The highlight of the RX is its high-quality Mark Levinson (by Harman) music system. It comes with 15 speakers along with a sub-woofer setup that’s easily one of the best I have heard in car. Even the low-quality MP3 songs on phones sounded crystal-clear and richer than usual. Other features include ventilated front seats, a sunroof with auto blind and two-zone climate control. The climate control doesn’t have a separate zone for the rear seats, but there are dedicated a-c vents.
Standard equipment on the F-Sport also includes 10 airbags, tyre pressure monitoring system, hill-start assist, and seat-belts with pre-tensioners and force-limiters. There are parking sensors in front and rear, and a rear camera completes this kit. Finally, there’s ABS, EBD, traction control, vehicle stability control and even brake assist.
If you have the car’s key, then the tailgate can be opened simply by holding your palm close to the Lexus logo at the back. This gives you access to the generous 453-litre boot space, which has a full-size spare wheel and a retractable parcel tray.
Finally, the engine and performance. There’s just a petrol option on offer. This hybrid powertrain consists of electric motors mounted on front and rear axles that work in tandem with the 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine. Combined, the three motors churn out 313 PS and 335 Nm of torque. It’s a smart setup which charges the battery when the car is coasting and uses this stored power later on when the driver gets on the gas.
Press the Start button and the Lexus comes to life in absolute silence. This is because at low speeds the electric motors propel it forward. As you continue to drive, you’ll notice the petrol engine crank up to charge the battery and power the front wheels. It’s an extremely refined car and you can barely make out when the petrol motor takes over.
It’s also not the quickest, although Lexus claim a 0-100 km/h time of 7.7 seconds. You can further control the performance using the F-Sport’s paddle-shifters to toggle through the gears. The narrow hilly roads of Ooty, busy with cabs ferrying tourists, didn’t give us much opportunity to floor the car. This is a better variant for those who like enthusiastic driving, because of its Sound Generator feature. It amplifies the engine sound so that it can be heard within the cabin and makes the drive more engaging.
The suspension is set up on the firmer side to aid handling. Obviously, some of the road bumps easily filter into the cabin, but never getting uncomfortable. Driving through the twisties it displayed decent body control, with hardly any body-roll to complain about. Pouncing on the occasional empty fast corner, the Lexus remains surprisingly planted and composed.
The adaptive suspension and Bridgestone Duelers tyres keep things stable and under control. Using the driving modes (Eco, Normal, Sport and Sport+) one can further alter the driving dynamics of the RX. This alters the engine response, suspension setup and steering feedback. To keep the suspension more taut, we selected Sport+ which, thankfully, also improved throttle response.
Another advantage is the good ground clearance of 195 mm, which is perfect for our road conditions. With discs on all four wheels, the braking didn’t fail to impress either. And in spite of weighing about 2,100 kg-2,210 kg the hybrid claims to return a decent fuel efficiency of 18.8 km/l.
With the Luxury costing Rs 1.25 crore and the F-Sport being slightly more expensive at Rs 1.28 crore (both prices ex-showroom, India), the RX belongs to the price bracket of cars like the Porsche Macan and Jaguar F-Pace. Lexus being the uber-premium brand of Toyota, it comes with the same reliability and service reassurance, if not better. Imagine owning a luxury car without the usual tantrums. Luxury car-buyers could be pinching themselves in disbelief.
