autotech13

I'm with you. I would not recommend a 2023 or a 2024 until Lexus gets it's act together. They have been going down hill for a few years now!

Freds430

Downhill. The RX and the NX are #1 and #2 most popular selling luxury SUV's this year. Consumer Reports rates the RX350h as the best in the mid size luxury category and the NX 350h in the small luxury SUV category. The have the NX 350h as the best buy over $45,000.

Klamalama

Of course I recommend the RX. Mine has been nearly flawless. Besides, friends and family are mostly jealous, rendering recommendations unnecessary.

jaxn1010

Negative on recommending. I've talked to two coworkers about my disappointment with the RX so far; one opted not to get the RX and got the NX instead, and the other got a CPO Q5 Sportback. My feedback to them was around the horrid infotainment system, ongoing 2nd key fob/digital key saga, the disappointing Lexus app, zero OTA updates, cheap piano black trim even on a Luxury spec, no independent fan for rear seat hvac, no auto-dimming passenger side mirror, not enough engine sound deadening material on the firewall, and no hydraulic engine mounts to isolate and dampen powertrain vibrations. I just can't recommend anything about the RX when it seems Lexus has been non-receptive to feedback, especially with the 2024 coming out and no software/firmware updates being pushed out for the 2023 at all. This really reminds me of the Toyota EnTune mess from 4-5 years ago - even the Toyota dealerships knew it was a bad infotainment platform (had to use Toyota's proprietary EnTune app to get to any native apps on your phone ie CP and AA). Toyota never pushed a software/firmware fix for it; I lived with it on our Highlander Ltd Platinum for a year before I pulled the system completely out and replaced it with a Pioneer system from Crutch... To this day, there has not been a firmware/software update for that Toyota/JBL head unit to correct the issue. Of course aftermarket infotainment replacement is generally not an option nowadays, esp with the system being so tightly embedded with every control system on the RX (and pretty much every other mid to high-level trim car).

thesemes

thats a hard no from me.

omar33

@jaxn1010 I enjoyed reading your criticism of the infotainment, its far from perfect agreed. That said, there are actually worse systems, particularly from the Germans. I have friends with Mercedes and VW (basically Audi) who have had terrible experiences to the point where they couldn't' drive the car. I feel like software is something every automaker struggles with these days, everyone is trying to go the Tesla way and its hurts all of us. That said Lexus/Toyota were never great at their infotainment system as far as I can remember and always felt behind the times (maybe intentionally some would say). People use to simply look past it given how reliable their vehicles were and how strong the resale value is.
With regards to some of your other concerns, seems like the theme is Lexus cheeping out. I personally think it was a bad decision to go from a V6 to a turbo 4 in the 350 model, however for the NX I can understand that. Furthermore, in the RX 350h it makes sense to go for a 4 cylinder because that driver is chasing efficiency and is perhaps willing to make certain trade offs. But if someone buys a 350 they are likely ok paying up for gas. To add insult to injury not only do 5th gen 350 owners have a rougher drivetrain, they also have to fill it with premium gas where as previously the V6 happily ran on regular.

Salvanv

I live the reliability. I dislike the front grille immensely. There are more beautiful cars on the road. The tech is flukey and tricky to work with. I miss the V6 for it's quiet and responsive acceleration.
I loved the saddle tan leather in my 2013. The brown leather-ette in the current models looks like cooked pumpkin. The front end is too boxy.

jaxn1010

@omar33 Yes, beyond the infotainment issues, you are correct that the RX feels cheaply made to me in unexpected ways. Take the rear hvac system - the rear seats have heated and cooled ventilation, power recline etc., but no dedicated fan or fan control for the area. Same with the non-auto dimming passenger mirror - the driver's side does and the rearview does (along with the digital mirror that I rarely use); why would you have all that and not have the passenger mirror auto dim? Surprisingly, the worst "cheap" offender is all the glossy piano black plastic in the cabin with, for me, the worst being around the vents on the left side of the driver's dash - it is so shiny and cheap that it actually reflects light back onto the driver's window and looks like a ghosted image appearing over the side-view mirror. Very distracting. Also, same issue around the rear hvac control panel - I was driving some co-workers to lunch a few weeks back and one of them was joking about needing to put their sunglasses on due to the reflected sunlight coming off of the control panel; even they commented that all the shiny black plastic seemed out of place on a car that was obviously not cheap. Suffice to say it's all those little things that I'm having a hard time finding peace with - maybe I will but, after almost 5 months of ownership, the logic on why Lexus made these cheap choices on a $65k car is still hard to rationalize for me.

omar33

Agreed, the piano black plastics are something the industry as a whole is moving away from. You can see on the new GX they already did away with piano black around the driver side AC vent and the start/stop button. I am willing to bet they will update the RX with different materials in these areas in the mid cycle refresh.

autotech13

I sure hope so. As of now, Lexus is a no go for me in the SUV arena. Looking for something else!

budwom

I'm looking forward to the April issue of Consumer Reports in which we'll see how reliable the 2023 model is according to people who own them. No way to measure that based on the input here. But their ratings of the 2022 absolutely do NOT support the notion that RX quality has been going downhill for several years.

budwom

I like both my 2013 and my 2023 but agree that I could do without the front grille on the new one. I like the seats in both cars very much.

StefanoS

I suppose that it's best summed up with, to each his own. My purchase of the Gen5 RX was due to the less obtrusive grille up front. I felt like it was something that I could live with. It seems that we are living in the era of giant, overstated grilles and huge wheels. I, for one, will be glad to see these both come to an end. Even BMW's kidney grilles on some models are huge and look ridiculous. Still, the cars are not nearly as bad as some of the giant grilles on pickup trucks. It' almost like, here comes a grille, with a vehicle behind it.

StefanoS

I do concur with comments about the infotainment system in both Lexus and Toyota, and even Acura, for that matter. The manufacturers just don't seem to get it. There are missing and cumbersome features that really need to be better thought out prior to going into production. They all seem to be trying to out-do each other and never seem to hit the nail on the head.

budwom

I don't buy the infotainment systems because according to Consumer Reports it's where there is a lot of customer dissatisfaction. And I don't miss them.