Well; at this point it may be possible that I may be saying adios to the lexus side and switching to toyota as its half if not more the cost of lexus; that; the fact i dont know what else will fail next considering almost 2000 bucks went into the ac system of my 07 rx350 to replace the blower motor, evap core; and expansion valve. I just dont want to risk something else blowing up on me and having to shell out another 2000 bucks or more! that and also Im beyond tired of shelling out for premium gas as these gas prices have gotten out of hand and until and unless they ever start to go back down; I gotta do something so im looking at going to a rav4 that gets almost 40mpg highway and uses regular gas instead of premium. i wont known for sure until the next couple weeks what im doing.

 

why do you use premium gas? isn't the 2gr the same as the toyota that uses regular fuel anyway.

 

It is, I've used 87 in mine for years, I drive it HARD and there was never any pre-detonation. I doubt the ECU was even adjusted for 91 anyway - more like they wanted to claim an extra few hp & tq over Toyota, as the 0-60 time and MPG is the same as when I tried it with 91. No point running 91 in these cars IMO

 

You might miss the Lexus quietness and interior, I would test drive the heck outta the RAV. The 2019+ ones are when they started approaching Lexus-like refinement and solid interior but those are still $$$. It actually costs me less to fill up and fix my RX vs. my Highlander. The Highlander w/ the 4-speed sucks back gas and the little 3.0 has to work much harder than the 3.5. Also as the Highlander ages more stuff fails, not to mention all the parts I have to put on there to adapt it to the newer architecture of facelift HL and 04-09 RX as parts are getting harder to find for it. I really like it though so it's staying.

 

Do it if you can afford a new RAV4. Otherwise, you'll be under water when you decide to buy the next car.

 

i'm the same... we have two RXs and a GX in the house... and even though the GX has a Premium fuel sticker on the fuel door, it's the same Toyota 2UZ... ever since gas prices have been over $4 for premium, i've run regular 87 in it and have seen no impact to mpg or sound/noise...

 

Premium/high octane gas has always pretty much been 'a scam'. Only in certain rare instances should anyone use this gas in their vehicles. I was told by a very trusted ASE mechanic about 25 years ago that using premium fuel was basically 'throwing $ down the drain'.

He said put a bottle of Sea Foam in the tank every 10k-15k miles (or at every other oil change) and you'll be fine.

And BTW, OP didn't say whether or not he is getting his Lexus repaired at the stealership or an independent mechanic. If he is taking it to the dealer, he's definitely getting fleeced! Avoid the dealership when at all possible for repairs.

Here's how I fix my cars (including my 2007 RX350) in order of decreasing cost effectiveness (cheapest to most expensive).
A. DYI (if possible)
B. Local trusted mechanic
C. Stealership (the absolute last resort)