A Love-in for Lexus
Passion for RX 350 shows no sign of waning
the Lexus RX 350 at my house for the first time I put the practical aspects of the SUV to its first test. My husband and I pulled up in front of the Hamilton Tool Library and loaded a table saw into the trunk.
Here is one of the shining aspects of utility vehicles: the flat cargo floor is high enough to make loading heavy things pretty easy. We slid the saw in and slid it out without any back strain.
The next day, my cargo was more fun to carry — a set of golf clubs — and it was another easy in and out.
The practical movement of cargo is just one half of the RX 350’s job description; the other is to bathe the occupants in a lovely cocoon of luxury. These attractive traits have made it the bestselling Lexus in Canada.
My specific model to test drive was the RX 350 F Sport; the “Sport” designation adds performance upgrades, including 8-speed transmission, paddle shifters and suspension enhancements. The aim, I suspect, is to make it both a workhorse and a racehorse.
Since 2000, the Lexus RX has been built at the Toyota South Plant in Cambridge. Over those 15 years, the arc of the luxury SUV — or crossovers, as carmakers like to call them — has been stratospheric. The 2015 RX 350 is one of the biggest sellers in North America in a field that includes fierce competition from the BMW X5, Acura MDX and Lincoln MKX, among many others.
What Lexus RX models have is a fierce loyalty from customers who love their reliability and the meticulous way they’re put together — from the exterior body work to interior pieces, including dashboard layout, switches and seats — high resale value and premium image.
Premium, of course, goes hand in hand with price. My test car was $61,574. My eyebrows shot up when I saw the MSRP, but part of that is the bias I have toward sports cars. I’d pay that for a thrilling BMW M3. But an SUV? I don’t get it.
But many, many people do. An SUV, with its high seating position, cargo capacity, people-moving prowess and bigger ground clearance, feels competent and stable. In addition to those tangibles, the Lexus RX 350 makes a driver feel pampered with its pillowy seats, quiet interior and soft-touch surfaces. You really feel insulated from the outside world.
I thought the steering was nicely weighted with decent feedback and the handling agile enough for waltzing through city traffic and cruising easily on the highway. With 270 horsepower, the smooth-running V6 is a capable if not stirring performer on the open road. All-wheel drive and a blind-spot monitoring system contribute to a sense of confidence when driving.
There will be no complaints from back-seat passengers in the RX 350. The seats adjust forward and back, and the backs recline. The view is good too: the seats are high enough and windows big
enough that the view of the scenery going by is panoramic. It’s a roomy, comfy spot for passengers, but there is no option for a third row of seats.
Dispense with the people, fold the back seats down and there is room for 80 cubic feet of cargo. Even with the second row of seats in the upright position, the table saw and my golf clubs fit with room to spare.
If there is one weak patch in the RX 350 it’s the electronics interface. It feels dated, with a finicky joystick for navigating functions such as audio and navigation on the display screen. There are better systems out there on cheaper cars. The screen itself is nicely integrated into the dash and so deeply recessed it’s easy to see even in the brightest light. But it would be good to see a modern take on what is essentially command central.
So the RX 350 has enjoyed a long-running popularity contest with the public, loved for its quiet interior, comfortable ride and spacious cabin. And I suspect that most drivers would never miss the enhancements of the F Sport version.
For the 2016 model year, a new RX 350 and RX 450h will be rolling off the assembly line in Cambridge. Lexus adds edgier styling and sportier handling, but they likely won’t stray too far from the formula that gives them the Midas touch in mid-size luxury crossovers.