With the arrival of the NX, Lexus has finally dipped its toe into the lucrative premium compact SUV segment. But will its distinctive looks and the promise of sporty dynamics be enough to woo buyers away from such established players as the BMW X4, Range Rover Evoque and Audi Q5?
What is it?
The NX is the production realisation of the Lexus’s 2013 LF-NX concept – a compact premium SUV underpinned by a platform that shares some of its architecture with that of Toyota’s current RAV4.
In addition to finally giving Lexus the means to take the fight to the above-mentioned rivals, the newcomer also heralds another milestone with the eagerly anticipated introduction of a turbocharged petrol motor that will eventually filter down to other products in the Toyota stable.
Striking looks
A manufacturer’s decision to adhere as closely as possible to a concept’s design language can be a hit and miss affair, but in the NX’s case it’s made for a very distinctive machine.
Such aesthetic tenets of the LF-NX: that deep beltline and ornate valances, the slashes of head- and taillamps, faceted sheet metal and so forth, have been diluted for the production version, but the overall result is head turning and lends a good deal of dimensional presence to what is essentially a RAV4-sized vehicle.
The cabin is pure Lexus, favouring quirkiness over its rivals’ uncluttered austerity. Tiers of chrome-effect trim and slashes of sewn-together soft-touch panels can look a bit hotchpotch, but it’s an approach that Lexus has bravely made its own. As ever, build and material quality is impressive.
The spindle grille-aping centre console is a button riot, but is not overly difficult to navigate. The same cannot be said of the new infotainment system’s interface. Although the display’s clean glass slate is a welcome replacement for previous model’s binnacle-sited affairs, the new mouse touchpad-like input method, with its sullen kicks through the pad each time you hover over an icon, is fiddly to use on the move.
Cabin space is good, with plentiful headroom fore and aft. The legroom is adequate in the rear and the seats have reclining backs. Although the latter is a neat feature it eats into a surprisingly shallow boot.
Turning turbo
In addition to developing a healthy 175 kW and 350 N.m from a low 1 650 r/min, the NX’s turbocharged 2,0-litre, four-cylinder engine has a number of neat tricks up its sleeve. The most notable has to be the adoption of an intelligent variable-valve-timing system that allows the engine to run in a manner similar to the efficient Atkinson cycle at low loads before changing to an Otto cycle-style cylinder stroke as loads increase.
Power delivery is linear and almost reminiscent of a naturally aspirated unit, while refinement, bar a harsh snarl under hard acceleration, is impressive.
The six-speed automatic transmission, although smooth in its actions, is a touch hesitant to respond to both manual shifting and sudden throttle inputs.
Nimble as the name suggests?
In Lexus parlance the NX moniker is meant to stand for “Nimble Crossover” and dynamically the newcomer sort of meets that proviso.
It feels suitably planted when pushing on and the steering, although of the typical compact SUV light-and-woolly variety, is responsive and direct.
Those looking to really boot the NX along will enjoy the strong mid-end shove, decent body control and predictable grippy handing that errs towards understeer as the drivetrain system apportions torque between the front and rear axles. But the electronic safety systems do tend to chime in rather suddenly to curtail such antics.
Sitting on sports-tuned dampers and 18-inch alloys as part of the F-Sport pack, the NX’s ride can become choppy over less-than-perfect surfaces.
Verdict
It’s taken a while, but it looks as though Lexus’s arrival on the compact premium SUV scene will garner plenty of attention. The overall product is stylish, solidly put together and refined, if not as sporty as the name and looks suggest. The F-Sport wants for virtually nothing in terms of standard specification, this model’s near-R660 000 price does land it in uncomfortable proximity to some seriously appealing rivals – there’s better value is to be had with the slightly lower-specced, but still plush, EX model.
