Lexus RX (03-09) - decent family barge?
Discussion
Experiences?
I don't have to ask about reliability really, but are there any wallet-stinging costs? Any bits that do go wrong that would hurt?
Is it particularly practical for a family made up of two adults and two 13 month year olds?
Budget is £10k and I understand the SEL model is the one to have and the Mark Levinson sound system is worth finding?
I don't have to ask about reliability really, but are there any wallet-stinging costs? Any bits that do go wrong that would hurt?
Is it particularly practical for a family made up of two adults and two 13 month year olds?
Budget is £10k and I understand the SEL model is the one to have and the Mark Levinson sound system is worth finding?
frosted said:
They are so good that I had two, a 19k 2003 rx300 se and a 38k 2007 rx400h se l. Probably the only 4x4 that can be run on saloon money, except the 300 which averaged 19mpg in London but then again a 1.6 auto focus averaged 26mpg
What mpg did you get out of the 400h, out of interest?
Brother in law has an older RX (champagne with gold tints , he loves it. its done over 100k and still looks like new inside and out. It certainly changed my perception on Lexus as a serious contender in manufacturering quality cars. He achieves over 30mpg, but to be honest he drives like he's driving miss Daisy... He lets no one but Lexus look after it, which certainly costs him more in the short term but has obviously paid dividends in the long term. I dont think its ever let him down. Only poor thing is the sat nav, but then it is over 10 years old...
Sold mine because I was doing a lot of B road driving in my work it and it had too much body roll on twisty roads at 40mph plus. Mine suffered power steering failure which meant the steering wouldn't turn at all- I believe there was a recall around this- might be worth checking it was done. The brakes aren't the best so I used to leave a slightly longer stopping distance. I would say they are an ideal family car. Had an average mpg on mine of 34.8 mpg in mixed driving, obviously around town it runs on the battery (I had rx400h). Mark Levinson sound quality is very very good. With children worth having the DVD screens in the front headrests. Knocks the spots off german barges imho.
excel monkey said:
frosted said:
They are so good that I had two, a 19k 2003 rx300 se and a 38k 2007 rx400h se l. Probably the only 4x4 that can be run on saloon money, except the 300 which averaged 19mpg in London but then again a 1.6 auto focus averaged 26mpg
What mpg did you get out of the 400h, out of interest?Certain things to look out for;
- they wear the inner edge of the front tyres a lot quicker than the rest of the tyre so always check the inner edge. This is unfortunatly how they are, non-camber adjustable so you will just have to live with it.
- rear calipers like seizing on the sliders and can sometimes require replacing depending on how bad the dirt build up is inside the slider chamber.
- handbrake cables seize up. Noone really knows why they do but we suspect it's just where they're not used and just bumped into park when stationary
- the big services are every 60k which is spark plug replacement where the inlet manifold has to be removed. 100k is the cambelt.
- the power steering pumps are prone to leaking which could involve replacing the pump and/or the steering fluid pipes.
- radiators are prone to leaking on the n/s so look at the coolant level
- there is an ongoing recall on the RX400h which involves replacing the hybrid inverter module but only cars with a certain VIN are affected
Those are the main problems/issues that I can remember off the top of my head.
As for the Mark Levinson stereo I don't think it's standard fit on all of them but a lot of them do have it and you should definitely look to buy one if it has Mark Levinson.
I'm guessing you are aware that there are 3 different models within the 2nd (MCU35 if you wanted to know that) generation. The RX300, RX350 and the RX400h.
The 350 is the only one not belt driven so that won't require a cambelt replacement as it's chain driven. The 350 is also the least economic as it's a 3.5 V6 so if you're after economy then the 300 or 400h is your options, of which I would lean more towards the 400h as, when driven correctly, you will get better MPG with the hybrid.
As for the driving feel, they are you're typical SUV really, high up, rather rolly but that's to be expected I feel.
The interior is a very nice place to be though, heated seats, full-screen sat-nav, climate control, electric seats with memory function, full leather etc.
- they wear the inner edge of the front tyres a lot quicker than the rest of the tyre so always check the inner edge. This is unfortunatly how they are, non-camber adjustable so you will just have to live with it.
- rear calipers like seizing on the sliders and can sometimes require replacing depending on how bad the dirt build up is inside the slider chamber.
- handbrake cables seize up. Noone really knows why they do but we suspect it's just where they're not used and just bumped into park when stationary
- the big services are every 60k which is spark plug replacement where the inlet manifold has to be removed. 100k is the cambelt.
- the power steering pumps are prone to leaking which could involve replacing the pump and/or the steering fluid pipes.
- radiators are prone to leaking on the n/s so look at the coolant level
- there is an ongoing recall on the RX400h which involves replacing the hybrid inverter module but only cars with a certain VIN are affected
Those are the main problems/issues that I can remember off the top of my head.
As for the Mark Levinson stereo I don't think it's standard fit on all of them but a lot of them do have it and you should definitely look to buy one if it has Mark Levinson.
I'm guessing you are aware that there are 3 different models within the 2nd (MCU35 if you wanted to know that) generation. The RX300, RX350 and the RX400h.
The 350 is the only one not belt driven so that won't require a cambelt replacement as it's chain driven. The 350 is also the least economic as it's a 3.5 V6 so if you're after economy then the 300 or 400h is your options, of which I would lean more towards the 400h as, when driven correctly, you will get better MPG with the hybrid.
As for the driving feel, they are you're typical SUV really, high up, rather rolly but that's to be expected I feel.
The interior is a very nice place to be though, heated seats, full-screen sat-nav, climate control, electric seats with memory function, full leather etc.
MadmanO/T People said:
Circa 2000-01, I tried an RX300 and found it to be extremely unstable under high-speed cornering. That, and the chintzy styling and overall Toyotaness were enough to put me off. And yet, rich American housewives seem to love the damn things!
That's the previous shape rx300 iirc they start from 2003 onwards Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff