LBX small SUV to bring affordable luxury to Lexus in Australia, based on the Toyota Yaris Cross
Meet the all-new 2024 Lexus LBX – a small and potentially affordable circa-$40,000 premium SUV that will be offered exclusively with hybrid powertrains, high-grade interior appointments and a flashy exterior design.
Positioned as a replacement of sorts for the Lexus CT 200h, a Toyota Prius-based hatchback that was axed in 2021, the new five-door LBX looks set to become the smallest and most affordable Lexus ever sold in Australia.
Lexus is yet to officially confirm the LBX for our market, but carsales understands that it will be launched here in 2024.
The Japanese car-maker has also published several localised LBX press releases and teaser images on its Australian media site – an exercise usually only reserved for models heading Down Under.
The official position as of today is that: “Lexus Australia continues to assess models that may be suitable for the needs of local customers, with the LBX no exception. A decision on LBX will be made at a later stage.”
Slotting in underneath the Lexus UX small SUV (currently priced from $46,085 plus on-road costs), the LBX is set to roll into Aussie dealerships with a low-$40,000 price tag and clearly demonstrates a desire from Lexus to tap into new markets and acquire new customers.
The Lexus LBX has sharper and sportier design than its donor vehicle, the Toyota Yaris Cross, with which it shares its TNGA-B platform architecture.
And although there are similarities between the two vehicles, like their overall shape, the details are vastly different, particularly the Lexus’ double-bladed headlight and spindle-grille design.
A range of alloy wheel designs will be offered, either 17 or 18 inches in diameter.
Aimed at the European market with its compact 4190mm length and efficient 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol-electric hybrid powertrain (100kW/185Nm), the Lexus LBX will be offered in front- and all-wheel drive configurations with an electronic continuously variable transmission shuffling power to the wheels.
The 0-100km/h acceleration time for the 1280kg vehicle is claimed to take a languid 9.2 seconds, but Lexus says its smallest SUV to date has sporty handling characteristics, thanks to a “low centre of gravity, wide tracks, short overhangs and a highly rigid body”.
The interior features a fully digital display, with a 12.3-inch LCD screen for the driver’s instrument panel and a 9.8-inch central touch-screen compatible with wired or wireless Apple CarPlay and wired only for Android Auto.
A premium 13-speaker Mark Levinson stereo is on offer, complete with sub-woofer, as is semi-aniline leather or vegan synthetic leather seat upholstery.
Ambient interior lighting with 50 different colours is part of the package, along with unique Tsuyusami charcoal cabin trim.
Owners in Europe can also take advantage of Lexus’ new ‘Bespoke Build’ service to personalise their vehicle with individualised seat belts, upholstery embroidery patterns, stitching colours, trim ornamentation and more.
Buyers can even choose top-spec L-aniline leather which is only offered on the LBX and the flagship LS sedan, but there’s a catch – Lexus says Bespoke Build will only be offered in “selected markets” after the start of LBX sales in 2024.
The LBX comes with plenty of storage cubbies up front, twin cup holders and several USB ports. Boot space is “up to” 332 litres on FWD models and in Europe there will be four model grades adopting a new “atmosphere” naming convention, comprising Elegant, Relax, Emotion and Cool model grades.
The 2024 Lexus LBX will be a highly safe vehicle, according to the Japanese car-maker, thanks to the fitment of the Lexus Safety System + which “equips the car with multiple systems to detect accident risks, alert the driver and automatically provide steering, braking and drive force control if required to help avoid or lessen the consequences of a collision”.
In other words, you get adaptive cruise control, lane tracing and keeping assistance, autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and a pre-collision readiness system.
Road sign assist is in there too, along with Lexus’ e-latch electric door release system first seen on the brand’s top-selling new Lexus NX mid-size SUV, a driver attention monitor, intelligent parking sensors with rear cross traffic alert featuring automatic braking in reverse and a blind spot monitor.
Lexus has confirmed an optional safety pack will enable a frontal cross traffic alert system and a 360-degree panoramic view parking monitor, along with a remote parking assistant that will park the vehicle remotely without the driver in the vehicle.
Stay tuned for more details on the Lexus LBX’s Australian debut.
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Keyword: New 2024 Lexus LBX revealed