Vguitarist

I have owned several RX350s over the years and am in the market for my next car. Normally it would be an easy decision to refresh my RX, but Toyota's decision to eliminate the 6-cylinder engine may cost them my business. Based on my own experience with numerous rentals and other cars, a 4-cylinder engine is noisy, lacks on-demand power, is not smooth at lower speeds and has a reduced lifespan. I have noticed Toyota's marketing collateral draws little attention to the engine (other than a cursory "turbo-charged" mention). Instead, they focus on everything else like comfort, tech, etc. which is secondary to the powertrain. I have seen YouTube videos of people driving the car...yes, they love the comfort, but many lament the powertrain. Before I go any further in this journey, I'd like to get your feedback:

1. Is the engine as quiet as the 3.5 6-cylinder? I'm interested in both city and highway driving.
2. How would you rate the on-demand power? Today, a person ran a red light and nearly hit me. I stomped on the gas and was able to instantly jerk my car out of the way. Without the instant power, I would likely be in the hospital right now. Will the new turbo-charged 4-cylinder do this?
3. Is the 4-cylinder engine as smooth as the 6-cylinder? The value of Lexus is "quiet and smooth". Can the new engine deliver this?
4. The weight of the 2023 RX is similar enough to previous models. A 4-cylinder engine will work harder than a 6-cylinder to support the vehicle load (made worse by a towing package) -- likely lowering the engine's lifespan. A 4-cylinder mini-van is a good example of this. What are your thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

daryll40

Get the hybrid 4cyl, which has been around Toyota products for a while, and appears to be reliable for the long haul.

I previously had the old V6 in my 2020RX. This new setup does feel just a little different, but the improved ride and comfort negates the slightly louder engine. Power is adequate up the hills of Pittsburgh.

My 4000+lb RX amazingly gets almost double the MPGs as the old car, on regular gas. It’s not a racecar, but neither was the old RX. That’s not why people buy them. They buy them for quiet, comfort, reliability and now, fuel economy. This car is a winner on all accounts and will continue to be a sales leader for Lexus if they can crank out the hybrid versions. The gas car actually gets about 10% lower fuel economy than the old V6 once you adjust for 20% more costly premium gas. But both the hybrid and non hybrid RX sticker out the same. Although in the real world, I think the hybrid will fetch more/discount less.

budwom

There are a lot of very quiet and responsive turbo engines out there with tremendous reliability. My 17 year old Volvo has a terrific 5 cylinder turbo engine that I really like (more than my 2013 RX’s 6 cylinder ) very reliable as well. We’ll see how Lexus executes this but they certainly have the expertise to do it properly. If my car ever arrives reports shall be filed!

mcomer

How well did you adapt to driving a V6 after growing up with V8's? A V6 has compromises to run smoothly
compared to the intrinsically balanced V8 (two 4 stroke in-lines joined at 90 degrees). Grandpa scowled at
the thought of a "6 pot" under the hood after having a Rocket 88 move him.

Same sort of thing happening now as we move from split pin crank V6's to "4 bangers"
The RX 350 turbo 4 has 317 lb./ft. of torque @ 1700 RPM
while the 3.5L V6 has 265 lb./ft. @ 4700 RPM. Ever see an RX being driven at 4700 RPM?

The turbo has a Twin Scroll design that directs pressure from two sections to only two cylinders
each, keeps the flow and pressure up and response time very low.

daryll40

I go with the flow. Today's "4 bangers" are totally different animals that what was in Pintos and Vegas of the 1970s. The bottom line is that I trust Toyota to put out a good product, whatever it is. And in 30 years, I have not had a bad one.

GreenGobln

My wife just bought an RX350 and I bought an ES350. I know they are different models and different transmissions, but her engine in my opinion is more quiet than mine. I don't think its loud at all. Its very smooth and has plenty of power. She's very happy with it. I havent driven it myself yet, but have been in the passenger seat and am impressed. She says she doesn't feel any turbo lag either.

madmax24

My 2016 had the V6 and I much prefer it over the Turbo 4 in my 2023 RX. They advertise better gas nileage (1mpg better than the V6) but fail to mention that the Turbo 4 requires premium gas. In my location, premium gas is almost $1.00 more than regular.

The turbo 4 doesn't have the instant power of the V6 and is noisier in town driving. I wish I had my 2016 w/V6 back.

GreenGobln

That's interesting. My 2023 ES350 has very noticeable throttle delay whereas I notice no turbo lag in my wife's rx350.

madmax24

I noticed throttle delay in both my 2014 and 2016 RXes, with V6. The Dealer finally figured out what caused it. I have a problem with my right leg & foot, so I use my left foot for braking. Sometimes I would have my right foot on the accelerator, with my left barely touching the brake. There is a sensor that detects when you have a foot on both the brake and accelerator and will cause it to have a slight delay. Since he pointed it out, I never had another problem. I don't have turbo "lag" but it doesn't appear to accelerate as rapidly. Maybe it is a mental perception I have to accompany my disdain for 4 cylinders (I grew up in the muscle car era and once owned a 426 Hemi Roadrunner).

budwom

I have wondered about the new engine and will get to find out Tuesday when I get my new 350 and drive 150 miles home.

budwom

Our point of reference is our 2013 RX which had the 6 cylinder engine. The new four cylinder turbo is, compared to that, far, far superior. Way more responsive, quieter, better paired with its transmission. We are pleasantly very surprised.

Vanguard

Savagegeese called this engine rattle-y in his review and I 100% disagree. I feel like he just said it because its a talking point when a popular car switches to a turbo 4.

This is by far the most refined Turbo 4 ive heard in a long time. The closest one to this is Audi's 20+ year old 2.0T which has been refined over and over and over and this brand new Lexus unit is definitely on par. Way, way more refined than BMW's turbo 4 for sure.

Please stop calling them V-4. They are referred to as I-4 or Turbo 4. There are no V4s in cars. Just I4 and H4

toyotaman7

I feel like the day of Youtube car reviewers are nearing an end.

They are now rarely accurate and in many cases biased. Car makers schmooze and booz them, invite them to retreats to review a car in few minutes and create an "unbiased" content.....

Others just need to create content to make money and they base those on few minutes of test drives..

Just my opinion.

Vguitarist

I decided to bite the bullet and have reserved a '23 RX350 Luxury. Still have reservations about the 4-cylinder engine, but time will tell...

daryll40

I assume you mean the Turbo (non hybrid)? Or did you mean RX350h (hybrid)?