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Hybrid Vehicles Lexus RX 400h Lexus RX 400h Test Drive - What Did You Think?
25 messages, Last post on Aug 31, 2005 at 8:11 PM
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Replying to: skyfish400h (Apr 23, 2005 4:31 pm) The RX400 doesn't shift cuz it has a CVT transmission which never shifts..it is in the right gear at the right time. And the RX400 uses the electric motor (which inverts to a generator) to brake. The brake pads never touch the rotors until later in the braking cycle or under hard braking. Thus, you will get more use out of your brake pads!!! One thing that might annoy a lot of people that hasn't been discussed is the faint whining noise the car makes when braking or coasting. That's the regenerative braking system coming into play. It's a normal sound. As well, DO NOT RUN OUT OF GAS. The hybrid can not operate on battery alone with out gas in the engine, so make sure you always have gas in the car. I agree with you on the dealer taking of the OEM rims and putting on chromed RX300 rims and upcharging you. What a shame, the original rims are quite nice. Unfortuntately, it's how they are putting the premium on the vehicle. It's either a sticker mark up or an accessory addition. I am sure they will leave the factory rims on if you were to tell them you'll pay an extra 1500 over MSRP for the car. |
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Replying to: skyfish400h (Apr 23, 2005 4:31 pm) The “tester” vehicle I drove had the upgraded sound system and heated seats, but no DVD in the back. Although he did offer me a dealer installed, 2 screen system for $2500 this is slightly OT, but I put in an order in for a HH and the dealer told me that the rear DVD player was not available at this time (didn't know why) and told me I could go to circuit city (or wherever) and get one installed. but then I read this post from a thread regarding aftermarket DVD systems (#470 from Highlander Hybrid board): I called Toyota's 1-800 number and the employee who answered said very clearly and without hesitation that any changes made after the sale that had anything even remotely to do with the wiring in the HH would immediately void the warranty (she said this was unlike the warranties on other models)! If a Lexus dealer puts in an aftermarket DVD system, does that not void the Lexus warrenty? is it OK because a "dealer" is installing it? (which just means they contract it out to circuit city anyway) I'm not talking about the dvd option you can get from the factory, but the dvd package that was describe above that the lexus dealer offered. |
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This afternoon, it was the perfect afternoon to run a new test on city driving gas mileage with the 400h since, it was not hot (rained hard early in the day & cloudy, fairly cool, thank God, in PM) and I did not need the air conditioning. I would have baked if it was a typical Midwest, warm & humid afternoon. I wanted to compare "apples with apples" since on my previous test several weeks ago, I had no need for air conditioning. My driving test in my city was a total of 27.5 miles in typical streets with quite a few traffic lights. I cannot say that I drove in very steep, hilly areas, but I did have to go through a lot of gentle inclines. Some of the drive was had fairly flat streets with speed limits of 35 mph. This is where I was getting terrific gas mileage. As usual, the my average for the first 5 minutes was 20 mpg. It then got considerably better & at times after about 10 minutes of driving, I was up to 38-40+. I had a few 5 minute intervals averaging the max shown on the screen (60+). These were in flat terrain going at about 35 mph. I don't think the ICE was running at all during these instances. That screen was up at 60 for long periods of time. There were times when I was going at more than 45 mph (usually down hills) during the test.. Just to "spite" Headless, I did even better in mpg this time than my test of several weeks ago. At that time I averaged 37-38 (don't remember the exact figure). I was up to 40.4 mpg for 20.5 miles when I decided to stop by my Lexus dealer to show them the results. I did not turn off the ignition, because I wanted the salesman to view the results on the screen for himself. Needless to say he was a bit startled. By the time I pulled into my garage 7 miles later, the computer stood at exactly 40 mpg. So there you have it. I'm not sure if I am now getting better gas mileage or not since the car has more than 2000 miles on it as opposed to 400-500 on my first test. I doubt it has any bearing on it. I think it is just a matter of the driving conditions and the environment that will determine your gas mileage. Perhaps, Dylan Hixon can enlighten us on this aspect. Is there any proven improvement on gas mileage after the so called break-in period? That's it for now folks. I am going out with my wife to celebrate out 30th Anniversary. I will return to check your responses to my driving test experience later tonight or tomorrow. |
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Replying to: cyclone4 (Jun 08, 2005 2:58 pm) You're driving a different car from me...I wouldn't see those numbers even if I pushed my car! Headless
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Replying to: cyclone4 (Jun 08, 2005 2:58 pm) BTW, happy anniversary...30 years is very special...hope you have a nice celebration! Headless
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Replying to: headless (Jun 08, 2005 6:40 pm) Headless, I really appreciate your good wishes. Going back to the 40 mpg I got yesterday over the 27.5 mile city trip, I hope people realize that this would not be possible if I were to make several stops (ignition turned off for any length of time). This was basically one continuous trip through city streets with the exception of the one stop at the dealer with the ignition still turned on. But needless to say, I am still jubilant over these results. Now, if only my wife's office was located about 10 miles from home instead of a half mile  . That will rapidly kill the 40 mpg average I left her with yesterday.
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Replying to: headless (Jun 08, 2005 6:15 pm)
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Replying to: cyclone4 (Jun 08, 2005 2:58 pm) In the interest of science, you should also report your average speed, any net gain or loss in altitude if not a closed loop, begining and ending battery charge, whether you started with the engine warm or cool, and any special techniques, neutral, no brakes, burn and coast, et cetera. I think all engines continue to loosen up a little, but 2000 miles should be broken in.
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Replying to: dylan hixon (Jun 09, 2005 7:49 pm) I am not sure what my average speed was, but I obviously had a lot of stops at traffic lights, etc. But I can tell you that the majority of the time I was probably averaging between 30 and 37 mph in between stops. As far as net gain or loss in altitude is concerned, my city lies at about 950 feet above sea level (western Cornbelt), but it does have quite a few gentle (for the most part) hills. During my test, I would say that my altitude did not vary by more than about 50-60 feet. I started the test with the engine cool. In fact, I was rather discouraged the first 10 to 15 minutes, since I was only averaging about 28-29 after the first 10-15 minutes I believe. But it really jumped much higher after that. As I reported, during the heart of my test, I was going at about 35 mph on flat streets and the screen display was almost always up to 60. I would just give the accelerator a slight nudge (briefly lowering the mpg, and that was more than enough to keep my going at 35 mph or so with terrific gas mileage. I did not pay attention to the battery at the start or during most of the trip. However, I did check it as I reported above after my visit (about 5-8 minute visit) at the dealer with the ignition on. At this point, the battery was down to 3 bars. But shortly thereafter, after a few stops at traffic lights, it went back to what I would consider normal level (fairly close to the top). The ICE was not running at all during the visit. During the 5 minute interval after the visit, the gas mileage for that interval was down to about 22, but it jumped way back up to about 40-42 the next 5 minutes. It stayed up there pretty high until I got into the garage. I was paying very close attention to the gas mileage screen rather than anything else. I was trying to maximize gas mileage by being smooth with the accelerator and trying to coast as much as possible. I was basically doing normal driving and nothing really special. I don't even know what you mean by "burn and coast". I did not use any special techniques. As a reminder, I did not have the AC on. There is no doubt about it that if a person makes a conscientious effort to pay attention to the gas mileage screen display, this car will teach you how to get better gas mileage. This does not mean you take your eyes off the road while driving. All you need to do is just glance at it once in a while as you are driving. I am leaving for Chicago early in the morning to visit with a customer and then catch my beloved Red Sox play the Cubbies on Saturday afternoon. I will have to "suffer" with my LS430 on this trip. I actually love to drive my LS430 as well. The laser cruise control is awesome. But I sure wish it was a hybrid. I will report back on Sunday sometime.
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Replying to: mzuckerman (Jun 09, 2005 10:44 am) I was driving at about 75 mph with AC on for about 40 miles the other day...saw about 25 mpg total... Headless |
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