GoHuskers

I adore your writing and your patience. However, you have caused trouble for me that I now have to test drive the new '13 hybrid.

BertL

Thanks. My grandmother used to tell me "patience is a virtue" all the time. Just don't be around me for the few times when I finally can't take it any more. You'll know quickly, distinctly, and won't forget. (At least that's what my people in my business days told me.)

...and sorry for all the trouble I've caused , but hey, just think, you too could add to those statistics each month showing the number of new RXs sold this year. I look forward to your comparative comments as well once you've been in a 2013. I'll get another post up here in a week or two once I have been enabled for Enform and get through a number of other things.

Sevn86

Great write up! Congrats on the ride!

BertL

I'm still loving my 2013 RX450h, 9 days and just 150 miles after delivery. It's time for the promised (final) update to my original post #1 (read that first), after having completed reading 100% of the physical manuals that came with the truck and spending several hours playing with settings inside the vehicle. Hint-hint to those that have not yet taken the time to do both.

EXTERIOR

• I'm still satisfied with the overall ride including my 19" wheels. For me, overall handling is still superior to my RX400h. Unlike some, I don't expect my truck (RX) to be my grandmother's boat-of-a-Buick I remember from 30+ years ago, or an LS in terms of the same sort of comfortable and cushy ride a luxury sedan should provide. I do now believe the 19" make this just a little more jarring, but not enough to bother me or make me yearn for 18"s again. Passengers have not yet had a single negative comment when I generically asked "what did you think?". Interesting though, and it could be a whole lot of other things, but my Golden Retriever who rides laying down in the back seat with me most of the time, has still not gotten comfortable with the new ride and jockeys around for position a lot more than she ever did in my RX400h with it's 18". Parking lots, and I suspect the speed bumps they entail, are especially annoying to her.
• Mud flaps went on without a problem -- probably 30 minutes start-to-finish to complete the job, and I'm not a mechanic. Wheels stayed on, and there is no drilling required. A hex wrench and screwdriver were the only tools necessary. This is a simple DIY for nearly anyone to save big bucks, and the result is great.
• I have now briefly heard the new vehicle proximity notification system a couple of times. It's not some annoying beep-beep-beep sound, and I couldn't describe it as sounding like a car either -- it's more of a continuous reverberation that increases as your speed does. It's fine by me and would be sufficient to get my attention if I were the one walking near the vehicle when it's running on electric only, just as it is supposed to.
• For those following another recent thread about the cargo hatch, my 2013 automatically reverses as it should -- when it strikes a rolled-up towel on the back floor area across the bumper (instead of my arm) …which my 2006 and 1995 both did as well. ;-) The 2013 also has a physical sensor strip on each side of the moveable hatch that looks like a tube. There isn't any external sensor on the bottom (and so, yes, your little fingers could get smashed if you left them down there next to the bumper, but with the beeping and the manuals also having pages on caveats about all this, I consider us each appropriately warned.
• If you didn't' see the thread on technical differences between 2012 and 2013 models, the new 2013 function to automatically power off the vehicle if you leave it in ACCessory mode for 20 mins, works (as I found out with trying to use Enform Apps for the first time -- see below)

DETAILING -- I'm pretty **** about maintaining a shine on all my vehicles and keeping my ride clean on the inside… Check out my website here for products and process for more detail.

• I have never in my life -- after purchasing 11 brand new vehicles in my lifetime thus far -- received one in near perfect finish condition like my 2013 RX450h. Zero fit or finish issues after my inspection at the dealer, as well as my even closer inspection at home… and I can be a stickler. My 2013 never went onto the dealer lot -- straight from the ship to the PDC, then about 70 miles by car transport to dealer prep and into the enclosed delivery area where I drove it out… Anyway, it's been a few years since I had a new Lexus and was surprised there was zero gooey stuff to contend with (remember cosmoline?). Beyond my normal wash/clay/wash ritual, there was no need to get out my Porter Cable to correct the new paint -- anywhere. The only minor problems that two washes didn't take care of, were water spots on three of the windows, which I easily removed with a few shots of my go-to "Duragloss Water Spot Remover #505" and a microfiber towel. Lexus and my dealer did a GREAT JOB delivering this vehicle as I had asked my sales rep to way back in November, by not introducing any problems or swirls to the factory finish (unlike a certain other luxury brand I once owned…)
• Compared to my 2006, there are a couple of things that will make my almost-every-week hand wash regime a little more challenging:
  • Even with my near 6' height, the almost 2" of extra height and width of the 2013 over my 2006 is just enough using a Walmart folding single step stool, that I can't quite reach the center of the top of the car for washing, drying and polish any longer without stretching a lot (and my back tells me about it the next day!) Time for a taller non-slip step stool, I suppose.
  • This truck has "extended dripping problems" when it comes time to dry it after a wash. There is a lot more chrome around the windows on the 2013 than I had before, and the area under each side window is prone to retain water for a long time after you dry with just a microfiber towel. While I LOVE the hidden rear window wiper, that area is one to also keep an eye on, or you'll have tell tale spots when you look at your beauty an hour or two later. It's time for me to try my small dedicated-purpose (leaf) blower and start a new drying regime -- no more 6AM washes in my driveway which would now wake up the neighbors.
  • Love the fancy 19" wheels, but they take a lot more time to dry by hand with all those spokes. Fortunately, the Superchrome finish is a permanent coating similar to what I had on my 2006 wheels, making them simple to keep clean. They are not super-bright traditional chrome either, so spots and dust are not as big of a concern. I suspect I'll be able to squirt on Griot's Wheel Cleaner as I did to my 2006 and just hose them off most of the time -- with little brushing required and no need to keep them polished as I had to do to a couple of previous rides -- one because of horrible brake dust build up. (Lexus, thank you very much, doesn't have that issue, especially with hybrids and their regenerative braking).
  • It seems like there is more physical surface area to the 2013 than I had with my 2006. …that, or I'm just not paying attention -- but this ride took 10-20% more polish in each of 3 applications and substantially longer to apply, remove, wash, and dry than I was used to with my RX400h.
• On the positive side:
  • The almost completely covered area around the engine under the hood, as well as the redesign of the area under the front hood lip, makes keeping that tidy a piece of cake. Simple and fast to dry -- probably 25% of the time I used to spend in this area after each wash -- that other people never see.
  • I almost hate to say it, but the spindle grille is WONDERFUL from a detailer's point of view. Easy to wash, dry and polish with those flat horizontal slats. For anyone that wants the F-Sport package with it's black hexagons, well, be prepared for the finger work to keep the spots away -- it will be as bad, if not worse than my 2006 was to keep clean and dry. :-)

INTERIOR

• Floor Mats -- Beware if you planned to use 2012 (or earlier MY) front mats in a 2013, they don't quite work. They fit the outline of the floor since that didn't change, but the 2013 now has permanent twisty retention clips connected into the carpet in the two front floor areas. Holes in the mats need to align to the four clips so the mats can slip over them. Prior MY mats don't align properly and therefore could slip forward, defeating the whole purpose. Can you tell I had a set of 2012 mats purchased last year? Oops, there went $91, and now I have the 2013 version installed. Sewell has also updated their website with this little detail so you get the right mats based on MY -- be forewarned with aftermarket versions.
• While I have Nav and the integrated rear camera display on the same screen in my dash, if anyone gets an RX without NAV and the new "rear view monitor" option (effectively the same backup camera that displays in the rear-view mirror), according to multiple examples in the manual, that version comes with display guidelines which the Nav version does not. Crazy, Yes? Is it a concern to me? No …but I appreciate it is for some others here on the boards.
• I'm not a big fan of the cushion extender implementation on the front seats (part of the Luxury Package in my case). It's fancy to have the interesting rolling movement be electric like the other seat adjustments, but at max, this option only extends the seat out perhaps another inch or so horizontally and vertically up just a bit in the front. It helps, but especially for what it likely costs, is inferior to the manual version of this I had with the Sports seats in my BMW 335i convertible more than 4 years ago. The latter had a simple manual lever in the front of the seat to extend this additional section out to one of two pre-determined positions which was really good for added under-the-leg support on long journeys.
  
• Note my RX450h has Mark Levinson, so some of the following may not completely align with 9 and 12-speaker varieties others may have. I'm also an iPhone 4 user, and have no experience with droids (sorry!).
  
• I love the iPhone 4 connectivity. Initial pairing was fast and simple. Before I knew it (we're talking seconds), my 200 contacts and past call history had also been downloaded and were ready to go. My greatest disappointment is Lexus STILL does not move addresses from your smartphone contacts into the Nav unit like it does names and phone numbers. The Nav only has 100 slots for addresses to be manually and independently retained. My BMW from 5 MYs ago brought over contact addresses with phone numbers, so it's possible, and Lexus is just too far behind on this one.
• HINT: If you don't keep your phone charging while in the vehicle and notice your phone battery goes down faster than it used to, besides just maintaining the Bluetooth connection, consider that every time you power on your vehicle, contacts and call history are automatically downloaded to the Nav. So, if you're running a bunch of errands or doing work on your vehicle with lots of on/off cycles, the juice in your phone is going to go down faster than you'd expect. While I'm now happy knowing what's going on, and like the automatic sync it does, you could change the default of these two options so you must manually sync when you decide to. (Also, see below, keeping the Enform App ON on your iPhone so it will connect any time you may enable Apps from your Nav also seems to drain your phone battery faster… just be aware.) I suspect these considerations are going to be the same with non-iPhones as well, but don't have one to test myself.
• Audio Volume -- there have been a number of threads and posts on CL about people having issues with dramatic differences in volume levels between different sources, especially XM. My 2013 does not seem to have this problem, beyond what I would expect it to. I've tried FM, FM HD, XM Sat (8 different channels), my USB-connected iPod Classic, and BT Audio from my iPhone -- sound levels appear reasonably similar for each… now of course, that's dependent upon what sort of tune is being broadcast, but I've not had the situation where I have to change significant volume levels because I'm switching sources -- the few times I have, it's because of a softer or louder song being played. Frankly I have more of an issue with this with cable TV and when commercials come on from some channels.
• HINT: Treble/Midrange/Bass settings are independent for each audio source, so if you want change any of those settings, you need to change it for each. Spatial balance (front/back/left/right) is on the same screen but is common to all sources… I like my center balance pushed back just behind the back seats, otherwise with the default, most of what you hear with the ML is the large speaker on top of the front dash.
• UPDATE: I originally referenced that titles of albums and songs are 64-characters in length. That's true on what I'd call the drill-down screen that you can get to via the TEXT button sometimes, but in normal operation, i.e. looking at the full audio selection screen or the 50/50 split version with a map on one side and audio summary on the other -- only a stationary shortened version of the title appears, and it's not scrollable there. To see the full thing, you have to select the TEXT button (it's not on all screens, including the 50/50). A far better implementation would be for text like this that is too wide to automatically scroll slowly like a ticker tape, just as my home theatre Pioneer receiver does on it's display with radio, Airplay, etc… It's certainly a tweak Lexus could/should make in future MY Nav implementations.
• UPDATE: HD Radio continues to be awesome. Super clear reception. Go to http://www.hdradio.com if you want to see what channels in your area broadcast with HD.
• There are 36 positions (6 screens of 6) to store presets of combined AM/FM/SAT stations. You can mix and match them in any order you want, and scroll via the Nav or the left up/down buttons on the steering wheel. I just wish we could have some of them blank when not in use, so they are skipped and we don't start scrolling through stations you don't care about. I don't have 36 favorite stations, so took a few minutes and put in the same local FM station on all the "not in use" positions, which seems better than getting static or stations I care nothing about.
• UPDATE: If you were not aware, check out the SiriusXM privacy policy some time (bottom of their website). I'm no lawyer, but it appears to me when I started my trial period (not just if I sign up for the service), SiriusXM was given the ability to trade/sell/use my name/address/phone/email for marketing purposes. In other words, they "opt you IN by default". That's not the way I personally operate, so I opted out after reading all the material and received confirmation a couple days after bringing my truck home. You may want to consider doing the same if you don't want junk email, snail mail, and calls.
  
• Enform 2.0 -- If you don't know much about Enform, check out this site first -- it does a great job explaining capabilities. Also, if you have an iPad, I strongly recommend you download the free Lexus Enform Emulator which does a super job showing you how to use each of the capabilities. You should probably know where I'm coming from before reading further -- I'm still a bit of a geek when it comes to technology -- love it, spent nearly 40 years in technology jobs as a computer programmer through systems engineering, technical support and it's management. I've supported corporate systems for years, been a PC user since it's introduction in 1981, converted to a Mac and OSX a couple years ago, and use my iPhone 4 and iPad every day. Given that:
  • I would categorize Enform applications into 3 areas. Lexus is having to integrate some previous "legacy" applications in their vehicles supplied by SiriusXM, with one that is part of the Lexus Enform subscription, and then the new "Apps" that are part of the App Suite unique to Enform 2.0 and 2013 vehicles only. While all of these can be accessed via the Nav, they are for the most part independently accessed and not completely integrated at this stage of implementation.
    • SiriusXM Apps -- These are the ones you probably know. I won't address the music service -- see my original post. All of the others have a subscription fee paid directly to SiriusXM after the free 1-year trial, and the connection to your vehicle is directly via satellite (not your cell phone).
      • NavTraffic - integrated with Lexus Nav to show continuous traffic situation from sensors in the roads for some 140 +/- areas in the continental US. Works OK for me here in SoCal on most of the major freeways and highways. It costs $3.99/month after the trial -- I wish Lexus had just implemented this function (as BMW and some other brands did) using similar and free traffic information that is sent via FM signals (no, you don't have to be listening to FM to receive the traffic info). This is probably the single SiriusXM application I'll retain after the trial, but if the monthly fee goes up, I'll sadly discontinue it, and would jump in a moment to an alternative if provided by Lexus in a future vehicle.
      • NavWeather - I won't be subscribing to this expensive service, as there is only limited generic information for some 140 +/- cities in the US. Beyond the ability to go to the app itself and see 3-day weather reports for those areas, true integration with the Nav is via a map icon that essentially lights up if a severe weather report in your vicinity occurs. You can then click it and see more information. Honestly, your smartphone can provide much better information, albeit *you should pull off the road before doing that.
      • Travel Link is composed of 3 services: Fuel Prices for some major stations (but in my case, not Costco, that I use as much as possible), Sports Scores which I'd never use in my car (and could get for free from my smartphone*), and Stocks which I'd also never use (and could get for free from my smartphone*).
      • NOTE: The SirusXM website says they are constantly looking to expand locations supported in apps like traffic and weather, but their website does not even list current vehicles supported, e.g. Lexus models later than 2011 are still not listed.
    • eDestination is part of the Lexus Enform service. You get a 1-year trial with your new vehicle, and this service is part of the same set of services that provides Destination Assist (24-hour live operator access on Lexus' dime for the underlying cell service shared with SOS if you have that service as well) to locate a POI and send to your Nav. eDestination is a connected application that allows you to predetermine up to 200 locations via the Web, iOS, Blackberry or Android device, and then sync those destinations to your Nav so you can easily connect those destinations to the Nav without calling Destination Assist or programming them inside the vehicle. I like the capability, but would not pay for it independently (e.g. BMW uses Google Maps to send a complete route -- not just the individual location -- to your vehicle). Unfortunately after 3 calls to Customer Support in my first week of ownership, I am still unable to get this connected to my LexusDrivers account -- receiving an error message "There was an error setting up your account". I have to wait several days between calling them back each time (tomorrow is next), as there must be some back-end systems that only sync-up every few days. I'll stay on this until resolved.
      
    • The Lexus App Suite uses the data plan of compatible iOS (iPhone, iPad), Android and Blackberry devices connected via Bluetooth to enable these apps in your Nav. Use of the apps is a monthly fee after the first 1-year trial. In theory, Lexus can change and add apps in the future -- changes will be made to the app on your smartphone, and when connected to your Nav, if it determines an update is available, you are prompted to download the new version to your Nav… To get started, you first set up registration on LexusDrivers.com, then download the app to your smartphone/tablet, then ensure your device is registered via Bluetooth with your Nav. At this point, you start the Enform App on your Smartphone, and when you switch to the Apps within Nav, the two connect up and the Apps are running. A few comments and first impressions:
  CONCLUSION: Honestly, I'm glad I have this new Enform 2.0 App capability because of what it could be, but it needs work. Now that I've played with it, Apps would still be just as they were with my decision to get a 2013 over a 2012 -- a small added benefit, not a determining factor to buy the vehicle. Lexus needs to rationalize where the XM offerings, as well as eDestination fit with these for the long term. Lexus also needs to really re-think making their customers dependent upon the horrible SiriusXM business model and customer support that is SO contrary to what Lexus is -- good alternatives for the data services now exist. With Apple's announcement last week of all major brands including Toyota (except Ford, likely because of their Microsoft relationship) agreeing to put a "Siri Button" on the steering wheel of future models, I'm even more excited with that possibility. iOS 6 will bring step-by-step nav directions that Android has enjoyed, albeit things like that would only work when there was a clean data connection with your smartphone, unlike what a standalone Nav with it's maps can do anywhere, anytime. There ARE so many possibilities, come on Lexus, it's your turn to lead.

SO, OVERALL, I LOVE MY 2013 RX450h. It was a great decision in every respect. There are always things each of us would change if we could, and there is always room for improvement, but IMO, Lexus did this right -- it's the best SUV (or should I say "CUV") for me, without question. I look forward to many years of enjoyment with my new RX. As I told my dealer, if Lexus would now come out with a new SC or next-gen IS convertible, I'd once again be a totally happy guy with all the toys in my garage I desire.

Paul B

Another great job Bert in further describing your new RX 450h capabilites. You would make a great technical writer - very concise and informative. I was in the computer technical area also until I retired, but on the sales side, with a large Bay Area computer company.

May you continue to enjoy the fruits of your labor. Sometimes I wish we would have also purchased the hybrid version. By the way, I think you should e-mail your experiences to Lexus as good feedback for them.

mklemovitc

Thanks again, Bert. You've given us another outstanding informative post.

I'm now thoroughly introduced inside and out to the new 450h. ...just need to patiently wait the next two months while mine is built, shipped and delivered.

- Marvin

TexasRxh

What can one say but WOW! Your detailed posts rock! I am fairly detailed in my need to get into the gory specifics of the technology but, I am obviously not as patient as you in scribing every detail of my experience. I tend to focus on the things I don't like or really love and leave the rest out. So thanks again for an excellent write-up!

A couple observations of my own:

• I worry about what the guys at the local car wash might do to the twisty locks on the floor matts. Obviously you wash and wax your own vehicle so this won't be a problem for you. I would prefer the Ford approach that has a hole in the matt with a button that it pushes onto for stability.
• I concur about the dripping issues. On my 400h I would get out the leaf blower just as you suggested to get the water out of the hidden cracks and holes.
• The washer on the windshield doesn't seem to squirt high enough to get bugs off the top. It hits about mid-windshield and only has some mist that goes to the top. Perhaps I can have this adjusted at my 5k service.
• As I indicated in another post I have an iPhone 4S with almost 2000 contacts. While it takes only a few seconds to transfer the the first 1000 entries from phone book, I don't get to choose which ones those are. The Tech Rep at the dealership says he has talked with Lexus engineers and thinks there may be an update soon for this issue to extend the capability to 3000 contacts because only about a third of the disk is currently being used. The other issue is that the download will grab only 3 phone numbers per contact and you can't predict which 3 they are.
• I also had an issue with Enform and the iPhone. Eventually I had to delete the phone and re-pair it to get things working again.

Thanks again for all the info!

BertL

Texas: A couple of additional thoughts:
- The mats... The "lock" is actually pretty simple -- a twisty that pops up through the hole in the mat -- you put a finger on either side of that twisty, turn, and voila, the mat comes off. Pretty nifty design, but I've also not seen the Ford version.
- On your iPhone, I think there may be a workaround given the 2K limitation on phone entries. I'll assume you don't really need all 3K entries in your car at any one point in time (I don't -- I have international numbers, hotels, restaurants, and associates overseas and "back east" from when I travel, etc.). If that is a good assumption, I suggest you set up the contacts you need in your car (up to 2K to be within the Lexus limit) in a specific group on your iPhone (I do it on my Mac via Contacts since it a simple drag and drop process, then let the changes flow automagically over to my iPhone via iCloud.) Then, again on your iPhone, go to Settings/Bluetooth/ and assuming you've already paired, select the name of the entry for your car (I changed mine to RX450h). At the bottom of that screen you can select the specific group you want copied over to that device, like the car in your case -- the default is all groups/contacts. This way, you'll get the specific entries loaded to your vehicle that you want -- not the first 2000 that the iPhone decides it can copy before the Lexus runs out of room. ...it's at least a thought if you've not given it a try. It worked for me.
- Yes, on Enform and iPhone. Tried the delete/repair, and even went in and reset all my Nav settings to default (so I got to reset each item on every screen a 2nd time). No luck in my case. I'm calling Customer Care here in a few minutes to continue my pursuit trying to get eDestination to work.

...and thanks to you and others for positive feedback on my couple of posts. Yes, they took hours to put together, but figured it was my way of contributing something more than a little "+1" or just stirring up controversy here on the forums. :-) Take care.

DunWkg

Bert,

Continued expert reviewing. Thanks for your insights.

It surprises me that contacts move in and out of the car. Can see how this consumes phone battery and adds time to the pairing process.

Looking forward to your next review.

BertL

Thanks David. FYI so I didn't leave you with the wrong impression. :-) Pairing is a 1-time event. Contacts and the related automatic sync (assuming that's how the options are set), then takes place each time you power on your car, immediately after the phone connects via bluetooth with your vehicle. Frankly, with a few hundred contacts, it is done before I can get settled after pushing the start button and the map or whatever appears on the nav screen. Now, if one has a full 2,000 contacts, well, that may take just a little bit longer, but it's not long for sure.

TexasRxh

I use Outlook on a PC but I don't think that's an issue. I haven't noticed such an option as you describe. I do know that Apple does not support the Microsoft Contact Categories which sound like what you are talking about. I'll have to check the pairing options tomorrow. Thanks!

As for the locking mats, I'm not worried about me but I can see those guys at the car wash pulling on them and breaking the twister. I hope I'm wrong but I think I'll unlock them before I get out of the car. Or maybe I'll look for a "professional" wash/wax place and upgrade the whole experience. I do like the way the Obsidian finish is mirror-like! It needs its inaugural waxing.

BertL

Texas:

It's been 3 years since I've used Outlook on a PC, but I believe you can assign what Outlook calls "categories" to it's address book entries, and those will sync across to your iPhone where they are called "groups" in Apple-ease. Hopefully that helps get you started.

...and BTW, +1 on not using a normal car wash especially with an Obsidian finish or swirls and all sorts of finish challenges will be in your future.

TexasRxh

Apple doesn't recognize Contact Categories...if it did, problem solved! I could just have it sync my Personal contacts. See screen shot while iPhone is connected to the car.

BertL

I'll let you pursue this further as desired, since it's a bit off-topic for this thread and I can no longer help with PC-related items without one myself, but a quick google search gives me the impression if you first define categories in Outlook, you may get them to flow to the iPhone. Even eHow gives instructions how to make it work here so they'll show up on your iPhone.

forress

I've test drove the 2012 RX450h in April and took home the 2013 RX450h earlier this month. One improvement I like on the 2013 and haven't seen it mentioned much is the auto closing side mirrors when you lock the car. I liked it on the RR Evoque and was pleasantly pleased to have it on my 450h.