Ready for Canada
Beyond all the fuel-saving hardware, there are plenty of features that contribute to occupant comfort, starting with the heated/cooled front seats. Meanwhile, the stylish dashboard is decorated with gorgeous Espresso bird's-eye maple inserts (when the Light Grey interior is selected) or Brown walnut wood inserts (with Parchment or Black interior).
For winter driving, there's a new SNOW mode that reduces throttle response in order to limit the risk of wheelspin. Engineers also integrated the rear wiper to the spoiler to protect it against snow and ice build-up. This meant eliminating the wiper pivot and motor which used to obstruct visibility in the lower part of the rear window.
Also, in order to improve driving dynamics, the rear suspension struts have been replaced by a double-wishbone setup with swingarm. The benefits are immediately felt at high speeds: the RX 450h remains very stable, even on rough, uneven pavement.
Technical sophistication
In terms of active and passive safety, Lexus didn't skimp on anything. There are ten (that's right, 10!) airbags, ABS with Brake Assist, Traction and Stability Control, Hill-Start Assist and even adaptive headlights which swivel in corners to provide a better view of the road ahead. All these systems come standard!
Buyers can choose to add Heads-Up Display, which projects various vehicle data like speed, audio settings and turn-by-turn navigation onto the base of the windshield, directly in the driver's sight.
Also available is a voice-activated Hard Disk Drive (HDD) navigation system with ergonomic Remote Touch controller. This ultra-sophisticated interface requires a lot of attention from the driver. However, unlike BMW's iDrive, it proves much more intuitive and pleasant to use. Of course, the safest way to adjust the various settings is to have the front passenger do it for you!
Another technology you can find on the standard list is a back-up camera -- and that's a good thing. Due to the limited glass area resulting from the arched roofline and high beltline, rearward visibility is quite mediocre. Without this precious ally, parking maneuvers would turn into "bump n' go"!
Manufactured at the Miyata plant in Kyushu, Japan, the 2010 Lexus RX 450h starts at $58,900. It's $5,250 more expensive than its predecessor and $12,000 above the price of the regular, Ontario-built RX. That said, pricing is similar to comparable rivals, most of which don't deliver an equally impressive performance under acceleration AND at the pumps!
photo:Matthieu Lambert, Lexus
Beyond all the fuel-saving hardware, there are plenty of features that contribute to occupant comfort, starting with the heated/cooled front seats. Meanwhile, the stylish dashboard is decorated with gorgeous Espresso bird's-eye maple inserts (when the Light Grey interior is selected) or Brown walnut wood inserts (with Parchment or Black interior).
For winter driving, there's a new SNOW mode that reduces throttle response in order to limit the risk of wheelspin. Engineers also integrated the rear wiper to the spoiler to protect it against snow and ice build-up. This meant eliminating the wiper pivot and motor which used to obstruct visibility in the lower part of the rear window.
Also, in order to improve driving dynamics, the rear suspension struts have been replaced by a double-wishbone setup with swingarm. The benefits are immediately felt at high speeds: the RX 450h remains very stable, even on rough, uneven pavement.
Technical sophistication
In terms of active and passive safety, Lexus didn't skimp on anything. There are ten (that's right, 10!) airbags, ABS with Brake Assist, Traction and Stability Control, Hill-Start Assist and even adaptive headlights which swivel in corners to provide a better view of the road ahead. All these systems come standard!
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| Meanwhile, the stylish dashboard is decorated with gorgeous Espresso bird's-eye maple inserts (when the Light Grey interior is selected). |
Buyers can choose to add Heads-Up Display, which projects various vehicle data like speed, audio settings and turn-by-turn navigation onto the base of the windshield, directly in the driver's sight.
Also available is a voice-activated Hard Disk Drive (HDD) navigation system with ergonomic Remote Touch controller. This ultra-sophisticated interface requires a lot of attention from the driver. However, unlike BMW's iDrive, it proves much more intuitive and pleasant to use. Of course, the safest way to adjust the various settings is to have the front passenger do it for you!
Another technology you can find on the standard list is a back-up camera -- and that's a good thing. Due to the limited glass area resulting from the arched roofline and high beltline, rearward visibility is quite mediocre. Without this precious ally, parking maneuvers would turn into "bump n' go"!
Manufactured at the Miyata plant in Kyushu, Japan, the 2010 Lexus RX 450h starts at $58,900. It's $5,250 more expensive than its predecessor and $12,000 above the price of the regular, Ontario-built RX. That said, pricing is similar to comparable rivals, most of which don't deliver an equally impressive performance under acceleration AND at the pumps!
photo:Matthieu Lambert, Lexus
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