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Hybrid Vehicles Lexus RX 400h Lexus RX 400h Owners: Meet the Members
36 messages, Last post on Apr 21, 2006 at 7:25 PM
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Introduce yourself and get to know other RX 400h owners here!
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You folks are great. I've been monitoring your forum for about three weeks to glean whatever insight I could to help formulate my decision take the 400h plunge. I'm happy to report I traded in my '02 Mercedes-Benz E-class last week and took a 400h home to meet the family. I must admit I was a little concerned I might miss certain aspects of the Mercedes, but so far this has been a homerun and I would make the same decision again. This is my first Lexus and I'm very pleased with the overall quality built into this automobile. The fact that it's a hybrid is icing on the cake with a cherry on top. I've looked at SUV-type vehicles before because I like the interior flexibility to create more cargo room as needed and sitting a little higher off the road, but the mpg ratings were always a huge turn off. To get the vehicle I've wanted and help save the environment at the same time... like I said before, homerun. I do have a question for you. I have about 200 miles on my car so far and averaging 24 mpg with mixed driving, mostly city. Is there a breakin period afterwhich I might see an mpg improvement? This is certainly respectful for this type of vechicle, but I expected something closer to 26+ mpg. Thanks again! |
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| I got my rx400 last week as well and have about 200 miles, its millenium silver with gray interior. I have been averaging 25 to 26 with no air conditioning, as the summer has been cool in seattle. I did take one trip with no hills for ten miles and averaged 32.5 with careful driving but that is unusual. You will learn to drive with an eye to mileage, coasting more and slowing before stops. There is a break in period as the hybrid system works together so things will improve after 1000 miles or so. Also check your tires, many have been coming in with 40 or more psi and depending on the brand of tire you have, it should be 30 or 32. welcome to the family, dave | |
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We just bought the new 400h and so far it has been fantastic. Two days after we bought it we drove it to Nevada (350 miles away) and got great gas mileage 29mpg with the air on. In Nevada the 400h held its own with 4 other 4x4s going through terrain not meant for the average car. We had scheduled a clean up with Lexus when we got back and it once again looks brand new (you can't even tell it was the same car parked out in the desert with a flat tire ; ). In-town driving mileage hasn't been as great as the 29mpg highway, but we are still getting use to driving it. We are using the graphs as much as we can to drive on the battery which is completely different from a regular car. Our last car was an Alpha Spider so we are use to jumping on it from a stopped position. Old habits are hard to break. We have not seen one other 400h on the road, but we keep looking. Also, before buying the 400h we had given up on buying one. We couldn't even test drive one; our dealer had a wait list of 900 with no tester on the lot. We were in another town looking at cars when we happened into the Lexus dealership and they had a tester. After test driving it they told us they just had two come off the truck, they had sold one that morning (we actually saw them buying it) and we could buy the other. We were never on the wait list. We asked about the wait list they had, and they told us that sometimes it takes a while to get to those on the list (people are working, out of town, the car is not the right color, etc). We still find this to be a strange sales practice but I guess adds to the sales hype. It sold us. |
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Replying to: zolorazor (Jul 12, 2005 9:42 am) Local Toyota dealer told me that they do not keep a waiting list. Each salesman keeps a list of prospective buyers. When a Prius comes in they get on the phone and call. The first one through the door with the money gets the car. Easier that way. You do not have to wait for number one on the list to come down and test drive, drool all over it then say they will wait for a different color.
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Replying to: gagrice (Jul 12, 2005 10:38 am) hi gagrice...how goes it ? there is a reunion going on in the Minivans vs SUV board....     
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Replying to: highender (Jul 13, 2005 12:06 am) |
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Replying to: zolorazor (Jul 12, 2005 9:42 am) Returned home and while in a grocery store parking lot I saw a 400h with one number before mine on the license plate. We must have taken delivery on the same day. I will be posting a detailed report on my trip in the mileage section of this forum in the next few days. |
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Hello from Oregon. I just joined the ranks of RX400h owners yesterday, trading in our 98 A4 Quattro. It is Flint Mica/Black interior, w/RES and the upgraded stereo system. Just wanted to thank all the members who have posted here over the past few months, providing useful info and insights on this very fine vehicle. During the buying process, was surprised to see that the dealer could search our DMV for custom plates, so after some searching (we had a list of possibilities before-hand), we narrowed it down to 2 that were available: LIL GAS and LTL GAS We settled on LTL GAS. Hopefully it will be read as "little gas" I had first expressed interest to my dealer in the spring of 2004; added name on list, and formalized the request with a deposit in May 2005. As of yesterday, Lexus of Portland had delivered less than 40 RX's since they became available. The car offered was exact match to our request (we said we would take it with or without the RES or upgraded audio; inside/outside color was our only preference. Paid MSRP, no push for add-ons, though they were offered; no dealer markup. A rather pleasant experience, though a bit anxious since delivery info was spotty. At end of June was provided with an update of possible August delivery to my specs; got call last week that someone ahead of me in the queue had passed on this one due to timing. So when I got the call, I said YES! Our other vehicle is a very reliable 93 Land Cruiser; we opted to trade in our low-mileage 98 A4 Quattro, as I did not want the trouble of selling it. As I dive into the books and do some driving, I'll be posting some comments on my observations, as I am sure they may be useful to others considering this vehicle. There is simply so much in this vehicle that the brochure and online info does not even start to cover. Mike |
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My RX400h is on board a ship headed here, to arrive Aug. 2 and be in Tucson shortly thereafter. Looking forward to having the vehicle. Traded in a Honda Pilot EX. Hated to have to pay MSRP (a first for me), but the car seems worth the effort. Spent a lot of time comparing dealerships and brokers to see if a deal could be had that was better. About the only differences I found was the document fees. Arizona allows dealers to set them and they ranged from $249 to $849. Not like California where it is fixed by law at under $50. Worse part of dealing with this was the way some dealers acted as if they were doing me a favor by considering selling me a car that has nearly $10k markup. And then there was the dealer in New Mexico who asked for a bribe. A $2,500 tax-deductible donation to the owner's favorite charity would move me to the top of the waiting list. I kept wondering if the next person who donated would move ahead of me. A two-week wait for MY vehicle in MY color choice wasn't bad. But you know, of course, what happened? After I signed all of the paperwork, the next day I got a call from a dealer 300 miles away who had a model on the floor he was willing to let me have if I came over that day. I'll take the wait. Getting my vehicle from my local dealer with a decent trade-in value and they surprised me by getting a better loan rate than I had already set up.
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