Lexus LBX breaks cover as luxury carmaker's smallest SUV till date

Lexus has introduced the LBX as its smallest ever SUV. The luxury car wing of Toyota Motor took the covers off the LBX on Monday as its new entry-level model. The LBX is based on Toyota's Yaris Cross compact SUV. However, like other Lexus models, the LBX comes with a strong Lexus design language. Lexus has not announced the price of the LBX SUV yet. It is expected that the luxury carmaker will officially launch the model later this year. It will go on sale in Japan and European markets first.

The Lexus LBX is built on the GA-B platform, which also underpins the Toyota Yaris Cross. The LBX stands 4,190 mm in length, 1,825 mm in width and 1,545 mm in height. The SUV also offers boot space with a capacity of 332 liters.

As far as the design is concerned, the LBX retains most of Lexus traits. At the front, the LBX gets a minimalist headlight design. There is an accent that connects from left to right and the air intakes are now embedded in the bumper. It seems that this design language is similar to the latest Lexus SUV, the RX. At the sides, the design of the Lexus LBX appears much different from the Yaris Cross TNGA. The character lines on the LBX seems to appear sharper in contrast to the Yaris Cross which tends to be rounded.

At the rear, the LBX gets LED taillights that connect from left to right. There is also the Lexus badging at the centre. Kunihiko Endoh, Chief Engineer at Lexus, said, “ Our goal was to challenge the conventional concept of a luxury car. We have thoroughly pursued a driving experience that allows for a natural dialogue between the driver and his vehicle and a design that has a refined presence."

The interior of the Lexus LBX oozes luxury, thanks to the use of a large touchscreen instrument cluster and head unit whose design is similar to Mercedes-Benz's MBUX. The instrument panel measures 9.8 inches, while the multimedia system has a 12.3-inch screen along with voice control besides a high-quality audio system with 13 speakers. The dashboard design also feels luxurious and what is most striking is the design of the AC grille which is made to seem to connect from the door trim to the dashboard.

Under the hood, the LBX is powered by a 1.5-litre 3-cylinder hybrid engine that is capable of producing 132 hp of power and 184 Nm of peak torque. The output of LBX is 6 horsepower more than the Yaris Cross. The engine, that delivers power to the front wheels, comes mated to a stepless gearbox. The SUV can hit zero to 100 kmph in 9.2 seconds, and comes with a top speed of 170 kmph.