I bought my first Lexus (2015 RX350) 3 years ago and absolutely love it. My only issue is the color was not my first choice and it just hasn't grown on me, so I'm looking to replace it. I had to make a really quick decision last time and loved everything else about the car, so I just went with it. This time I'm trying to do a lot more research and get exactly what I want.

I'm finding several cars that have all the features and color scheme I'm looking for. I'm finding it somewhat odd that I'm mostly finding 2017's and 2019's and with the mileage I'm looking for (< 25,000 or so) they're priced roughly the same. Normally I would jump on the newer vehicle, but I've tried looking through complaints and recalls on both vehicles and it seems the 2017 might actually be rated a bit better than the 2019.

I'd love some feedback from those who own an RX350 from 2017 or 2019. It seems like there were minimal changes between those 2 years, so I'm not sure why the ratings would be much different.

Any thoughts on what I should really be considering here? I feel like this should be a pretty exciting decision/purchase and I'm feeling pretty frustrated and lost. Thanks so much for any insight you can offer!

 

I have a 2017 and have had no complaints, they replaced the back door struts under warranty as the orig ones were noisy, I don't have any all of the complaints one hears here, only the "occasional" hesitation in downshifting. I have a 1st class dealer though and that may be the difference.

 

Not sure what ratings you are looking at, but take them with a grain of salt. As you acknowledge, there isn't a lot of difference between the 2. Back in the day when I thought Consumer Reports was the holy grail, I kept seeing massive changes from one years listing to the same car the next years magazine. Also, if you look at similar models' with different brands (Chevy VS Oldsmobile, etc.) there were substantial differences, but they were assembled on the same line. How could that be? Needless to say, I no longer subscribe.

When I was recently looking, I was all set to get a really low mileage 2017. But when a deal came up on a 2020, I took that instead. There is a considerable difference between 2016-2019 and 2020+. So from a depreciation perspective, you should be getting a big discount on 2017. In a couple of years, the 2019 will be heavily discounted as well, due to those 2020 changes. IMHO, of course.

 

We bought our 2017 new in July 2017. 50K miles later, oil changes, filters and a new set of tires, nothing more. What color did you buy that never grew on you? Just curious. Ours is white pearl with black interior.

 

Get the 2019 prior to that your Enform remote features will stop working in a couple of years. As for reliability both are good I had a 2016 RX and traded for a 2020 with no issues with either.

 

I bought the 19 because the changes to the 20 outside of CarPlay were minimal. The 20 is going to depreciate just as fast as the 19 once a new body is released! Whenever that may be.

 

Is it nebula gray? I'm looking at an RX in this color. It looks really nice in sunlight but it's boring at night and twilight. And my last two cars were silver and dark gray so I kind of want something totally different.

 

You should look at a model y lol thats gonna be my next car haha

 

That's why we bought the Matador red this time. Lots of RX in my neighbourhood. Many gray, silver, white but only 2 red ones; mine and the neighbour across the street!

 

You're correct I forgot about the CarPlay got so use to it.

 

I have the maroon color - honestly not sure what Lexus actually calls it, but I'm just not a fan. I like that it's not very common and I don't see many that color, but it's just not something I would normally choose. I have the solid parchment interior, which I love, so I'd like to find that again but with a white exterior.

 

It's the maroon color. I really want the white!

 

I fell in love with the Matador Red Mica with black interior once I saw it. Decided I had to have those colors. It was quite hard to find those colors with the exact set of options I wanted but I decided I'd wait until I found it or special order it. I was planning to buy a '21 but a dealer found a '20 with the exact colors and options I wanted so I bought it. There were no '21's in the US or being built in the next month or so with what I wanted in a 450hL, I seemed to pick the rarest combinations.

 

I got 2017 RX 350 Executive (Canadian) version in 2017. I still drive it and I drove to work every weekday (pre-COVID). Not a single problem what so ever. The Lexus Canada just sent me a letter asking if I would like to upgrade my 2017 RX 350 to a new one and they will give me a better deal on it. After looking at the differences between the 2017 and current models, I have decided to keep my current one. No issues at all and as previously mentioned here, I also did not have any so-called "common issues" others had.

My family and I have driven this to camping sites 200 km from our house in the Rockey Mountains. This is the most comfortable vehicle I have ever owned. I don't know why the BMW SUV my friend drove seems to shake a lot in the back on long drives compared to my 2017 RX.

If you don't mind buying the 2017 model, I would go for it. The only disadvantage I can see is the technological improvements based on what Lexus Canada told me. The 2019 and 2020 models have some advanced collision warning systems, improved GPS navigation screen/maps (added support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay) and improved ABS and such. As far as I can see the engine, transmission and all other mechanical parts are the same as 2017 models.

 

We have a 17 as well purchased new and I receive notices every few weeks about tradng it in. No thanks, it's paid for and we will likely drive it several more years. In fact, when the new gen is released, I may just take the RX which is my wife's daily driver and trade my ES😉