Lexus UX SUV an experience for the young
In the language of the digital generation, they might be the two most important letters of all.
UX, in this modern world, stands for User Experience - the holy grail for websites, apps and the many digital devices that are increasingly part of our everyday lives.
UX commands how we interface with our devices - governing ease of use, functionality and aesthetics.
No wonder, then, that Lexus has chosen those very two letters - UX - to name its first model aimed specifically at the young, aspirational, digital market.
The new Lexus UX is a compact SUV that, as well as adding some millennial cred to the Japanese luxury brand, delivers a new "gateway" model for the marque - a task it inherits from the capable but rather unloved CT200h hatchback.
With a starting price of $44,450 before on-road costs, it's the big new hope for enticing the young, cashed-up professionals upon whom most car-makers base their "buyer for life" sales strategy.
But the UX also serves an important purpose in lending a new, hip personality to Lexus dealerships - vital for a brand that has always trended towards an older buyer profile.
Truth be known, UX actually stands for Urban Crossover (although Lexus also describes it as "a car for Urban Exploration" in some of its promo material). So I'm sticking with the user experience thing.
Size-wise it steps into a flurry of competition in this new hot-zone for premium European brands - including the Audi Q2 and Q3, Benz's GLA, the BMW X1 and super-cool X2 and Jaguar's spunky little e-Pace.
It's the cheapest in this bunch - by a whisker over the Benz - while the X2 ($46,900), e-Pace ($46,950) and Volvo's brilliant XC40 Momentum ($44,990) cost slightly more than the Japanese challenger.
The entry-level UX200 - with a newly-minted four-cylinder, naturally-aspirated engine, coupled to a seamless-shifting Constantly Variable Transmission - might struggle dynamically against those European offerings, all of which are turbo-charged.
But good global citizens that they are, I suspect plenty of UX buyers will look further up the family tree - where you'll find a hybrid model, an all-wheel-drive version and a couple of premium trim offerings (F Sport and Sports Luxury). Doing so will see that $44k entry price disappear pretty quickly in the rear-view mirror
The hybrid-drive adds $3500 to the price of your UX, but brings the benefit of a frugal 4.7L/100km thirst, while a four-wheel-drive hybrid system - that uses motors on the rear wheels to complement the front-wheel-drive - adds $4500.
The UX standard equipment list is long, with goodies like electric adjustment of the steering column, and an electronic rear hatch not normally expected in this part of the market.
Interestingly Lexus singles out a handful of "amazing features" on the UX - among them "Luxury Door Sounds" (a reassuring thud when you close them - as tested by Takumi master craftspeople, no less). There is also "Sashiko" stitching on the seats - a method borrowed from judo and kendo uniforms; illuminated vent controls (clever); plus windscreen wipers that pause when passengers exit or enter the vehicle (so they don't cop a face-full of wiper water).
But there are some faults with the UX that we're not really used to seeing from Lexus.
The interior, while quiet, plush and generously equipped, doesn't feel particularly premium and had some odd ergonomic choices - particularly a little set of audio controls tacked onto the centre console just behind the gear shifter. Odd.
On the positive side, there's a new, digital instrument panel with cool graphics, plus the 10.3-inch centre control screen is vivid and the graphics smart. Sadly, though, it uses the touch-pad scrolling method, favoured by Lexus but not favoured by me. It's just too fiddly, particularly when the car is in motion (which is the time a driver least needs to be fumbling with changing the audio or navigation settings).
That said, the UX is an easy, breezy thing to drive. The hybrid system gives it ample power on takeoff while the petrol engine, a bit revvy by virtue of its transmission and hybrid set-up, adds sufficient power and torque to keep this neat little machine moving nicely.
Its steering is a particular highlight - accurate and nicely balanced - and the ride is likewise well resolved. Technically the UX rides on a new chassis known as Lexus Global Architecture C platform - which can also be found beneath vehicles like the Toyota Corolla and its funky-looking sibling, the C-HR.
Unsurprisingly, the UX feels most at home in the city but remains stable and well grounded when cruising on the highway, where its radar-assisted cruise control helps make those long, boring highway journeys a little less tiresome.
Not everyone is going to like the styling of this car - myself included. The squared-off wheel arches jar with the otherwise sleek design - and look as though they were pilfered from a Jeep Compass. That's not a comparison that the good folk at Lexus would appreciate.
Then again, perhaps that's all just part of the experience.
LEXUS UX250h
HOW BIG: It's a compact SUV that feels roomier and more substantial than the CT200h hatchback it replaces in the Lexus family. A 334-litre boot is pretty useful.
HOW FAST? With a combined 131kW of power it's an ample performer but lacks the zip of some European rivals, most notably the BMW X2 and Audi Q2.
HOW THIRSTY: This is where the Euros struggle to keep up - with the Lexus returning just 4.7L/100km. That's impressive for a versatile machine such as this one.
HOW MUCH? The entry-level UX200 starts at a bit over $44 grand. The UX250h F-Sport, tested here, is substantially more at $70,070, drive away.
