2018 LEXUS NX300h tow

162 4-1. Before driving
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U and any optional equipment installed
on the vehicle) and the tongue weight.
■
GAWR (Gross Axle Weight Rat-
ing)
The maximum allowable gross axle
weight. The gross axle weight is the
load placed on each axle (front and
rear).
Front GAWR
Rear GAWR ■
TWR (Trailer Weight Rating)
The maximum allowable gross trailer
weight. The gross trailer weight is the
sum of the trailer weight and the weight
of the cargo in the trailer.
TWR is calculated assuming base vehi-
cle with one driver, one front passen- ger, towing package (if available), hitch
and hitch systems (if required). Additional optional equipment, passengers
and cargo in the vehicle will reduce the
trailer weight rating so as not to exceed
GCWR, GVWR and GAWR.
With brakes ■
Unbraked TWR (Unbraked Trailer
Weight Rating)
The trailer weight rating for towing a
trailer without a trailer service brake
system.
Without brakes ■
Tongue Weight
The load placed on the trailer hitch ball.
( → P.163)A
B A
A

1634-1. Before driving
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U 4
Driving  The gross trailer weight must never
exceed 1500 lb. (685 kg).
 The gross combinat ion weight must
never exceed 6835 lb. (3100 kg).
 The gross vehicle weight must never
exceed the GVWR indicated on the
Certification Label.
 The gross axle weight on each axle
must never exceed the GAWR indi-
cated on the Certification Label.
 If the gross trailer weight is over the
unbraked TWR, trailer service
brakes are required.
Confirm that the gross trailer weight,
gross combination weight, gross vehi- cle weight, gross axle weight and
tongue weight are all within the limits. ■
GCWR *
6835 lb. (3100 kg) ■
TWR *
1500 lb. (685 kg). ■
Unbraked TWR *
1000 lb. (450 kg) *
: These models meet the tow-vehicle trail-
ering requirement of SAE International
per SAE J2807.
 A recommended tongue weight
varies in accordance with the types
of trailers or towing as described
below.
 To ensure the recommended values
shown below, the trailer must be
loaded by referring to the following
instructions. •Tongue Weight
The gross trailer weight should be distrib-
uted so that the tongue weight is 9% to
11%.
(Tongue weight /Gross trailer weight x 100
= 9% to 11%)
The gross trailer weight , gross axle weight
and tongue weight can be measured with
platform scales found at a highway weigh-
ing station, building supply company,
trucking company, junk yard, etc.Weight limits
GCWR, TWR and Unbraked
TWR Trailer Tongue Weight

164 4-1. Before driving
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U Gross trailer weight
Tongue weight
Trailer hitch assemblies have different
weight capacities. Lexus recommends
the use of Lexus hitch/bracket for your
vehicle. For details, contact your Lexus
dealer.
 If you wish to install a trailer hitch,
contact your Lexus dealer.
 Use only a hitch that conforms to
the gross trailer weight requirement
of your vehicle.
 Follow the directions supplied by the
hitch manufacturer.
 Lubricate the hitch ball with a light
coating of grease.
 Remove the trailer hitch whenever
you are not towing a trailer. After
removing the hitch, seal any mount-
ing hole in the vehicle body to pre-
vent entry of any substances into the
vehicle. Weight carrying ball position:
42.1 in. (1069.9 mm)
Hitch receiver pin hole position:
33.7 in. (855.6 mm)
Please consult your dealer when
installing trailer lights, as incorrect
installation may cause damage to the
vehicle’s lights. Please take care to
comply with your state’s laws when
installing trailer lights.Hitch A
B WARNING■
Hitch
Trailer hitch assemblies have different
weight capacities established by the hitch
manufacturer. Even though the vehicle
may be physically capable of towing a
higher weight, the operator must deter-
mine the maximum weight rating of the
particular hitch assembly and never
exceed the maximum weight rating
specified for the trailer-hitch. Exceeding
the maximum weight rating set by the
trailer-hitch manufacturer can cause an
accident resulting in death or serious
personal injuries.
Positions for towing hitch
receiver and hitch ball
Connecting trailer lights A
B

1654-1. Before driving
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U 4
Driving 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 vary
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 vehi-
cle-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 the trailer attached in
an area away from traffic until you
become accustomed to the feel of
the vehicle-trailer combination.
 Reversing with a tr ailer 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
your hand to the right to move the
trailer to right. (This is generally
opposite to reversing without a
trailer attached.) Avoid sharp or prolonged turning. Have someone
guide you when reversing to reduce
the risk of an accident.
 As stopping distance is increased
when towing a trailer, vehicle-to
vehicle distance should be
increased. For each 10 mph (16 km/
h) of speed, allow at least one vehi-
cle and trailer length.
 Avoid sudden braking as you may
skid, resulting in the trailer jackknif-
ing and a loss of vehicle control. This
is especially true on wet or slippery
surfaces.
 Avoid jerky starts or sudden accel-
eration.
 Avoid jerky steering and sharp
turns, and slow down before making
turn.
 Note that when making a turn, the
trailer wheels will be closer than the
vehicle wheels to the inside of the
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 desta-
bilize the trailer.
 Take care when passing other vehi-
cles. Passing requires considerable
distance. After pass ing 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 effi-
ciency and charging system perfor-
mance when using engine braking, Trailer towing tips

1674-1. Before driving
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U 4
Driving Trailer towing (vehicles with-
out towing package) Lexus does not recommend towing
a trailer with your vehicle. Lexus
also does not recommend the
installation of a tow hitch or the use
of a tow hitch carrier for a wheel-
chair, scooter, bicycle, etc. Your
vehicle is not desi gned for trailer
towing or for the use of tow hitch
mounted carriers. Dinghy towing Your vehicle is not designed to be
dinghy towed (with 4 wheels on the
ground) behind a motor home.
NOTICE■
To avoid serious damage to your vehi-
cle
Do not tow your vehicle with the four
wheels on the ground. ■
To prevent causing serious damage to
the hybrid transmission and AWD
system
Never tow this vehicle with any of the
wheels on the ground. This may cause
serious damage to the hybrid transmis-
sion and AWD system.

1734-2. Driving procedures
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U 4
Driving *1
: To improve fuel efficiency and reduce
noise, shift the shift lever to D for normal
driving.
You can choose gear range suitable for
your driving situation by operating the
paddle shift switches. *2
: By selecting shift ra nges using S mode,
you can control accelerating force and
engine braking force.
■
S mode●
When the shift range is 4 or lower, hold-
ing the shift lever towa rd “+” sets the shift
range to 6.
●
Automatically selects a higher shift range
before the engine speed becomes too
high.
■
When driving with dynamic radar cruise
control with full-speed range activated
Even when performing the following
actions with the intent of enabling engine
braking, engine braking will not activate
because dynamic radar cruise control with
full-speed range will not be canceled. ●
While driving in S mode, downshifting to
5 or 4. ( → P.176)●
When switching the driving mode to
sport mode while driving in D position.
( → P.249)■
Restraining sudden start (Drive-Start
Control)
When the following unusual operation is
performed, the hybrid system output may
be restrained. ●
When the shift lever is shifted from R to D,
D to R, N to R, P to D, or P to R (D
includes S) with the accelerator pedal
depressed, a warning message appears
on the multi-information display. If a
warning message is shown on the multi-
information display, read the message
and follow the instructions. ●
When the accelerator pedal is depressed
too while the vehicle is in reverse.Hybrid transmission Select the shift position depending
on your purpose and situation.
Shift position purpose and func-
tions Shift posi-
tion Objective or function
P Parking the vehicle/starting
the hybrid system
R Reversing
N Neutral
D Normal driving *1
S S mode driving *2
( → P.176)
WARNING■
When driving on slippery road sur-
faces
Be careful of downsh ifting and sudden
acceleration, as this could result in the
vehicle skidding to the side or spinning.
NOTICE■
Hybrid battery (t raction battery)
charge
If the shift lever is in N, the hybrid battery
(traction battery) will not be charging,
even when the engine is running. There-
fore, if the vehicle is left with the shift
lever in N for a long period of time, the
hybrid battery (traction battery) will dis-
charge, and this may re sult in the vehicle
not being able to start.

1854-3. Operating the lights and wipers
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U 4
Driving When any of the following are performed,
the 12-volt battery-saving function is can-
celed once and then reactivated. All the
lights will turn off automatically 20 minutes
after the 12-volt battery-saving function has
been reactivated: ●
When the headlight switch is operated●
When a door is opened or closed■
Customization
Settings (e.g. light sens or sensitivity) can be
changed. (Customizable features: → P.421)
1 With the headlights on, push the
lever away from you to turn on the
high beams.Pull the lever toward you to the center
position to turn the high beams off.
2 Pull the lever toward you and
release it to flash the high beams
once.You can flash the high beams with the
headlights on or off. When the following conditions are met,
while the headlights (low beam) are on,
the cornering lights will additionally
turn on and light up the direction of
movement for the vehicle. This is to
ensure excellent visibility when either
driving at intersections or parking at
night.
 The steering wheel is operated
 The turn signal lever is operated
 The shift lever is in R
However, when vehicle speed is 25
mph (40 km/h) or above, the corner-
ing lights do not turn on.
When the cornering lights are on for
more than 30 minutes, they will auto-
matically turn off.
AFS (Adaptive Front-lighting System)
secures excellent visibility at intersec-
tions and on curves by automatically
adjusting the direction of the light axis
of the headlights according to vehicle
speed and the degree of the tire’s angle
as controlled by steering input. AFS operates at speeds of 6 mph (10 km/
h) or higher.NOTICE■
To prevent 12-volt battery discharge
Do not leave the lights on longer than
necessary when the hy brid system is off.
Turning on the high beam head-
lights Cornering lights (if equipped)
AFS (Adaptive Front-lighting
System) (if equipped)

1874-3. Operating the lights and wipers
LEXUS NX300h Owners Manu-
al_USA_OM78212U 4
Driving and tail lights of oncoming and preceding
vehicles
• The movement and direction of oncom-
ing and preceding vehicles
• When a oncoming or preceding vehicle
only has operational lights on one side
• When a oncoming or preceding vehicle
is a two-wheeled vehicle
• The condition of the road (gradient,
curve, condition of th e road surface, etc.)
• The number of passengers and amount of
luggage●
High beam may be turned on or off when
unexpected by the driver.●
In the situations below, the system may
not be able to correctly detect the sur-
rounding brightness levels, and may flash
or expose nearby pedestrians to the high
beam. Therefore, you should consider
turning the high beams on or off manually
rather than relying on the Automatic
High Beam system.
• In bad weather (rain, snow, fog, sand-
storms, etc.)
• The windshield is obscured by fog, mist,
ice, dirt, etc.
• The windshield is cracked or damaged.
• The camera sensor is deformed or dirty.
• The camera sensor temperature is
extremely high.
• Surrounding brightness levels are equal
to those of headlights, tail lights or fog
lights.
• Vehicles ahead have headlights or tail
lights that are either switched off, dirty,
are changing color, or are not aimed
properly.
• When driving through an area of inter-
mittently changing brightness and dark-
ness.
• When frequently and repeatedly driving
ascending/descending roads, or roads
with rough, bumpy or uneven surfaces
(such as stone-paved roads, gravel
tracks, etc.).
• When frequently and repeatedly taking
curves or driving on a winding road.
• There is a highly re flective object ahead
of the vehicle, such as a sign or a mirror.
• The back of a vehicle ahead is highly
reflective, such as a container on a truck.
• The vehicle’s headlights are damaged or
dirty. • The vehicle is listing or titling, due to a flat
tire, a trailer being towed, etc.
• The driver believes that the high beam
may be causing problems or distress to
other drivers or pedestrians nearby.
WARNING■
Limitations of the Automatic High
Beam
Do not rely on the Automatic High
Beam. Always drive safely, taking care to
observe your surroundings and turning
high beam on or off manually if neces-
sary.
NOTICE■
Notes when using the Automatic
High Beam system
Observe the following to ensure that the
Automatic High Beam functions cor-
rectly. ●
Do not touch the camera sensor.
●
Do not subject the camera sensor to a
strong impact.
●
Do not disassemble the camera sen-
sor.
●
Do not spill liquids onto the camera
sensor.
●
Do not apply window tinting or stickers
to the camera sensor or the area of
windshield near the camera sensor.
●
Do not place items on the dashboard.
There is a possibility that the camera
sensor will mistake items reflected in
the windshield for streetlights, the
headlights of other vehicles, etc.