What I don’t like about my NX

[Rabbers]

I had an NX300h as a courtesy car for the second time when my RC was in for service earlier this week.  The previous time was four or five years ago

when its unusual design made it a newer and more exciting addition to the Lexus range.   While the design remains striking I now find that time and

familiarity have reduced its appeal somewhat.  As before, I found the ride choppy on roads that are less than good, imagining that the adaptive

suspensions on the F Sport version would suit the car better.  I was also once or twice taken by surprise, though far from alarmed, by a slight loss

of rear grip when accelerating away from tight corners.  The NX is sufficiently punchy at low speeds to make it good though not excellent in town

traffic, but the placidity of the  mid-range response occasionally caused me to think twice or even hesitate before overtaking on faster roads.  In

fact, you are always conscious that it is not a light car.  Despite this, it is easy to drive and, no doubt, relaxing to live with unless you are often in

a hurry or impatient by temperament.  The cabin is well-appointed and a nice place to be in the best Lexus tradition, though F-Sport-type seats

hug you more comfortably.  The layout of the dash is rather fussy and the overall appearance a little dated despite improvements made with the

facelift.  Like the body, the cabin will be extensively revamped in 2022 according to media leaks, meaning that potential customers should wait

before buying.  Maybe their patience will be rewarded by substantial improvements, but my own instincts, which are admittedly those of someone

not fond of SUVs, "luxury compact" or otherwise, tell me that it might well be better to first look towards the Germans before deciding on the NX.

 

 

[royoftherovers]

32 minutes ago, Phil Catterall said:

Yes, in due course John!  Just driving it home is not a sufficient journey on which to report in fully. Trouble is, the NX is now garaged until the V5C comes through - thankfully DVLA are pretty swift these days. I have a personal reg plate and last week when I insured the car I got the insurance company to send me a certificate for the personal reg starting from today when I assumed I would have it switched.  It turns out that while I have a retention certificate I need the full V5 in my hand to do the online switch. So its a bit risky taking it out until I do the reg switch insurance wise. So we'll run about in the Skoda Fabia until I get the admin sorted.  There are several things I need to check and change in the NX's menu this afternoon - one being the radar cruise control which is not to my liking as the 3rd step on the scale is too great a distance to the vehicle being followed. I think the 2nd step should be a more suitable distance gap.  

No, didn't back up or use the camera. I parked it myself like that purposely, to the left side of the parking bay - end of a row with a Mercedes on my offside, so allowing them Merc people plenty of room to open their doors not onto the side of my new motor!

The car is a minter with no marks on the bodywork or wheels and with a perfect interior, however there is a 1 cm long scratch on the windscreen on the passenger side, from what appears to have been a flying stone or some such. Not serious. I'll get a windscreen specialist to look at it to get an opinion. 

Cheers

Phil 

 

Thanks for the update Phil. I`m really pleased for you.

If it`s any consolation it took me a full 12 months before I felt wholly comfortable with everything on my G.S.

Just enjoy it !

[Andy B]

17 hours ago, Rabbers said:

The NX is sufficiently punchy at low speeds to make it good though not excellent in town traffic, but the placidity of the  mid-range response occasionally caused me to think twice or even hesitate before overtaking on faster roads.

"Not my words, Carol, the words of Top Gear magazine!" - Alan Partridge circa 1997

[Sorry, I couldn't resist it 😉 ]

[First_Lexus]

20 hours ago, Rabbers said:

Maybe their patience will be rewarded by substantial improvements, but my own instincts, which are admittedly those of someone

not fond of SUVs, "luxury compact" or otherwise, tell me that it might well be better to first look towards the Germans before deciding on the NX.

^^ The ownership ‘experience’ of having a German SUV is the exact reason why I’m now in an NX! I think the NX is perfect for those that want the relaxed and wafting experience. I can’t actually remember the last time I overtook anything on an ‘a’ or ‘b’ road (cyclists and horses excepted) and on the motorway I set the cruise to 70mph and relax. For my type of driving, the NX is perfect, but I fully accept if you are a more aggressive or enthusiastic driver then you’re probably better off with something different. 
 

 

[Phil Catterall]

21 hours ago, Rabbers said:

Like the body, the cabin will be extensively revamped in 2022 according to media leaks, meaning that potential customers should wait

before buying.  Maybe their patience will be rewarded by substantial improvements, but my own instincts, which are admittedly those of someone

I didn't wait for the updated NX in 2022, and even if I did I couldn't have afforded to buy one until around 2024 as a used car - too long to wait that, which is why I bought a 2020 Premium Sport model last week.  If it's over £40K when it is released the higher Luxury Goods motor tax will be levied for its first five years of life - making ownership very expensive indeed - completely unaffordable to many.

Cheers

Phil 

[Rabbers]

The RC I currently drive is my seventh consecutive Lexus.   An important factor in my original decision to switch to Lexus after a succession

of BMWs and Audis was the simple desire to try something that was not German.  Then as now, I had no prejudice against German cars and 

I would readily have switched back to one had experience not LED me to acquire a strong quality- and service-motivated  loyalty towards

Lexus.  Although I would like nothing better than to have an eighth Lexus for my next car, this has now become less likely because of the

exclusion from the range of the RC and the IS, which are the models I personally most favour in dimensions and price.   Sticking with Lexus

would therefore require me to buy either the ES, which I frankly don't much like, or the NX, which would require me to overcome a general

lack of enthusiasm for SUVs.  At the time of its launch, I hoped that a "luxury compact" SUV conceptually represented by the NX might have 

overcome my prejudices, as indeed it did - and still does - in terms of style and general level of comfort.  The level of performance, by which

I mean a degree of responsiveness that enables it to share the road on an equal footing with most of the competitors in its category, which

are German, regrettably does not.