LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)
1834-1. Before driving
4
Driving
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 engine running. 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 po sture even when moving the vehicle only
slightly. This allows you to depress th e brake and accelerator pedals properly.
• Depress the brake pedal using your right foot. Depressing the brake pedal using your left foot may delay re sponse in an emergency, resulting in an accident.
●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 engine. Turning the engine off while driving
will not cause loss of steering or braking control, but the power assist to these systems
will be lost. This will make it more difficult to steer and brake, so you should pull over
and stop the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
However, in the event of an emergency, such as if it becomes impossible to stop the
vehicle in the normal way: P. 515
●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. 217)
●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 not
outside the vehicle.
●Do not drive in excess of the speed limit. Even if the legal speed limit permits it, do not
drive over 85 mph (140 km/h) unless your vehicle has high-speed capability tires.
Driving over 85 mph (140 km/h ) may result in tire failure, loss of control and possible
injury. Be sure to consult a tire dealer to determine whether the tires on your vehicle
are high-speed capability tires or no t before driving at such speeds.
●When crossing rivers, turn off height control after putting the vehicle height in high
mode, and drive at 18 mph (30 km/h) or less. Otherwise the vehicle height may
change due to the automatic leveling function, resulting in an accident. ( P. 302)
184
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)4-1. Before driving
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 brake pads may prevent the brakes from func-
tioning properly. If the brakes on only on e side are wet and not functioning properly,
steering control may be affected.
■When shifting the shift lever
●Do not let the vehicle roll backwards while the shift lever is in a driving position, or roll
forward while the shift lever is in R.
Doing so may cause the engine to stall or lead to poor brake and steering perfor-
mance, resulting in an accide nt 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.
●Moving the shift lever to N while the vehicle is moving will disengage the engine from
the transmission. 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 a gear other than P or N may lead to unexpected rapid acceleration of
the vehicle that may cause an accident.
■If you hear a squealing or scraping noise (brake pad wear limit indicators)
Have the brake pads checked and replaced by your Lexus dealer as soon as possible.
Rotor damage may result if the pads are not replaced when needed.
It is dangerous to drive the vehicle when the wear limits of the brake pads and/or those
of the brake discs are exceeded.
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)
1854-1. Before driving
4
Driving
WARNING
Observe the following precautions.
Failure to do so may result in death or serious injury.
■When the vehicle is stopped
●Do not race the engine.
If the vehicle is in any gear other than P or N, the vehicle may accelerate suddenly
and unexpectedly, causing an accident.
●In order to prevent accidents due to the vehicle rolling away, always keep depressing
the brake pedal while the engine is running, and apply the parking brake as neces-
sary.
●If the vehicle is stopped on an incline, in order to prevent accidents caused by the
vehicle 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 vehi-
cle is stopped may cause the exhaust system to overheat, which could result in a fire if
combustible material is nearby.
■When the vehicle is parked
●Do not leave glasses, cigarette lighters, sp ray 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 the
vehicle, and may also cause a short circui t 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 windsh ield or windows. Do not place containers
such as air fresheners on th e instrument panel or dashboard. Adhesive discs or con-
tainers may act as lenses, ca using a fire in the vehicle.
●Do not leave a door or window open if th e curved glass is coated with a metallized
film such as a silver-colored one. Reflecte d 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 engine and lock the
vehicle.
Do not leave the vehicle unattend ed while the engine is running.
If the vehicle is parked with the shift leve r in P but the parking brake is not set, the
vehicle may start to move, possibly leading to an accident.
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)
1994-1. Before driving
4
Driving
Trailer hitch assemblies have different weight capacities. Lexus recommends the
use of Lexus hitch/bracket for your ve hicle. 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 hitch ball whenever you are not towing a trailer. Remove the
trailer hitch if you do not need it. Afte r removing the hitch, seal any mounting
hole in the vehicle body to prevent en try of any substances into the vehicle.
Remove the clip.
Grasp the lower edge of the hitch
cover and raise the cover.
When reattaching the cover, reverse the
steps listed.
Hitch
Removing hitch cover
1
2
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)
2014-1. Before driving
4
Driving
Hitch receiver pin hole position:
45.3 in. (1151 mm)
Use the wire harness stored in the rear
end under the vehicle body.
Please consult your dealer when installin g 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.
■Service connector for towing brake controller
Your vehicle is equipped with a service conne ctor for the trailer brake controller. Please
consult your dealer when installing trailer brake systems to the vehicle.
Positions for towing hitch receiver
1
Connecting trailer lights
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)
2034-1. Before driving
4
Driving
Your vehicle will handle differently when towing a trailer. Help to avoid an acci-
dent, 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-traile r speed limit is 65 mph (104 km/h)
on a flat, straight, dry road. Do not exce ed this limit, the posted towing speed
limit or the speed limit for your trailer as set forth in your trailer owner’s man-
ual, 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 con-
nections. Recheck after driving a short distance.
●Practice turning, stopping and reversing with the trailer attached in an area
away from traffic until you become acc ustomed to the feel of the vehicle-
trailer combination.
●Reversing with a trailer attached is di fficult 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 the right.
(This is generally opposite to reversing without a trailer attached.) Avoid sharp
or prolonged turning. Have someone gu ide you when reversing to reduce the
risk of an accident.
●As stopping distance is increased when towing a trailer, vehicle-to-vehicle dis-
tance should be increased. For each 10 mph (16 km/h) of speed, allow at least
one vehicle and trailer length.
●Avoid sudden braking as you may skid, re sulting in the trailer jackknifing and
loss of vehicle control. This is especi ally true on wet or slippery surfaces.
Trailer towing tips
206
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)4-1. Before driving
■Matching trailer ball height to trailer coupler height
■Before towing
Check that the followin
g conditions are met:
●Ensure that your vehicle’s tires are properly inflated. ( P. 571)
●Trailer tires are inflated according to the trailer manufacturer’s recommendation.
●All trailer lights work as required by law.
●All lights work each time you connect them.
●The trailer ball is set at the proper height for the coupler on the trailer.
●The trailer is level when it is hitched.
Do not drive if the trailer is not level, and check for improper to ngue weight, overload-
ing, worn suspension, or other possible causes.
●The trailer cargo is securely loaded.
●The rear view mirrors conform to all applicable federal, state/provincial or local regula-
tions. If they do not, install rear view mirrors appropriate for towing purposes.
No matter which class of tow hitch applies, for a
more safe trailer hookup, the trailer ball setup
must be the proper height for the coupler on the
trailer.
Coupler
Trailer ball
1
2
LX570_OM_OM60R61U_(U)
2094-1. Before driving
4
Driving
WARNING
■Hitch
Trailer hitch assemblies have different weight capacities established by the hitch manu-
facturer. Even though the vehicle may be physically capable of towing a higher weight,
the operator must determine the maximum weight rating of the particular hitch assem-
bly 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.
■When towing a trailer
Lexus recommends trailers with brakes that conform to any applicable federal and
state/provincial regulations.
●If the gross trailer weight exceeds unbraked TWR, trailer brakes are required. Lexus
recommends trailers with brakes that conform to all applicable federal and state/pro-
vincial regulations.
●Never tap into your vehicle’s hydraulic system, as this will lower the vehicle’s braking
effectiveness.
●Never tow a trailer without using a safety chain securely attached to both the trailer
and the vehicle. If damage occurs to the co upling unit or hitch ball, there is danger of
the trailer wandering into another lane.
NOTICE
■When installing a trailer hitch
Use only the position recommended by your Lexus dealer. Do not install the trailer
hitch on the bumper; this may cause body damage.
■Do not directly splice trailer lights
Do not directly splic e trailer lights. Directly splicin g trailer lights may damage your
vehicle’s electrical system and cause a malfunction.