looks much better than I thought and totally acceptable for a concept. I can imagine this thing toned down a notch or two and I think we have a winner. Make this the male version of the RX. The RX, although it looks much better and more masculine than previous generations, is still a bit feminine.

 

wow that LF-NX concept is really aggressive. Liking it

 

Gallery:
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/lexus...#photo-995874/

 

why do cars have to be 'aggressive'?

^^^ looks like it would fit into mad max.

but i'm excited to see the production version. would anyone seriously want to drive it if it came out exactly like that concept?

 

Absolutely, I would go put a deposit on one right now

 

looks awesome to me... kind of explains the price :-)

 

It looks AMAZING from that angle... surely it will be toned down but I think Lexus would really be onto something making the NX very aggressive compared to the rest of the class and this would allow them to keep the RX safe.....

I do hope we get the hybrid version and not just Europe...cough cough....IS 300h, GS 300h

 

and if it isn't, then lexus gets slap with a "vanilla bland maytag appliance" mobile design

 

Actually yes. If they can keep the "smaller" NX price in check, the NX would pick up more younger buyers whereas the RX could be more conservative and continue to serve it's current demographic

 

Sounds like a great plan and will sell well to younger buyers or people starting a family. Most younger buyers dont have 45-47k to drop on a new RX. I think if they can keep this NX under 40K well equipped they will have a sales frenzy.

 

Looks like the seemingly ridiculously high price of the NX come from the costs associated with all the body creases that are expensive to manufacture, if Hoovey2411's insider info is correct.

Some people are willing to pay a premium for style after all. Hopefully the strategy works out for Lexus, although I'm not very optimistic.

 

 

Lexus LF-NX Concept Design Explained

In different halls of the massive 2013 Frankfurt motor show, 2 SUV concepts were revealed.

The styling of 1, the C-X17 from Jaguar, was generally agreed to be flowing, attractive and unlikely to offend anyone.

The other, the LF-NX from Lexus, couldn’t have been more different, with jagged edges, sharp lines running in every direction and an aggressive stance that ignited debate on the internet.

The man responsible for the radical newcomer, Takeshi Tanabe, project general manager of the Lexus Design Division, was every bit as happy with the brickbats as the bouquets.

“After we launched this picture to the Internet, I looked at it on an iPhone and people said it was cool, aggressive, they said ‘this is nice’, there were positive comments.

“At the same time many people said ‘this is angry’, ‘this is busy’, ‘this is something too much’, or whatever.

“But I think that is a good sign. Before this sort of styling aggression, people would say this is a good car but not really exciting, something like that.

“This is a strong message and the people react, maybe complain at the same time, but we are saying something and … I think it is a good for the Lexus brand,” Tanabe-san says.

The new model, with a coupe-inspired “fastback” roof and a narrow body tapered at each end, is a fraction shorter than a BMW X3. It is powered – in theory at least (it’s not a running prototype) – by a hybrid system linking a 2.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor.

Tanabe-san is unashamedly chasing younger buyers with what he describes as a “bold and aggressive design” designed to emphasise agility and to distinguish itself as much as possible from the other vehicles in that part of the market.

“RX and ES are quite modest and don’t have much strong impact. They are very quiet and not so bold and maybe because of those characteristics, the buyers of Lexus models are rather elderly.

“We would like to change these modest characters and emphasise the brand’s finesse in a bold statement.”

Does that mean the car is ready for production, that it even could be “productionised” in its current form? Tanabe-san says no real work has been done in that department, and there are no plans for production at this stage.

“I would like to put it into production without changing anything,” he says with a smile, “and quickly.” However, he noted that there could be issues in pressing the extreme body panels and complying with legislation.

It seems logical, however, that Lexus would be keen to get into the booming compact luxury segment and would do so most likely with a tamed-down version of this concept.

Indeed, Drive’s spies in Europe have caught a prototype version of the NX during testing. It’s expected to do away with a lot of the sharp-edged styling, and make do with a new range of 2.0-litre turbocharged engines.

Tanabe says the Lexus ethos is about progressive luxury but, with this car, the emphasis was more on progressive.

He says ‘progression’ and ‘luxury’ are in conflict to an extent because luxury has an aspect of timelessness and timeless values. It suggests something that will never change, something that is not dependent on a trend or fashion.

“With this concept we are experimenting to find a way to express premium quality in bold manner with a Lexus … and through that we believe we can appeal to the younger generation.”

When asked if the dramatic design language expressed in the LF-NX is the future of the bigger Lexus SUVs, Tanabe-san says it is less an expression of the future than a heightening of some design features already exhibited in the latest IS compact luxury sedan line.

“It is possible to reflect this type of design language into larger vehicles such as RX but nothing is decided.”

 

Same here.

 

Why would they release this wild concept right before the unveil of the NX300h(t) in November? Is there still an NX300? It seems to me it would put a damper on the NX300 based on the RAV4 as a baby RX as nothing but milk toast.