Lavish Lexus UX crossover spruced up for 2023 - First Drive Review

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Lavish Lexus UX crossover spruced up for 2023 – First Drive Review

The hybrid-loving upper classes who don't need an awful lot of space for their offspring will be quite taken with the enhanced new UX from luxury marque Lexus. We drove the swanky new model from the illustrious Camp's Bay Strip to Constantia along some of the Western Cape's most affluent areas.

For many years now, the UX has attracted a slightly younger, more fashionable crowd, and with the introduction of the 2023 models, Lexus aimed to show us what well-heeled UX owners do when they play as hard as they work.

The UX, short for Urban X-over, is seen as the gateway to the Lexus SUV lineup, but the UX’s compact size makes perfect sense in an urban environment as it’s the perfect glitzy, city car for fast-lane folk who don’t necessarily drive kids around and who value an easy manoeuvrable, premium car over a low-slung sports car or a burly SUV, especially since there is very little parking to be had in Cape Town – some of the streets and corners in the Mother City’s most exclusive suburbs are so tight, that only one car can pass at a time. And where sports cars are concerned, it’s much more ladylike stepping out of a sexy crossover than an Audi TT, because who wants to flash their undies to innocent bystanders?

The Lexus UX is one of the luxury marque’s top-sellers in SA, and it’s the hybrid models that are the most highly demanded. For this reason, the UX will now be available with hybrid powertrains only, and in three trims: EX, SE, and the top-spec F Sport.

Regarding those abovementioned glamorous locations, the launch kicked off at one of Camp’s Bay’s swankiest hotels and the route proceeed along some of the most scenic driving routes in SA, with a coffee stop at the Village Hub in Scarborough and a lunch stop at Beyond restaurant in Constantia. Because if you’re a new Lexus owner, that’s what you do for rest and relaxation.

Styling changes

lavish lexus ux crossover spruced up for 2023 - first drive review

Not much has changed – it’s still the same sharp, snatched profile and taut, focused front end, but Lexus says they’ve tweaked the front and rear headlamp design a little.

On the inside, there are more interior choices of trim – (I loved the navy and white leather interior on our entry-level EX model) but the most significant change is the addition of a large, 12.3-inch touchscreen, slightly angled towards the driver for excellent visibility.

The finicky touchpad found in the outgoing model is now a thing of the past and makes space for the seat-heater switches – standard across the board – while the higher-spec SE and F Sport models have seat ventilation as well.

Beneath the air-conditioning controls is a binnacle to store a smartphone but it’s still a little tight if it’s a sizeable phone. My co-driver was impressed that the plush, leather-covered, centre armrest binnacle (see above in the F Sport) can be opened from both the driver and front passenger’s side.

Connectivity options now include a USB-A port in the centre console and a Type C-USB in the front, while there two more type-C ports are available to rear passengers.

Safety

Safety systems in the UX include ABS, brake assist, an electro-mechanical parking brake, stability and traction control, a tyre pressure monitor, a rearview camera, park distance control in the front and rear, ISOfix, hill-start assist, lane-departure warning and eight airbags, while the SE and F Sport (pictured with red interior stitching) models have added adaptive cruise control with lane-keeping assistance as well as a blind spot monitor, surround view cameras, and high-beam assist, but Lexus has added new features to the Safety System + across the board:

Revisions to the UX‘s Lexus Safety System+ bring improved performance in the Pre-Collision System, equipping the car with Intersection Turning Assist for safer left and right turns across traffic at intersections and Emergency Steering Assist, which helps the driver to steer to avoid obstacles without departing from their traffic lane. The all-speed dynamic cruise control adopts Curve Speed Reduction, which automatically adjusts the vehicle’s speed to suit the radius of a bend in the road. – Lexus SA

Driving the UX

We programmed the driving route into the touch-infotainment system easily – it’s wireless with Apple CarPlay but needs to be plugged in for Android Auto. The system now features a faster processor, crystal clear graphics, and the embedded satnav has been improved as well.

As we followed the picturesque route, there were some deserted stretches of road which allowed for some gentle flooring of the accelerator pedal, illustrating the UX’s rather swift intentions and 0-100 km sprint time of 8.5 seconds.

The powertrain hasn’t been touched and still features the 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine and one electric motor with a battery pack stowed beneath the boot floor which helps to make the UX feel more surefooted around the corners, due to the lower centre of gravity. The power is driven to the front wheels via a quiet and refined CVT transmission.

Power figures and fuel economy

Power figures from the engine and motor combined make a total of 135 kW and 180 Nm of torque and there’s a standard Drive Mode Select dial above the instrument binnacle which allows for your ideal driving mode between Eco, Normal and Sport (with Sport Plus in the F Sport model).

In Eco Mode, 4.5 litres per 100 km is quite attainable, and if you’ve built up enough battery reserve by regenerative braking or coasting downhill, you can get by on EV power only at low speeds, ie. in traffic situations. Lexus reckons you’ll be able to squeeze out a total of 956 km from the hybrid-petrol engine.

Lexus says they’ve also enhanced the steering to the F Sport model for a more precise feel – but I didn’t get to drive the F Sport model on launch, so I can’t offer an opinion here. The previous F Sport’s steering felt light and direct enough for the city, highway, and every mountain pass I subjected it to.

Those who seek an even more magical ride quality will have to budget for the F-Sport model which gets Adaptive Variable Suspension (an advanced system equipped with sensors and microprocessors that continuously scan the road and adapt according to the road surface, direction, and speed, thereby minimising body roll) – but to me, the suspension in the entry-level EX model felt pliant and perfectly balanced.

Verdict

Our time in the Lexus ES 250h once again reiterated just how easy, comfortable and lavish it is to live with the fun and fleet-footed UX. Yes, it’s expensive, but premium brands are – and it’s also the very reason it is so attractive to the luxury marque’s target market.

Pricing

The Lexus UX retails from:

R808 600 for the EX grade,
R891 800 for the SE grade,
R947 500 for the F Sport, and
R958 100 for the F Sport Bi-tone grade.

The UX has a class-leading 7-year/105 000km warranty and a complete maintenance plan with services every 15 000 km. All models are sold with an additional 8-year/195 000 km hybrid battery warranty.

Ané AlbertseAné was bitten by the motoring bug at a very young age. Her mom recalls her sitting in her stroller as a 3-year old, naming every car that came past. She was working as a freelance motoring journalist for publications such as Rapport and City Press, when AutoTrader nabbed her for good. She lives in the Western Cape with her two kids and two cats.View News & Reviews