I've read and read and just need some owner opinions. I live in nashville and am less than impressed with my local market options. It looks like I will be going to Atlanta to find the right vehicle in the next month or so.
I'd really appreciate any thoughts you owners have on deciding between a 350 or 400h aside from the obvious MPG.
I'd love to find a CPO 2007 or 2008, but I may have a little better luck buying from a luxury lot or private party that still has some manufacturer warranty left and possibly purchasing an extended warranty. Please share thoughts/opinions freely.
thanks,
jake

 

I would try to find the CPO you want and negotiate hard. There are a lot of RX 350's out there on dealer lots. I would pay a little extra for the Lexus warranty so you will have no issues for warranty repairs.

 

see what carmax has to offer. you should be able to get an extended warranty on any used Lexus. call your local Lexus dealership and see what they say.

 

You will need to drive high miles to off-set the added cost of the hybrid, even with today's high cost of fuel. In addition about 10 years down the road plan on battery replacement on the Hybrid at a heavy cost, I believe ?
Hybrids do come with all the extra's such as back-up camera & navigation.
When I bought my RX350 The Rh 400 was about $10,000 more than I paid for the 350.

 

MPG isn't the only concern. The 400h has better performance also. Also no alternater or starter to fail and replace.

Getting AWD on a 400h is easy. They use an electric motor in the rear vs an extra transaxle.

On the used market, the price difference of a RX350 vs a 400h might be a few grand at most. The biggest factor in the pricing is your ability to search for a good used one and probably the distance you're willing to go.

I like my 08 400h. The instant torque from the electric motors is great.

 

I am looking at upgrading down the track from my 330 to possibly a 350 or 400h. The h looks good from a fuel economy perspective (the 330 is heavy and I only get about 420km's out of a tank). ddanhour brings up a valid point, in 10 years time with the battery and electric replacement, is it going to be worth that extra cost? How much is it going to cost to replace an electric motor if it fails? How much to replace the battery when it fails? It's like the Prius, when the battery is depleted (i.e. can no longer charge fully) it has be replaced with a new one. The last price I saw to replace a depleted Prius battery was $10,000. How much will it cost for an RX?

 

They were designed to last for the life of the car and current replacement cost for the Prius is $3000

http://www.toyota.com/html/hybridsyn...l/battery.html