jimmit

I was just wondering if anyone had any info on the harrier. Many toyotas in japan have much better features than the US Lexus. Like the JDM soarer had rearview camera, TV, power folding side mirrors and like a million other bad *** features the USDM SC never even had. I was wondering if the JDM harrier had any features the USDM RX didnt have. I know the navigation was in 3-D but what else was offered or came standard that the USDM RX never had.

StrmRdr23

harrier had the power folding mirrors and various factory body kits from what i hear...

Harrier

Built-in TV tuner, slide out driver's seat for handicapped-driver access, side blinkers, several dealer-installed mods (such as wheels, body kits, lowering springs), black tint (rather than the lame greenish/mirror tint that we get), HID and navigation when the car was first introduced (we had to wait two stinkin' years), that awesome Harrier badge in the front grille (still have mine as a keepsake). Did I forget anything? Oh yea, a bunch of minor mods such as chrome rear view mirror cover, chrome license plate overhang, blah blah blah.

jeffg

One other feature not mentioned so far was the 'Tiptronic' style manual shift mode on the original S and latter the iR spec Harriers. It wasn't called that as Toyota didn't buy it from whoever owns the Tiptronic trademark, but functioned in a similar way.

There four buttons set in the spokes of the steering wheel, the two facing the driver shift down, the two on the underside shift up. Manual mode is enabled by moving the main gear selector sideways in to a notch poistion when in drive. The little LCD odometer display in the speedo is larger and includes a display of which gear you are in.

It sounds neat, and is fun to play with, but on road the auto does a damn good job while off road, once it starts getting gnarly, I find my hands moving all round the wheel as I wind a turn, tirn and a half of lock on and off, and my fingers are never near the shifter when I want it, then I have to brak concentration (avoiding the worst rocks and pot holes) and take my eyes off the track and refocus on the wheel to find where the shifter buttons have got too. Basically it doesn't work for me ergonomically.

The new sequential shifter in the RX330 looks better, it should be easier to drop one hand from the wheel to the shifter then flick it up or down without braking concentration or having to take your eyes off the road.


jeffg
98 Harrier S

jimmit

That sounds simliar to the E-Shift here in the US for the IS300s and GS300s.

xsfo

An early picture of the new Toyota Harrier showed a steering wheel controls. Audio controls were on the left and some other controls were on the right. What are the right side controls for? See the attachment.

Daddy-O

I wish they were Cruise Control...I like the Cruise controls
on the steering wheel. I've never cared for the stick.

meZoom!

dont forget the side mirrors stuck onto the side of the hood like all other japanese cars!!

i found this harrier parked out front of this rotating sushi place i had lunch at, but why's he have two-tone door handle thingies??

jimmit

No roof rack either. Did that come as an option on the USDM RX? I forgot know its been too long

jeffg

The door protectors are an after market accessory. I've seen them on a Japanese web site but can't find the link. I think they are supposed to prevent the minor paint finish scuffing that tends to build up around the door handles.

Looks like the owner has put a few extra bits on - the side skirts are not standard, ditto the wheels, and there is something on the trunk loading area - slightly different color to the skirts, with a Harrier logo on it.

As far as I know roof racks were not standard on the Harriers.


Interesting to note the the toyota.co.jp official site still has no mention of the new shape, especially as the original Harrier launched earlier than the Lexus, though I did come across this while browsing

http://www.toyota.co.jp/Showroom/All...op/index1.html

- the rear light cluster trim, bottom row center of the thumbnails, is something I haven't seen before.

qdawgz

When I was last in Tokyo, I visited the Toyota Design Center. Every vehicle that Toyota makes is on display there. When I saw a Harrior, I was surprised to see that it cost the equivalent of $26K. And this was not a stripped down vehicle.

That was very surprising considering that once the T on the hood is changed to an L, the price jumps to close to $40K.

Harriors are very common on the streets in Japan.

xsfo

I'm jealous of all the toys that are available to the Harriers. See:
http://www.toyota.co.jp/Showroom/All...op/index2.html

Cost-wise, there's shipping and then import tax figured in there. Does anyone know if the RX is classified as a car or light truck for tax purposes? If it's classified as a light truck then it's taxed 25% but if it's classified as a car then it's taxed at only 2.5%.