2022 Lexus LX600 Review
Specs:
2023 Lexus LX600
3.5 Liter Twin Turbo V6
409 HP / 479 TQ
MPG as observed: 12.8
Guy who did stuff: Yousef Alvi
The Lexus LX has been with us for 27 years. And for those years, the recipe has remained the same. Take that current generation Land Cruiser and add the following:
Bigger Wheels
Fancier Grill
Fancier Lights
Squisher leather interior
and BLAM!
You got yourself a Lexus LX! Since the ‘bones’ of the LX has been that venerable Land Cruiser, it works…kinda! Selling a mere hundreds of units a month instead of ten thousand or so units like the Lexus RX, it’s more of a staple of the dealership floor instead of a sales leader. Fast forward to present day, the Land Cruiser has been slashed from the US market (which is a crime) and while the rest of the world can enjoy a brand new generation of Land Cruiser, the US market gets this squishy, glitzy version in its place.
What does that new generation give us? Well…everything! For the first time in a long, long time…everything in the LX is new from the chassis to the headlights!
Gone is the lovely 5.7 Liter V8 and in its place is a twin turbo 3.5 liter V6. Making more horsepower and more torque than the latter but sounding nowhere near the same…it helps shuffle the massive LX to 60 in a frankly quick 6.1 seconds! For something as tall as a cellphone tower…that 6.1 seconds feels like 2.1 seconds!
Help shuffling that prodigious power is a 10 speed automatic that generally works very well. It’s mainly a silent companion, shuffling through gears in a vacuum that absorbs any harshness or noise. Keywords are ‘mainly and generally’. We will talk about the exception to the silence and smoothness further down.
Another item that is new is the infotainment system. Yes you read that right! The horrid and frankly unsafe Remote Touch system is gone!!! Now we are blessed with a beautiful touchscreen system. That touchscreen itself is appropriately sized at 12.3 inches and is beautifully rendered with crisp graphics and easy to understand menus.
“Now onto the ‘not so good’”
Bear in mind that this an entirely brand new vehicle and there are bound to be some ‘teething issues’
The ride quality is fantastic until you hit a mere pebble and then there is a accompanying jitter that permeates throughout the cabin. It honestly feels like pickup truck from the early 90’s…just jittery over everything.
Second row seating is appropriately wide but unfortunately lacks legroom compared to every other competitor. Add that to the fact that the second row cannot slide fore and aft…you are just kinda stuck.
On the highway the LX sways at the slightest hint of a crosswind. The driver is left constantly dialing in some sort of correction at all times…which can be a bit tiring after a while.
When you start off in the morning…the audible and physical thunk from the transmission as it slams into second gear is a bit disconcerting in a $100k car.
So yeah….that is the 2023 Lexus LX in a nutshell.
Yousef Alvi
