- The Lexus RX has been America’s best-selling luxury vehicle for over a decade. It’s a perpetual presence near the top of our list of the Best Midsize Luxury SUVs.
- Pricing starts at $48,550 | Price it your way
- On sale now | See Lexus RX models for sale near you
The Lexus RX is the best-selling luxury vehicle in America. There may be no more impressive accolade in the automotive world. When people can afford to reward themselves with a luxury car, this is the one they turn to most.
The RX is entirely new for 2023, redesigned from the ground up to preserve the traits that have made it successful and inject new appeal. It’s also incredibly reasonably priced. You can pay more for a less well-balanced competitor. Forced to list a critique of the new model, our test driver suggested that maybe its popularity is a drawback. That’s how hard it is to find something wrong with the RX.
Lexus sells the RX in a bewildering array of configurations — with 10 trim levels and three powertrains, including two different hybrid models and two sporty versions tuned by the Lexus F Sport performance shop.
Passenger Room and Comfort
If Lexus has a reputation different from other luxury automakers, it centers on comfort. Lexus vehicles are famously plush and quiet, cocooning their drivers in a world apart from the traffic around them.
The 2023 Lexus RX sets itself apart with rich materials laid out with restrained artisanship.
The RX is not the most spacious midsize SUV. Second-row passengers have slightly more legroom in an Acura MDX or Infiniti QX60. But its proportions are within an inch of most of the class in most measurements.
Where the RX truly excels is in its tasteful design and wide selection of materials — up to 15 combinations of trim and upholstery are available.
Most trims come with 8-way power adjustable driver’s and front passenger’s seats. Luxury trims substitute 10-way power-adjustable driver’s and front passenger’s seats with 4-way power lumbar adjustment. F Sport models get enhanced seat bolstering.
Features and Tech
Lexus redesigned its infotainment system — called Lexus Interface — for the 2023 RX. If you’ve driven an older model and remember the frustrating touchpad controller, you’ll be happy to hear it’s gone. In its place is a more intuitive touchscreen interface.
A 9.8-inch screen is standard, but the available 14-inch high-definition screen makes a stunning centerpiece.
An available head-up display can help keep the driver’s eyes on the road. On F Sport models, it even conveys performance data like G force. Buyers get a trial subscription to Lexus Drive Connect, which includes a voice-activated intelligent assistant that responds to natural language commands.
The available 1,800-watt Mark Levinson Pure Play Surround Sound system offers 21 speakers.
Traffic Jam Assist, an option, can accelerate, brake, and steer to hold the car’s position in low-speed traffic — and it wouldn’t be a Lexus if it couldn’t park itself. Available Advanced Park uses four cameras and 12 sensors to assist in pulling into and out of perpendicular and parallel parking spots.
Materials and Design
The RX is all-new for 2023. Lexus designers kept the model’s curvy design theme intact. But they updated the look with a sharper edge to the hood and a subtler take on the Lexus signature spindle grille. A cool gradient effect makes the grille seem to fade as it rises toward the hood.
A blacked-out C-pillar creates the illusion of a floating roof.
It’s a great look, and Lexus designers improve on it with one of the most adventurous color palettes in the luxury car market. In a year when most automakers seem to offer only grayscale shades, Lexus will build you an RX in Matador Red Mica, two jeweled blues, a gorgeous muted green called Nori Green Pearl, or a unique metallic brown shade called Copper Crest that catches the light beautifully.
That sense of bespoke character carries over to the inside, where more than a dozen combinations of upholstery and trim are offered. Designers broke out from the usual mold with options like door panels in a wool-like material with great visual depth.
Upholstery choices include semi-aniline leather and an eco-friendly leather alternative, NuLuxe.
Cargo Room and Flexibility
The famously curvy look of the 2023 Lexus RX does rob it of a bit of space — a concession to style. This shows up in cargo volume, not the passenger cabin.
The 2023 Lexus RX offers 29.6 cubic feet of cargo space when the rear seats are in place. That’s a competitive figure for its class, as the Genesis GV70 offers slightly less at 28.9 and the BMW X5 a bit more at 33.9.
With the power-folding rear seats lowered, the RX has 46.2 cubic feet of space. That figure is slightly lower than the class norm. The GV70 has 56.9 cubic feet, while the X5 has 72.3.
Build and price your own version of the 2022 Lexus RX to see this week’s Kelley Blue Book Fair Purchase Price, 5-Year Cost to Own, and more, or check out RX models for sale near you.
