Lexus NX 450h+ F Sport motorcars combine technology and artistry, into an impressive statement of intent. That this is not far fetched is borne out when you drive the latest Lexus contribution to the large SUV concept of car design.
Lexus vehicles represent a draft of cool sanity in a competitive market. There’s not much better out there in engineering and manufacturing terms – so unless you want additions of unnecessary ostentation, I wouldn’t bother paying heavier prices for Bentleys and Mercedes and the like. You are at the pinnacle of quality and development with this marque.
The Lexus NX 450h + F Sport plug-in hybrid is the way to go for motorists who demand power, style, accommodation, comfort, versatility and economy – but don’t want to be at the mercy of the vagaries of electric power alone. Plug in and use electric propulsion from the 18.1 kWh battery for up to 45 miles on short hops but be reassured by internal combustion power when needed. If you can’t decide which power source is best for any given situation – you just forget about it and let computer wizardry sort it out.
It’s an SUV that inspires confidence – as driver and passengers enjoy armchair comfort to the sound of distilled silence; a silence so serene that it seems an intrusive shame to spoil it by deploying the state-of-the-art infotainment system.
Seen from the outside this Lexus displays an uncompromising assertion of modernity – emphasising a stride forward in motor design, redolent of changing times and priorities. Assertive angularities in crisply styled coachwork point towards tomorrow. You know at once it’s no ordinary car but you know you will feel special the moment you take the wheel. Passengers too are treated to the feeling of being in the best possible seats.
Impressions are one thing, but it takes hard data to nail home just how advanced and innovative this car is. A plug-in hybrid? Already you can see the suggestion of a yawn on the faces of professional cynics. ‘Plug-in hybrids? Seen them mate. What’s new?’
Plenty, in fact. The 2.5 petrol engine combines with an 18.1 kWh battery and electric motor (304 bhp overall) to drive the front wheels – but there’s a second electric motor on the rear axle for 4wd when needed. Also, if you forget to charge by cable, an on-board charger lets the 450h run as a self-charger. You’ll never be stranded in one of these. The punch is delivered via the innovative electronic CVT.
You can reach near 125mph and accelerate from rest like a shot. Select electric mode and city driving is sweetly silent and silky smooth. Select ‘sport mode’ and you really fly.
Handling and manoeuvrability are good even when driving quickly – but, as it should be, the ride and handling are tuned for comfort above all.
In order to harness petrol power and electric energy in combination proportionate to need, there’s a sophisticated transmission system called Hybrid Drive. Compact and versatile it performs as a willing servant and it has to be said that when it comes to thirst it’s very abstemious. For a car this size that goes so quickly it came as a shock to achieve over 65mpg overall. Of course, if you just go back and forth on electricity and let petrol go stale, who knows what the consumption would be. Theoretically you could save your petrol for months and tell them at the pub that your Lexus does a million mpg etc..
All these benefits together with the seamless transition between modes, challenge the accepted nomenclature. The Lexus NX 450h + is surely much more than a hybrid. I wonder if that old motorcycling term ‘combi’ (Short,of course, for those youngsters out there, for a motorcycle and sidecar combination) is a term better re-allocated to serve as a descriptive label for the combined technology and design that have produced such a remarkable motoring package.
You feel like a better person in one of these – a modern motor for the modern world that eschews mundanity in pursuit of the sublime. It represents a draught of cool sanity in a stultifying hothouse market of pressurised concern. The result is pleasure rather than pressure. To be sure, buying into Lexus requires a certain wherewithal. At £58,685 they are not cheap – but neither are they preposterously expensive. They are priced just right for those able to buy into quality motoring predicated upon the principle of knowing what you like and settling for the best available. Put it another way; a Lexus NX450h F Sport offers an unrivalled opportunity to incline your thinking towards your inclinations.
