Lexus

Your familiarity with the Lexus RX will depend very much on where you live. It is far more popular in the US than in Europe và the UK, so it makes sense for my first drive of the luxury SUV khổng lồ be in California.

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Lexus says this generation of RX is 95 percent new compared lớn its predecessor. It arrives in the US towards the end of the year, before landing in other markets in 2023. Prices are yet to be confirmed, but should land in the region of $50,000 khổng lồ $60,000.

The first thing you’re bound lớn notice is the way the new RX looks. Its front is sharp & angular, like that of a concept car, & the grille is unashamedly massive, especially in a state where cars don’t need a front license plate. It’s a smart looking thing, and one clearly styled lớn work better Stateside than in my native UK.

The new plug-in hybrid variant of RX has a 40-mile EV range

Lexus

Sharp và shallow lights at the front và rear continue the modernist vibe, with the full-width rear light bar housing a new Lexus badge with huge spacing between its characters. There’s no mistaking what brand of oto you’re following. The ‘floating roof’ thiết kế seen on previous models of RX, where blacked-out C-pillas create the illusion of a disconnected roof, is present và correct. The aesthetic is a big step forward for the RX, but the overall look is still unmistakably that of a Lexus.

Inside, the cabin has also been comprehensively updated. Gone is the fiddly, trackpad-style controller of the previous car’s infotainment system, replaced by a more intuitive scroll wheel. Or, reach out & tap at the new 14-inch touchscreen display. Angled towards the driver, the screen runs Lexus’ own system, but there’s also tư vấn for wireless táo bị cắn dở CarPlay và Android Auto, so most drivers will be best off hooking up a phone và using their mapping & music apps of choice.

Lexus has really leaned into its Japanese heritage with the interior of the new RX. It’s a clean và simple cabin that is smartly designed & has a calming air of chất lượng to it, especially in top-spec Takumi trim. The door handles are particularly interesting (no, really), as they use buttons on the inside và out. This means pressing the handle lớn exit, instead of pulling the handle then pushing the door. It makes sense when written down like that, but recalibrating your muscle memory takes some time. There’s also a backup handle mechanism if the electronic actuator ever fails.

Space all round is very good, especially in the rear & trunk, although there is currently no option for a third row of seats. Tick the Takumi box and both rows get electronically-adjusted và heated seats.

Reworked interior features a new, 14-inch touchscreen with wireless CarPlay & Android Auto

Lexus

It’s a pleasant cabin but one that does little to lớn really stand out in what is a crowded market, fought over by BMW, Audi, Mercedes and others. Wind và road noise are kept nice & low, but there’s an obvious drone when the engine kicks in khổng lồ help out the motors of the hybrid variants.

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Lexus & parent company Toyota have a thing for complex drivetrains, & so instead of a simple range of petrol, diesel and hybrid options to pick from, the RX does things a bit differently. Expected khổng lồ be most efficient is the RX 350h, which is powered by a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder petrol engine with a constantly variable automatic transmission (CVT), & a hybrid system comprising two motors.

Below this is the US-only RX 350 with a turbocharged 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine producing 275 horsepower, và at the vị trí cao nhất rung you’ll find the 367hp RX 500h, which Lexus amusingly describes as being for “the most demanding petrolheads”. It isn’t, owing to not being particularly brisk, & driving a Lexus SUV in even a vaguely sporting way feels plain wrong.

EV mode delivers on Lexus" claim of about 40 miles of battery-only range

Lexus

In-between all this sits the most interesting mã sản phẩm of the range, the RX 450h+ plug-in hybrid. This oto has a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine producing 185 horsepower và a pair of electric motors sending 182hp to lớn the front axle và 55hp lớn the rear; total system output is 308hp. The motors are powered by an 18.1 kWh battery pack which Lexus says is good for about 40 miles of electric-only range. I tested this during my brief time with the RX and the estimate is spot-on. It’ll handle a 20-mile commute lớn the office & back without calling upon the engine, which is just what a hybrid in 2022 should be capable of without breaking a sweat.

An onboard 6.6 kWh charger means the battery can be filled from a home wallbox in a little under three hours. More interesting is how the plug-in hybrid can recharge its main battery on the move, then uses a second, smaller NiMH battery to act lượt thích a mild hybrid. So even when the primary, lithium battery is depleted, it should still be more efficient than a regular plug-in hybrid dragging around an empty battery.

The plug-in hybrid và range-topping RX 500h both feel powerful enough, with near-identical 60 mph sprint times in the mid-six-second territory. If anything, the performance of the plug-in shows how unnecessary the larger-engined and less efficient RX 500h is.

The RX"s signature "floating roof" kiến thiết remains for the 2023 model

Lexus

Ride quality is mostly very good and light steering mated khổng lồ rear-wheel steering makes the big RX easy to maneuver in tight spaces. It isn’t the last word in driving dynamism, but will no doubt make for a very good family SUV for long & comfortable road trips.

The 2023 RX has a bold new look, with a refined and attractive cabin, a much-improved infotainment system, plenty of space for all four/five occupants & a decent trunk. The car wafts along smoothly enough và the clever plug-in hybrid system of the RX 350h+ shows Toyota và Lexus are ever keen khổng lồ try something new when it comes to lớn drivetrain technology.

I am an automotive & technology journalist who has written for Wired UK và the BBC, and have a life-long passion for everything on four wheels.