Anthony’s Analytics: Lexus LX600 F-Sport

by  Anthony Fongaro  - Photos via Lexus - 07/26/2022

If you’re thinking of a large SUV that has a cult-like following, you would usually look at something like the Toyota Land Cruiser. It is a large off-road vehicle that, in the United States, had the comfort that many wanted. While we may no longer get the Land Cruiser in the United States, we do get its posh cousin, the Lexus LX600. This is a vehicle that is supposed to have extreme off-road in capabilities while still being quite luxurious. Competition is stiff with the likes of the Grand Wagoneer. Can the Lexus get to the top of its class? Let’s find out.

When you look at the Lexus LX600, you’ll see that it is a very massive SUV. The one that I am testing is the LX600 F-Sport, which means that there are some extra blacked-out bits such as the enormous black grill. Some people don’t like how big the grill is but I think that it fits the LX600 perfectly. Along the side, you’ll see an F-Sport badge along with very good-looking black paint and some silver trim around the windows and on the door handles themselves. The rear has some very large sculpted tail lights along with Lexus written very large in the middle and the LX600 badging. Even though there are some fake vans at the back, they do house the sensors. All in all, this SUV definitely does have a lot of presents, especially with that front grill.

Inside, you’ll see that there is a very luxurious interior with F-Sport red seats. The seats are heated and cooled, and there’s also a heated steering wheel. The steering wheel also has your media and adaptive cruise control buttons. In front of that is a head-up display with all the information that you would need including navigation, speed, and speed limit. There is an all-new infotainment system that is a touchscreen and quite easy to use. Below that is a secondary screen that has controls for the climate control and some other information about when you switch different drive modes, but both screens smudge quite easily. Thankfully, there are some physical buttons and knobs for the climate control and there are large buttons for different types of drive modes both on and off-road. 

The second row is large, very spacious, and also has heated and ventilated seats. There is a third row, but you have to flip up the seats entirely to get to the third row which is extremely cramped and definitely not suitable for long journeys if you are a taller individual. Now for being a $102,000 SUV, the fact that there is only a small sunroof with a manually adjusted recliner and manually adjusting rear blinds draws a little bit of cheapness into the LX. The material quality is genuinely quite good, and the overall design is nicely laid out.

So there are three different buttons that pertain to the drive modes in the multi-terrain system that this has. The first button is labeled MTS, and that is for you to adjust between different off-road settings. Drive mode is what exactly it sounds like, where you can have comfort, sport, sport S, normal, and Nico. Finally, you have DAC/crawl. Being a Lexus, you also have the Mark Levinson sound system which usually sounds fantastic, but for some reason, the Lexus will inadvertently higher or lower the sound while you’re driving even at a constant speed. It really didn’t make sense.

Driving it is a very sedate experience. You do get a 3.4-liter turbocharged V6 409-horsepower and 479 lb-ft. Along with that is a 10-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. All of these combined get the LX600 from 0 to 60 in 6.1 seconds. The transmission does shift smoothly, but if you try to put it in the manual shift mode or use the paddle shifters, you will sense that there is a delay between the shifts. The engine pulls strong and I would say that there is no real need for additional power. That said, this is basically a large SUV with off-road credentials and it does not like to be pushed hard on the road. As one would expect, it does lean quite a lot in the bands, even in this particular F sport trim where it is supposed to be a little bit more sporty. 

While I didn’t exactly take it off-road in more than a little construction site, I’m sure that the Lexus LX600 would be perfectly fine going anywhere off-road. Will an owner actually do that? I’m about 99% sure that they will not. I don’t think they’re gonna take their $102,000 Lexus off-road and any scratches or dings. Instead, it will be used for day-to-day activities such as chaperoning and driving the kids to and from in comfort. You may not be comfortable with the fuel economy because it does get around 18 to 20 miles per gallon. In some instances, I received as low as 14 miles per gallon and as high as 25 miles per gallon.

After I drove the LX600, I had a question: is it better than the Jeep Grand Wagoneer? Yes and no. In terms of exterior design, the Lexus wins out. Interior design is a different story. Lexus is getting much better with its interiors and technology, but this does feel like an SUV that’s almost a little old which is odd because it just came out. Is it worth looking at? Well, if you can actually find one, I would say yes, go take a look. It’s definitely a vehicle that you will not see a lot of on the road and it is demanding a high price. 

Some dealers are even charging $50,000 more to customers just to get their hands on the LX600 because they are so rare at the moment. I did have a good time with it during the week. It may have roly-poly handling and a sunroof that is way too small and cheap looking for this type of vehicle, but there is a little sense of serenity to it. Because it’s an off-road vehicle, it doesn’t go over bumps as well as some of Lexuses' other vehicles. That said, if you are looking for a large luxury SUV with off-roading credentials, take a look at the Lexus LX600