2020 Lexus RX review – touchscreen, CarPlay and more!

I'm Tom Baker, this is Chasing Cars, and today we're driving the revised, facelifted 2020 Lexus RX over my right shoulder. The Lexus RX has really been a core model for Lexus here in Australia and around the world. It's one of the first car-based luxury crossovers, and this is actually the fourth generation car. The fourth generation car here has been something of a quiet achiever. It's actually managed to build from seventh place in its segment up to third place in Australia in not that long of a time period, so there's obviously something that this car has been doing right. However, there's also been some things that it's been doing wrong, and that's what the facelift has been designed to address. It doesn't just run skin deep, even though there are some subtle changes to the way this car looks. There are actually some really interesting engineering changes under the so we'll be checking that out shortly. We'll also be having a look in the cabin, where for the first time in quite some time, Lexus has adopted a touchscreen. It's also got modern smartphone linking as well. But first, if you haven't already subscribed to Chasing Cars, please do so below the video and hit that notification bell so we can keep making these full-length Australian video car reviews. But now, let's jump inside the updated Lexus RX. Stepping inside the Lexus RX, this crossover really prioritises quality and a feeling of luxury, I think, in this segment. It doesn't go for minimalism. Instead, there's quite a bit going on, but not in a bad way. I think the design is actually still fairly refreshing and still quite interesting, even though it's largely unchanged over the sort of standard fourth generation RX that arrived in Australia a few years ago now. However, there are some changes in the facelift. Firstly, all cars now get this 12.3-inch screen, and it's now a touchscreen, which is quite a considerable difference over the previous version, which was not a touchscreen and controlled only through the Lexus remote touch system down here. Now, it's now a trackpad. It used to be like a weird mouse thing. That version of controlling the system still remains, if you prefer that, or if you're on the go, it can be easier. But the Lexus system is a bit fickle, and it just works better with touch, so it's really good to see the brand listening to customers and listening to feedback and integrating those sorts of changes. The other big change in the screen is that it now has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, so you can skip the Lexus system entirely and just use the superior systems delivered by modern smartphones, so that's cool. But other stuff that you get across most Lexus vehicles remains, and that includes really supple trim, beautiful woods available on certain grades. It's just a nice place to spend time, and nowhere more than in this Sports Luxury. That's the top of three variants, even though the base car's pretty well equipped, and the F Sport, which is the middle tier, a bit more athletic, that's kind of semi-sporty. This Sports Luxury, I think, is the best of the bunch. I mean, it's the priciest of the bunch, but it has stuff like beautiful semi-aniline leather seats. These are seriously soft and armchair-like. The gorgeous sort of lacquered trim, you can get various woods or bamboo finishes. It's really, really nice. The ergonomics are pretty good, too. Driving position is quite commanding, you sit quite high. The controls are mainly button-based, which means they're easy to see and use, and the practicality is all right, too. There's now smartphone charging, wireless charging that can fit an iPhone Max-sized device, so the real big boys. You've got big cup holders, you've got a sort of large and deep tray here, you've got six USB ports for the car, and expandable door bins, too. So, up front, it's good. What's the story in the back? The first benefit back here is that the doors open pretty wide, and the roofline continues broadly straight, so if you need to fit child seats, it's easy. It's also made easier by the fact the ice fix points are exposed, so you won't be fiddling around with complex stuff standing in the rain. The Lexus RX makes it nice and easy. It also makes life easy if you're an adult, because this is a spacious crossover. As we see when we drive the thing, this car's really about relaxing, about taking it easy, and as such, in the back, there's plenty of space, and it's really comfortable. So, for me, at six foot, I've got good headroom, got another couple of inches, and that's with the panoramic sunroof that's fitted on this variant of the car. Legroom sitting behind myself is immense, and toe room, it's a little bit pokey, but you could live with it. You've got a flat floor, which means that you can fit three people across without having to fight for foot space. That's cool. We have a few amenities back here. We've got air vents, you've got heated rear seats, you've got another couple of USB ports, and we have these sun blinds as well, so if you've got a bubba back here, you don't have to buy those ugly aftermarket sun blinds. It's all integrated, and kind of goes without saying that the good material quality comes all the way back here as well. Now, if you pay them more money, Lexus will actually sell you a slightly stretched version of the RX with seven seats. I'm going to be showing you some footage of that here, but I continue to think that the smaller, slightly lighter five-seat is just a better fit for this car in general, but it is nice to have the option of one with a bit more practicality. There are, however, some changes to the third row that you do get on the RX-L that starts from $85,000. The seats still come up and down electrically, they always did, but now there's two set positions laterally so that you can either expand legroom or cargo space, which is definitely nice to have. The boot in the RX-L is enormous, especially if you fold down that third row, but that said, the cargo room in the five-seat RX is far from something to sneeze at, and you get an electric tailgate with kick to open as standard. So, have those revisions that I mentioned right at the start of the video worked? Is the 2020 RX a better SUV to drive? Well, the short answer is yes, but it is a little bit specification dependent. There are changes that have been made across the range, and then there are little adjustments that apply only to the F Sport and the Sports Luxury, and I'm going to explain why the Sports Luxury in particular is the most comfortable version that you can buy, but that you'll also be fine with the entry-level Luxury, and then the differences that you get in this more athletic F Sport version. But first, let's remind ourselves of what you can get under the bonnet of the RX, because there's no change there from the pre-facelift version. So, the entry-level RX 300 used to be called the 200T. It's a 2.0L turbo producing 175kW of power and 350Nm of torque, and this engine is the range's only front-wheel drive vehicle. The rest of them are all-wheel drive. Mind you, the all-wheel drive system is one that only kicks in when it's needed. The two higher engines both cruise in front-wheel anyway. From there, it's a step up to V6 power. The RX 350 is a pretty traditional 3.5L direct injected naturally aspirated V6, making 221kW of power and 370Nm of torque, and that engine is what most RX buyers in Australia go for. It makes up about half of the sales, and then it's split a That hybrid is an interesting option, the RX 450h, because it actually pairs the V6 engine with an electric motor, one on the front axle and one on the rear axle. A bit like the new Toyota RAV4, it's actually the electric propulsion that makes it all-wheel drive, the hybrid version, and that makes 230kW of power, and Lexus don't specify a torque figure, but it's, you know, by my estimation, somewhere between 400 and 500Nm of torque combined. The hybrid is the most economical. You'll get about 8L per 100km in touring driving, and better than that in town, which for a vehicle of this size is pretty good. Both of the just standard combustion versions will use more than that, but they are cheaper than the RX 450h hybrid. There's no four-cylinder hybrid. I think if there was, it'd be really nice, because it'd be more affordable to step into a lower-emission, lower-consumption form of driving. So the engine's largely unchanged, pretty smooth, pretty quiet, they all get along just fine, nothing sporty, but that's not really what the RX is about. Instead, this SUV is mostly aimed at offering relaxed and comfortable drive, and I'm totally fine with that. Defying the laws of physics and making a sporty SUV is really difficult to do well. Some people take a stab and succeed, like Porsche with the Macan and the Cayenne, and some people take a stab and fail. What Lexus have decided to do with the updated RX is just increase the comfort factor a little bit. Part of that is making sure it pitches and rolls a bit less, so the body control has been reined in, there's a larger diameter stabiliser bar at the rear, there's changes to the loadings of various bearings on the suspension, the variable dampers on the F Sport and Sports Luxury have come in for a bit of an adjustment to make them just a little bit softer without compromising control in the motions of the car, and the result is, yeah, you're not thrown around too much, your head doesn't move too much, these are pretty comfortable cars. The F Sport is a little bit firm for my taste, it's on 20-inch wheels, so is the Sports Luxury, but that car just brings the softness back into the suspension, it doesn't have the performance dampers that the F Sport does, so for me I'd either be going for a Luxury on 18-inch wheels or a Sports Luxury on 20s but with the softer suspension. Handling is just fine, it's not out there to be darty or to be overly nimble, the steering is slow and light, it's pretty, you know, well connected through the steering wheel, like you know where the nose is going to go, but it's not out there to encourage you to throw it through the corners, instead it's a fairly sedate drive, but as I've explained that's okay if what you're going for is a relaxing SUV and this does that well. It's also pretty refined, there's a bit of road noise on course chip roads but it's totally bearable, you can hear conversations in the car just fine. On the safety front it's a pretty good offer as well, all cars get high speed AEB with daytime cyclist detection now and day and night pedestrian detection. There's also lane trace assist which is a more sophisticated version of lane keep assist that can follow the lines in the road but also stuff like a more rough shoulder and even if it can't find the lines it will track the line of the car in front which is kind of cool. There's also blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert. If you step up to the F Sport or the Sports Luxury they bring in additional stuff in the form of a 360 degree parking camera that can actually visualize the environment on the central screen which is kind of cool and also a new headlight technology that Lexus is claiming is the first in the world and it basically uses a blade rotating at 12,000 rpm to project the the beam of the LED headlights onto the road in a longer and broader manner than a traditional LED headlight. So those are our impressions of the 2020 Lexus RX. Altogether it's quite an impressive update to the car given that there's been attention on the stuff that really did need just a little bit of an improvement to keep this crossover feeling relevant and sort of building on its strengths within this pretty competitive part of the market here in Australia. For me I think the Hybrid continues to be the standout choice here given that it's something a bit different to what other cars in this set offer but certainly at the entry point there's also some pretty good value on offer there too. Now if you haven't subscribed to Chasing Cars please do so below the video, hit that notification bell and it'll help us keep making these Australian video car reviews and hopefully helping you make an informed choice about your next car purchase. Also leave me a comment down below telling me what you think of the updated Lexus RX or any suggestions for the channel and as always thanks for watching Chasing Cars.