Welcome to Autodrivel

Many times I have been accused of being a two bit tit, that I have a brain so smooth that a fly can skate on it, that I am paid to soil on car brands and especially that I am very subjective of cars. So today comes one of the few articles where I’m really subjective because I’m talking about the Lexus NX AZ10, one of my favorite cars.

However the Lexus NX is at the same time one of my favorite cars but also a classic case of not meeting your heroes because you will be more disappointed than most of the girls in college who wanted to do physical things with me. I say most because I give myself a ray of hope that it wasn’t all of them.

The Lexus NX is NOT a Toyota Rav4 on steroids. The only thing in common is the size and the fact that they are urban SUVs / crossovers that give you a high driving position that helps you more easily observe the rest of the traffic and that’s about it. Oh yes, and the hybrid engine.

But that’s about it really because the rest of the car, on the other hand, is classic Lexus. Full to the brim with luxury and comfort, the Lexus NX AZ10 also falls into the “laptop on wheels” category considering the electronics and technology that make this car so exclusive. So exclusive, in fact, that at any Toyota dealership you have priority for the simple fact that you have a Lexus. More than that, in countries were water pours from the wall and not the well you also get the “Lexus Red Carpet Treatment”, where an Lexus representative calls you to remind you that you have to do the annual servicing and when he can bother you to come pick up the car. Then he arrives at your door, does other things for you because you have red carpet treatment, takes your car, takes it to the dealership, does the servicing and then brings it back home. You just have to pay and that’s it, you don’t have to bother with mundane nonsense like “when do I have to do the annual servicing?” or “does the car also need oil, not just petrol?” or “I have to book a trip to the dealership”. These things are not done when you have a Lexus and especially a Lexus NX AZ10, considering how much these things can cost.

Lexus NX AZ10 Engines

Petrol

• 2.0 l-4 3ZR-FAE of 150 horsepower – This was the first engine with Valvematic so make sure to put some money aside for the inevitable moment when the Valvematic will fail. And when I say money I say rubles and yen, because the entry level NX200 was built for the Russian and Chinese markets.


• 2.0 Turbo 8AR-FTS of 235 horsepower – Toyota sure took it’s own sweet time when it came to turbocharged petrols, but atleast it launched it’s first attempt after learning from the mistakes of the manufacturers who launched such engines earlier. A great engine reliability wise, but the NX200t / NX300 engine is so complex that any major labor on it will get pretty costly pretty quick. It’s as complicated as trying to decipher the texts of a girl who likes you, when you’re in high school and you don’t know if she likes you or not so you just go with c. Can’t tell.

Hybrid

2.5 l-4 2AR-FXE hybrid of 197 horsepower – Now this is what the Lexus NX AZ10 is all about. An high-tech, complex hybrid engine mated to an eCVT gearbox which has as much to do with sportiness as Los Van Van has to do with punk rock. I mean, the CVT gearbox on the hybrid has always been a lazy piece of kit which is the subject of mockery from alot of people, but it just fits the NX’s character as this is not a car to hoon around and it’s now a car with excess purr such as the RX. This is a gentlemanly chariot. As for the hybrid powertrain, there’s not much to say apart from the fact that the engine is modified to run on Atkinson cycle so it sacrifices more power for better fuel economy, and the hybrid system’s batteries have a 10 year warranty so do the math and check the battery charge before buying. Sure, they can be refurbished, but it can still get pretty costly pretty fast.

Lexus NX AZ10 Reliability Issues

• You would think on the one hand that a Lexus doesn’t have many reliability issues, but then you remember the level of technology, electronics and software that are stuffed into these wheeled laptops and that you will have constant niggles on this side. You will have niggles, but occasional ones, because it’s a Lexus after all.


• What is mind boggling though is that the Lexus NX, a comfortable cruiser, comes with sports suspension, that is anything but comfortable. The engine that was supposed to be sport is soft and the suspension that was supposed to be soft is sport. It’s like Boomhauer speaking coherently. It’s like a young and strong Graham Norton. It’s as if Sofia Boutella left a comment here.


• And now back to reality…the boot is as modest as my aspirations in life, so be very calculated with your travel luggage. Anyway, you won’t have passengers too often because 1. you don’t have friends because you have a Lexus and 2. you don’t have children because you won’t let the children destroy the interior of the Lexus NX.


• Finally there’s the infotainment system which is so advanced that you need a programming degree to understand it, but that applies to any Lexus or premium Japanese car really.

Lexus NX AZ10 Verdict

The Lexus NX AZ10 is probably the best crossover you’ve never heard of. A festival of technology, luxury and comfort. A car made to look good and not necessarily to be practical. It’s a city hybrid petrol crawler, a car of urban opulence and that’s why it’s one of my favorite cars. It’s not perfect, but it’s that good and that’s why I’m going to start a 30,000 pounds fundraiser so I can afford a 2015 model.

Which engines do I recommend? If you want less headaches and more speed, then the 2.0 litre turbocharged NX200t / NX300 is the best for the job. If you just want to potter about in luxury and comfort, then the 2.5 litre hybrix NX300h is the one to go for.