MrMufakka

6 month old.

In order for the car seat to fit with minimal effect on the front seats, it must go in the middle. The process of putting him & the seat in/out is a bit cumbersome, especially since it's the wife's car. My no means is it impossible, just a hassle.

MrMufakka

And as a slight update, I got a call today from one of the Lexus dealers I've dealt with in the past and may have found exactly what we've been looking for. Best of all, it's certified. Getting the steering column fixed is covered under the CPO program, correct?

corradoMR2

Don't assume a CPO vehicle has truly and thoroughly gone through meticulous inspections AND parts replacements. This is the case with any car brand, not just Lexus. In short, don't assume CPO = all TSBs, voluntary recalls, etc have been handled - validate it yourself to be sure by asking for service history on a CPO vehicle.

hovbuild

Bought a used 2012 and after reading about the steering column thought I had a problem........Turned out the rattling was coming from the trunk shade and it was pretty bad. The reason I thought it was the column is that I wear hearing aids and some of you know that have these finding were a noise comes from is impossible.

vlad_a

I got news for you. In 6 months, he/she will be 1-year old. You will no longer use a cradle, so it won't be as much of a hassle. Better yet, the seat will get reversed to forward-facing. Much more space this way.

Only my firstborn was in the middle. Once you start having more kids, they will be going to either left or right side.

Our RX is also the wife's and the family car. I get to keep my sanity and my sport sedan. However, it is a treat for the kids to ride in my IS. They always beg for a drive in it.

JDR76

We had a TSX and a Tacoma 4 door when our daughter was born. In both cars, the infant car seat would only fit in the middle. As vlad_a correctly notes, it does get easier when they get a bit older and switch to a forward facing seat. My daughter outgrew her infant seat at 10 months.

Being free of the infant seat for a while and not planning on any more kids, I swapped out my truck for an IS. My wife, wanting an SUV, picked out an RX. The RX has been an absolute delight for the family, and while we still put her seat in the middle, we find the RX very easy to get her in and out of. It also carries around our large jogging stroller and whatnot with ease.

I have her forward facing seat behind the front passenger seat in my IS.

Then comes a change of heart, and we are now expecting baby #2 (a boy!!), and we are going to have to deal with an infant seat again. No worries with the RX, but the IS will be a challenge. An infant seat does fit in the rear in an outboard position, but I will have to move the front seat forward a few inches to accommodate it. I will either deal with the squeeze in the IS for a year or so, or swap the IS out for a larger GS.

MrMufakka

Good points. I've been using the MyLexus.com site to check the service records of each RX I've looked at. Very useful. While this particular one does mention any work to the steering column, the fact that I'll have a warranty for 40k more miles is very reassuring. I would, however, like to find verify that if I do have a steering column rattle, that the certified warranty will cover it. I'm interested in the laminate glass as well.