check out this article...and the last line of the article. I just placed an order for the RX400h, so am I doing it backwards according to the article? $ is in Singapore dollars.

"I CONFESS I was more than a little sceptical when Toyota proclaimed that its new petrol-electric Lexus RX400h consumed as much (or as little) fuel as a 1.6-litre sedan.
After all, the SUV weighs over two tonnes, has all-wheel-drive and accomplishes the 0-100kmh sprint in under eight seconds.

The last I checked, vehicles that fit this description get red-carpet treatment at petrol stations. Their owners could go off for lunch, come back and the pump nozzles would still be gushing.

So what if the RX400h is a hybrid? There have been consumer reports in the United States debunking the Lexus' fuel economy claim. Some users say the car missed its mark by more than a few miles.

Could driving the car in Singapore be any different? Well, I say it is. After using the silver RX400h for over three days, the fuel gauge hardly moved from 'Full'.

And we're not talking about careful-grandma's-in-the-backseat kind of driving here. The accelerator was stomped hard and stomped frequently.

Still, the big SUV managed between 9.2 and 9.6 litres per 100km. Not quite the 8.1 litres its brochure claims, but impressive nonetheless.

Driven a little less maniacally, the consumption figure would surely have been better. For perspective, the Toyota Camry 2.4 uses 14 litres per 100km in Orchard Road conditions.

But if fuel bills and global warming do not figure large on your list of priorities, what's so great about the RX400h?

Well, how about sheer driving pleasure? The car's 3.3-litre V6, ably assisted by two electric motors, propels it from standstill to 100kmh in 7.9 seconds.

The petrol-only RX300 does the same in 9 seconds, while the 3.5-litre variant takes 7.8 seconds. In the same test, the 3.2-litre V6 'entry-level' Porsche Cayenne takes 9.7 seconds (not to mention a few more drops of petrol).

In this light, the RX400h is nothing short of astounding. And yet, that's not all its party tricks.

The SUV is a quiet operator - a virtue Lexus owners never discount - because it has more pulling power at lower revs. And during moments when only the electric motors are at work (such as reversing or moving off from the lights), it is so silent you could hear a mouse fart.

Last but not least, the car is not all that expensive. With the green rebate, it is $169,000, which is merely $18,000 more than the RX350. If you recall, the RX300 was about $192,000 in 2003.

Still unimpressed? Oh all right then, go buy that Range Rover if you must." 2006 RR Sport Chawton White
2006 Ferrari F430
2001 Honda Legend