2084-1. Before driving
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
WARNING
Observe the following precautions. Failure to do so may result in death or serious injury.
■When starting the vehicle
Always keep your foot on the brake pedal while stopped with the “READY” indicator is illuminated. This prevents the vehicle from creeping.
■When driving the vehicle
●Do not drive if you are unfamiliar with the location of the brake and accelerator ped-als to avoid depressing the wrong pedal.
• Accidentally depressing the accelerator pedal instead of the brake pedal will
result in sudden acceleration that may lead to an accident. • When backing up, you may twist your body around, leading to a difficulty in oper- ating the pedals. Make sure to operate the pedals properly.
• Make sure to keep a correct driving posture even when moving the vehicle only slightly. This allows you to depress the brake and accelerator pedals properly.• Depress the brake pedal using your right foot. Depressing the brake pedal using
your left foot may delay response in an emergency, resulting in an accident.
●The driver should pay extra attention to pedestrians when the vehicle is powered only
by the electric motor (traction motor). As there is no engine noise, the pedestrians may misjudge the vehicle’s movement.
●Do not drive the vehicle over or stop the vehicle near flammable materials.
The exhaust system and exhaust gases can be extremely hot. These hot parts may cause a fire if there is any flammable material nearby.
●During normal driving, do not turn off the hybrid system. Turning the hybrid system off
while driving will not cause loss of steering or braking control, however, power assist to the steering will be lost. This will make it more difficult to steer smoothly, so you should pull over and stop the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
In the event of an emergency, such as if it becomes impossible to stop the vehicle in the normal way: P. 529
●Use engine braking (downshift) to maintain a safe speed when driving down a steep
hill. Using the brakes continuously may cause th e brakes to overheat and lose effective- ness. ( P. 222)
●Do not adjust the positions of the steering wheel, the seat, or the inside or outside rear view mirrors while driving.Doing so may result in a loss of vehicle control.
●Always check that all passengers’ arms, heads or other parts of their body are notoutside the vehicle.
2094-1. Before driving
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Driving
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
WARNING
Observe the following precautions. Failure to do so may result in death or serious injury.
■When driving on slippery road surfaces
●Sudden braking, acceleration and steering may cause tire slippage and reduce your ability to control the vehicle.
●Sudden acceleration, engine braking due to shifting, or changes in engine speed
could cause the vehicle to skid.
●After driving through a puddle, lightly depress the brake pedal to make sure that the brakes are functioning properly. Wet brak e pads may prevent the brakes from func-
tioning properly. If the brakes on only one side are wet and not functioning properly, steering control may be affected.
■When shifting the shift lever
●Do not let the vehicle roll backward while the shift lever is in a driving position, or roll forward while the shift lever is in R.Doing so may result in an accident or damage to the vehicle.
●Do not shift the shift lever to P while the vehicle is moving. Doing so can damage the transmission and may result in a loss of vehicle control.
●Do not shift the shift lever to R while the vehicle is moving forward.
Doing so can damage the transmission and may result in a loss of vehicle control.
●Do not shift the shift lever to a driving position while the vehicle is moving backward. Doing so can damage the transmission and may result in a loss of vehicle control.
●Shifting the shift lever to N while the vehicle is moving will disengage the hybrid sys- tem. Engine braking is not available when N is selected.
●Be careful not to shift the shift lever with the accelerator pedal depressed. Shifting the
shift lever to any position other than P or N may lead to unexpected rapid accelera- tion of the vehicle that may cause an accident and result in death or serious injury.
■If you hear a squealing or scraping noise (brake pad wear indicators)
Have the brake pads checked and replaced by any authorized Lexus dealer or repairer, or another duly qualified and equi pped professional as soon as possible. Rotor damage may result if the pads are not replaced when needed.
Moderate levels of the brake pad and disc wear allow enhanced braking power. As a result, the discs may wear more quickly than conventional brake discs. Therefore, when replacing the brake pads, Lexus recommends that you also have the thickness of the
discs measured. It is dangerous to drive the vehicle when th e wear limits of the brake pads and/or those of the brake discs are exceeded.
2104-1. Before driving
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
WARNING
Observe the following precautions. Failure to do so may result in death or serious injury.
■When the vehicle is stopped
●Do not depress the accelerator pedal unnecessarily.If the shift lever is in any position other than P or N, the vehicle may accelerate sud-denly and unexpectedly, causing an accident.
●In order to prevent accidents due to the vehicle rolling away, always keep depressingthe brake pedal while stopped with the “READY” indicator is illuminated, and applythe parking brake as necessary.
●If the vehicle is stopped on an incline, in order to prevent accidents caused by thevehicle rolling forward or backward, alwa ys depress the brake pedal and securely apply the parking brake as needed.
●Avoid revving or racing the engine. Running the engine at high speed while the vehicle is stopped may cause the exhaustsystem to overheat, which could result in a fire if combustible material is nearby.
■When the vehicle is parked
●Do not leave glasses, cigarette lighters, spray cans, or soft drink cans in the vehicle when it is in the sun.
Doing so may result in the following:
• Gas may leak from a cigarette lighter or spray can, and may lead to a fire. • The temperature inside the vehicle may cau se the plastic lenses and plastic mate-
rial of glasses to deform or crack. • Soft drink cans may fracture, causing the contents to spray over the interior of thevehicle, and may also cause a short circuit in the vehicle’s electrical components.
●Do not leave cigarette lighters in the vehicle. If a cigarette lighter is in a place such as the glove box or on the floor, it may be lit accidentally when luggage is loaded or the
seat is adjusted, causing a fire.
●Do not attach adhesive discs to the windshield or windows. Do not place containers such as air fresheners on the instrument panel or dashboard. Adhesive discs or con-
tainers may act as lenses, causing a fire in the vehicle.
●Do not leave a door or window open if the curved glass is coated with a metallized film such as a silver-colored one. Reflected sunlight may cause the glass to act as a
lens, causing a fire.
●Always apply the parking brake, shift the shift lever to P, stop the hybrid system and lock the vehicle.
Do not leave the vehicle unattended while the “READY” indicator is illuminated. If the vehicle is parked with the shift lever in P but the parking brake is not set, thevehicle may start to move, possibly leading to an accident.
●Do not touch the exhaust pipes while the “READY” indicator is illuminated or imme-diately after turning the hybrid system off.Doing so may cause burns.
2384-3. Operating the lights and wipers
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
WARNING
■Limitations of the Automatic High Beam
Do not rely on the Automatic High Beam. Al ways drive safely, taking care to observe your surroundings and turning high beam on or off manually if necessary.
NOTICE
■Notes when using the Automatic High Beam system
Observe the following to ensure that the Automatic High Beam functions correctly.
●Do not place items on the da shboard. There is a possibility that the camera sensor will mistake items reflected in the windshield fo r streetlights, the headlights of other vehi- cles, etc.
●Do not install a parking tag or any other accessories near or around the camera sen-sor.
●Do not overload the vehicle.
●Do not modify the vehicle.
●If the windshield needs to be replaced, contact any authorized Lexus dealer orrepairer, or another duly qualified and equipped professional.
●Do not touch the camera sensor.
●Do not subject the camera sensor to a strongimpact.
●Do not disassemble the camera sensor.
●Do not spill liquid onto the camera sensor.
●Do not apply window tinting or stickers to the
camera sensor or the area of windshield near the camera sensor.
2484-3. Operating the lights and wipers
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
WARNING
■Caution regarding the use of windshield wipers in AUTO mode
The windshield wipers may operate unexpectedly if the sensor is touched or the wind- shield is subject to vibration in AUTO mode. Take care that your fingers or anything
else do not become caught in the windshield wipers.
■Caution regarding the use of washer fluid
When it is cold, do not use the washer fluid until the windshield becomes warm. The
fluid may freeze on the windshield and cause low visibility. This may lead to an accident, resulting in death or serious injury.
NOTICE
■When the windshield is dry
Do not use the wipers, as they may damage the windshield.
■When there is no washer fluid spray from the nozzle
Damage to the washer fluid pump may be caused if the lever is pulled toward you and held continually.
■When a nozzle becomes blocked
In this case, contact any authorized Lexus de aler or repairer, or another duly qualified and equipped professional.
Do not try to clear it with a pin or other object. The nozzle will be damaged.
2524-4. Refueling
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
After refueling, turn the fuel tank cap
until you hear a click. Once the cap
is released, it will turn slightly in the
opposite direction.
Close the fuel filler door, and press
the center of the rear edge of the
fuel filler door until you hear a click.
When you lock the doors, the fuel filler door will also lock.
■When closing the fuel filler door
Do not lock the doors before closing the fuel filler door, as the fuel filler door cannot be closed if the doors are locked. If the doors are locked and the fuel filler door cannot be closed, unlock the doors and then close the fuel filler door.
■Fuel filler door lock condition
The fuel filler door may not be locked even wh en the vehicle’s doors are locked in the fol- lowing situations:
●When operating the door lock button inside the vehicle
●When the automatic door locking system is operated (P. 147)
Closing the fuel tank cap
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WARNING
■When replacing the fuel tank 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.
2584-5. Using the driving support systems
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
This mode employs a radar sensor to detect the presence of vehicles up to
approximately 120 m (400 ft.) ahead, determines the current vehicle-to-vehicle
following distance, and operates to maintain a suitable following distance from
the vehicle ahead.
Note that vehicle-to-vehicle distance will close in when traveling on long downhill slopes.
Example of constant speed cruising
When there are no vehicles ahead
The vehicle travels at the speed set by the driver. The desired vehicle-to-vehicle dis- tance can also be set by operating the vehicle-to-vehicle distance control.
Example of deceleration cruising
When a preceding vehicle driving slower than the set speed appears
When a vehicle is detected running ahead of you, the system automatically deceler- ates your vehicle. When a greater reductio n in vehicle speed is necessary, the system applies the brakes (the stop lights will come on at this time). A warning tone warns you
when the system cannot decelerate sufficiently to prevent your vehicle from closing in on the vehicle ahead.
Example of follow-up cruising
When following a preceding vehicle driving slower than the set speed
The system continues follow-up cruising wh ile adjusting for changes in the speed of
the vehicle ahead in order to maintain the vehicle-to-vehicle distance set by the driver.
Example of acceleration
When there are no longer any preceding vehicles driving slower than the set
speed
The system accelerates until the set speed is reached. The system then returns to con- stant speed cruising.
Driving in vehicle-to-veh icle distance control mode
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2724-5. Using the driving support systems
RC300h_EE(OM24740E)
WARNING
■Handling the radar sensor
Observe the following to ensure the dynami c radar cruise control can function effec- tively.
Otherwise, the radar sensor may not detect correctly and could result in an accident.
●Keep the sensor and grille cover clean at all times. Clean the sensor and grille cover with a soft cloth so you do not mark or damage
them.
●Do not subject the sensor or surrounding area to a strong impact. If the sensor moves even slightly off po sition, the system may become inaccurate or
malfunction. If the sensor or surrounding area is subject to a strong impact, always have the area inspected and adjusted by an y authorized Lexus dealer or repairer, or another duly qualified an d equipped professional.
●Do not disassemble the sensor.
●Do not attach accessories or stickers to the sensor, grille cover or surrounding area.
●Do not modify or paint the sensor and grille cover.
●If the radar sensor needs to be replaced, contact any authorized Lexus dealer or repairer, or another duly qualified and equipped professional.