Lexus RX 330

r1_97

irazabul, I don't think the change to Canadian manufacturing facility will affect pricing. Lexus has a hot item in the RX330 and demand will keep pricing where it is or maybe even higher due to the favorable JD Powers survey results regarding quality.

lok888

Are we still getting some RX330s from Japan? Like we have some Camrys from Japan and most of them are built in Kentucky.

samang

I use the console cup holder half the time, otherwise, it sits in the door handle along withmy coins.

Yes it is annoying that there is no coin tray and place for a cel phone. What do smokers do I wonder since there is no ash tray either. I don't smoke, but ash trays make a good coin tray.

samang

I got a recall notice for SSC3LE issue. Quotes from the notice:

Condition - certain early 2004 model year rx330, due to manufacturing error in the 2 exhaust manifold converter assemblies, an abnormal noise could be generated from exhaust system.

Lexus will - replace at no cost.

What to do - schedule appt with dealer. Labor time is 2 hours or more depending on dealer work load. Bring and present "special campaign notice".

I like their description of what's known as a recall.

I am just not having luck with luxury badged cars. My Acura needed new transmission from their defect, now the Lexus needs some work. Free but still a pain in the behind. Just thought ya'll want to know.

me38017

I am looking for an RX330 with leather & Nav but am having trouble finding one that isn't totally decked out with lots of things I don't need (but would love to have). The Lexus website gives the ability to build a vehicle. There, I can build one I like but I can't seem to find that in reality.

Couple of questions:
1. Can anything that can be built on the website be ordered at that MSRP?

2. What is the lowest MSRP or price you have seen on one with leather and NAV?

THANKS

johnnieliu

I spoke to a dealer yesterday about getting a NAV+Laser Cruise+Premium Plus+Heated seats, reain sensing wipers, and he said the only way to get one is to do a special order. Wait time would be about 3-4 months.

Anyone have any experience with odering their vehicle? Anyone get their special order vehicle?

avery1

When I got my '99 I needed one w/o a sun roof. They said I couldn't special order it but could "preference" one. It took a couple of months and had almost all I asked for. It was missing one thing. I guess this is the difference between a special order and a preference. They don't guarantee you get the exact car you want.

lamken

You can order an ashtray for Canadian$150 from the dealer. Check www.lexus.ca

ctk1

4 mudflaps which isn't available yet.

JBaumgart

Just got a call from the dealer today and our special order is in. Took about 80 days from the date the order was placed. Basically you can special order just about anything you want, but there are some constraints. For instance in our area you cannot get the Mark Levinson audio if you get the Performance Pkg. In our case the car somehow arrived without heated seats but the dealer offered to convert them to heated and absorb the option cost. This is supposed to be done on Monday.

chanr

I've had my RX330 for less than two months. I start noticing a noise coming from left front near cup holder when I first press on the accelerator. It goes away when it's just coasting. Anyone heard that? Thanks.

chanr

Thanks to Samang, I found out my RX 330 also needs the Exhaust Manifold Converter Assemblies Replacement. I like to ask Samang where did he heard the abnormal noise described in his msg. And whether the noise disappear after the replacement. Thanks.

rajor

Yesterday I bought the RX330 (Bamboo Pearl) in Oregon with Premium plus package. The Dealer was offering a Exterior and Interior protection package for $1000/- which includes putting some coating to save the car from stains, spills, sctarches etc. Also it includes putting the clear front mask to protect from flying pebbles etc during driving. Does it makes sense to get the protction package ? Is it worth the cost ? As per dealer, I have to decide about it within a week ...

njexpress

Rajor,
Ask yourself this question: You are buying a 40K car and is the paint not so stong enough as to need a $1K "PROTECTION" package?
I recommend reading the site Carbuyingtips.com by Jeff Ostroff.
You will find honest and hard hitting tips there in this connection there, in one of the pages (under "How do avoid needless extras" or some similiar verbage)
Good Luck!! ;0)

vpotluri

I am looking to lease an RX330 with Navigation System. I don't care for/need the Mark Levinson audio system. Does Lexus allow removing that audio system from the option package? I will not buy this vehicle or any other without Navigation system. I found it to be a fantastic option to have and I have not touched a map in 3 years.

Also, any idea what the residual on RX330 would be with 3 year, 15k/yr, in New Jersey (if location matters)? Thanks.

ctk1

Don't pay a penny for this crap (protection pkg) from a sale person. It's amazing me this classic sale practice still around.
If you still prefer to have a 3M clear mask install on your new RX, then spend no more than 200 buck for it installed (part&labor).
Yep check the carbuyingtips.com for more infor

Goodluck

wco81

Car dealers use it as a way to get more margin on the sale. Often, it's the finance dept. that pushes it rather than the sales people. They do the same with extended warranties.

The thing is, pricing is variable depending on how much they think they can get out of you. So you should take it as an insult that they tried to charge you $1k rather than a hudred or two.

And there are some people who think it's not good at any price. One claim is that Clear Coat leads to faster deterioration of metallic paint jobs. The clear layer locks in the heat reflected off the metallic flakes in the paint, leading to faster wear on the paint layer.

The undercoating seems okay, especially to reduce road noise and to protect the underside from the salts used to clear snow.

tomtomtom

You could get a very nice detail every year for the next 4 years with that amount

lok888

I have never seen one on the road or in dealer. The only picture that I saw is page 26 on the RX330 brochure with a silver RX330 (top view) in a crash test. And someone mentioned that there is a rattle when it is fully or partially open.

jeffmust2

Isn't that scam many decades older than the 3M film protection one?

wco81

"Isn't that scam many decades older than the 3M film protection one? "

It is if you pay $200 for it.

If you pay say $50, how bad could it be? It's rubberized so if nothing else, it'll soften all the little gravel and pebbles kicked up into the undercarriage -- not that it's gonna prevent damage if you run over a big chunk of degree.

But does it not help with the snow removal salts?

I'm out in California.

rajor

Thanks guys for your advice about the protection package. Also, I found the messages here very useful in helping me negotiate a good price for my RX330. I managed to get more than $2800 off MSRP on the AWD with Premium plus RX 330.

me38017

What is the lowest MSRP you have seen on an RX330 with Leather and Nav?

plumbstar

I love my Nav even with all its flaws. But it chooses the strangest routes sometimes. Rather than going straight to a destination which would be the shortest route, it many times takes me to another street. I realize the other street has a higher speed limit, but it is not the shortest route. Does anyone have any clue as to the logic that the nav uses? Does anyone have access to Denso engineers? What algorithoms does they use? Maybe Willard knows.

trillium1

When the Nav system computes a route for you, it actually computes 3 routes. The default presented is the quickest route, but you can easily select the shortest route. Simply press the change route button and then the 3route button and then select the shortest route option.

We can't really say that the Nav system has flaws. The mathematical algorithm used to compute the route simply does not have intuition. The quickest route it computes out is indeed the quickest route based on the information fed into the algorithm (driving speeds, intersection to intersection distances, for example). The system certainly may seem to be in error to us if it takes us on a round about route to save just one minute of driving time. But according to the mathematical algorithm, it IS the quicker route.

The beauty is the driver can follow that route like a robot and WILL get to where he/she wanted to. And if you choose not to be a robot, you DO have a choice, and the system will still guide you to your destination without fail.

I had used GPS systems for driving, boating, and hiking for a few years. I had also used a few routing softwares for travel planning. I can testify that the one on the RX330 is very accurate and fast. The user interface is superb as far as I am concerned.

benxx

Is it ture the RX330's nav system has no voice command function as those more expensive models? How do you guys like it?

Want to buy this car but not sure if it is only a car for females...:)

laterldf

I don't know...the last two Hummer ll's I saw were being driven by girls My only complaint about the nav system in the 330 RX is that you can't just put in a city, you have to have an intersection (they're not all listed nor are the highway junctions) or an address. It's counter-intuitive in that sense but you can move the cursor to a distant location and click on it as a destination. The non-voice recognition is a non-factor to me. But I do wish that a passenger could reprogram the destination feature while on the go. later, ldf

albdoc

I do not think your impression is correct . Some people on infinity board have tried to give every one this impression that RX is primarily a chic vehicle. No doubt RX is a popular vehicle among females, but a large majority of drivers are male, as on this discussion board .
One of the surveys listed below suggests >65% RX drivers are male.Please check
Postings #794, 797, 804 on Infinity FX45 board
At the end ,whatever it is , I am very pleased with what I have (after 2000 miles,) comfortable luxurious ride with a great music system and reliability . If you still think the same and are not happy , you should seriously consider buying a Hummer.

ctk1

Hummer H1, BMW X5 4.6IS, Porche Cayenne Turbo are real macho SUV for man...!!!if you can afford.

wwest

Ever think maybe it's the MACHO aspect of these SUV's that women are looking for, and the main reason they buy them?

Including the RX??

Too many "feminine" men trying to look MACHO by staying away from "Chick" vehicles?

If you were more certain of your masculinity you wouldn't need worry!

tomtomtom

When a man drives a so called "Chick Car", what do you think other females think of this guy? Richard Simon? or a sensitive guy they can talk to?

benxx

Seems I hit a hot topic here...:)
I remember I read it from somewhere, the statistics is 40% of the driver (RX300) is male. Lexus hopes to bring that number to 45%-50% with RX330's exterior design change. 75% of the driver are married (so much for the chick car) and 38% with no kids under 18.

r1_97

How can I tell if this is needed. Just returned from 990 mile trip to Monterey from San Diego. I hear a growl noise when engine is "pulling." It's especially noticeable during a long upgrade.

Other than that, the 330 was a joy. Seats comfortable and great air conditioning in 100+f heat cruising along at 80mph. Not recommended to take turns at that speed however. High center of gravity is noticeable.

damormino

I have voice command on my 2003 Acura MDX. It's pretty cool, but only mildly useful. It's nice to be able to speak commands when you don't want to talk your eyes and hands of the road and wheel. My 2001 MDX did not have voice command, but the system was just as useful.
The big negative of the Lexus systems (besides an inferior routing algorithm) is that the passenger can not reprogram the destination while the car is moving. The intent here is to make the car safer. But it really makes the vehicle more dangerous -forcing drivers to pull off the road when it is otherwise unnecessary. Imaging if airplanes had to land in order to reprogram the destination in their GPS navigation system. Lexus really pulled a [non-permissible content removed] on that one.

jeffmust2

...have a Pilot Person AND a Navigator Person.

benxx

Anyone here can confirm the reprogram is not possible while the car is moving? Can this "feature" be turned off?

How do you guys feel about the power and transmission about this car? A few early review reported the 5-speed transmission sometimes gets "confused", although I do not know what they were talking about.

albdoc

Check this websitehttp://4wheeldrive.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=h- ttp
This answers your concerns about female driver .
Pleease see the CNW survey which talks about 64% male drivers for RX . This is an old survey 2001. With the new models the numbers are more.I do not know what you exactly mean by power.
I am happy with power and transmission. More power is definitely a plus and there is no end to how much . It is not meant for street racing It seems like you will fit into infinity FX crowd. Iwould recommend you definitely test drive teh FX and spend soemtime reading the board.

wwest

Just maybe that's the ratio (certainly close) of adult males to adult females in the US. They do outlive us by about 10 years the last I checked.

wwest

Airplanes can be flight stabilized and thus aren't very/as likely to hit something or leave the "roadbed" while the pilot is attending to another "duty".

As in....

"Coffee, tea, or ME!"

tidester

Just maybe that's the ratio (certainly close) of adult males to adult females in the US.

FYI: The 2000 census indicates about 134 MILLION males and 140 MILLION females in the US. That's about 51.1% female and 48.9% male.

tidester, host

adb3

This debate about whether the 330 is a "chic vehicle" is beginning to get hilarious. Who cares if it's right for you? What I can confirm, after a two week vacation in Florida, is that all the men I encountered drooled after it and all the women loved it. The one negative I can report is the annoying way that folks upon passing me on the interstate would noticeably slow down when they pulled beside the 330 and stare at its profile. Since I keep my eyes on the road, my wife would report on the reaction of the drivers who pulled along side. It got so annoying that I began to abruptly slow down to get them by. What ever happened to subtle curiosity/admiration?

02whttrib

I was in New Orleans on July 5 in the Bourbon St area and had chicks pecking on my window asking for a ride in my RX.

Yeah it's definitely a chick car alright!!!

I'm at 5k and still loving the ride and performance. Bionic cheetah is not for me.

Ray

wco81

Or perceived as vegan car? Hippie car? Crunchy granola car?

wwest

I was very careful to say adult male/females...the ratio becomes greater as you raise the age "bar", until at 75 we're out-numbered about 10 to 1.

jeffmust2

...the deer will outnumber you.

"...be careful out there - very careful. There are worst things in live, dear Horatio...than a foggy windshield..."

 - Anonymous Denso HVAC Engineer

bodble2

Get out of town! Surely you jest! If true, the ratio of male/female RX drivers would be about 100 to 1 (and a supply of Viagra would be a factory option)

ctk1

get the mud flap for the new rx330 ??? It's not avail. at the dealer yet.

lenscap

Lexus mentioned in a recent trade article that the hybrid RX will be called the RX 400H. It will go on sale next spring as a 2005.

Lexus is also studying the feasibility of a hybrid V8 as an alternative to Mercedes and BMW V12s. It would have the same power but without the gas-guzzling consequences. No mention as to what Lexus vehicles this possible engine would be for.

jmess

"What I can confirm, after a two week vacation in Florida, is that all the men I encountered drooled after it and all the women loved it."

They must have be a alot of effeminate men down there. Real men drive Pickups or Sport Sedans. ;-)

jeffmust2

...but as for the men all drooling...aren't parts of Florida called "God's Waiting Room"?