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Lexus RX400H review needed (2nd or 3rd gen)

Discussion in 'Lexus Hybrids and EVs' started by cossie1600, Jul 4, 2012.

  1. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    Things to consider:
    non hybrid RX EPA is in the teens. Blended EPA for the hybrid is about 30. Plus the hybrid has the power of the v8. Yes the cost is high. all things in life. - like I said - are a trade off
     
  2. Sfcyclist

    Sfcyclist Senior Member

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    Our 3rd Gen EPA is 18/25. I found it inline with real world. We get about 18-19 with mostly city driving.

    Not sure where you are getting your data from on RX Hybrids. Family member never got over 25mpg. On Fuelly, 400h is 22 to 25, 450h 26 to 27.
     
  3. acdii

    acdii Active Member

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    Thats kind of crappy MPG for a hybrid, that is no better than the Flex Ecoboost I had did, and it got up to 27 on the Interstate. Lifetime was 18.5 and I played with it a lot. Seems like a very expensive ride, for what purpose?
     
  4. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    Doubt you will get 23mpg driving like a normal person number one. Two, I wouldn't want to be seen in a MKT, MXT or whatever stupid 3 letters they came up with.

    On a steady 75mph cruise, my 450h can do 25-26mpg. (Prius does 43-46mpg at that speed).The RX350 loaner I got did 23-24mpg. If I drop the speed to like 60mph, the fuel mileage goes up easily to 27-28mpg. In the city, the difference is over 5mpg for sure. Is this car super fuel efficient, not really, but it is still the best in class. Normal gas engine SUV in this size isn't getting over 20mpg in the city, highway cruise yes. The car is definitely nice, but not $50K nice for sure.

    I ended up paying about $2K more for the hybrid than the gas. Will I ever make it up in gas? Probably not. At the end of the day, I love the hybrid drivetrain and I was willing to pay the extra. I also idle the car a lot as I do a lot of activities with the car, the idle fuel i save is easily worth a few bucks here and there. I also feel better about idling the car too as I am not putting out CO2 for nothing.
     
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  5. Sfcyclist

    Sfcyclist Senior Member

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    3rd gen rx is nice. Good to hear you only paid $2k more. We bought ours new and difference if I remember right was at least $6k. Possibly more since they were all well equipped.
     
  6. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    18/25 is crappy like Ford's eco boost. But the thing is, 18/25 is for the standard RX - not the hybrid. The RX hybrid blended EPA is about 30mpg.
    Compare Side-by-Side
    Nothing in its power class & EPA mileage and carrying capacity comes close - except it's cousin - the hyhi. You can pay less - but you'll get less.
    .
     
  7. Sfcyclist

    Sfcyclist Senior Member

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    According to fuelly and OP it doesn't get 30mpg.
     
  8. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    You have to drive really slow to hit that 30mpg mark, it's not a realistic number. I literally put my car on cruise control @ 65mph on FLAT road in Delware to get my 28-29mpg. This is with virtually no stop light and on perfectly flat road. The hybrid cars are always optimistic about their numbers, I honestly would rate it 25-26mpg for a normal driver.

    The other car we considered was a MDX. I am sure the mileage on the highway will probably not be far off, but I know I am going to get raped at the pump as soon as I have to vary my speed.

    Yes new difference is $6-9K as most of them come loaded.

    Also the Highlander Hybrids hold their value extremely well too (for some reason they run on 87 and they seat 7). The price you pay for a used or new hybrid is almost to the RX price point. It's the reason why I never considered it. To get a 2011 Highlander Hybrid, #1 you have to find one, #2 they are probably going for mid to high 30s if you want the one with leather. New with leather is $40K!
     
  9. Sfcyclist

    Sfcyclist Senior Member

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    It seems evident weight kills mpg. A mid size SUV that can get over 30 mpg still doesn't exist.

    I can't stand false claims.
     
  10. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    Best take it up with the EPA if you feel you have an axe to grind . I find they're spot on in the case of Lexus. However you slice it - the EPA tests are the same across the board - they're either ALL too high for all cars equally, or too low for all cars equally or spot on for all vehicles they test - so there's no reason to cry about this particular vehicle. Like my picture shows in 1 of the first posts above. If you know how to drive a hybrid you can get 15 percent above the EPA. If folks drive like a pig their mileage will reflect it. It doesn't get any more simple. ;)
     
  11. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    You could, but I could also die from driving too slow.

    Hybrids can't hit their highway mpg going above 65. Some gas engine cars are much closer.
     
  12. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    Not only weight, you are talking about a moving brick on the highway
     
  13. acdii

    acdii Active Member

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    44@65 MPH in a Hybrid rated @36 Highway? 65@65 MPH in 50 MPG rated hybrid?

    OK guess they dont.
     
  14. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    I should say Toyota Hybrids, don't drive other cars so I can't comment on them. I am sure some of the numbers are as accurate as the 70mpg TDI.

    A big corporation is going to under report their mileage by 10mpg, really? What a joke....
     
  15. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    That is a logical falseness. Highway mpg is what the car can get at 55mph. So no it won't get the rated economy at 65. Like the Prius, at 55mph on the highway it gets excellent mileage. At 65mph it gets great mileage. At 75mph it gets good, and higher it still gets better than anything else but not awesome.

    This happens with all cars. Pushing a couple tons of metal against the air at 80mph will not be efficient. But a car that gets 20mpg on the highway on the tests and 18mpg normally people don't consider that bad. But it is still a 10% hit. Just like getting 40mpg instead of 50mpg. It just seems like more of a loss.
     
  16. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    No it doesn't, they vary their speed now. Go on the EPA website and see how they test.

    I am saying that you will see a bigger drop in the Prius/Toyota hybrids as speed goes up compare to some other cars. On cars that are more powerful, you are not going to see a 10% reduction in fuel consumption. It's not that the hybrids are bad, it's the nature of their design

     
  17. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    Yes, but it is still about 55mph. Actually the average is 48.3mph

    [​IMG]

    And the new more aggressive test, same average:

    [​IMG]

    It has nothing to do with it being a hybrid. Lower displacement engines work harder at higher speeds then larger displacement engines. A 6.0L V8 ICE only versus a 6.0L V8 Hybrid will perform about the same on the highway. With acceleration, the hybrid will get better MPGs. Similarly a 1.8L vehicle like the GenIII will have a larger drop off of highway FE with another 1.8L non-hybrid.
     
  18. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    You are preaching to the choir my friend ... some people only believe what they want to believe. ... despite all the facts. Sometimes its best to just let it go.
     
  19. acdii

    acdii Active Member

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    All depends on the driver! My 2010 Fusion Hybrid is rated at 36 Highway, yet I easily get 42+ Highway @65 MPH. However the new 13 FFH, gets much lower @65, mainly because, as pointed out, smaller engine, has to work harder. It has a 2.0, the 10 FFH has a 2.5.
     
  20. HeavyFooted3SGTE

    HeavyFooted3SGTE Junior Member

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    Why did they change the displacement? They must have known of the MPG drop? Any other major changes done from the 2 model years?