I didn't realize I needed to say anything in this case. Google AI said;
The system automatically manages 12V battery health, utilizing the high-voltage system to power electronics and keep the 12V battery topped off.

It certainly doesn't seem to care about battery health, and it doesn't keep it topped off. It does use the traction battery to get its power. 1oo3 is pretty abysmal...

The test Viktor G uses does not provide a good substitute for a Bluetooth battery monitor, in my opinion. Plenty of people, including myself, have suffered dead batteries that had nothing to do with the battery itself. I've suffered two dead batteries in our RX450h+ and it still tests out as very good for a 2.5 year old battery.

Since installing the Bluetooth battery monitor in the Lexus, I've since installed one in my 2007 Ford Focus ST "beater" and in my 2025 GR Corolla. In fact, it was the first thing I did to the GR Corolla.

The GR Corolla actually has the same exact make and model of battery as our RX450h+. The GR Corolla has a traditional alternator that charges at 14.x volts whenever the engine is running. It has never dropped below 12.4v resting.


The RX450h+ is, hands down, our favorite luxury road-trip vehicle ever. We have driven over 40,000 miles in it, on every kind of road and in every weather condition. We've taken three two-week road trips in it as well as many more shorter road-trips in it, and there is nothing else that tempts us, nothing else that combines comfort, luxury, handling, performance, and fuel economy in such a perfect way, for us. If it didn't exist, we would have an RX350h.

If it weren't such a great vehicle, I would not put up with the charging system issues.

 

Well, I have no idea what 1oo3 is supposed to mean.

You don't expand upon why the test Victor has show is somehow inferior to an after market bluetooth monitor. You simply say "it's inferior" without any substantive data to support this. Now if that's something you prefer to use that's different. I don't need electronic toys to get me through the day. I just want a car that is supposed to do what I bought it for.

If you're happy that you have to jump through hoops and purchase battery tenders and battery monitors to keep a new car running then that's you. I buy a new car so it's dependable and starts\runs every time I get into it.

No car is that good that it would require me to buy aftermarket products just to insure it starts. If it's designed and engineered properly it should do all of this without me giving it a second thought. If you accept the sub-standard performance of the design then that's fine.....for you. I have better things to do with my time than to say it's all good and I'll just buy after market stuff to bring the car up to what it should be right out of the gate.

'nuff said.

 

The Bluetooth battery monitor gives you the actual resting voltage of the battery without having to jump through hoops to get it. It also logs the historical data.and can show any unusual voltage drops.

This was a 2-week period when I let it fall below 12.4 v resting after fully charging the battery.

 

Agreed. Which is why you have the Class Action Lawsuit

Given the mass-scale of the problem spanning NX, RX Hybrids and across Lexus Hybrids - the more that join the Class, the merrier.

 

I'm no lawyer but I've worked with enough of them over the years that I have a basic understanding of class action lawsuits. The attorneys take on the class action to make themselves $$$$. Economics drives everything. So, they take it to court, represent any car owner that has the model defined in the class action and usually it ends up the company agrees to fund $X into a fund for total and complete settlement. Now, you don't have to sign up for the class action...and if the class action "wins" the company funds the agreed upon $$$. So, now the attorneys have a pool of money to dole out.

So, they advertise for claimants to provide documentation that their vehicle is doing the bad stuff the settlement said. Once all claims are filed by a given deadline, the money is paid out. However, the attorneys get to keep the rest. So, if say $10-million is funded, and claims amount to $5-million, the attorneys get the remaining. That's just how it works and it's incentive for a law firm to take on the action.

However....and this is important.....sometimes claims can be "overwhelming" to this funding. Many years ago there was a class action against GM for their disc brake poor engineering. I happen to own one of those GM cars and I had to get the front disc brakes repaired more times than I liked. IIRC, the design of the brake cylinder was bad and caused the brake to either not engage, or engage and not let go.

So, I file my claim and patiently awaited my $500 reimbursement from the Action. About 4 months later I got a letter saying the amount of claims far exceeded the expectations. They had to get court approval to change the payment amounts. Long story short, I got a check for like $16 about 6 months later. There were thousands of claims filed. Far more than they expected. But the attorneys got their cut....the claimants....not so much.

There is good and bad from Class Action Lawsuits.

 

While your chart shows when you did a manual charge on the 12V battery, and the subsequent resting voltage of the battery is fine. I can see where you charge the battery constantly, alibet I don't know if it reflects you manually charging it or the system doing the charge. The at rest voltage of 12.3 is not a good at rest voltage after a full charge session. You should be 12.6-12.8V after a full charge session.

While your chart shows the up's and down's of the voltage, it doesn't discern between your charge and the vehicle charge. Any spike above the 13V would indicate the battery is receiving a charge. Ok....but which charge is you and which charge is the car?

But again, I didn't pay for a new car to have to plug it in for it to work. If I wanted that I'd have bought a plug in model. But again, I'll see what the dealer says and how the car behaves before I decide what I'm going to do.

 

Can't agree more with you. Hopefully the threat of this class action lawsuit is sufficient to goad Lexus/Toyota to fix this issue pronto. Like you, I don't buy relatively expensive supposedly reliable stuff only to have to buy more stuff to make it work. My NXh is my 4th Lexus and quite possibly the last. When I bought mine, to replace a 2 year old RX that was stolen, I had to buy the booster battery, a compressor to keep in the trunk and an anti-theft bar to keep thieves away. Now the cost of insurance is creeping higher, by 20% annually over the past 2 years. Can't imagine what RX owners in my area are experiencing. This one has let me down 5 times now and the 12V battery has been replaced twice, all in 3 years and 47K KM (~28K miles). This is not indicative of how a Lexus is supposed to work. I keep thinking why am I putting up with this!

 

Before I dropped $75K on this Premium edition, I ask anyone who owned a Lexus about their car. A friend of mine said his was 12YO and nothing but regular maintenance. He loves the car. Another friend, 10years and no issues. I stopped two total strangers and ask them about their 350 and 350H. Both highly praised the car.

But the car broke down in my garage on a Thursday. They towed it to the dealer. The dealer didn't look at it until Friday.....and now it will be Monday at the earliest to either get it back, or know when I'll get it back. So, I'm now driving my 2017 F-150XLT which is a very nice truck. But I'm getting 15MPG instead of 33MPG and at the cost (here) of over $4\gal, I'm not all that happy about it.

But, that's life.

Vent over.

 

The point of the Class Action is to get Lexus to fix the problem. Lexus will not fix the problem because it will cost them money - so they will pretend there is no problem.

The Class Action is the only way to bringing the truth out in the open and force Lexus to fix the problem, if at all.

 

1oo3 = 1 out of 3. 1 correct statement out of three. Abysmal. That's why I usually don't even bother with AI.

I only charged with the charger once. The short spikes are when the vehicle is in Park, about to be driven. While being driven, the system provides 12.x volts. After it dropped to 12.3v resting, the system gave it a real charge that bumped it above 12.4 v, but it was below 12.4 again shortly after that.

In contrast, there is my GR Corolla, which has a traditional alternator-based charging system and the same make and model of battery as the RX450h+. After 5 days without being driven, it has dropped to 12.56 volts resting. 1 day of driving (no external charger) brings it back to almost full charge.

 

I got a call from the dealer. The car is ready. They said they did the rear view camera recall and that's what was causing the parasitic drain.

Ok. So, I looked that up. From what I read this camera recall has nothing to do with a parasitic drain. So, is that just a line of BS or is it true?

Then they said the car was ready for pickup. Now, when I bought the car they assured me their valet service would handle getting my car and bringing it back. The dealership is one hour away. So....the manager stated it would take a couple of days to get me the car, because it will take two people to deliver it. No kidding...it will take me 2 people as well. Except I'm a 70 YO man with MS. Energy reserves in my body are 25% of a normal human. Oh....that's not inconvenient.

I called Lexus Corporate and they were zero help.

So far, I'm unimpressed with the dealer valet service. And disappointed in the car. I'll give it another 6 months and if this BS continues, the car will be gone and I'll get any other brand but Toyota\Lexus.

Edit: I guess what I'm saying is my "Lexus Experience" is turning out to be more of a "Jimie Hendrix Experience". He's dead too.

 

Update: After searching for info on Hybrid batteries dying i came across the possible reason why my car's battery went dead.

I park the car in my attached garage, and enter my house through the laundry room. Then I toss the car keys into a a small basket. Now, the car is on the other side of the drywall laundry room wall. At best the car is 8 to 10 feet away from where both FOB's are tossed. My wife and I have been doing this key "habit" for over 20 years.

I came across an article that stated the FOB should not be any closer than ten feet, or the fob will activate some car systems....causing the battery to drain. Who knew? (Well, apparently some did but I wasn't one of 'em).

So, this is an important piece of information. I'd think a service rep would ask this when these dead batteries come through the door.

 

Replace the basket with a metal box, with a lid.

Or, a Faraday bag/cage.<<JOKE>> people say aluminum foil would help too...but in my case, my head would become cold.

 

I've seen the issue with several vehicles, including non-Lexus/Toyota, where having the fob too close will drain the battery. It often happens on road-trips where someone is staying in a motel with their vehicle parked right outside their room.

 

I just used up my allotment of aluminum foil for my monthly new hat. The Mr's said either I make a new hat....or a FOB holder.....but not both.