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Overview
If a plush-riding premium crossover is what want, the 2016 Lexus RX would be a great option. But don't let its aggressive exterior design fool you into thinking it'll tickle your driving fancy; it's not sporty, but it is comfortable and stylish. Buyers can choose between the two-row or three-row L models and can go with the standard 3.5-liter V-6 in the RX350 or opt for the RX450h and its hybrid powertrain. No matter the combination, the RX provides relaxed acceleration to match its relaxed driving demeanor, but performance isn't what this softy is known best for. Instead, it wafts along in silence and coddles occupants in its well-equipped cabin.
What’s New for 2016?
A light exterior freshening is in store for 2016 Lexus RX models, including a revised spindle grille, new exterior colors, fresh wheel designs, and restyled LED head- and taillamps. Inside, users will find one of two new infotainment touchscreens in place of last year's set of non-touchscreen displays. An 8.0-inch screen is standard but there's a larger 12.3-inch display that offers split-screen capability so users can see more than one menu at a time. Lexus has made no changes to the RX's available powertrains, but claims to have stiffened the SUV's structure and tweaked the suspension.
The F Sport models look the coolest, in our opinion, so we'd go with a lightly optioned RX350 F Sport. Of the RX's many option packages, we'd keep it simple and add only the Navigation package; it features a larger 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment display, in-dash navigation, a DVD/CD player, and a 12-speaker audio system. Lexus hasn’t released official pricing yet, so we've estimated that above.
Engine, Transmission, and Performance
Buyers can have their RX in two distinct flavors: Models badged RX350 are powered by a 3.5-liter V-6 while the RX450h comes with the V-6 plus two electric motors. Our RX350 test vehicle was equipped with all-wheel drive and managed an adequate—but slow for the segment—run of 6.9 seconds from zero to 60 mph. The RX450h is one of the segment's few hybrids but it, too, required longer than average to reach 60 mph from rest. What the RX does best is ride comfortably; it irons out rough stretches of road and delivers a compliant ride. The cabin remains quiet and well isolated from the road, making the RX an excellent long-distance cruiser.
Up until the 2016 Lexus RX, every modern Lexus came with an annoying asterisk: Yes, it was a fine vehicle, but the touchpad or mouselike multimedia controls were so confounding and frustrating that it eventually made you think Luddites had it pretty good. So what’s changed for 2016? The updated 2016 Lexus RX ditches the mouse and adds a touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, addressing one (or is it several?) of the luxury SUV’s weakest areas.
The 2016 Lexus RX isn’t without its quirks; the asterisk is just a little smaller. The touchscreen and tech enhancements are the most significant changes for 2016 , though a bunch of little things — new smartphone holder, over-the-air updates, expanded F-Sport line — have similar executions: They sound great on paper but are a little less impressive in practice. The bulk of the RX is unchanged, available in five-seat RX 350 and hybrid RX 450h variants, along with an L version of each that includes a small third row for a total of six or seven seats.
We all gasped when we heard Lexus was getting a touchscreen — actually, it was a sigh of relief — because the way the previous Lexus RX controlled the non-touch display distracted drivers, requiring them to use the mouse to select a little button. No longer, as the 2016 RX gets a standard 8-inch touchscreen or the optional, vibrant 12.3-inch touchscreen I sampled. Lexus moved the screen 5 inches closer to the driver for 2016, though that might not be enough. I’m 6 feet tall with long arms and like to sit fairly close to the wheel, so I didn’t have a problem using the screen while driving, but the touchscreen might prove too far to be useful if you have shorter arms and/or like to sit farther back; I had to fully extend my arm to reach the far end of the screen. Oddly, Lexus’ Remote Touchpad, seen in other models, snuck into the party when no one was looking, but it’s relatively obsolete in this application because of the touchscreen, and I used it only for the menu button during my short drive. If you can’t reach the touchscreen, the touchpad is how you’ll have to control CarPlay/Android Auto; Godspeed, you poor short-armed bastard.
My preference is the RX’s widescreen format — a style also offered on the BMW X5 — versus the vertically oriented touchscreen in a Volvo XC90. I exclusively use Apple CarPlay while driving, and CarPlay fills the entire display on widescreens like the Lexus, versus on a Volvo where CarPlay is stuck in a little box on the bottom half of the screen, barely larger than the plus-sized phone providing the function. In the RX, all 12.3 inches show CarPlay, so the buttons are large and easy to press (if you can reach them), and annoyingly long podcast titles that would normally be cut off in a small screen are fully displayed.
For those who don’t use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, which provide navigation from a smartphone, the optional built-in navigation system is quite good and boosted for 2016 with more humanized voice recognition (it recognized numerous ways I asked to get to the nearest Starbucks). Most notable is that there are now over-the-air navigation updates that replace the need for a physical SD card. This isn’t the first Lexus to receive the system, named Dynamic Navigation, but it’s new to the RX. When maps are updated, the update comes straight into the RX via the onboard cellular connection. The functionality is active only if you subscribe to Lexus’ Enform cellular service, however, which comes with a free three-year trial before a subscription is required, and the updates are good only for navigation. Unlike the Tesla Model X, you won’t be getting vehicle functionality or systems updates. Those kinds of updates aren’t out of scope, however, as Lexus College senior product specialist Bob Gleich says there are numerous regulatory hoops Lexus must hop through first before that can happen.
Lexus has an intriguing solution for storing phones, a center console cellphone pocket. The sizable slot was large enough to hold my iPhone Plus, which is impressive because my monster of a phone is wrapped in a toddler-proof thick, shock-resistant case. The holder stands the phone up vertically so it’s not using storage space in the cubby if laid down flat. Another bonus: The phone won’t fly out of a bin when accelerating like it does in some cars. On the downside, this cubby won’t wirelessly charge your phone, and CarPlay isn’t wireless as in some BMWs and Audis, so you’ll have to string a data/charge cable across the cupholders to the center console. Oddly, the USB ports literally right next to the phone holder are charge only, and not data ports that stream CarPlay/Android Auto and music to the media system like in the center console storage bin.
Fuel Economy and Real-World MPG
Fuel efficiency is where the RX shines, and not just because it's offered with an optional hybrid powertrain. The nonhybrid RX350 doesn't look all that efficient on paper. In the real world, however, both the RX350 and the RX450h outperformed their EPA ratings and each posted 31 mpg in our 200-mile highway fuel-economy test.
Interior, Comfort, and Cargo
Lexus has chosen fine materials for the RX's interior, including soft leather, textured metallic or wood trims, and soft-touch plastics. The driving position is comfortable and easy to settle in to, but the interior is marred by a few ergonomic missteps: The tuning knob for the radio is a long, awkward reach from the driver's seat, and the infotainment system is operated by an irritatingly inaccurate controller just aft of the shifter. Luckily, Lexus has added touchscreen capability to the 2016 RX's infotainment system. While it's not quite the cargo-hauling champ, the RX came close, holding just one less carry-on suitcase behind its rear seats than the victorious Cadillac XT5. With its second row folded—a process done either from the side door or from the cargo area—the RX matched the XT5 with 24 cases. Folding the seats does not yield a completely flat load floor.
INTERIOR | |
Front head room | 39 " |
Rear head room | 39 " |
Front shoulder room | 58 " |
Rear shoulder room | 58 " |
Front hip room | 57 " |
Rear hip room | 56 " |
Front leg room | 44.1 " |
Rear leg room | 38.0 " |
Luggage capacity | 18.4 Cu.Ft. |
Maximum cargo capacity | 56.3 Cu.Ft. |
Standard seating | 5 |
EXTERIOR | |
Length | 192.5 " |
Body width | 74.6 " |
Body height | 67.7 " |
Wheelbase | 109.8 " |
Curb | 4,387 Lbs. |
Gross weight | 5,864 Lbs. |
FUEL | |
Fuel tank capacity | 19.2 Gal. |
EPA mileage estimates | 19 City / 26 Hwy |
PERFORMANCE | |
Base engine size | 3.5 Liters |
Base engine type | V-6 |
Horsepower | 295 Hp |
Horsepower rpm | 6,300 |
Torque | 267 Lb-Ft. |
Torque rpm | 4,700 |
Maximum towing capacity | 3,500 Lbs. |
Drive type | All-Wheel |
Turning radius | 22.6 '' |