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Luxury SUVs that exude a big, bad and bonkers vibe have always been popular in India, especially with the rich and famous, and the latest entrant to cotton onto that trend is the all-new Lexus LX500d. Powered solely by a diesel engine, prices start at Rs 2.82 crore for the LX500d and it is offered in three variants, depending on which interior trim should you choose to spec your Lexus with.
The Lexus LX has always been positioned as a more luxurious rendition of its cousin, the Toyota Land Cruiser, and that comes across in the design of the SUV as well. The LX500d should command impressive presence on the road, thanks to its sizeable footprint with the Lexus being 5.1-metres in length, just a shade under 2-metres in width (1,990mm) and standing tall at nearly 1.9-metres in height (1,895mm to be precise). The leviathan continues to follow the signature Lexus design language, with a massive hourglass-like front grille with chrome slats, and the Lexus logo sitting prominently in the centre. The grille is flanked with LED headlamps that feature 3 projector beams and an auto-levelling function. Looking at the side profile, you will see a prominent shoulder line running from the headlamp to the tail lamps, with the 22-inch forged aluminium alloy wheels sitting inside the flared-out wheel arches wrapped in 265/50 tyres. The rear of the Lexus LX features an LED tail lamp that runs across the length of the tailgate, with the Lexus lettering sitting right in centre. The LX can also be had with a choice of five colour schemes.
On the inside, the layered dashboard features two screens for the centre console – a 12.3-inch touchscreen for the infotainment system that gets wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and sitting right below it is a secondary 7-inch touch control display that displays vehicle data such as the aircon setting and the selected drive mode. This screen is flanked by the vertical air con vents on either side and physical switches for the four-zone climate control and the four-wheel drive system below. The driver on the other hand gets an 8-inch digital instrument cluster. The LX also gets a 25-speaker 3D sound system from Mark Levinson. There are four interior colour schemes on offer, and you also have the choice between three interior trim options. Globally, the LX is offered with a four-seat variant that neatly divides the rear bench, but the India-spec LX500d will be offered with a traditional rear bench and seating for five.
The LX500d will solely be offered with a 3.3-litre V6 diesel engine in India mated to a 10-speed transmission with paddle shifters. The V6 diesel produces 304bhp of power and 700Nm of torque. In terms of power, Lexus claim that LX which tips the scales at just over 3.2 tonnes can do a 0-100kmph time of 8 seconds. No petrol or hybrid powertrain is offered at the moment.
Prices for the LX500d start at Rs 2.82 crore going up to Rs 2.83 crore depending on which of the three interior trim options you choose. The pricing of the LX500d means that it commands a premium over the likes of the new Range Rover which gets both petrol and diesel engines and the choice of seven seats (Rs 2.38 to Rs 3.58 crore), the BMW XM petrol hybrid (Rs 2.6 crore) while undercutting the likes of the Mercedes-Maybach GLS (Rs 2.92 crore). The new Toyota Land Cruiser hasn’t been launched in India yet, but if our price speculation proves to be correct, the Lexus would be over Rs 70 lakh more expensive than its cousin from Toyota.
