2015 LEXUS RX350 steering

2942-5. Driving information
CAUTION■
Off-road driving precautions
Always observe the following precautions to minimize the risk of death or serious
injury or damage to your vehicle: ●
Drive carefully when off the road. Do not take unnecessary risks by driving in
dangerous places.●
Do not grip the steering wheel spokes wh en driving off-road. A bad bump could
jerk the wheel and injure your hands. Keep both hands and especially your
thumbs on the outside of the rim.●
Always check your brakes for effectiveness immediately after driving in sand,
mud, water or snow.●
After driving through tall grass, mud, rock , sand, water, etc., check that there is no
grass, bush, paper, rags, stone, sand, etc. adhering or trapped to the underbody.
Clear off any such matter from the underbody. If the vehicle is used with these
materials trapped or adhering to the underbody, a breakdown or fire could occur.●
When driving off-road or in rugged te rrain, do not drive at excessive speeds,
jump, make sharp turns, strike objects, etc. This may cause loss of control or vehi-
cle rollover causing death or serious injury. You are also risking expensive dam-
age to your vehicle’s suspension and chassis.
NOTICE■
To prevent water damage
Take all necessary safety measures to ensure that water damage to the engine or
other components does not occur. ●
Water entering the engine air intake will cause severe engine damage. ●
Water entering the automatic transmission will cause deterioration in shift quality,
locking up of your transmission accompanied by vibration, and ultimately dam-
age.
●
Water can wash the grease from wheel bearings, causing rusting and premature
failure, and may also enter the differentials, transmission and transfer case, reduc-
ing the gear oil’s lubricating qualities.

2992-5. Driving information
2
When driving CAUTION●
Never allow anyone to ride in the luggage compartment. It is not designed for
passengers. They should ride in their seat s with their seat belt s properly fastened.
Otherwise, they are much more likely to suffer death or serious bodily injury, in
the event of sudden braking, sudden swerving or an accident.■
Capacity and distribution ●
Do not exceed the maximum axle weight ra ting or the total vehicle weight rating. ●
Even if the total load of occupant's weight and the cargo load is less than the total
load capacity, do not apply the load unevenly. Improper loading may cause dete-
rioration of steering or braking control which may cause death or serious injury.■
Roof luggage carrier precautions (if equipped)
To use the roof rails as a roof luggage carrier, you must fit the roof rails with two or
more genuine Lexus cross rails or their equivalent.
When you load cargo on the roof luggage carrier, observe the following:
●
Before driving, make sure the cargo is securely fastened on the roof luggage car-
rier.●
Loading cargo on the roof luggage carrier will make the center of gravity of the
vehicle higher. Avoid high speeds, sudden starts, sharp turns, sudden braking or
abrupt maneuvers, otherwise the result may be a loss of control or vehicle roll-
over due to failure to operate this vehicl e correctly and result in death or serious
injury.
●
If driving for long distances, on rough ro ads, or at high spee ds, stop the vehicle
now and then during the trip to make sure the cargo remains in its place.
●
Do not exceed 165 lb. (75 kg) cargo weight on the roof luggage carrier.
●
To reduce wind noise when there is no luggage loaded on the roof luggage car-
rier, move the front cross rail to the front-most position and the rear cross rail to
the rearmost position. ●
Place the cargo so that its weight is distrib-
uted evenly between the front and rear
axles. ●
If loading long or wide cargo, never exceed
the vehicle’s overall length or width.
(  P. 8 0 6 )Cross rails
Roof rails

3012-5. Driving information
2
When driving Vehicle load limits
■
Total load capacity and seating capacity
These details are also described on th e tire and loading information label.
(  P. 6 9 3 )
CAUTION■
Overloading the vehicle
Do not overload the vehicle.
It may not only cause damage to the tire s, but also degrade steering and braking
ability, resulting in an accident. Vehicle load limits include total load capacity, seating capacity, TWR
(Trailer Weight Rating) and cargo capacity.
■ Total load capacity (vehicle capacity weight): (  P. 806)Total load capacity means the combined weight of occupants, cargo and
luggage.
■ Seating capacity: 5 occupants (Front 2, Rear 3) Seating capacity means the maximum number of occupants whose esti-
mated average weight is 150 lb. (68 kg) per person.
■ TWR (Trailer weight rating): (  P. 310, 806)TWR means the maximum gross trailer weight (trailer weight plus its
cargo weight) that your vehicle is able to tow.
■ Cargo capacity Cargo capacity may increase or decrease depending on the weight and
the number of occupants.

3162-5. Driving information
Trailer towing tips
Your vehicle will handle differently when towing a trailer. Help to avoid an
accident, death or serious injury, keep the following in mind when towing:
● Speed limits for towing a trailer va ry by state or province. Do not
exceed the posted towing speed limit.
● Lexus recommends that the vehicle-trailer speed limit is 65 mph (104
km/h) on a flat, straight, dry road. Do not exceed this limit, the posted
towing speed limit or the speed limit for your trailer as set forth in your
trailer owner’s manual, whichever is lowest. Instability of the towing
vehicle-trailer combination (trailer sway) increases as speed increases.
Exceeding speed limits may cause loss of control.
● Before starting out, check the trailer lights, tires and the vehicle-trailer
connections. Recheck after driving a short distance.
● Practice turning, stopping and reversing with th e trailer attached in an
area away from traffic until you be come accustomed to the feel of the
vehicle-trailer combination.
● Reversing with a trailer attached is difficult and requires practice. Grip
the bottom of the steering wheel and move your hand to the left to
move the trailer to the left. Move yo ur hand to the right to move the
trailer to the right. (This is gene rally opposite to reversing without a
trailer attached.) Avoid sharp or prolonged turning. Have someone
guide you when reversing to redu ce the risk of an accident.
● As stopping distance is increased when towing a trailer, vehicle-to-
vehicle distance should be increas ed. For each 10 mph (16 km/h) of
speed, allow at least one vehicle and trailer length.
● Avoid sudden braking as you may skid, resulting in the trailer jackknif-
ing and a loss of vehicle control. Th is is especially true on wet or slip-
pery surfaces.
● Avoid jerky starts or sudden acceleration.

3172-5. Driving information
2
When driving ● Avoid jerky steering and sharp turns, and slow down before making a
turn.
● Note that when making a turn, the tr ailer wheels will be closer than the
vehicle wheels to the inside of th e turn. Compensate by making a
wider than normal turning radius.
● Slow down before making a turn, in cross winds, on wet or slippery sur-
faces, etc.
Increasing vehicle speed can destabilize the trailer.
● Take care when passing other vehi cles. Passing requires considerable
distance. After passing a vehicle, do not forget the length of your
trailer, and be sure you have plenty of room before changing lanes.
● To maintain engine braking efficiency and charging system perfor-
mance when using engine braking, do not put the transmission in D.
● Instability happens more frequently when descending steep or long
downhill grades. Before descending, slow down and downshift. Do not
make sudden downshifts while descending steep or long downhill
grades.
● Avoid holding the brake pedal down too long or applying the brakes
too frequently. This could cause th e brakes to overheat and result in
reduced braking efficiency.
● Due to the added load of the trailer, your vehicle’s engine may overheat
on hot days (at temperatures over 85°F [30°C]) when driving up a
long or steep grade. If the eng ine coolant temperature gauge indicates
overheating, immediately turn off th e air conditioning (if in use), pull
your vehicle off the road and stop in a safe spot. (  P. 799)

3202-5. Driving information
■
Break-in schedule
If your vehicle is new or equipped with any new power train components (such as
an engine, transmission, differential or wheel bearing), Lexus recommends that you
do not tow a trailer until the vehicle has been driven for over 500 miles (800 km).
After the vehicle has been driven for over 500 miles (800 km), you can start tow-
ing. However, for the next 500 miles (800 km), drive the vehicle at a speed of less
than 50 mph (80 km/h) when towing a trailer, and avoid full throttle acceleration.■
Maintenance ●
If you tow a trailer, your vehicle will require more frequent maintenance due to
the additional load. (See “Warranty and Services Guide”, “Owner's Manual
Supplement” or “Scheduled Maintenance”.)●
Retighten the fixing bolts of the towing ball and bracket after approximately
600 miles (1000 km) of trailer towing.■
If trailer sway occurs
One or more factors (crosswinds, passing vehicles, rough roads, etc.) can adversely
affect handling of your vehicle and trailer, causing instability. ●
If trailer swaying occurs:
• Firmly grip the steering wheel. Steer straight ahead.
Do not try to control trailer sway ing by turning the steering wheel.
• Begin releasing the accelerator peda l immediately but very gradually to
reduce speed.
Do not increase speed. Do not apply vehicle brakes.
If you make no extreme correction with the steering or brakes, your vehicle and
trailer should stabilize. ●
After the trailer swaying has stopped:
• Stop in a safe place. Get all occupants out of the vehicle.
• Check the tires of the vehicle and the trailer.
• Check the load in the trailer.
Make sure the load has not shifted.
Make sure the tongue weight is appropriate, if possible.
• Check the load in the vehicle.
Make sure the vehicle is not ov erloaded after occupants get in.
If you cannot find any problems, the speed at which trailer swaying occurred is
beyond the limit of your particular vehicle-trailer combination.
Drive at a lower speed to prevent instability. Remember that swaying of the towing
vehicle-trailer increases as speed increases.

326 3-3. Using the Lexus Display
Audio system
Audio system (with the
Lexus Display Audio
system).................................... 365
Using the radio....................... 368
Using the CD player ............ 383
Playing an audio CD and
MP3/WMA discs .............. 384
Listening to an iPod................ 394
Listening to a USB
memory ................................. 402
Using the AUX port ............... 412
Listening to Bluetooth ®

audio......................................... 414
Optimal use of the audio
system ..................................... 428
Using the steering wheel
audio switches ..................... 430
Hands-free system
(for mobile phone)............... 433
Using the Bluetooth ®

phone ....................................... 441
Setting the hands-free
system ..................................... 459
Bluetooth ®
settings .............. 472 3-4. Using the audio system
Audio system (without a
navigation system or the
Lexus Display Audio
system) ................................... 480
Using the radio ....................... 483
Using the CD player ............. 492
Playing MP3 and WMA
discs.......................................... 501
Operating an iPod .................. 510
Operating a USB
memory.................................. 520
Bluetooth ®
audio system .... 530
Using the Bluetooth ®

audio system ......................... 535
Operating a Bluetooth ®

enabled portable player ... 540
Setting up a Bluetooth ®

enabled portable player ... 544
Bluetooth ®
audio system
setup ........................................ 551
Optimal use of the audio
system..................................... 552
Using the AUX port .............. 554
Using the steering wheel
audio switches...................... 556
Hands-free system for
mobile phones...................... 560

Interior features
3
327Using the hands-free system
(for mobile phones)............. 565
Making a phone call .............. 573
Setting a mobile phone......... 578
Security and system
setup ....................................... 584
Using the phone book.......... 588
3-5. Using the interior lights
Interior lights list ..................... 595
• Interior lights ........................ 596
• Personal lights ...................... 596
3-6. Using the storage
features
List of storage features ......... 598
• Glove box .............................. 599
• Bottle holders/
door pockets ........................ 600
• Cup holders ........................... 601
• Console box .......................... 604
• Coin holder ........................... 606
• Auxiliary boxes .................... 606
• Under tray ............................ 608 3-7. Other interior features
Sun visors ................................. 609
Vanity mirrors .......................... 610
Clock ............................................ 611
Outside temperature
display...................................... 613
Multi-display light control ..... 615
Power outlets ............................ 616
Heated steering wheel .......... 619
Seat heaters and
ventilators ............................. 620
Armrest .................................... 622
Coat hooks .............................. 623
Assist grips ................................ 624
Floor mat .................................. 625
Luggage compartment
features ................................... 627
Garage door opener ............ 632
Compass .................................. 638
Safety Connect ...................... 642