2024 Lexus RX and RX Hybrid Review: Classic Lexus Refinement

The Lexus RX is a familiar sight in the USA, having been on sale here since the late '90s as a mid-sized crossover in the vein of the BMW X5. The brand-new fifth-generation car that launched last year finds itself in a more crowded marketplace, bookended by the smaller NX and larger new mid-size three-row TX. The RX straddles a niche between two classes - that of slightly cheaper compacts such as the BMW X3 and Genesis GV70 on the one side and the more expensive mid-sizers such as the X5 on the other, which it more closely approximates in size. With just two seating rows to accommodate, the RX is roomy inside and as refined as ever, with no pretensions to sportiness. The powertrain options start with a 275-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder in the base gas trims and culminate in the 366-hp RX 500h performance hybrid, but there's a brand-new plug-in hybrid - an RX first - this year too, promising a 37-mile all-electric range. Let's see what the mildly updated 2024 lineup has to offer.

New for 2024

The biggest news for the 2024 RX lineup is the addition of the first-ever plug-in hybrid model, the RX 450h+ Luxury AWD which - as its name implies- has the same standard features as the fully-loaded Luxury trim level. Under the skin, it gets a powertrain lifted from the smaller NX 450h+ AWD - a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine with three uprated electric motors that take system output to 304 hp - 58 hp more than the regular hybrid and two hp more than in the NX.

The existing RXs also come in for revisions, with an additional interior color, Cloudburst Gray, available on all trims and a new paint color called Copper Crest added to the Premium and F Sport Handling trims. There are a few minor changes to the RX's equipment and specifications. The starting price of a new Lexus RX 350 base trim increases by $800 for 2024.

2024 Lexus RX and RX Hybrid Price: Which One to Buy

The base price of the 2024 Lexus RX 350 is $48,600. The other gas models are the RX 350 Premium at $50,750, the RX 350 Premium+ at $52,600, and the RX 350 Luxury at $57,730. These prices are for the front-wheel-drive versions, but upgrading any of them to all-wheel drive will cost you $1,600. All the hybrid trims are AWD, starting with the RX 350h at $50,450, followed by the RX 350h Premium at $52,600, the RX 350h Premium+ at $54,450, and the RX 350h Luxury at $59,580. The two remaining trims are the sporty RX 500h F Sport Performance at $62,450 and the plug-in hybrid RX 450h+ Luxury - the most expensive RX with an MSRP of $68,730. The destination fee is not included in these prices and amounts to $1,350.

The Premium+ trim level makes the most sense to us. It has the same sunroof, ventilated front seats, wood trim, and wireless charging pad that differentiates the Premium from the Base, but adds desirable features such as leather upholstery and the big 14-inch touchscreen. It's also the first trim to give you access to options such as the head-up display, bigger wheels, and the Mark Levinson audio system, so you have more freedom to spec it up.

Interior and Features

The modern interior is easy to use, with drawcards including the handy physical HVAC controls, but negatives being the fiddly touch controls on the steering wheel.

The cabin sticks to traditional RX strengths, majoring in tasteful, high-quality materials, a comfortable ride, and low noise levels on the move. It's smartly executed, with even the leatherette on the seats of the base trims being of high quality; higher up the range, you get leather, wood, thematic ambient interior lighting, and two types of sunroofs, among other refinements. The latest RX also moves into the 21st century with a big touchscreen in the middle of the dashboard and all the modern conveniences you might expect. Physical controls are retained for the climate control, but the touch controls on the steering wheel require getting used to.

The sports front seats of the F Sport models feature heavier bolstering and top trims get a bigger touchscreen. Interior space and seating comfort are both good, even in the nicely sculpted second row, and it's easy to get in thanks to the big doors and typical crossover-like ground clearance. The rear pillars obstruct visibility somewhat, but the backup camera and Intuitive Parking Assist with automatic braking will help you out when maneuvering the RX.

Space

With a body length of more than 192 inches, the RX is nearly as big as mid-size SUVs like the X5, and with only two seating rows to accommodate, it offers good passenger space. The second row has a comfortable bench and ample legroom, although headroom is more adequate than generous, given the graceful slope of the roofline. It's still a lot more than you'll find in a regular sedan. The driver has a commanding view of the road and can easily get comfortable thanks to ample electric adjustment for both that seat and the steering wheel.

Cargo

Trunk space is also close to that of the typical mid-sizer, with the 29.6 cubic feet on offer behind the second row beating most compacts and running the X5 close. The bulky 40/20/40-split rear bench doesn't fold completely flat though, so the resultant total trunk volume of 46.2 cubes is not impressive at all, and beaten by the average compact crossover. At least the GA-K platform was designed for hybridization, so the cargo space is unaffected by the under-floor hardware, even in the hybrid and PHEV trims.

Passengers get a glovebox, four door pockets, and two lidded center-console storage spaces, including a phone cubby. Two front cupholders are found in the center console, while rear-seat passengers get two pop-out cupholders in their fold-down center armrest and front seatback pockets.

Materials and Colors

The base trim gets NuLuxe leatherette upholstery in a choice of two interior colors - Macadamia or Black - but both come with Black Cascade trim. The Premium gives you a choice between Birch and Black with black open-pore wood trim or Palomino and Macadamia with Ash Bamboo trim. The Premium+'s available color schemes and wood trim are identical to the Premium's, but the NuLuxe is replaced with perforated leather. The Luxury trims upgrade to semi-aniline leather in Black or Peppercorn with black open-pore wood trim, or in Macadamia with Ash Bamboo.

The 350 F Sport Handling and 500h F Sport Performance both have access to two sporty themes - Black or Rioja Red, both with Dark Graphite aluminum trim, but the former makes do with NuLuxe upholstery while the latter gets leather. In the base trims, the steering wheel is trimmed in leather, but from Premium and up, it's trimmed in wood and leather, except for the F Sport trims, which get a unique F Sport item trimmed in perforated leather. The shift knob in all trims is leather-trimmed as well. Cloudburst Gray is due to become available as an additional interior color on all trims during the course of the model year.

Features and Infotainment

At the base level, you don't get leather upholstery or a sunroof, but the list of standard features is comprehensive. It includes keyless entry with push-button start, a power liftgate, heated eight-way power front seats, a power-adjustable and leather-trimmed tilting/telescoping steering wheel, and tri-zone climate control. In higher trims, you get ventilated front seats, heated and ventilated rear seats, wood trim, a wood/leather steering wheel, a power sunroof or glass panoramic roof, and more.

The cloud-connected infotainment system has a 9.8-inch touchscreen in base trims, with system features including wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Wi-Fi with a 3-GB 30-day AT&T trial subscription, connected navigation, SiriusXM with a three-month Platinum Plan trial subscription, voice commands, Bluetooth audio streaming, USB ports, and a 12-speaker audio system. From Premium level, a wireless charging pad is added and the 14-inch touchscreen becomes available, which is standard on the Premium+ and Luxury trims only. Premium+ trims get access to a color 10-inch head-up display, but it's standard on the Luxury and F Sport trims only, which are also the only trims to get access to the optional 21-speaker Mark Levinson audio system.

Performance

Performance is traded for economy, and even the most powerful trim is not particularly quick, while towing capacity is below par.

Performance varies and depends on the powertrain. There are five configurations; the gas Lexus RX's engine is a 2.4L turbocharged inline four-cylinder with 275 hp and 317 lb-ft, connected to an eight-speed automatic transmission and your choice of front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. This engine gives the Lexus RX a 0-60 mph time of 7.6 seconds with FWD and 7.2 seconds with AWD. The others are all hybrids and they're only available with the AWD drivetrain, starting with the 350h hybrid, which uses a 2.5L naturally aspirated Atkinson-cycle four-pot with two front electric motors and one rear-mounted one, sending 246 hp and 233 lb-ft to a CVT automatic. This is good for a 0-60 sprint in 7.4 seconds. The new 450h+ plug-in hybrid gets the same powertrain but with uprated electric motors and an 18.1-kWh battery to deliver 304 hp, dropping the 0-60 to 6.2 seconds and offering all-electric driving.

The performance hybrid is the 500h F Sport Performance, which combines the regular hybrid's three electric motors with the base trims' turbocharged 2.4L engine, and a six-speed automatic for total outputs of 366 hp and 406 lb-ft - you'll get to 60 mph in 5.9 seconds. It comes with Lexus' performance-oriented Direct4 AWD system. Every RX is limited to a top speed of 124 mph, except for the 500h Performance, which is limited to 130 mph. The unibody RX is a crossover that lacks low range, so it's not meant for off-road driving, but trailering credentials are expected in this class, so gas and hybrid RXs have a towing capacity of 3,494 pounds. This is not a competitive figure and rivals do better. Lexus has not released a towing figure for the 450h+ PHEV yet.

The RX does what RXs have always done best - transport its passengers in comfort and silence. Low noise levels, compliant suspension, and comfortable seats make it a great road-trip crossover, and the base powertrain offers good mid-range punch and decent fuel economy. The hybrid can get quite whiney and the 2.5L four-pot sounds strained when the CVT lets it rev out, but is acceptably refined at lower speeds. Handling is secure and stable, with none of the agile responses of sportier rivals, and it occasionally feels underdamped. The F Sport trims inject very little sportiness into the equation, so the firmer ride comes with little extra fun except the performance boost in the case of the 500h, but at least it's not harsh. If you're looking for rapid performance and fun handling, you'll have to shop elsewhere.

Fuel Efficiency

The worst gas mileage belongs to the gas AWD powertrain, which returns EPA estimates of 21/28/24 mpg for the city/highway/combined cycles, improving to 22/29/25 with FWD. In 350h hybrid format, the Lexus RX's mpg figures are very impressive, improving to 36/37/34 mpg. The performance-orientated 500h hybrid is significantly worse at 27/28/27 mpg.

The new 450h+ PHEV comes with an 18.1-kWh battery pack that allows up to 37 miles of all-electric driving. It's rated at 83 MPGe and 35 mpg combined, and it can be recharged in two-and-a-half hours.

Gas RXs have a 17.8-gallon fuel capacity, good for a range of around 445 miles with FWD or 427 miles with AWD. The 350h hybrids have a 17.2-gallon gas tank and a range of nearly 620 miles, while the 500h hybrid gets only 464 miles on the same 17.2 gallons. The 450h+ PHEV's tank can only hold 14.5 gallons, but you should get around 540 miles out of it before needing to fill up again.

Safety

Safety credentials are excellent, with good crash scores and an entire suite of driver assists, but a surround-view camera, though available, isn’t standard on any trim.

The IIHS's safety review of the 2023 Lexus RX was a glowing one, earning it a Top Safety Pick+ award. So far, the 2024 model has fared well, except for a Marginal score for the updated moderate overlap front crash. The NHTSA has not crash-tested the new RX yet.

Besides all the federally mandated safety features, every RX also comes with the Lexus Safety System+ 3.0 driver-assistance suite, which includes adaptive cruise control with curve-speed management, a pre-collision system with intersection support and pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning and lane-tracing assist with steering assist, road-sign assist, and automatic high beams. Intuitive Parking Assist with automatic braking, LED headlights, rain-sensing wipers, a driver's auto-dimming side mirror, a reverse auto tilt-down function for both side mirrors, and safe-exit assist are also part of the deal. From the Premium+ level, a surround-view camera, lane-change assist, front cross-traffic alert, traffic-jam assist, and a camera-based digital rearview mirror become available in various packages. A head-up display is standard on Luxury and F Sport trims and optional on the Premium+.

Reliability

The Lexus RX's reliability scores are very good, with 81 out of 100 for JD Power's Quality & Reliability assessment. So far there has only been a single recall of the new RX and that was last year, for a driver's airbag that may not deploy.

The limited warranty of the 2024 Lexus RX covers it for four years/50,000 miles, the powertrain warranty is valid for six years/70,000 miles, and all hybrid components are covered for eight years/100,000 miles. Complimentary servicing for one year/10,000 miles is included too.

Warranty

Design

The latest RX looks sleek and modern, with a graceful sweep to the roofline that terminates in a rear pillar with a blacked-out center portion that flows into the glasshouse to visually elongate the profile. The Lexus Spindle Grille is present in a less severe and overstyled way than we've seen on other Lexus vehicles. At the base level, you get 19-inch alloys, but Luxury and F Sport trims come with 21s, which are blacked out on the F Sport derivatives, along with other exterior trim such as the mirrors, grille, and roof rails. A power liftgate is standard on all trims, with a hands-free gesture-controlled one optional. Premium, Premium+, and F Sport trims get a power tilting/sliding moonroof and roof rails, but these items are optional on the base trims. A Panoramic glass roof is fitted to Luxury trims. F Sport trims have sportier styling with different fascias, blacked-out trim, and black wheels.

Verdict: Is The 2024 Lexus RX A Good SUV?

The latest RX is an RX through and through, embracing the nameplate's values of comfort, refinement, and hybrid economy that have stood it in good stead for decades. It is a modern, elegant premium SUV at a reasonable price, and a great alternative to smaller compact rivals and more expensive mid-size ones alike, if you're in the market for a two-row crossover. There is a powertrain on offer for every kind of buyer, from regular gas to super-economical hybrids, even including a plug-in variant, but what the Lexus lacks is excitement and a proper performance version, which some people will find hard to accept with prices touching $70k at the top of the range. If you don't mind the negatives, the positives make it the best RX yet, even if it's not the best in its class.