deusex

Hey guys, any one seen pics of 450F? I want to replace my current 350, as soon as new one comes out. I think that in up close in real this car will look awesome.

rayaans

No pictures of the 450h have come up yet.

But, I have an RX450H F-Sport now and it looks no different to a 350 F-Sport albeit it has hybrid badges.

The 2016 RX450h F-Sport will look exactly the same as the RX350 F-Sport but will not have the tailpipes at the rear, it will have a black plastic diffuser instead.

rogerh00

I have a feeling this may be corrado's next car

Bearcat

I was thinking of getting the Hybrid as well until I discovered that breakeven on price difference (taken from 2015s) is only after about 155,000 miles. No thanks.

kitlz

Bearcat, if you have to justify the premium with the 450h, then you're better off going with the 350. We've had many discussions in the RX forum about this before. Bottom line, most of us hybrid owners don't worry about breaking even. There's a lot more to it than that.

deusex, I agree with rayaans, The 450h F-Sport probably won't be too much different than the 350 F-Sport except for badging and maybe different rims. He should know since he has one. The '16 RX brochure I received from the NY Auto Show has a partial picture of a non F-Sport on the back in a USB color. Looks great BTW.

Bearcat

My quick question then is if there is no advantage, what's the point?

JDR76

I'm not a 450h owner, but I believe what Anita is saying is that fuel mileage isn't the ONLY advantage/point. Most 3rd gen RX450h owners cite increased MPG, in addition to things like quieter and smoother operation, more power and torque, the inclusion of VDIM (only F Sport 350s get it), and small touches like a better tire pressure readout that includes individual tire pressures. Focusing on fuel mileage isn't the only picture.

kitlz

For me it was those sexy LED headlights, LOL!

Seriously, JDR hit on a few advantages. Think whole picture than focus on mileage alone. I have the 450h with the sport package. It has a firmer ride, better steering and no body roll in turns Throw in being hybrid, it's close to perfect. Not to go into great detail but hybrids also require less maintenance. So I'm very happy Lexus finally decided to bring the 450h F-Sport to the US. Speaking of the quiet ride (aka stealth mode), I was at a bank drive-in before. No noise, except for the AC. And it stayed that way as I drove away. Mine doesn't chirp.

JDR, 350s with the sport package (not to be confused with the sport appearance package available later on) also have VDIM. Really awesome feature too.

rayaans

The CVT also grows on you. At first it feels slightly weird but now, going back to a car with a conventional gearbox just feels ancient. The CVT is so smooth its unbelievable.

Also its worth noting that the RX450h is the only option available in most EU countries, also we are also getting the RX200t now. They've just made it available in the US to add some choice to the lineup.

deusex

Eh, was hoping it will have those two nice looking tailpipes.

kitlz

I think the no tailpipe look works on the 450h. And it's one less thing to clean, LOL!

UCSB

With the 3rd generation 450h Lexus pretty much took the entire financial advantage of owning the hybrid off the table and pocketed it at the time of purchase. So as an owner you are left with a few equipment upgrades on the car (nice, but not enough to justify price differential), the gas mileage and the reduced environmental impact. Also if you live in CA, you don't have to get smog checks. This is definitely worth something to me. There is also speculation that resale is higher. There has been one intangible ... and that is when you mention that you drive a Lexus hybrid it seems to impress others. Another is the driving experience. The CVT and hybrid drive train yield a different driving experience; some like it, others may not. If you do a lot of in town driving the h will excel.

Hopefully, the days of hitting hybrid buyers will a huge premium are over and Lexus will price the 2016 h closer to the 350 ... we will just have to wait and see.

Not mentioned much is the serious work and focus you have to expend if you want to hit the EPA numbers in the h. I drive my Subaru Outback normally and pay no attention to gas mileage. It returns 2 MPG above EPA estimates. If I do the same with the RX, I end up 2.5 MPG + below EPA estimates. Sure you can hit EPA estimates in the RX, but be prepared to work for it. Some will argue they like the challenge (my brother is in that camp). I, on the other hand, am pretty tired of the whole situation and just drive the h normally and live with the lower mileage.

One factor on the 2016, it appears that Lexus believes that hybrid owners want the ugliest grill on the car possible. Unbelievable.