much lighter.

.

43,3 over a 370 mile run.
Just a little more than half a tank used.


.

Edited by Register1 on Friday 11th January 16:54

[Hoofy]

LincolnLovin said:

aaron_2000 said:

Are these CVT? I always assumed they were which is what put me off.

Yes indeed, it means the V6 never sounds that amazing but it does the job.

Is it a constant roar much like an automatic?

[aaron_2000]

Register1 said:

aaron_2000 said:

Hoofy said:

LincolnLovin said:

84 miles done today to the zoo and back and 32 mpg indicated. Not bad for a 1.9 ton brick.

Sounds about the same for a V6 turbo diesel I've got on loan at the mo.

I've seen more than that from a 3.0 V6 TDI Touareg, 32 isn't bad though for a V6 petrol, not bad at all. Infact it's more than my ST170 which is much lighter.

.

43,3 over a 370 mile run.
Just a little more than half a tank used.


.

Edited by Register1 on Friday 11th January 16:54

Bloody hell, that's good going. Ours is a 240 Escape, I imagine yours is the 240 as well?

[nsa]

I ran a black 2006 RX400h for four years then sold it to a friend when I left the country. I loved it and would have another, maybe a 450h. The CVT feels just like a normal automatic to me and I loved the fact that it would coast in silence downhill. A stupid thing that gave me a lot of satisfaction was that the volume control was on the right side of the stereo so it fell easily to the driver's hand.

It was one of the 4000 or so UK cars affected by failure of the hybrid inverter. Yours is probably a bit late being 2007, but you might want to check anyway because when my inverter went it shut down the drivetrain completely as I was reversing up a hill.

https://blog.lexus.co.uk/lexus-announces-voluntary...

Also, it seems the expected battery life for these hybrids is expected to be about ten years. Chris Fix did a YT video about changing the battery pack on a Prius. It's not hard but you're probably looking at GBP3,000 for an RX battery if you need to change it.

Hope you enjoy yours.

[ALawson]

Won't Lexus warranty the battery on an annual basis if they service it? I do keep looking at 400/450 in the ads.

[SlowV6]

aaron_2000 said:

Register1 said:

aaron_2000 said:

Hoofy said:

LincolnLovin said:

84 miles done today to the zoo and back and 32 mpg indicated. Not bad for a 1.9 ton brick.

Sounds about the same for a V6 turbo diesel I've got on loan at the mo.

I've seen more than that from a 3.0 V6 TDI Touareg, 32 isn't bad though for a V6 petrol, not bad at all. Infact it's more than my ST170 which is much lighter.

.

43,3 over a 370 mile run.
Just a little more than half a tank used.


.

Edited by Register1 on Friday 11th January 16:54

Bloody hell, that's good going. Ours is a 240 Escape, I imagine yours is the 240 as well?

That is impressive but it isn't really comparing like with like to be fair. What would a 2007 Tourag deliver in either 2.5TDi or (unicorn) 3.2petrol form? Then there is the performance. An RX400h does 0-60 in a little over 7seconds, which means you would need the 5.0V10 TDi Tourage to keep up and that wouldn't be doing 32mpg. Also with the V10 you'd never be able to sleep at night as you obsess about bork

I am also regularly browsing 400H's btw. I actually think prices have firmed up recently but that could be time of year etc.

I would like to hear more about the driving experience of the car if poss OP please?

[Seanseansean]

LincolnLovin said:

Confirmed it needs a new radiator, I might get them to check the car out in total for peace of mind.

Spoke to my mom yesterday, it was a new radiator not a hose.
Yea must be common ha.

[aaron_2000]

SlowV6 said:

aaron_2000 said:

Register1 said:

aaron_2000 said:

Hoofy said:

LincolnLovin said:

84 miles done today to the zoo and back and 32 mpg indicated. Not bad for a 1.9 ton brick.

Sounds about the same for a V6 turbo diesel I've got on loan at the mo.

I've seen more than that from a 3.0 V6 TDI Touareg, 32 isn't bad though for a V6 petrol, not bad at all. Infact it's more than my ST170 which is much lighter.

.

43,3 over a 370 mile run.
Just a little more than half a tank used.


.

Edited by Register1 on Friday 11th January 16:54

Bloody hell, that's good going. Ours is a 240 Escape, I imagine yours is the 240 as well?

That is impressive but it isn't really comparing like with like to be fair. What would a 2007 Tourag deliver in either 2.5TDi or (unicorn) 3.2petrol form? Then there is the performance. An RX400h does 0-60 in a little over 7seconds, which means you would need the 5.0V10 TDi Tourage to keep up and that wouldn't be doing 32mpg. Also with the V10 you'd never be able to sleep at night as you obsess about bork

I am also regularly browsing 400H's btw. I actually think prices have firmed up recently but that could be time of year etc.

I would like to hear more about the driving experience of the car if poss OP please?

It's not all about 060. I'd be willing to bet a 3.0 Touareg is probably quicker in gear. The 2.5 TDi and 3.2 are the 2 worst engines you could pick for the Touareg seeing as they still did the 3.0 TDi. For me, as soon as I found out the RX was a CVT (didn't know literally all of them were) that was it. Which is a shame because I've always really liked them too.

[ooid]

Touregs are nice, but I've seen one of those v10s in the VW service once. The engine job out was a veeeery long process.
Lexus design their cars, making sure that you really probably should not EVER remove the engine, that's the kind of difference.

[aaron_2000]

ooid said:

Touregs are nice, but I've seen one of those v10s in the VW service once. The engine job out was a veeeery long process.
Lexus design their cars, making sure that you really probably should not EVER remove the engine, that's the kind of difference.

I think comparing the V10 to an RX is a little pointless, you'd compare the 3.0 TDi to the RX which in reality is no more to run than the Lexus.

[ITP]

A 3.0 diesel Touareg will do more mpg on the motorway than the RX but less around town. I would wager that most, if used for a mix of the two, would average very similar to an RX overall. Low 30’smpg I would imagine. But they are considerable more likely to go wrong at some point.

[SlowV6]

ITP said:

A 3.0 diesel Touareg will do more mpg on the motorway than the RX but less around town. I would wager that most, if used for a mix of the two, would average very similar to an RX overall. Low 30’smpg I would imagine. But they are considerable more likely to go wrong at some point.

Note a 3.0TDi Toureg is also in the £555 tax vs £280. Going forward the RX may also not be subject to emissions charges in the same way the Toureg (and of course many other older big diesels to be fair) might be hit with.

What's it like to live with generally OP? Give us a road test report!