Official Lexus NX thread
Driver
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 194
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, Texas
I agree, pano roofs also compromise structural integrity in side impacts. Try to find a side impact test with a pano equipped vehicle. All the salvage photos I have seen involving panos and side impacts reveal the vehicles typically collapse along the area where the panoramic is installed.
Driver
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 194
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, Texas
Mercedes, Lexus, and Audi failed the IIHS small overlap test. I hope Lexus does a better job with that test on the NX than what you see in the Rav4.
New Lexus NX Spotted Out in the Wild, U.S. Range Confirmed
You might need some time to digest the design of the new Lexus NX that's full of sharp edges and creases, but we'll agree with Twitter user Martin Ward who nabbed the compact SUV in a parking lot outside Toyota's UK plant in Burnaston that it does indeed look "different" and we'll add, more youthful and modern than the bigger RX.
Lexus said it would open the order books and release details on the UK market model, including powertrain specifications, later in the year.
In related news, but on the other side of the pond, Lexus confirmed the U.S. range for the new NX that will appear in showrooms this fall offering buyers a choice of two models, the NX 200t with a 235hp (238PS) 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline four and the NX 300h featuring a 194hp (197PS) 2.5-liter inline-four hybrid powertrain. Both models will be available in front- and all-wheel drive layouts.
Along with these two engines, select markets around the world, including China and Russia will also get a base NX 200 model with a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated gasoline unit matched to a Sequential-Continuously Variable Transmission (S-CVT)/Multi-drive transmission.
Lexus said it would open the order books and release details on the UK market model, including powertrain specifications, later in the year.
In related news, but on the other side of the pond, Lexus confirmed the U.S. range for the new NX that will appear in showrooms this fall offering buyers a choice of two models, the NX 200t with a 235hp (238PS) 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline four and the NX 300h featuring a 194hp (197PS) 2.5-liter inline-four hybrid powertrain. Both models will be available in front- and all-wheel drive layouts.
Along with these two engines, select markets around the world, including China and Russia will also get a base NX 200 model with a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated gasoline unit matched to a Sequential-Continuously Variable Transmission (S-CVT)/Multi-drive transmission.
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,631
Likes: 4,045
From: Maryland
But that has nothing to do with panoramic sunroofs. The small overlap test was simply a type of crash test manufacturers had not prepared for, the VAST majority of cars fail that test. Now that the test exists...cars start passing because manufacturers prepare for it.
Driver
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 194
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, Texas
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety spokesman Russ Rader says there is no data showing such systems are unsafe. IIHS tested a Volkswagen Touareg equipped with a panoramic roof, and it earned a good rating in the roof-strength test and is a top safety pick.
“This doesn’t mean that vehicles with glass roof panels would be as safe in rollovers as vehicles without them,” he tells Ward’s.
“In a rollover crash, the glass panels could break or pop out during the roll,” Rader says. “That increases the risk of either ejection or the heads of occupants striking objects outside the vehicle.
“That would be the main problem with glass roof panels, if a rollover occurs in a vehicle that is otherwise rated good for roof strength.”
http://wardsauto.com/ar/panoramic_po...ty_ford_110818
“This doesn’t mean that vehicles with glass roof panels would be as safe in rollovers as vehicles without them,” he tells Ward’s.
“In a rollover crash, the glass panels could break or pop out during the roll,” Rader says. “That increases the risk of either ejection or the heads of occupants striking objects outside the vehicle.
“That would be the main problem with glass roof panels, if a rollover occurs in a vehicle that is otherwise rated good for roof strength.”
http://wardsauto.com/ar/panoramic_po...ty_ford_110818
Lexus Fanatic
Joined: May 2012
Posts: 68,631
Likes: 4,045
From: Maryland
Thats a conversational statement from someone affiliated with the IIHS, not a formal statement or suggestion from IIHS as you would imply. The same could be said of any glass on the roof, how about sunroofs?
Focus on this, which is in your quote and is a factual statement, not a conversational statement:
Focus on this, which is in your quote and is a factual statement, not a conversational statement:
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety spokesman Russ Rader says there is no data showing such systems are unsafe. IIHS tested a Volkswagen Touareg equipped with a panoramic roof, and it earned a good rating in the roof-strength test and is a top safety pick.
Driver
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 194
Likes: 0
From: Dallas, Texas
Thats a conversational statement from someone affiliated with the IIHS, not a formal statement or suggestion from IIHS as you would imply. The same could be said of any glass on the roof, how about sunroofs?
Focus on this, which is in your quote and is a factual statement, not a conversational statement:
Focus on this, which is in your quote and is a factual statement, not a conversational statement:
You should agree his statement does meet Prima facie.
Last edited by darrelld; Apr 23, 2014 at 09:18 AM.
Lexus Champion
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,540
Likes: 273
From: Illinois
I suppose if pano roof safely was a concern to a potential buyer, they could check the rollover rating for the vehicle in question. A good rollover rating might offset concerns over the performance of a pano roof vehicle.
I do think a pano does let a bit more noise in,though.
NX is marketed more towards Generation Y, sporty, techy while the RX more Generation X, more established families, bit more money that need more luxury and comfort.
Intermediate
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 345
Likes: 25
From: PA
2013 USA sales:
- 103,920 Lexus RX
- 60,534 Buick Enclave (really?)
- 56,776 Cadillac SRX
- 53, 040 Acura MDX
- 44,750 Acura RDX
- 40,355 Audi Q5
- 39,818 BMW X5
...the rest in these segments are about 30k sales down to 10k
If anything, I'd imagine the RX would bump up in size to compete more directly with the MDX/X5/Q7. Given Acura's success with two models, that would appear to be a safer path than making a big change to the RX.