Driving report Lexus LBX: Designed for Europe

09.01.2024
Tomas Hirschberger (SPX)

When Lexus entered the luxury business in 1989, full size was the way to go. The flagship LS 400 spanned over five meters and had every accessible zip and zap on board – but unfortunately lacked dignity. 35 years later, the luxury branch of Toyota is baking a smaller roll. With the LBX, which is only 4.19 meters long, the shortest Lexus of all time will enter dealerships on March 15. The hybrid will be built in Tohoku, Japan, mainly in Europe – where Lexus plans to sell around 24,000 units per year, 1,500 of them domestically. Germany.

Technically almost the same as the Toyota Yaris Cross

LBX already has its mission set to its name. Internally, the “B” should stand for “Breakthrough”, the success of the brand in the European market. Lexus wants to entice new LBX customers. Technically, the LBX is almost identical to the Toyota Yaris Cross and is based on the GA-B Group platform. Otherwise, many things are more difficult than his bourgeois brother. Of the roughly 100kg of extra weight, 60kg should go to extra insulation material to keep it out of the Yaris’ thin-skinned world.

Look a little put together

Visually, there is absolutely nothing in common between the two. With a six-centimeter wider track and shorter overhangs, the LBX stands tall and not too tall thanks to its 17-inch wheels. At the front we see the current face of Lexus with the newly interpreted Diabolo grill, which is connected to the front without any frame. Stylish LED lights sit on it, attached to a horizontal chrome clip.
The front hood is made of weight-saving aluminum, the LBX has stylish panels on the wheel arches all around, which don’t look as rusty as the Yaris, and a continuous strip of lights at the rear. Below that, the brand name is stuck on the board in bold capital letters.

High quality equipment

Especially since the interior department at Lexus has understood that even a compact Lexus should have a good measure of respectability on board. The equipment is of high quality, the environment is stylish and the list of extra luxuries is long. The cockpit design is simple and uncluttered, with a few buttons for direct access to the most important functions. Lexus places a 9.8-inch touchscreen lower in the center console than its Toyota sibling, which looks more stylish.

Multiple assistance systems in the Lexus LBX

All types of electronic assistants come free or for an additional fee. Others who have not successfully entered the B section so far. Such as the predictive efficiency assistant that carefully analyzes traffic through the navigation system and helps the hybrid system save fuel. Or a digital car key, which you can use to unlock and start the car with your smartphone. The electromechanical E-Latch door opening also comes “up” among other things, preventing it from opening when a cyclist approaches.

Four lines of equipment

A good little bird no longer wants to know anything about equipment lines in the ordinary sense – that would be too common. Now they are called sky. In addition to the base, there are four “Atmopheres”: Elegant and Relax, Emotion and Cool. Each was designed around specific groups, says Lexus. Before customers tick the box, they should try the seat, because it can squeeze drivers over 1.90 meters tall, as the comfortable seats cannot be pushed back far enough. In the back, passengers have little knee room. Lexus can’t do magic either. The trunk is perfectly fine at 400 liters, although there is a high loading sill that gets in the way. In the all-wheel drive version of the E-Four with an additional electric motor on the rear axle (around 2,200 euros more expensive when adjusted for accessories), the volume decreases to 315 liters.

Lexus does not afford the luxury of an exclusive car. But that’s totally fine too, because the hybrid ensemble is one of the most modern of its kind. The LBX shares a technically refreshed, self-charging system with the Yaris Cross, which will soon also receive the updated version that Lexus is already installing. The 1.5-liter three-cylinder works with an electric motor on the front axle and the most powerful nickel hybrid battery now. The improved control system should now ensure a more direct response, better acceleration and even lower consumption.

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More power, less noise

Three cylinders and acceptable use

In practice, the development of the economy is a calm and confident friend who can easily stay below the five-liter mark. The system output of 136 hp is quite sufficient for daily use. The steering can offer more emotional feedback and the three-cylinder engine sometimes gets a little muffled when full volume is set on its own. Gifted. Otherwise there is a pleasant peace in the box. Double glazing and active noise insulation isolate the occupants even further for an additional charge. But you don’t really need it.

Unfortunately, the top-of-the-line option isn’t available with instructions, but it does come with a 15-year, 250,000km warranty. The base price of the LBX starts at 27,723 euros – 6,429 euros (all prices) above the Yaris Cross. If you give your shorts a better fit, you’ll easily end up in your forties. In 1989 there was luxury in the five-meter model. But that’s a side story.

Lexus LBX – Dimensions

A four-door SUV with a full hybrid drive
Height: 4.19 Meters
Width: 1.82 meters
Height: 1.56 meters
Wheelbase: 2.58 meters
Trunk volume: 400 liters

1.5 liter three-cylinder petrol engine
System output 136 hp
maximum torque 185 Newton meters
front permanent-excitation electric motor
Nickel-metal hybrid battery
CVT transmission
0-100 km/h: 9.2 s
Maximum: 170 km / h
Consumption 4.4 – 4.7 l/100km (WLTP, combined)
CO2 emissions 100 -107 g/km (WLTP, combined),

Price Lexus LBX basic front wheel drive: from 27,723 euros
Price of Lexus LBX E-Four all-wheel drive: from 33,185 euros

Lexus LBX – short description

Why: because luxury does not have to be five meters tall
Why not: because tall drivers don’t fit behind the wheel
What else: Audi Q2, Junior Citizen
When is he coming: March 15, 2024