LEXUS SEATS SEVEN ... AT A STRETCH

The RX gets an extended L version but the third row is strictly for short hauls

The builders have been busy at Lexus to create a family extension for the RX mid-sized SUV. Installing a bigger box on the back of the RX 350 and 450h creates space for a pair of tweenie seats, with their own aircon outlets and controls, and an extra child seat.

Adding the five-plus-two capacity to the RX is a deft move, and a smart response to customer demand for a bigger cabin with more seats – but there is no way the newcomer is a genuine seven-seater.

That will come sometime in the future, when Lexus decides to plug the gap between the RX and the hulking LandCruiser-based LX470.

For now, the RX seven-seater – officially the L – is a compromise that’s reflected in no change to the car’s wheelbase and a boot that is less than half the size of the regular RX when three rows of seats are ready for action.

Even so, Lexus Australia expects between 20 and 25 per cent of RX buyers will go for the L, which comes with all-wheel drive and either a petrol V6 or V6 hybrid package. Drive-away prices are from $93,509 for the RX 350L Luxury to $118,217 for the 450hL Sports Luxury.

“It’s ideal for the modern family,” says Lexus CEO Scott Thompson. “We’re responding to customer demand. The new variants are all about practicality.”

Targets are blended families that need a seven-seater only some of the time and sporty families that carry extra youngsters occasionally.

The arrival of the L models triggers the mildest possible update for the rest of the RX line-up, which gets pedestrian detection for the automatic emergency braking tech and better headlamps. There is no change to the base price of $74,251 for the renamed RX 300 front-driver.

The L versions add 100mm to the overall length of the RX with different rear styling, all of it in the rear overhang, and 10mm to the height. Sports Luxury models loose their fulllength moonroof but there is still a sunroof.

The side curtain airbags are longer, the second-row seats get slide-tilt adjustment on both sides to improve access further back and flexibility to the legroom, and the 50-50 split third row is covered in vinyl for durability.

On the downside, and the V6 loses 5kW thanks to a reshaped exhaust, the mid-row seats lose their power adjustment and there is still no towing ability for the hybrid.

ON THE ROAD

The seven-seaters drive just like the regular RX, although there is no chance for a full-load drive on a brief preview near Byron Bay. They are unlikely to be worried by extra weight, although patchy bitumen surfaces highlight the shortcoming of the 20-inch alloys with considerable pattering and fidgeting of the suspension.

Suitably punchy in performance and well equipped and finished, the 350 and 400 drive considerably better than the underwhelming Lexus NX we drove last year, which continues as the brand’s sales leader.

Turning to the rear, third-row access is not easy and leg and headroom are tight for anyone beyond 150cm. Allowing the third row reasonable legroom creates cramping in the second row.

So it’s all about compromise and short-haul trips, definitely not a seven-person interstate holiday, although the aircon with individual controls in the back is a good move.

The styling of the tail allows a very welcome window for the third row and eliminates the cave-like claustrophobia of some seven-seaters.