LIKES
- Great standard safety features
- Great standard tech features
- Improved infotainment
- Off-road capable
- Power-fold third row
DISLIKES
- Cramped third row
- Market for Ultra Luxury trim?
- Will Land Cruiser fans accept it?
- Second-row seats could be easier to fold
- Scant cargo room with all seats up
BUYING TIP
The 2022 Lexus LX 600 gets better in every way, even with a cramped third row.
What kind of vehicle is the 2022 Lexus LX? What does it compare to?
The redesigned LX 600 is a three-row SUV that can seat five or seven passengers—or just four in the new Ultra Luxury grade. It competes with everything from the Infiniti QX80 to the Jeep Grand Wagoneer and BMW X7.
Is the 2022 Lexus LX a good SUV?
The full-size SUV gets better across the board, from big improvements in both power and fuel economy, to even more standard safety and convenience features. The third row remains small, but its ability to fold flat into the floor represents another key improvement. The 2022 LX 600 earns a TCC Rating of 6.8 out of 10.
What's new for the 2022 Lexus LX?
The redesigned Lexus LX graduates from the LX 570 to LX 600, representing a switch in its powertrain from the 5.7-liter V-8 to a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V-6 churning out 409 hp and 479 lb-ft of torque. Also used in the redesigned Toyota Tundra pickup truck, the V-6 is more powerful and makes the LX considerably quicker, and when paired with a smooth new 10-speed automatic transmission, the new engine is at least 30% more efficient than the V-8. With four-wheel drive and a 2-speed transfer case standard, the LX can conquer most reasonable off-road challenges or get up to 22 mpg on the highway. An available center locking differential and an active suspension with hydraulic springs lets LX shoppers steer ride comfort and handling dynamics to the firm side in F Sport grade or the plush side in Luxury trims.
Most models will come with a third row of power-folding seats that fold flat in the floor, but they sit low and cramp adult-sized passengers. The second row remains as roomy as before, but the new Ultra Luxury grade swaps in reclining and massaging captain’s chairs with power ottomans that fold out from the front seat backs.
It remains to be seen if the IIHS or the NHTSA will crash test the LX, but Lexus equips the large SUV with the kind of driver-assist features most other luxury makes bundle as expensive options. It includes automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and a surround-view camera system as good for backing out of a parking spot as rumbling over a pockmarked trail.
Convenience and comfort highlights include a much improved infotainment system fronted with a 12.3-inch touchscreen with smartphone compatibility and a wireless charger. Leather upholstery, heated power front seats, and four-zone climate control also come standard, along with a good warranty and standout options.
How much does the 2022 Lexus LX cost?
The base or Standard trim costs about the same as the outgoing model at $88,245, including a $1,345 destination charge. But it has more standard and available features, as well as two new top-end trims in the F Sport and Ultra Luxury.
The Premium grade makes the most sense to us, adding power-folding third-row seats, a heated steering wheel, cooled front seats, and two USB ports for each row, among other conveniences.
The Ultra Luxury four-seater costs $128,000.
Where is the 2022 Lexus LX made?
In Japan.
Styling
Familiar on the outside and welcoming on the inside, the LX 600 embodies understated luxury.
Is the Lexus LX 600 a good-looking SUV?
With the Lexus spindle grille turned into a landscape-oriented cattle catcher, it’s unmistakable. Roughly the same size and proportion of its predecessor, the A-pillars get pulled back a bit and extend the nose, which has more cooling vents down low. The slab-like sides give way to an attractive rear quarter window design, which seems to be one of the trickier aesthetics to nail on three-row SUVs. Still, we award it a point for its rich interior.
A new center stack dominates the cabin, with a 12.3-inch touchscreen above a 7.0-inch climate and off-road screen flanked by mirrors. Dials, buttons, and switches complement all the touching, which is a welcome departure from other screen-reliant luxury models. Horizontal vents stretch the ends, but there’s no denying the center console has truck-like width. Leather upholstery in various grades graces even the base model, and contrasts open pore wood on the door panels and console. F Sport models wear red on black semi-aniline leather, and have sleek aluminum trim panels, while Ultra Luxe models get diamond-stitched leather.
Performance
A more powerful and more efficient powertrain powers the LX 600.
How fast is the Lexus LX 600?
Lexus pegs the 0-60 mph time at an impressive 6.9 seconds, but the twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 makes the slimmed down LX move as if it’s a size smaller. Its potent powertrain and off-road ability earn it a point each to a 7.
Weighing about 5,800 lb, the LX 600 went keto and shaved more than 440 lb through the use of weight-saving measures such as aluminum doors and by moving it to a new GA-F platform shared with the redesigned 2022 Toyota Tundra pickup truck.
The power impresses but the calm, quiet ride fools you from believing it rides on a truck platform. Tire noise from the available 22-inch wheels can intrude. A lower center of gravity gives it more stability and redesigned suspension arms and shock absorbers on the solid rear axle conspire to cushion bumps. The F Sport grade employs a Torsen limited-slip rear differential to ground the rear in turns, but this big boy is going to lean anyway.
Is the Lexus LX 600 4WD?
Four-wheel drive with a 2-speed transfer case and a center locking differential is standard across the lineup, and multiple terrain modes and an available adaptive suspension ensures that the LX 600 can handle variable terrain and conditions with ease. The suspension stroke gets 0.8-inch longer, and the off-road technology gets better.
The 7.0-inch center screen comes alive to show torque distribution between the axles, wheel slip, a pitch meter, and a turn assist button. At speeds up to 7 mph, the screen above it shows four different camera angles, including a transparent projection of what’s under and around the front axle. Five speed settings for hill descent control, topping out at 3 mph, make clambering up or downhill effortless, and hitting the gas or brake will override it until you let off. Pivoting around a narrow 45-degree turn becomes easy with the turn assist button that locks the inside rear wheel.
Standard on Ultra Luxury and available on F Sport and Luxury grades, an active suspension with hydraulic springs varies the ground clearance from 8.3 inches (with 22-inch wheels): turn the LX 600 to 4L, and it raises nearly two inches to the highest H2 setting; turning the terrain selector in 4H will raise it about a inch in H1. The system can also do it itself in Auto mode. Lexus says it can ford 27.5 inches of water, same as the last model. When parking, it lowers below the standard ground clearance to make getting in and out easier, despite standard running boards.
It won’t follow a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon or Ford Bronco Badlands, but all these enhancements on the LX 600 make moderate off-roading so easy it takes some of the danger out of it. Win.
Comfort & Quality
A fold-flat power third row highlights the seat upgrades in the 2022 Lexus LX.
The Lexus LX 600 earns a 9 for its throne-like front seats, roomy second-row seats, its ability to seat seven passengers, and its 46 cubic feet of cargo space behind the second row. But there are caveats to each of these points except the first.
The leather-wrapped front seats are heated and come with all kinds of power adjustments to adjust the big cushions around bodies of all sizes. Despite an enormous center console, the cabin comfort ensures that road trips will only be interrupted for the necessities: bathroom breaks and coffee refills.
A second-row 60/40-split bench comes standard on all except the top Ultra Luxury trim. Leg room stretches to nearly 37 inches behind the front row, and head and shoulder room is nearly as good as the front, unless a third person crams in the middle. Second-row passengers get a USB port and climate control for either outboard seat.
The good news is the power-fold third-row seats fold flat into the floor, effortlessly opening up to 64 cubic feet of cargo room with the second-row seats flat (44 cubes with them up).
The Ultra Luxury trim opens up a new world for Lexus, one befitting the luxe taste in some of the 50-plus countries where the LX 600 will be sold. There’s no third row, and the second row gets swapped out with a pair of captain’s chairs separated by a console with a 7.0-inch tablet to activate the massagers or recline either seat up to 48 degrees. A power ottoman descends from either front seat back for full stretch-out space. Each front seatback also holds an 11.4-inch entertainment screen. It’s more of a showpiece than a practical consideration, but it’s a first-class accommodation.
Safety
Lexus loads the LX 600 with driver-assist features that usually cost extra from other luxury brands.
How safe is the Lexus LX 600?
The redesigned full-size SUV has not been crash tested by the IIHS or the NHTSA, and it might not be since the last generation never got dummied-up. We can’t give it a score.
Every LX 600 comes loaded with driver-assist features such as automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, blind-spot monitors, and automatic high beams. That’s standard fare for the luxury class, but Lexus doubles down with a surround-view camera system, adaptive cruise control, active lane control, and park assist with automatic braking that other brands bundle as expensive packages.
Features
Lexus loads the LX 600 with luxury touches and revamped tech.
Loaded with standard features, options such as massaging rear seats, a much improved touchscreen and infotainment system, and a 4-year/50,000-mile warranty that covers the first year or first 12,000 miles of scheduled maintenance, the LX 600 earns an excellent 9 here.
The $88,245 Standard grade is the only trim to come with five seats, including a second-row bench seat. It rides on 20-inch alloy wheels and features a power sunroof, leather upholstery, heated power front seats, and four-zone climate control. Even the base model comes with a new dual-screen interface topped with a 12.3-inch touchscreen with smartphone compatibility and a wireless charger. It’s so much better than the previous system, and the voice commands are excellent. The lower 7.0-inch screen handles climate controls and off-road settings when the 2-speed transfer case is engaged to 4L. A wireless smartphone charger and 10-speaker audio system complete the tech upgrades across the lineup.
Which Lexus LX 600 should I buy?
How much is a fully loaded LX 600?
The Ultra Luxury model and its rear captain’s chairs tops the lineup at $127,345, which is about $20,000 more than last year's top model.
Fuel Economy
The big SUV’s 19 mpg combined rating represents a big improvement.
Is the Lexus LX good on gas?
Relatively speaking. The four-wheel-drive LX 600 shifts into an EPA rating of 17 mpg city, 22 highway, 19 combined. That’s 1 mpg better than a similarly powered Lincoln Navigator, and much better than the Infiniti QX80’s 16 mpg combined rating. Compared to its predecessor’s 12/16/14 mpg rating, the LX 600 is 5 mpg or 35% more efficient. There’s no mention of a hybrid. Yet.
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