EURO NCAP Awards Five Stars to the New Lexus NX 300h

Euro NCAP gives new luxury crossover a top five-star rating

The new Lexus NX 300h’s impressive sales momentum is set to gather pace with the news it is one of the safest cars in its class.

The independent crash testing organisation Euro NCAP has given the luxury hybrid crossover a top five-star rating for the effectiveness of its measures to protect adults and children inside the car, and pedestrians.

In the four elements in the test programme, the NX 300h scored 82 per cent for both adult and child occupant protection, 69 per cent for pedestrian protection and 71 per cent for safety assist – systems that help avoid or mitigate injuries in a collision.

In its report on adult occupant protection, Euro NCAP highlighted the maximum points score the Lexus achieved in its side barrier impact test, demonstrating the good protection it provides for all critical body areas.

Tests on the front seats and head restraints and geometric assessment of the rear head restraints indicated good protection against whiplash injury in a rear end collision.

In the child occupant tests, the NX 300h scored well for the protection given to 18-month and three-year-old children, and in the pedestrian protection category the front bumper provided “good or adequate” protection to the legs.

Where safety assist performance is concerned, the NX demonstrated “good performance,” thanks mainly to the Pre-Crash Safety system, Electronic Stability Control, and alerts for front and rear occupants to fasten their seatbelts.

The NX 300h benefits from many additional safety features that are not scrutinised under the Euro NCAP test programme, including option Lane Keep Assist, Adaptive High Beam, a blind spot monitor and 360-degree Panoramic View Monitor.

Toyota makes life easier with Intelligent Clearance Sonar, I bet i will still hit something.

Imagine how much easier life would be if your car realised when you’re about to reverse into a high kerb and could intervene to prevent a costly scrape? Or if you could make your car transparent, so you have a complete view of your surroundings when edging back into a parking space? Toyota is ready to help with clever improvements to its parking support technology that it will be featuring on new models from next year.

Intelligent Clearance Sonar

Toyota’s Intelligent Clearance Sonar not only detects obstacles, it also helps prevent or mitigate collisions where the driver hits the accelerator by mistake – a familiar hazard when backing out of a parking space. Toyota has improved the system by adding extra sensors that can detect objects further away, increasing the breadth and depth of scanning.

It has also reworked the system’s control logic so that there is less risk of colliding with adjacent vehicles or obstacles, even when using the wrong pedal isn’t the issue, for example when driving slowly around a car park, or pulling out of a parking space.

Toyota’s Intelligent Park Assist system now uses ICS to prevent or reduce the consequences of collisions by deploying automated braking. It can also take the strain out of parking with a new multi-point turn support function that provides automatic steering control¹ in tight spaces where the driver has to make multiple turns of the wheel.

IPA’s benefits also include A partially automated¹ function to help drivers negotiate their way out of a parallel parking spot where there’s little room in front and behind the vehicle.

Panoramic View Monitor

Vehicles fitted with Toyota’s Panoramic View Monitor can already take advantage of an overhead view of their car, displayed on the navigation system’s screen. 

The view is being made even clearer with a new See-through View function. At the press of a button, the driver can flip between Moving View, which displays real-time video as if looking down on the vehicle, and See-through View, which gives a driver’s perspective of the car’s surroundings, as if the vehicle were transparent. Compared to Moving View, obstacles are shown larger, making them easier to spot and avoid.

Toyota’s improvements to its parking support technology are intended to make parking safer and reduce the high level of property damage accidents witnessed in car parks worldwide. 

This in turn supports its mission to help eliminate traffic fatalities and injuries. Toyota’s Integrated Safety Management Concept sets the direction for the development of both vehicles and safety technology. It covers all aspects of driving by integrating individual safety technologies and systems, rather than viewing them as units that function independently.

Toyota is committed to a wide range of initiatives that address traffic safety, from developing ever-safer vehicles and technologies to helping create a safer traffic environment and engaging in educational activities.

¹ The driver maintains control of the brakes, accelerator and gear shift.

Lexus gives a world début to the new NX at Beijing.

• World debut for new Lexus NX at the Beijing motor show
• First Lexus to enter the fast-growing premium compact crossover segment
• Three engines, three transmissions, front and all-wheel drive
• First deployment of new Lexus 2.0-litre petrol turbo engine
• Safety innovations include new Panoramic View Monitor

Lexus today revealed its all-new NX at the Beijing motor show, a sharply-styled model that marks the company’s entry into the fast-growing premium compact crossover market. Its edgy design is a key element in its intended appeal to new Lexus customers who lead urban, active lifestyles.

According to market, the NX will be available with three powertrains: a highly efficient hybrid in the NX 300h; a new, Lexus-developed 2.0-litre petrol turbo unit in the NX 200t; and naturally aspirated 2.0-litre petrol engine in the NX 200. Front and all-wheel drive versions will be available, together with Lexus’s quick-response stop and start system. Details and specifications of powertrains to be offered in the UK will be confirmed at a later date.

The NX also benefits from an array of innovative technology, including a Lexus-first wireless charging tray for easy charging of mobile phones and other devices and the first application of a new Lexus Remote Touch Interface with a touchpad control. Further features include a new Panoramic View Monitor, a comprehensive multi-information display (incorporating for the first time a G-sensor and boost meter), head-up display, blind spot monitor and Rear Cross Traffic Alert.

Following the established Lexus template, the range will include a distinctive F Sport version, with sportier design and dedicated styling elements, including an exclusive rendering of the Lexus spindle grille, a lowered front bumper, specific alloy wheel designs, sports seats and bespoke interior trims.

Takeaki Kato, the NX Chief Engineer, said: “The NX is a premium crossover, combining performance, numerous on-board technologies and alluring design. Much like high quality sports watches, bikes and fashion accessories, the NX can be likened to the ultimate in premium sports gear.

“Luxury is epitomised by small but important details, as can be witnessed in the attention to detail in areas such as the feel of the switchgear, the arrangement of the courtesy lights, the metallic finishes for the wheels and other innovations that will set the standards for future Lexus models.

“Luxury touches apart, the NX was designed both to complement daily life and support active lifestyles at the weekend.”

Exterior design

The NX has been designed to look as though it is has been cast from a single piece of metal. Strong, flared wheel arches house 17 or 18-inch wheels, giving the car a crouching, muscular stance. Lexus’s signature spindle grille is the central focus of the NX’s angular shape, reinforced by LED headlamps and daytime running lights. The grille blends seamlessly into a sculpted bonnet, creating strongly contrasting surfacing that projects a sense of depth.

The side profile is instantly recognisable as a Lexus, accentuated by a roofline that’s set towards the rear of the vehicle to give maximum visual impact. Details include an innovative door mirror design and a world-first door handle mechanism with a concealed key barrel and integrated lighting. These features enhance the overall premium look by creating a smooth finish along the side of the car.

The rear is punctuated by Lexus’s L-shape combination lamps, fitted with seamless LED lighting. The bodywork design echoes the spindle grille treatment at the front.

Interior design

Lexus’s ambition for the NX’s cabin was to produce a design that is more like a sports car interior, complimenting the angular bodywork, while using materials and textures that amplify the vehicle’s premium quality.

The car’s SUV strengths are expressed in details such as a thick-rimmed steering wheel, a central silver frame embedded in the instrument panel and robust knee pads for driver and front passenger. Contrasting textures around the cabin and the use of a quilted seat upholstery pattern reference the NX’s status as a crossover vehicle.

Lexus has also focused on interior space and seating, ensuring ample overall headroom and a generous front-to-rear couple distance. The NX continues the development of Lexus’s display and operation zone dashboard design concept and provides the driver with easy, intuitive command of its advanced technology features using new and improved HMI controls.

Powertrains

NX 300h

The NX 300h uses a sophisticated hybrid system control specially developed for the model, using the proven Lexus 2.5-litre Atkinson cycle engine, generator, motor and battery. Total system output is 195bhp/145kW.

Features specific to the hybrid NX include sprung-weight damping control to increase ride comfort and handling stability by reducing pitching when driving on uneven surfaces.

NX 200t

The NX is the first model to use a new Lexus 2.0-litre petrol turbo engine, engineered for excellent fuel economy, agile performance and responsiveness. It is matched to a six-speed automatic transmission that has been specially tuned for the NX. Maximum power is 235bhp/175kW between 4,800 and 5,600rpm and maximum torque is 350 Nm, available  from 1,650 to 4,000rpm.

The engine underwent more than one million kilometres of testing over different road conditions and in harsh driving environments. Its design features a world-first combination of water-cooled cylinder head, integrated exhaust manifold and twin-scroll turbocharger.

The automatic transmission uses a new torque-demand control logic, calculating and maximising the required engine torque to deliver quick response to throttle inputs and high fuel efficiency.

NX 200

The naturally aspirated 2.0-litre petrol engine benefits from Lexus’s Valvematic technology to achieve high torque through a wider valve opening angle and an extended variable valve timing operating range.

The unit runs with a high compression ratio and uses diagonal fuel injectors, optimising the fuel mixture to produce strong power output across the full rev range. The engine works with a newly developed, electronically controlled S-CVT/Multidrive sequential shift transmission.

Chassis and suspension

The new NX has been engineered for agile driving, handling stability, body control and ride comfort, including yaw-rate response to steering inputs and stability over uneven surfaces.

At the heart of the design is a highly rigid body, with extensive reinforcements to the underbody, additional bulkheads and spot-welding, suspension braces and the use of Lexus’s body adhesive and laser screw welding technologies and a high-rigidity glass adhesive.

Some NX models are equipped with new-design dampers and Lexus’s new-generation Adaptive Variable Suspension. Linked to the vehicle’s Drive Mode Select system, this can change the level of damping force to improve comfort and reduce body roll.

Safety

The comprehensive safety package includes a new, full-range Panoramic View Monitor, all-speed Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Departure Alert, Blind Spot Monitor and Rear Cross Traffic Alert. New cornering headlamps and a head-up display are also featured in the range.

The Panoramic View Monitor uses the highest resolution camera yet to be fitted to a Lexus. The all-speed Adaptive Cruise Control will be a first-in-segment feature, capable of matching the NX’s speed to the vehicle in front, down to a complete stop.

Dimensions

Overall length  4,630mm

Overall width:  1,845mm

Overall height: 1,645mm (with shark’s fin antenna); 1,630mm (without shark’s fin antenna)

Wheelbase:     2,660mm

Front track:     1,580mm (225mm tyre), 1,570mm (235 tyre)

Rear track:      1,580mm (225mm tyre), 1,570mm (235 tyre)

UK market

The NX will go on sale in world markets from the second half of 2014. Details of the UK launch date, model range and specifications will be announced later.

the new Lexus NX range - new pics and details ahead of launch at Beijing

Lexus today issues the first pictures and further details of the new NX, a sharply styled compact premium crossover which will make its world debut at the Beijing motor show on 20 April.

The NX will mark Lexus’s entry into the mid-size crossover/SUV market and targets customers new to the brand with sharp, edgy styling. Both in terms of its striking design and its use of high-end technologies, it will stand as a hero model, setting new standards for future Lexus models. 

Exterior design

The NX has been designed to look as though it is has been cast from a single piece of metal. Strong, flared wheel arches house 17 or 18-inch wheels, giving the car a crouching, muscular stance. Lexus’s signature spindle grille is the central focus of the NX’s angular shape, reinforced by LED headlamps and daytime running lights. The grille blends seamlessly into a sculpted bonnet, creating strongly contrasting surfacing that projects a sense of depth.

The side profile is instantly recognisable as a Lexus, accentuated by a roofline that’s set towards the rear of the vehicle to give maximum visual impact. Details include an innovative door mirror design and a world-first door handle mechanism with a concealed key barrel and integrated lighting. These features enhance the overall premium look by creating a smooth finish along the side of the car. 

The rear is punctuated by Lexus’s L-shape combination lamps, fitted with seamless LED lighting. The bodywork design echoes the spindle grille treatment at the front.

Interior design

Lexus aims to bring a sense of excitement to the NX’s cabin with a design more like a sports car interior, complimenting the angular bodywork.

Details include a thick-rimmed sports steering wheel and contrasting trims. At the same time, Lexus has focused on interior space and seating and has worked to ensure the driver enjoys intuitive interaction with the controls, instrumentation and HMI technology. The NX continues the development of Lexus’s display and operation zone concept. 

Powertrains and technology

Three powertrains will feature in the NX range: a highly efficient petrol-electric hybrid in the NX 300h; a Lexus-first 2.0-litre petrol turbo in the NX 200t; and a naturally aspirated petrol unit in the NX 200. Each will offer the choice of front and all-wheel drive. UK powertrain line-up will be confirmed in the near future.

Innovative on-board technologies include a Lexus-first wireless charging tray for portable devices; a new iteration of the Lexus Remote Touch Interface with a touch pad control; a Panoramic View Monitor; and a comprehensive multi-information display with a Lexus-first G-sensor and boost meter. The NX will also offer a head-up display, Blind Spot Monitor and Rear Cross Traffic Alert. 

Takeaki Kato, NX Chief Engineer, said that Lexus has approached all phases of the model’s development from the perspective of its target customers – young, urban drivers with active lifestyles who want premium products.

NX specifications and powertrains will differ according to market; details of the range and specifications for the UK will be announced ahead of the vehicle going on sale towards the end of this year.