fuel LEXUS RX400H 2008 User Guide

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1-1. Hybrid system
RX400h_U
CAUTION
■Road accident cautions
Observe the following precautions to reduce the risk of injury.
●Pull your vehicle off the road, put the shift lever in P, apply the parking brake, turn
the hybrid system off and remove the key.
●Do not touch the high voltage parts, cables and connectors.
●If electric wires are exposed inside or outside your vehicle, an electric shock may
occur. Never touch exposed electric wires.
●If a fluid leak occurs, do not touch it as it may be strong alkaline electrolyte from
the hybrid battery (traction battery). If it comes into contact with your skin or
eyes, wash it off immediately with a large amount of water or if possible, boric
acid solution. Seek immediate medical attention.
●If a fire occurs in the hybrid vehicle, leave the vehicle as soon as possible. Never
use a fire extinguisher that is not meant for electric fires. Using even a small
amount of water may be dangerous.
●If your vehicle needs to be towed, do so with the front wheels (for 2WD models)
or four wheels (for AWD models) raised. If the wheels with the electric motor
(traction motor) are on the ground when towing, the motor may continue to gen-
erate electricity. This may cause an electricity leakage leading to a fire.(
→P. 3 7 8 )
■Nickel-metal hydride battery
Your vehicle contains a sealed nickel-metal hydride battery. If disposed of improp-
erly, it is hazardous to the environment and there is a risk of severe burns and elec-
trical shock that may result in death or serious injury.
■If the system activates
●Carefully check to see if there are exposed high voltage parts or cables. Never
touch the parts or cables. (
→P. 2 7 )
●Carefully inspect the ground under the vehicle. If you find that liquid has leaked
onto the ground, the fuel system may have been damaged. Leave the vehicle as
soon as possible.

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RX400h_U
1-6. Refueling
Opening the fuel tank cap
Perform the following steps to open the fuel tank cap.
■Before refueling the vehicle
Stop the hybrid system and ensure that all the doors and windows
are closed.
■ Opening the fuel tank cap
Push the fuel filler door opener
switch.
When the message REFUEL
READY appears, the fuel filler
door will open.
If the pressure in the fuel tank is
high, the message PLEASE
WAIT NOW OPENING will
appear on the multi-information
display. It may take up to 10 sec-
onds.
STEP1
STEP2

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1-6. Refueling
1
Before driving
RX400h_U
Turn the fuel tank cap slowly to
open.
Hang the fuel tank cap on the
back of the fuel filler door.STEP3
STEP4

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1-6. Refueling
RX400h_U
Closing the fuel tank capWhen replacing the fuel tank cap,
turn it until one clicking sound is
heard.
After releasing your hand, the cap
will turn slightly to the opposite
direction.
■Fuel types
Use unleaded gasoline. (91 Octane rating [Research Octane Number 96] or
higher)
■Fuel tank capacity
Approximately 17.2 gal. (65 L, 14.3 Imp. gal.)
■Open fuel filler door warning
→ P. 4 0 7
■When the fuel filler door opener is inoperable
The handle can be used to open the fuel filler
door if the fuel filler door cannot be opened
using the inside switch because the battery is
discharged or for any other reason.

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1-6. Refueling
1
Before driving
RX400h_U
CAUTION
■Refueling the vehicle
Observe the following precautions while refueling the vehicle. Failure to do so, may
result in death or serious injury.
●Touch the vehicle or some other metal surface to discharge any static electricity.
Sparks resulting from discharging static electricity may cause the fuel vapors to
ignite.
●Always hold the grips on the fuel tank cap and turn it slowly to remove it.
A whooshing sound may be heard when the fuel tank cap is loosened. Wait until
the sound cannot be heard before fully removing the cap. In hot weather, pressur-
ized fuel may spray out the filler neck and cause injury.
●Do not allow anyone that has not discharged static electricity from their bodies to
come close to an open fuel tank.
●Do not inhale vaporized fuel.
Fuel contains substances that are harmful if inhaled.
●Do not smoke while refueling the vehicle.
Doing so may cause the fuel to ignite and cause a fire.
●Do not return to the vehicle or touch any person or object that is statically
charged.
This may cause static electricity to build up, resulting in a possible ignition hazard.
■When replacing the fuel cap
Do not use anything but a genuine Lexus fuel tank cap designed for your vehicle.
Doing so may cause a fire or other incident which may result in death or serious
injury.
■When opening the fuel cap
Do not remove the cap quickly. In hot weather, fuel under pressure could cause
injury by spraying out of the filler neck if the cap is suddenly removed.

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1-6. Refueling
RX400h_U
NOTICE
■Refueling the vehicle
●Finish refueling within 30 minutes. If more than 30 minutes passes, the internal
valve closes. In this condition, fuel may spill out if you continue to refuel the vehi-
cle. About 5 minutes after the valve is closed, a message CLOSE FUEL LID will
appear on the multi-information display. To refuel the vehicle again, tighten the
fuel tank cap and close the fuel filler door, and then push the fuel filler door
opener switch again.
●Do not spill fuel during refueling.
Doing so may damage the vehicle, such as causing the exhaust systems to oper-
ate abnormally or damaging fuel system components or the vehicle’s painted sur-
face.

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2-1. Driving procedures
RX400h_U
■Operating your vehicle in a foreign country
Comply with the relevant vehicle registration laws and confirm the availability of the
correct fuel. (→P. 4 3 3 )
■For efficient use of the hybrid battery
●Put the shift lever into D when driving
In the N position, the gasoline engine operates but electricity cannot be gener-
ated. The hybrid battery (traction battery) will be discharged requiring unnec-
essary engine power to recharge.
●Drive your vehicle smoothly
Avoid abrupt acceleration and deceleration. Gradual acceleration and decel-
eration will make more effective use of the traction motor without having to use
gasoline engine power.
●Avoid repeated acceleration
Repeated acceleration consumes hybrid battery (traction battery) power,
resulting in poor acceleration. Battery power can be restored by driving with
the accelerator pedal slightly released.
●Put the shift lever into P when parking
In the N position, the hybrid battery (traction battery) does not recharge.
Leaving the shift lever in the N position for an extended period of the time may
discharge the hybrid battery. The vehicle cannot run if the hybrid battery is dis-
charged.
■Normal characteristics after turning off the hybrid system
Approximately five hours after the hybrid system is turned off, you may hear sound
coming from under the vehicle for several minutes. This is the sound of a fuel evapo-
ration leakage check and, it does not indicate a malfunction.
CAUTION
■When starting the vehicle
Always keep your foot on the brake pedal while stopped with the hybrid system
running. This prevents the vehicle from creeping.

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2-2. Instrument cluster
Gauges and meters
The units used on the speedometer and the power meter gauge display may
differ depending on the model/type.

The following gauges and meters illuminate when the engine switch is
in the ON position.Power meter
Displays the instantaneous output from the hybrid system in approximate
kilowatts.
Speedometer
Displays the vehicle speed.
Fuel gauge
Displays the quantity of fuel remaining in the tank.
Engine coolant temperature gauge
Displays the engine coolant temperature.
Multi-information display ( →P. 143)
Odometer/trip meter and trip meter reset button
Switches between odometer and trip meter displays. Pushing and holding
the button will reset the trip meter when the trip meter is being displayed.

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2-2. Instrument cluster
RX400h_U
Trip information■ Outside temperature
■ Average fuel consumption after refueling
■ Current fuel consumption
Displays the outside air temperature.
The temperature range that can be displayed is
from -22°F (-30°C) to 122°F (50°C).
Displays the average fuel consumption since the
vehicle was last refueled.
Displays the current rate of fuel consumption. Display items can be switched
by pushing the DISP. switch.

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2-2. Instrument cluster
RX400h_U
Trip information display (without navigation system)
Display and operation
Display items can be switched by
pushing the INFO switch.
The trip information display presents the driver with a variety of driving-
related data.
Trip information display
• Driving time
• Average fuel consumption
• Current fuel consumption
• Driving distance