Lexus drivers. Is 220d or 250
Looking for a new towcar & can't help noticing that these are a bit of a bargain. The deasel has the same engine as the Rav4 but is 3k cheaper for a similar age despite being a Lexus. Just wondering if there are any other people using the Lexus as a towcar? And how you find it if you do? Rear wheel drive should have good traction with a van on the back. And most sites now seem to have hard standings anyway so the 4wd thing not so important. The Lexus is heavier than the Rav 4 and has more torque. When not towing should still get 40 mpg out of it. My Audi is now 12 years old & a newer one would be too light for my van. The Lexus wasn't liked when new as it wasn't as sporty as a BMW. Not really an issue in a towcar. So they are pretty good value second hand. And rather well screwed together. The petrol is even cheaper. But is it man enough for the job???
Unable to towmatch this as the car isn't listed by the CC club service...
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The manual gearbox of the diesel isn`t great. The ratios (especially in 6th) are very long, I doubt if it`d be ideal for towing. I don`t think the diesel is even available as an auto either.
I guess the only way to find out is to try one.
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I have a Lexus RX 350 Navigator which I tow our Luner Delta 520. Of all the vehicles that I have used for towing and there have been many over the 40 years of caravaning and all have been quality company cars,but none can be compared to my Lexus. ....simply brilliant,but thirsty.
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RX a different beast. 6th gear is too long for this country. Not really an issue with 300lbs of torque though. Will have to drive one and see how the ratios work out. Tow bar 330 with double electrics so there must be some out there.
Write your comments here...As I only drive my vehicles and am not mechanical minded ( Molly help me out) I am not too sure by what you mean by too long a gear At a guess is it a too higher gear,if so then I have never had any trouble at towing in top gear
at 60 and it rarely changes down unless there is a steep hill. I know that Lexus are made for the American Market with their long straight roads but it suits Britain as well.0 -
Really no is220d or is250 towers out there?? There are lots of low mileage ones out there and at 1530kg's with good brakes they should be good tow cars. With around 40mpg I could live with it. Would be nice to know if there is anybody towing with one. Much
as I like my Audi the newer ones are many kg's lighter so not an option.0 -
.......As I only drive my vehicles and am not mechanical minded ( Molly help me out) I am not too sure by what you mean by too long a gear At a guess is it a too higher gear, .....
I've only just seen your cry for help..... I think that's when we were away with marginal signal.
You were right
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There are lots of cars with high top gears, all that means is you use the first 5, not really a deal breaker is it.
Its a long time since i considered a Lexus, but i did notice at the time that the 2L engine was 6 cylinder, which for torque can only be a plus point.
Post on Caravan talk towcar forum and you might get some hits to your question.
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.......As I only drive my vehicles and am not mechanical minded ( Molly help me out) I am not too sure by what you mean by too long a gear At a guess is it a too higher gear, .....
I've only just seen your cry for help..... I think that's when we were away with marginal signal.
You were right
Write your comments here...Thanks for your help Molly, when I put 2 and 2 together usually end up with 3. Did you have a good break?. We have to wait untill 1st week in May because of commitments,then it is Cornwall . We are off to Fuerteventura in 2 weeks
time for 7 days.I know it sounds daft but looking forward to Cornwall more.Back on thread,I have seen quite a few Lexus vehicles used as tow cars. I must admit they have mainly been 4x4 like mine but there have been at least 4 that have not,but never bothered
to see what size engine they were.0 -
Try a Lexus forum.... And, the isn't the RX350 a 4x4 SUV? Hardly comparable with a rwd saloon which in its home country was sold as a Toyota! The Toyota diesel as used in this car isn't a great engine either.
Write your comments here...My knowledge of cars is nil. But being a sales rep/sales manager for 40 odd years I have driven a few miles and towed caravans as long as the 40 years. As I said my knowledge of engines is nil,but I can assure you that my Lexus
350 RX is an excellent tow car, thisty yes.0 -
The 220d engine isn't Toyotas best. But it's the one fitted in the Rav4 which many of you tow with & swear by. The gear ratios as far as I can acertain are the same as in the Lexus. The thing is a good Rav4 will be around 10K. Similar money to a much newer
Sanyong Korando. I could save 4K going for the Lexus! It's a Yorkshire thing. Being tight. I can't contemplate a tow car that can't do at least 40 to the gallon so the RX is out. Good as it is. My Audi can hit 40 mpg towing. Sadly nothing out there heavy enough
with the same engine anymore. The Skoda Yeti 4x4 is lighter than my Audi! The Modeo is heavy & frugal. But I just don't like the thing! There is a towbar for the Lexus and it's under £300 so there must be some! Lexus are very well screwed together. They aren't
just a more expensive Toyota. Thanks for the replys,0 -
..... I can't contemplate a tow car that can't do at least 40 to the gallon so .... My Audi can hit 40 mpg towing. ...,
my tow car can't do 40 mpg solo, in fact none of my tow cars have ever managed that .... there's only my Smart in our house
that can manage over 40mpg and they do do a towbar for it!
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is that 40mpg real world or computer Read out?
brim to brim or trip computer read out ..... they're not usually that far out frrom each other
Write your comments here...Mine is 27 mpg downhill,solo and a strong following wind.But it is what we are prepared to live with.
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Average read out error unfortunately varies between makes.
Audi i had only showed 1mpg high compared to a brim to brim. My present Mazda car is around 2.5mpg high on the read out. Really its not acceptable on a 2015 car.
Write your comments here...I cannot remember the variation in mine as the last time I did a comparison was at least 2 years ago,but there was a variation and from memory it was small. I don't like reminding myself about mpg as you will see from my previous
post.0 -
Average read out error unfortunately varies between makes.
Audi i had only showed 1mpg high compared to a brim to brim. My present Mazda car is around 2.5mpg high on the read out. Really its not acceptable on a 2015 car.
We recently bought a 63 plate i20 and the first few fill-ups show a discrepancy with the trip and brim to brim calculations of 50mpg to 43mpg. so basically the trip readout is rubbish.
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Average read out error unfortunately varies between makes.
Audi i had only showed 1mpg high compared to a brim to brim. My present Mazda car is around 2.5mpg high on the read out. Really its not acceptable on a 2015 car.
We recently bought a 63 plate i20 and the first few fill-ups show a discrepancy with the trip and brim to brim calculations of 50mpg to 43mpg. so basically the trip readout is rubbish.
That's really bad.
Maybe its time the car mags or caravan mags should do some checks, just to highlight the worst offenders.
There is no excuse for such large errors, IMO its fraud.
Which is maybe why we read such wild claims for MPG returns, such as 40 mpg towing, but towing what? a empty trailer maybe.
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.... My present Mazda car is around 2.5mpg high on the read out. Really its not acceptable on a 2015 car.
That doesn't sound too bad to me ...... maybe a new one is better?
Write your comments here...Are you having a rest today Molly?.
Just found a quiet minute at work.
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.... My present Mazda car is around 2.5mpg high on the read out. Really its not acceptable on a 2015 car.
That doesn't sound too bad to me ...... maybe a new one is better?
Write your comments here...Are you having a rest today Molly?.
Just found a quiet minute at work.
Write your comments here...Nice One!...................12 hour shifts must be tireing.
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It's quite genuine. Driven light it can manage 70mpg. It's the best car i've ever had. But now 12 years old & a little light for the van. Tow match is 97% which is legal but only just. It does 60 in heavy urban traffic & 40 towing my 1430KG van. Thats at
a maximum speed of 50. At 60 I'm down to 30's mpg. The newer ones are nowhere near as good. I have checked the figures by filling up & recording mileage & there pretty good. The guy that fitted my towbar had a golf with the same engine & couldn't get more
than 40mpg out of it.So there not all the same. Maybe haveing 100+ miles on it helps. The Audi has more torque than most which probably helps.Also considering the Suzuki Sz4 or 5 vitarara petrol 2.5 liter but that will struggle to do 30mpg real world. But it won't let me down. And has a transfer box and 4 wheel drive which is nice if you tow in winter. And a nice zingy vtec engine.
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