So in the 9 months that my parents have owned their RX400h they have put 16,000 miles on it. My dad is concerned cause he didnn't want to drive it that much and I agree that it is a bit above average. However, it is the most fuel efficient car in the family I figured that they might as well put miles on it rather than my dad's 330xi.

Why this came up? We are going to South Carolina on Saturday, a 600 mile drive and my mom wants to take the 330 which loaded up is good for 25 mpg vs. the comfortable and roomy 27 mpg RX.

Me, I have put 25,000 miles on my Legacy and Ive had it for two years now. I figure why not drive the crap out of it since I know that my engine typically lasta for 250,000 miles and Im only at 94,000. I think my parents are just shy about putting miles on a car. My dad has leased his last two cars. His last car that he owned was an Aurora and it died at 75,000 miles. My mom put 80,000 miles on RX300 before a few problems arose and she traded in for the hybrid cause it made sense.

We've had 5 Toyotas and 3 Lexus' Im not too concerned about loading them up with miles, are you?

 

We sold our 99 RX 300 with just shy of 100K miles.
The only problem it ever had was a bad O2 sensor and a bad MAF sensor. They happened within a year of each other and each item cost about $100 to replace and less than 30 minutes of my time.

My biggest concern on the 400 is the battery. May have to sell it before the warranty expires since it's supposedly a big cost.

 

I would not be concerned about milage unless you want to trade it in for a new one in a couple of years. My 1982 Toyota Corona had over 100,000 miles when I sold it. As for the High Voltage battery that is the least of my worries the reason is several Prius have made 250,000 miles on there battery. Also several states have a guarantee of 150,000 miles. The 2000 RX300 that I sold to my son who sold to my ex-manager who has over 110,000 miles on it. He only replaced both O2 sensors which was the only item of repair done.

 

hmm, tough call. I have an M5 and really enjoy the smoothness, that "one-with-the-road" feel. With 2 adults, loaded up, runs great. With 4 adults and loaded up, much prefer the roominess and added comfort of cabin space with the 400h. I wouldn't base my choice on mileage, given that either vehicles will give you decent mileage but rather on a) if more than 2 adults will be in the vehicle and if so b) will there be alot of luggage.

I much prefer a sedan on the open road than something that sits as high up as a SUV. Also, BMW's are notorious for being amazing open road vehicles. Smooth, solid and connected.

Cheers,

MadloR

 

The battery is the least of my concerns. Ive been reading about them as much as possible and have really found that it isn't really an issue for high mileage Priui.