Once and Future Kings: 2016 Lexus RX 350 and RX 450h First Drives
Upon its debut at the 1998 North American International Auto Show, Toyota’s upstart luxury brand was not yet a decade old, and the mid-size luxury SUV market essentially didn’t exist. When the RX hit showrooms in March of that year, Lexus sales surged 60%. Over the course of three generations, it would remain the most popular model in the Lexus stable, earning it the distinction of being the best-selling luxury vehicle in the United States.
“Those needing final confirmation Lexus has left behind the often-muted lines which characterized past efforts should look no further than the radical transformation of its best-selling model.”
Obviously, that history means there’s a lot riding on the success of the all-new fourth generation. And after spending a day with the different flavors of the 2016 RX on the roads outside Portland, Oregon, I’m confident Lexus has another hit on its hands.
And the first reason why is apparent from across a parking lot.
Now, when I got my first look at the production version of the 2015 NX, one of the things which impressed me was how little the design had changed in the translation from concept car to actual car. In many ways, I think the lines of the compact crossover are even more aggressive than those of the RC F sports coupe.
Rub the NX the wrong way, and it looks like it could cut you. I love that.
But though I publicly suspected—and hoped—we’d see Lexus designers apply a similarly aggressive interpretation of the spindle grille and angular design language to the RX, I wasn’t entirely sure they’d follow through. To avoid alienating their base, I thought they might pull some punches. Because quite honestly, some people hate it.
“While the target market for the RX likely isn’t going to be eyeing it with wild ambitions of hurling it into a corner, the engineers have insured that if drivers get the notion, they’ll be surprised at just how capable the versatile people-mover is when taxed.”
Immediately, the fourth-generation RX looks longer, lower, and sleeker than previous incarnations, likely—with all due respect to an auto designer’s ability to manipulate the optics of the sheet metal—because it is. The A pillar has a steep rake to it, and the pronounced creases in the rockers flow beautifully toward the back wheels, drawing the eye up to the sexy floating D Pillar.
Personally, I think darker colors complement the design best, as I’m still not sold on the black wheel arches used across the trim levels. I particularly liked the warm brown undertones in the RX 450h’s Autumn Shimmer finish. Opting for the available 20″ wheels helps visually too.
Now, Portland might initially seem like an unlikely location for an SUV introduction. It’s as famous for rain as its northern neighbor Seattle, and has a—mostly deserved—reputation for being populated with free-range, tall-bike-riding circus rejects.
But the canopy roads surrounding the city’s St. John’s neighborhood were as picturesque as they were unpatrolled, and provided plenty of opportunities to test the RX’s driving dynamics. There were long sweepers, tight twisties, and some pronounced elevation changes, and both flavors of the RX handled everything I threw at them with aplomb.
As it did with the NX, Lexus has employed a host of new techniques—high-tensile adhesives, laser screw welding—to ensure a rigid chassis, and the result is a vehicle which feels far more taut than its predecessor, and the occasional rough patches I encountered didn’t unsettle the car even slightly. One of the elements I appreciate about the current-generation GS is the steering feel, and the similarly excellent feedback from the RX’s electrically assisted rack was one of the first things I noticed when I hopped behind the wheel.
“Suspension settings in the F Sport models—as expected—were measurably stiffer, but even in standard trim, the RX didn’t feel floaty in the slightest, and corners were completed with a minimum of body roll.”
One of the routes I took featured a pair of steep dips with a railroad crossing in the middle. If you’re like me, a section of road like this presents the perfect opportunity to play “roller coaster.” Hitting this at a decent clip resulted in my drive partner and I feeling a little light in our seats, but during the attack, the RX felt admirably composed.
Needless to say, any little ones tucked into car seats would have been thrilled, though it was probably one of the reasons my companion emerged from the drive slightly car sick.
Up front, there are MacPherson struts, and a double wishbone setup brings up the rear. Suspension settings in the F Sport models—as expected—were measurably stiffer, but even in standard trim, the RX didn’t feel floaty in the slightest, and corners were completed with a minimum of body roll.
That said, the additional firmness and feedback the F Sport provides might be overkill during day-to-day driving, but the package’s paddle shifters were useful for keeping the revs in the power band, and performance potential aside, definitely up the fun factor.
“Given that Lexus has made such strides in taking its brand’s design strategy from subdued to bold, it’s easy to see why its designers are uncomfortable with suddenly ceding the dashboard to Apple and Google.”
While the extra running gear adds an extra 400 pounds to the hybrid, given the instantly available torque, performance feels peppier, even if the quoted zero-to-60 numbers are identical to the gas-powered model’s. MPGs take a big jump, obviously. Buyers can expect the RX 450h to deliver 31/30/30 in FWD models and 30/28/30 in AWD versions.
Cabin appointments are universally excellent across the lineup, though I’m a sucker for the ox blood red leather found in F Sport models, and thought the available wood-grain trim with metal inserts looked particularly slick. Users familiar with the current generation ICE functionality will find no surprises while navigating the various screens via the consul-mounted joystick.
It’s a solid, if not particularly memorable interface, though it does serve as a reminder that Toyota is the lone holdout from the car-based systems being pushed by Apple and Google. Given that Lexus has made such strides in taking its brand’s design strategy from subdued to bold, it’s easy to see why its designers are uncomfortable suddenly ceding the dashboard to a third party.
The move is an admirable one, and it’ll be interesting to see how buyers respond when weighing offerings from manufactures who have embraced the Silicon Valley titans’ recent incursion into automotive applications. But the omission of CarPlay and Android Auto—if you even feel it is one—will hardly be enough to de-throne the RX from its place as America’s most popular luxury vehicle.
Long live the king.
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