Overview

LEXUS has grown its already extensive LX upper large SUV line-up with a trio of range-topping twin-turbo V6 parallel hybrids in the LX 700h Sports Luxury five and seven-seaters and F Sport five-seater, the latter subject of this test and priced at a swoon-inducing $202,000 plus on-road costs.

Add about $25k in sundry on-roads to that and you end up with a near quarter-million-dollar Lexus, something that is seriously boast-worthy down at the club or in the school pick-up lane.

The irony here is that Toyota has just launched a same-under-the-skin LandCruiser 300h in range topping ZX Sahara spec’ with the same powertrain and similar equipment to the LX700h at less than $157,000 + ORC.

Needless to say, the difference, nearly 45 grand, buys a lot of petrol...

That said, the LX700h F Sport moves in different circles to the more mainstream ‘Cruiser accentuated by its model specific styling, imposing spindle grille, 22-inch wheels and other detail changes inside and out to say nothing of the top shelf inclusions.

Apart from the LandCruiser 300h, the Lexus has few competitors at similar money apart from the GMC Yukon Denali V8 that comes in at $174,990 + ORC.

Other potential competitors are soft roaders (Mercedes-Benz GLS, BMW X7 and the like) whereas the LC 700h has genuine off-road credentials.

The LX 700h’s potent powertrain uses a 3.5-litre, twin-turbo petrol V6 good for 305kW/650Nm with a single, front axle integrated, permanent magnet electric motor/generator whirring out an additional 36kW/250Nm for a grand total of 341kW /790Nm.

Combined torque output is the strongest in the history of the brand regardless of fuel type.

Lexus says the one-motor parallel hybrid system is similar to that offered in the RX 500h F Sport Performance and is designed “primarily to offer increased output via the electric motor during firm acceleration, while also providing EV-only propulsion at low speeds”.

The LX 700h performance hybrid can run on either the electric motor, petrol engine, or a combination of both, with the battery recharged via the vehicle’s regenerative braking system or from the petrol engine.

Drive to all four wheels is via a 10-speed conventional automatic transmission with selectable high and low range aided by a torque-sensing rear limited-slip differential, rear anti-roll bar, and performance-tuned dampers.

Salving the greenish, Lexus quotes a combined cycle fuel consumption figure of 10.0L/100km – a 16 per cent improvement over the petrol-only LX 600. Combined cycle CO2 emissions are reduced by 17.5 per cent.

Enhancing the model’s off-road cred’ is Lexus’ Multi-Terrain Select off-road traction system that “ensures capability away from the beaten path”, while a 3500kg braked towing capacity mirrors that of all other variants in the line-up.

Other efficiency tech’ includes a PCU, DC/DC converter, hybrid water pump, AC inverter, and nickel-metal hydride battery, in addition to the existing 12-volt auxiliary battery, starter and alternator which “allow the LX 700h to continue operating even if any of the hybrid system components fail”.

Both the hybrid battery and AC inverter are reinforced with additional waterproofing measures to ensure there is no compromise to the vehicle’s water fording capabilities.

The 1500-watt AC inverter is said to be “capable of running small appliances through a standard (GPO) power outlet in the cargo area”.

To accommodate the additional hybrid components and rear-mounted battery, cargo capacity on five-seat LX 700h variants drops to 889 litres (down 220 litres). The seven-seat configuration offers 833 litres of stowage.

Goodies inside start with a stylish and relatively simple dash design with dual screens and driver’s info pod, heated, ventilated and powered (10-way driver, eight-way passenger) front seats with massage, heated and ventilated outboard rear seats, a centre-console fridge and quad-zone climate control with a separate 7.0-inch touchscreen, which can also adjust vehicle functions.

Further equipment includes model specific seats, steering wheel, shift knob, aluminium pedals, and semi aniline leather upholstery.

Externally it’s differentiated by the aforementioned 22-inch wheels as well as specific grille, bumpers, auto-levelling LED headlamps, roof rails, illuminated side steps, a moon roof, soft-close doors, and a power tailgate with hands-free kick-to-open function.

No ANCAP rating is available as yet for the current LX suffice to say the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series scores five stars.

The test vehicle is replete with autonomous emergency braking (including day and night pedestrian and cyclist detection and daytime motorcycle detection), adaptive cruise control, lane keeping, road sign detection, driver monitoring, blind-spot detection with rear cross-traffic alert, and adaptive high beam.

In addition to the above it is further equipped with 10 airbags, front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera and park assist to take the wheel in “difficult” parking scenarios.

Driving Impressions

You sit in the big LX 700h F Sport like Lord or Lady Muck feeling superior to all other beings on the road (well almost) thanks in part to the elevated, plush and cossetting leather interior replete with a mega 25-speaker Mark Levinson audio system and more climate control outlets and zones (4) than you can poke a stick at.

The massage seats are heated/ventilated while most regularly used functions are electrically assisted but thankfully, Lexus has resisted gimmicky stuff like automatically deploying/retracting side-steps or camera exterior mirrors.

Creature comforts abound to enhance travel time like the centre console fridge, dual rear entertainment screens, multiple power outlets and fully adjustable seating.

The active height control adaptive suspension lowers when you stop, facilitating access/egress and double back at high speed in sporty modes to lower the Lexus’ centre of gravity for enhanced stability.

It has an imposing and classy-looking exterior presence underlined by the huge spindle grille, subtle body cladding, and 22-inch wagon wheels that combine to set the LX 700h apart from Toyota’s LandCruiser 300 Series, and others.

Matching the visual is the potent powertrain that delivers the best of both worlds allowing the LX 700h to start off in silent EV-mode until you mash the throttle in which case, the petrol V6 chimes in and depending on which drive mode is selected, is either stony silent or has a sporty rasp to stir your soul (Sport and Sport+).

Gear changes can be made manually via paddle shift or simply leave it in ‘D’ for imperceptible and seemingly predictive changes from the 10-speed auto as the big Lexus is never caught out in the wrong cog – aided by the ever ready electric motor.

Turbo lag? What’s that?

Response is immediate and punchy no matter what the speed though somewhat constrained by the vehicle’s 2800kg bulk.

Still, a vehicle this size with the level of instantly available performance is quite impressive and something to behold.

We had a good old crack at it too covering some 2000km over a frenetic week and found the big Lexus an ideal long-distance tourer loping along at speed in abject luxury. Now where is that autonomous drive mode they have in the ‘states?

It steers well for such a big heavy vehicle delivering a light but accurate feel with quick responses and no backlash. It is easy to place on the road and equally as easy to execute a sharp swerve to avoid an obstacle on or off road.

The brakes are up to the task via 354mm front discs with four piston callipers, 335mm and single piston callipers at the rear.

We took it off road and no surprises as to its level of competence limited a tad by the deep front bumper, countered by raising the ride height.

That said, we had serious reservations about taking a quarter-million-dollar SUV into the rock and branch peppered bush.

Parking can be an issue in low roof carparks or in small parking spots, but numerous electronic aids simplify the process as does the adjustable electrically operated tailgate.

In hard stats, we saw 11.0 litres/100km average fuel consumption on premium unleaded and achieved a handheld 0-100km/h sprint with everything off and in Sport+ of 6.0 seconds neat with only the driver aboard – pretty impressive actually.

With 98 litres in the tank, the test model should go close to 1000km touring range without too much trouble.

To be clear, this is a parallel hybrid similar to the smaller RX 500h so no plug in facility is provided which can cut either way depending on buyer preferences.

Hooking up Bluetooth was a touch hit and miss so we resorted to wire connectivity for continuity.

We enjoyed our time in the LX 700h F Sport particularly the level of instantly available performance and the luxury it provides across features and dynamics The five-seat configuration might be an issue for some but didn’t bother us at all.

Only thing is the Toyota LandCruiser 300h ZX Sahara…