Lexus remains a juggernaut in the scheme of being one of the most reliable luxury vehicle makers around. It’s much more than a glorified Toyota, as I could harp on all the differences that matter to make a Lexus stand above its mainstream platform-sharing counterparts. One vehicle that properly stands above its stablemates is the new LX, which now touts a new hybrid powertrain and an off-road-adorned Overtrail variant that we spent a week with, walking away pleased with our findings.

From the latest Lexus LX’s redesign as a 2022 model year, giving us a reworked body-on-frame chassis and new twin-turbo V6 powertrain, the LX has been tweaked since then, welcoming many subtle improvements and options, such as the availability of massaging seats up front, an off-roading Overtrail trim, and a hybrid powertrain found in the LX 700h.

While the Lexus doesn’t exactly build a massive amount of LXs, it can be said that it has a dedicated following and fan base that looks to such a vehicle to fulfill their need for one of the most solid-feeling vehicles on the road today that can both transport you in the lap of large-sized luxury and conquer rough off-road terrain. Such a tradition has delicately carried over into the latest generation and now serves up a plethora of trim levels to fix the needs of its devoted and often purposeful buyers.

Performance and Driving Character

Our Lexus LX 700h Overtrail test vehicle lends to highlight the off-roading side of the LX a bit more, but does so by retaining its luxury theme. Such a delicate act is done well and is befitting of this new hybrid powertrain in the Overtrail trim, which has a total of 457 horsepower and 583 lb-ft of torque from its 3.4-liter twin-turbo V6 and electric motor powered by a space-compromising hybrid battery pack under the rear cargo floor. Power is sent through a 10-speed automatic transmission, and the LX 700h Overtrail has an 8,000-pound towing capacity.

Capturing many decades of hybrid tech, the powertrain in the LX 700h is very sophisticated and has a seamless transition of its power management, where you hardly notice when the electric motor is doing its thing, mostly aiding the turbocharged V6 or filling the power gaps. The only fault, if you want to consider it an actual fault, as it seems to be a trait of being too quiet, is the subtle thump sound that you hear when the engine fires up. You’ll notice this thump sounds often when you have the remarkably crisp-sounding Mark Levenson audio system turned down. The sound is the unfortunate result of the LX 700h Overtail being exceptionally dampened and quiet. Otherwise, there’s a lot of smoothness to enjoy in the power delivery and how it gets down the road, hitting 60 mph from a stop in 5.5 seconds. That’s about a second quicker than the fully gas-powered LX 600.

There’s a welcoming, assured feeling about the way the LX 700h Overtrail drives, despite having its knobby 33-inch Toyo Open Country A/T III all-terrain tires that wrap 18-inch dark-painted wheels. Though putting the LX 700h Overtrail to its task in sharp turns quickly reminds you of the heft behind this body-on-frame luxury SUV, as the all-terrain tires start to quickly howl and slowly lose their pavement grip with a nice dose of understeer. Lexus does well to have the stability control step in graciously to keep things mostly civil and the big LX out of insurance-claiming cases. Having the Overtrail may not make the LX the ultimate luxury off-roader, but you do get what is essentially one of the most plush off-road-capable vehicles that has an untouchable reliability record. You also get a couple more off-roading goodies, such as a front skid plate, and front and rear locking differentials coupled with the LX’s typical full-time all-wheel-drive, height-adjustable air suspension, crawl control, and Multi-Terrain Select (MTS) off-roading driving assistance tech.

The ride quality is good and exhibits constant suspension adjustments through the adaptive dampers and air suspension setup that is among the quickest to lower itself for easy entry and exit of the vehicle if you so enable that function. The one issue with the ride quality is a slight front-end bounce or pogo effect that you get through repeated road undulations. The dampers do well to sort out unwanted movements on the fly but this characteristic, which I first noticed in 2022 during my first brush with the redesigned LX 600. It isn’t a deal killer, but it remains something to point out and be aware of, as such a feeling reminds you of a subtle lowrider bounce. Otherwise, there’s a lot to enjoy in piloting and riding in the new LX 700h with a somewhat heavy and dampened sensation that carries through the steering effort as well. Basically, it’s a very solid feeling vehicle that you know will stand the test of time with exceptional build quality.

Fuel Economy

Fuel mileage wasn’t as good as I would have thought, even though I was able to match the EPA estimates of 19 mpg city, 22 mpg highway, and 20 mpg combined. I tended to hit the combined figure the most, while I could get as high as 24 mpg, puttering around back roads and paying close attention to the power gauge for the hybrid system to limit excess use of the gas engine. Just like other Toyota and Lexus hybrids, there are some variables in fuel consumption that heavily rely on you paying special attention to the points that fire up the gas engine versus allowing the electric motor to keep you moving at a slower pace. Ultimately, the LX 700h could use a larger fuel tank, as the highway range is only 393 miles out of its smallish 17.9-gallon fuel tank that requires premium fuel. For such a comfy vehicle, the LX is deserving of a larger fuel tank.

Interior and Technology

The interior of the Lexus LX 700h Overtrail is a nice space that may be a bit tidier than many expect. In that, I mean that the seating areas remain exceptionally comfy with heating, ventilation, and massaging functions for the front seats, along with heated and ventilated rear outboard seats – though the front seating tunnel remains somewhat narrow. Such a space may be fine for some, but its narrowness lends some space to be desired for taller individuals like me, who may want to spread their legs out to the side a bit more. The back seats, which on my Overtrail test vehicle had the 2-row-5-passenger setup instead of the standard 3-row-7-passenger setup, are once again found to be surprisingly short on leg room. Despite those small shortcomings, the LX 700h Overtrail has a plush cabin adorned with many soft-touch surfaces and a limited placement of open-pore wood trim.

Lexus continues to have an impeccable perception of build quality and fit and finish, and the new LX seems to follow through with such a theme only in larger proportions. The interface of the dashboard may look confusing at first glance, but eventually becomes quite user-friendly with the two touchscreens that tend to separate the primary infotainment system setup that’s found in other Toyota and Lexus vehicles from the lower screen for the LX’s display of unique vehicle features and 4-zone automatic climate control system. There’s also a limited set of physical controls for various vehicle settings and the climate control, which has a convenient climate concierge setting to automatically set all characteristics by only adjusting the temperature. That means your seat climate, steering wheel heater, and other zones that detect an occupant are all automatically set by your desired temp setting, so you don’t have to ever fumble with those separate functions.

Lexus sticks with the traditional expected tech in having the integration of wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with a wireless smartphone charging pad. The gauge cluster is customizable in many ways, which can be somewhat confusing in its initial setup at first, but you may set up a few pre-set layouts, including a navigation mapping display. Safety tech with all the typical active safety features remains easily customizable, but with Lexus, you must learn a plethora of acronyms to know what all of the safety tech functions mean. I do enjoy having the digital rearview mirror system that seems to have less glare than earlier versions, in addition to having the 360-degree camera system that cleverly maps in visuals of what is essentially underneath the vehicle, which aids in off-roading adventures.

Pricing

The Lexus LX remains a viable alternative to vehicles like the Range Rover and does so with competitive pricing that doesn’t get as outlandish as the British competitor, and yet remains on par with other competitors. The LX starts at $109,050 for the LX 600 gas version and $118,055 for the LX 700h performance hybrid trims, all before any options or fees. My nicely equipped new LX 700h Overtrail test vehicle comes to a total price of $119,311, which includes a $1,450 delivery, processing, and handling fee.