tshelly

When I drove the 10 it seemed like it had a lot more plastic than the 09. You know that Lexus had to keep the costs down so they could sell it at the 09 prices. How much money did they save on the donut spare, as opposed to the full sized tire with the matching wheel on the 09.

Sure the 10 has a lot more features than the 09 but at what cost. It would be nice to get a break down of all the material and manufacturing costs for them to produce an 09 and then a 10. That information is buried in the company's income statement and balance sheet. The consumer will never see it.

Btmnk21

iTrader: (1)

Working in the automotive industry myself, and I do mean to sound picky or anything, but that information is probably buried across dozens of suppliers and hundreds of cost analysis forms.

But you are right, we will never see it.

AlexusAnja

Hey, just simple math, if you can save $.50 on a single item (say a light switch), across a model year run of say 20K units, that would be $10K right. So, if Lexus can save $500 per vehicle, then that's a cool $10M. NICE !!!! Everything is savings in volume.

As for the donut spare, I would say that's easily a $100 savings per piece, so $2M. Hey, everyone's gotta cut cost, but it's whether you cut in the right areas or not. Something like cutting on floor fabric, which most people might not notice too much is smart. Cutting on the spare, where EVERYONE will notice, could be a bad move.

As for the plastic, I didn't feel that there was more "plastic" in the vehicle. I am assuming that when you say plastic, you're just referring to the solid molded plastics and not the firm-touch plastics of the dash and trims. I thought that the 2nd gen RX had more hard plastics than the 1st gen, but that this 3rd gen has gone back to a better mix of soft and hard goods.

KeysRx300

Was in Vegas this weekend. And the dealer had about 8 or 9 of the 2010 models. They had a couple on the show room hooked up to use the Nav system.

First couple of impressions. I like they way the screen sits back. Now whenever I drive my 07 I can see the difference. No more sunlight washing out the screen. The curved Star Trek dash board grows on you after awhile. The mouse is easy to use. The center console has 2 power outlets for your Ipod and Phone. And the Aux jack. Ventilated seats are nice. But didn't get to use them

The things I didn't like. The spare tire not being full size. The rear video systems seems aftermarket. The way it sticks out of the seat.

On the Nav system. The voice box system doesn't seem to work any better then the one I have now. Also when you activate the voice system. Mine says " After the beep say your command " On the new model it says all of the different commands that are available. So it rattles on for 15 to 20 seconds. Then you get the beep.

KeysRx300

Someone asked for a picture of a non Nav center console.

Btmnk21

iTrader: (1)

In another post someone mentioned that you press the steering wheel button twice. I am guessing this skips the list of commands?

Peterun

Yes. . That is correct. Just hit the button two times . . .you get the beep to speak without the instructions.

lex

haha, it's pretty obvious that something is missing

Rx13

I guess its me but no one seems to complain about nothing but 18 inch or 19 inch wheels. I have 18s on my 2008 and it is skittish and rides like crap. The 18s are poor on snow covered roads and of course the low profile hurts the ride.
I just had a rental Highlander with 17s and I hate to say it rode much better than my RX. I guess it's all about the looks.

The G Man

Well, thats the problem with the whole Lexus line right now. Lexus have been cutting cost for a while now. All these cost cutting is suppose to be un-noticable to the consumers, but some buyers are starting to notice all the little things they are cutting back on. Clips, gears and screws that use to be metal are now plastic. Floor carpets that cost $120 and only last for 2 years. No more full size spares. Quality have certainly suffer, not so much on the older gen RX but on the rest of the Lexus lineup, we will have to see about the new 2010 RX.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

Wow!
That's awful for a $40K+ vehicle.

RXSF

agreed. another reason to get nav. usually though, cars look ugly when they arent equipped with nav. although i can see what being usefull with coins

salimshah

Any comments on the sound system difference (unscientific) from old to new... I know the sound system should not be the primary reason to purchase, but unbiased (as much as possible) user opinion would help.

Salim

The G Man

How about the navi, does it still lock out most of the function while you are moving even though you have a passenger on board who can safety operate the navi?

lex

That's where you put your money if you're a drug dealer LOL