LexNatural

I have an RX330 AWD and was curious about the ability of the AWD to perform off road.

Anyone ever take it off road? Climb some hills? Crawl through some MUD?

I have never seen any tests on this subject. Other than some comments on this forum about driving in snow, no reports about off roading here.

jayskinner

I drive on a dirt/gravel road about once a moth to go visit my parents. Lets face it, no one buys an RX 330 to go off-roading. I bought an AWD version, mainly because I cannot stand any torque steer that you usually experience from a FWD vehicle. That, and the extra utility of the cargo area I'd never ever consider intentionally driving a $40k luxury vehicle in the mud.

HarrierAWD

I don't have the RX330, but I did take my AWD RX300 offroad a few times. Here's my personal take:

It actually did surprisingly well in offroad situation. The AWD RX300 has 8.1 inches minimum clearance. I was able to traverse some really rough terrain. Even crawl up a 30-degree hill and down.

I was stuck in some very deep concrete-like mud in Utah, and it's actually on an unpaved road, not offroad. The mud was so thick and deep that my wheels wouldn't even move. Without low-range gearing, I couldn't torque my way out. Had to call for a tow truck.

It took an hour to clean up the dirt and mud in the undercarriage and the wheels, so I decided not to take my RX300 offroad again. Next time I'll rent a Jeep. Why trash my own $40,000 vehicle when I can abuse a rental?

Also took my RX300 on soft beach sand. It did OK, but the OEM Goodyear tires struggled a bit for traction. I didn't lower the tire pressure.

scottsRX

It is a grass only SUV

Good point on the rental. My H2 was one week old and I took it off road and it was great. However the clean up and polishing due to scratches took many hours to complete. Renting is a good idea!

AJL0365

HarrierAWD

yeah i have the same vehicle i took my rx300 awd offroad a few times, and i thought it did actually weel, but like u said, y would you take a 40k car off the road? but i still do it. it took a while to get the mud off from underneath the car and still some still sits there, but overall, its a fun experience. seeing for yourself, taking a Lexus RX off the road and into muddy water and dirt. my car is gold and i didnt wash it for like a week. so i know that ppl thought i was crazy b/c the car was likt literally covered in mud. but my opinion is, take a 300 off the road, not a 330.

NeverSatisfied

I took my RX330 over some very uneven dirt roads. Excellent ground clearance; never bottomed-out once. No mud though, cause I have FWD! I love this SUV.

thisguy_06

well i gotta confess something, i took my dad's RX300 to the an empty muddy field with some small trails and i was really surprised that it did as well as it did. Donuts in the mud with tmud flinging everywhere, didn't get it stuck anywhere at all through out the trail, the car did get extremely muddy but that was my only complaint. No other feeling in the world then takin a $40K+ vehicle into the mud.

confession over

CK6Speed

iTrader: (1)

With the amount of pot holes on our street from the last big rain it's almost as if I'm taking my RX330 offread every day Seriously, I'm sure it can go okay on mild offroads, but I don't think it can compete with a real 4 wheel drive (NOT AWD).

mckellyb

It snowed here pretty good, was a nice, icy mix, last January, and I was dying to take my wife's new-to-her '02 AWD out into the nearest parking lot to see what the VSC and AWD combo would/could do.

Well, on the upside, if you want a foul weather car, this one is a good one. I was trying to get it bent out of shape, and couldn't do it.

While I'd not likely take it down the Red Cone Trail in Colorado, I bet it would do it, no problem.

HarrierAWD

Where is the Red Cone Trail? A friend of mine got a CJ-7 and we are ready to take it offroad.

'02 RX300 AWD got everything except chrome wheels (got tow hitch)