Track notes

In the main, the NX 350h proved impressively sure-footed on Millbrook’s daunting Hill Route. It develops good levels of grip, and through tighter turns you can really sense the rear motor coming into play and helping to rotate the car.

Key to the NX’S sense of safety and stability is its fine body control: heave, pitch and roll are curtailed earlier than you would expect in this kind of vehicle, and with a level of finesse that is usually reserved for out-and-out performance cars. It means the NX performs well, should you find yourself carrying more speed into a bend than you intended to, and the steering possesses a heft that feeds into the sense of stability.

Of course, the Hill Route also shows the hybrid powertrain at its revvy, uncouth worst. Under heavy loads, the NX 350h is neither as quick as its 241bhp promises, nor as refined as its brief suggests it should be.