According to chief engineer Takeaki Kato and his assistant chief engineer Sunao Ichihara, “the NX represents the ultimate premium urban sports gear”. That’s a confident statement, because there is plenty of “premium urban sports gear” in the segment where Lexus wants to play. The key rivals are Audi’s Q3 and Q5, BMW’s X3 and X4, Land Rover’s Range Rover Evoque (and upcoming Discovery Sport), Porsche’s Macan and Volvo’s XC60.
The crossover segment is crowded these days, but Lexus was one of the pioneers that pushed the crossover concept in the first place, with its original RX introduced in 1998. That groundbreaking model redefined the traditional, truck-based sports utility vehicle (SUV) by combining saloon-like properties with estate-like practicality and adding luxury to the combination.
The NX is not a smaller version of the familiar RX, and it’s not a sportier version of the current Toyota Harrier (which shares the same RAV4 platform as the NX). Five years in the making, the newcomer is a standalone model with its own set of attributes and attractions.
The NX certainly looks ready to engage its stylish rivals in a style shootout, thanks to an exterior design with plenty of curves, creases and “slashes”. It’s not only dramatic, but aerodynamic, too, with a decent drag coefficient of 0.33 (0.34 for the all-wheel-drive NX200t tested here). The styling of the NX just about toes the line between “edgy” and “busy”, but one thing’s for sure – nobody will mistake the NX for the RX, or a classier Harrier for that matter. 
There’s admirable attention to detail, too. For instance, the standard black plastic cladding that frames each wheel arch regardless of body colour has a metallic-flake finish, while the optional LED headlamps have low-beam elements in an L-shape (to signify Lexus). They’re even more dazzling than the rear combination lamps, which have crystal glass-like red lenses and sleek piano-black garnish.
Like for the RX, 10 body colours are available for the NX, but Sonic Quartz (a special white paintwork that’s more reflective than usual) is unique to the NX. Making the NX look even sharper is the F Sport package, which includes a more aggressive spindle grille, black outer mirror-covers and darker, “wavier” 18-inch alloy wheels.
The exterior’s edgy/busy design scheme is repeated on the inside, which would appeal to urbanites who want both fashion and function in their urban wagons.
The “function” bit is well taken care of by the NX, thanks to its superb interior space (the larger RX with its 80mm longer wheelbase is roomier, but not by much), sensible storage points within the cabin, and versatile rear seats with optional powered folding/unfolding. Making said function even more convenient are the three sets of controls – one on the dashboard, another on the sides of the seats themselves and a third in the boot area. The NX also offers a powered tailgate, with a choice of five opening-height presets. 
The cabin’s leather and plastics are of Lexus-level quality, which means “superior to Toyota”, while the standards of fit and finish are world-class. The NX even gets the same Shimamoku wood option as the LS flagship – the material’s “polished steel” appearance is said to have been inspired by Yamaha concert pianos.
In terms of on-board gadgets, the NX has a few that even Lexus’ LS flagship doesn’t have (at least not yet) – namely, a wireless charging tray for supported smartphones, a panoramic all-round camera system (with a cartoon-like depiction of the NX) for safer close-quarters manoeuvring, and a redesigned Remote Touch Interface (RTI).
The new RTI, which is also in Lexus’ RC coupe, has replaced the previous mouse-joystick controller with a touchpad, whilst retaining the original’s haptic feedback capability. It’s a neater device that’s also more user-friendly than the rather tentative RTI that came before. Other Lexus models are expected to adopt the improved RTI in due course.
What I didn’t expect from play-safe Lexus are the peculiar features in the NX. The reverse side of the lid covering the central accessory pocket doubles as a portable vanity mirror, there are cheesy “cosmetic screw” bolts (apparently inspired by the cockpit of the LFA supercar) affixed to the sides of the centre console, and the F Sport interior option for the NX200t includes a Playstation-ish digital turbo-boost gauge.
With just a press of a steering-wheel button, said gauge can be “swopped” for a digital G-force meter, which is equally gimmicky (or brilliant, depending on the driver’s viewpoint).
In either case, it’s difficult to watch the real-time data animation on the “Playstation” panel while simultaneously keeping an eye on the more important main instruments (which can include a nifty head-up display if you wish). Therefore, the novelty of the boost and G-force gauges might wear off long before the next Japanese game console is launched.
The turbocharged performance of the NX200t, however, is likely to remain interesting for some time, and not just because it is Lexus’ first-ever turbo petrol model (they once did a turbo-diesel IS220d for Europe). The NX turbo project was done in-house.
Boosted by a twin-scroll turbocharger, the 2-litre direct-injection 4-cylinder produces 235bhp and 350Nm – figures which are competitive against major European automakers’ 2-litre turbo units in the SUV segment, with the exception of the mad Mercedes GLA45 AMG with its 360bhp and 450Nm.
But the NX200t’s 6-speed automatic transmission might not be geared up to fight its continental competitors, whose gearbox repertoire boasts a 7-speed dual-clutch (Audi), an 8-speed torque-converter automatic (BMW) and even a 9-speeder (Range Rover Evoque and Jeep Cherokee).
Indeed, the 6-speed automatic is a chink in the avant-garde armour of the NX200t. Said autobox changes gears less enthusiastically than the engine changes tempo, and it always slurs every gearchange, even one selected manually and urgently by the driver using a paddle-shifter (which feels nice and tight, by the way).
The 2-litre turbo powertrain is otherwise a delight. It needs at least 3000rpm on the tachometer before it pulls with gusto, but the in-gear acceleration from that point on is punchy. The motor is tofu-smooth, too, and it sounds delicious in the upper registers of the rev counter.
The sweet-sounding engine makes the Active Sound Control (ASC) even more redundant. ASC pipes a synthesised “engine” note into the cockpit area, with a dashboard switch beside the steering column for the driver to vary the volume – thankfully, ASC can be switched off.
Rolling on 225/60 R18 tyres, there’s more road noise than in the Lexus RX, although drowning it out is easy with the spectacular 14-speaker Mark Levinson hi-fi system (and less easy with the standard eight-speaker system). The slightly noisy ride is offset by the negligible wind noise around the side mirrors at speed (120-130km/h) and the compliance of the suspension over Canadian tarmac – be it perfectly paved or broken in places.
The test route, which is almost entirely on long, wide highways and trunk roads, has far less curves than the bodywork of the NX, so the car’s handling is barely challenged. This could be the reason why there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference between the Normal mode and the Sport S mode of the Adaptive Variable Suspension (AVS), although in the sportiest S+ mode, there’s a bit more “weight” in the suspension and electric steering, and the front end feels like it’s holding the road more firmly. The body doesn’t flex or creak at all, so I tend to believe Lexus’ claim of 20 percent higher rigidity than the Toyota RAV4 on which the NX is based.
In any of the damping modes, the NX200t cruises calmly and changes direction accurately enough to maintain the motoring rhythm, and with stable body control, too. Both the driving position and the driver’s-seat support are good.
The same test route has no off-road detour, so there’s no opportunity to put the all-wheel-drive through its paces in the British Columbia countryside. It’s a fuel-efficient part-time system, so only the front wheels are driven in most circumstances, with power diverted to the rear axle (up to a 50:50 split) whenever there’s front wheelspin or a bootful of throttle. In any case, the only mountain the NX will ever climb in Singapore is Mount Faber. The AWD Lexus should have no problem tackling suburban grass patches, shopping mall ramps and wet weather conditions.
The NX200t is such a capable and attractive crossover, I reckon that when it makes its local debut in the last quarter of this year, it’ll steal sales from the RX270 and intended competitors alike.
SPECIFICATIONS
DRIVETRAIN
TYPE Inline-4, 16-valves, turbocharged
CAPACITY 1998cc
BORE X STROKE 86mm x 86mm
COMPRESSION RATIO 10:1
MAX POWER 235bhp at 4800-5600rpm
MAX TORQUE 350Nm at 1650-4000rpm
POWER TO WEIGHT 135.6bhp per tonne
GEARBOX 6-speed automatic with manual select
DRIVEN WHEELS All
PERFORMANCE
0-100KM/H 7.1 seconds
TOP SPEED 200km/h
CONSUMPTION 11.8km/L (combined)
CO2 EMISSION 194g/km
SUSPENSION
FRONT MacPherson struts, coil springs, adaptive dampers
REAR Double wishbones, coil springs, adaptive dampers
BRAKES
FRONT / REAR Ventilated discs / Discs
TYRES
TYPE Bridgestone Dueler H/L 33
SIZE 225/60 R18
SAFETY
AIRBAGS 8
TRACTION CONTROL ABS with VSC
MEASUREMENTS
LENGTH 4630mm
WIDTH 1845mm
HEIGHT 1630mm
WHEELBASE 2660mm
KERB WEIGHT 1755kg
TURNING CIRCLE 11.4m
BUYING IT
PRICE INCL. COE To be announced
WARRANTY 3 years/100,000km
WE SAY
+ Eye-catching exterior, interesting interior, strong and smooth performance, fantastic practicality
–The gearbox is less effective than the engine, terrific F Sport features cost extra, clearly outclasses the RX270
