ziggyziggy

I recently lost my 2010 RX450h due to hurricane Sandy and now need new wheels. I have owned my RXh for less than 2 years and is already looking for a replacement. When we bought it, the lady and I we were not married yet and looking forward to a family in a few years. We loved to travel and the hybrid mileage was awesome and we needed something spacious but not too spacious for our luggage and shopping bags.

Fast forward two years and now we are married and she is pregnant expecting in March 2013. As much as we love to get the RXh again we felt that the 350 is worth a shot since the sticker price is not as high and we will not be taking anymore road trips anytime soon.

We thought about the new 2013 Acura RDX and I like the looks and power but the interior is just too cramped for a baby seat and grandparents in the second row.

We are down to two choices, either the 350 or JX.

The 350 is practically the same car we had before and can comfortably fit us both, a car seat in the rear middle and a grandparent on each side but correct me if that is not possible. Now if two years down the road and another baby arrives, one grandparent will have to be kicked off

The JX looks nice inside and out but if you compare interior materials, of course Infiniti cannot compare to Lexus although it is nice on its own. It has three rows so space is not an issue.

Advantages of JX: bigger, newer styling (debuted as 2013 MY)
Advantages of 350: better materials, Lexus service

The prices when comparably equipped is about $49K for each so price is not a factor.

Anyone else have the same or similar dilemma?

RXSF

Sorry to hear about the RXh. I guess it all comes down to 3 rows versus 2, but you would never put grandparents in the third row, and also never put a baby seat in the 3rd row...

But I also understand the RX is getting old; Im one to want and get the latest and greatest. Also it may be time for a change. Have you considered the ML350? I know it is a bit more pricey but perhaps with some good bargaining skills they are pretty even

ziggyziggy

Why not grandparents or child in the third row?

corradoMR2

I considered the JX before purchasing the RX F-Sport, but as with you, the interior materials and overall quality (and reliability) is below that of the RX. Another thing I personally (and wife too) didn't like with the JX is it looks too long and wagon/minivan-ish. And forget the 18" wheels - they look so tiny and lost. The 20"s make it look better. At 197 inches and 77 in wide, it's 10 inches longer and almost 3 inches wider than the RX making it difficult for parking lot maneuvering and wouldn't fit in my garage! Mechanically, it's the same as the 2013 Pathfinder which you may also want to consider if interested in saving a few bucks.

I have two young kids, one still with a child seat and I can tell you two adults and the seat/child will fit well in the new RX since I've had this arrangement with my Gen 2 without issue. I will be getting my F-Sport this Wednesday and I expect the same room/comfort in the back. I'd go for the RX and when Child 2 comes along in two years, re-assess then. The RX has a strong resale if you purchase, or, get a two year lease and get the future Lexus 7 passenger (new RX??) hopefully will be out then.

ziggyziggy

We were thinking the same thing. Get a smaller vehicle now and then get a second car in a few years but then we were worried about double insurance, double gas, double everything. So its ok to have a infant seat in the middle and then an adult on either side?

corradoMR2

Yep, it's fine with my parents (kids grandparents) . Of course you need to consider size of the adults and duration of the car rides.

The easiest way to think of the room a child seat takes is to consider it as another average sized adult in terms of hip room it takes up. Shoulder room is actually better with the child seat as it is narrower than an adult's shoulder width... Ideally, test it at the Lexus dealer with the seat in question with you and your wife on either side, and if not, get the sales consultant in the middle.

Good luck!

BobBass

If you really need the extra room, have you looked at the new Nissan Pathfinder? I haven't seen it in person yet, but the exterior styling is much nicer than the JX. If you don't need the room, take a look at a Murano LE Platinum Edition. Although you may think the Lexus interior is better materials, the Murano LE is extremely nice.

I agree that the RX should have better reliability and it has the 4 year warranty, but these Nissans are worth a look. The only caveat is that the Pathfinder is new for this year and I would never recommend buying the first year of a re-design. I got burnt on a 2004 Maxima.

Here's a good comparison:

http://www.edmunds.com/car-compariso...atorId=4569905

dknn

I, too, am comparing the two vehicles along with a Cayenne. What I like more about the JX is all the technology that leaves the RX behind. I actually find maneuvering the JX to be easier with all the cameras it has.

The quality in the JX is a notch below but the interior is still nicely crafted. However, the basic warranty is longer with the Infiniti. The MSRP are similar, the JX is about 57k and the RX450h is 58k.
I've owned Nissans/Toyotas/Lexus in the past and find them to be equivalent in reliability.

I intend to make my purchase by the end of the month and at this point leaning more towards the JX as it is a new body style and Infiniti dealers are dealing a little bit more on them.

RXSF

Id expect the third row to be way too cramped for grandparents who would have to climb to the back. Also space would be an issue for the car seat back there

ziggyziggy

This makes the third row pretty much unusable.

rogers2

I honestly think you should go test drive the Nissan and Infiniti. I actually just test drove both with my girlfriend. Hint Hint I hate all SUV’s but the third row in these vehicles are not useless. Actually during the test drive the salesman rode in the 3rd row and the guy had to be at least 6’1.

GoHuskers

My sister owns a new JX, white/java. Somewhere on this room I posted a side by side pics with my 350. interior looks real nice, I say it is as nice as our RX'es. Exterior is subject to your taste.

Its third row seats are actually decent, on the plus side of all midsize 3-row SUV/CUV, of course you cannot compare that to the sburban or slade XL.

NOTE THIS: The middle row can tilt and slide forward EVEN with the carseat attached to the seat. This is super nice since people can get into the back WITHOUT taking the carseat out.

She got the car for $46k with msrp is about $51k without negotiating. Good luck.

dknn

After looking over the JX35 again today. I was disappointed with the build quality. The entire center console between the front seats was loose and moved quite easily. Additionally, the speaker grill on the dash was not flush, the wood on the dash was crooked and the leather was cheap feeling.

While the amount of technology is impressive, I expect more build quality in a 57k car. Alas, the JX was not the vehicle for me.

Instead I purchased a new Porsche Cayenne today and the difference in material was night and day.

corradoMR2

Congrats on the Cayenne. I did briefly consider it - unfortunately was very brief for me only because the main reason was it cost almost 200$ more monthly similarly equipped as the RX F-Sport up here in Canada. Less important was the increases in operating costs due to increased fuel consumption/91 octane and higher insurance rate (because of the Porsche performance brand of course).

Also, I agree with the Infiniti JX fit and finish. Parts were somewhat misaligned. The wood looked fake although I believe it is genuine, and all the padding in the doors, armrest, center console, dash looked and felt overstuffed. Very comfortable yes, but it made me feel like I was in a Buick Enclave - not the vehicle type I was aiming for!

cossie1600

I don't know if Infiniti service is anything like Nissan, but good luck getting them to fix anything