2015 Lexus NX Brings Hope To A Chemical World

2015 Lexus NX

IF YOU don't like the nomenclature used by car companies, look away now: this is about to get complicated. Sounding more like chemical formulae than soulful machines, Lexus names have seldom resonated with me. NX, LS, MSG... It is simply impossible to match name to character to car. So building on the LF-NX concept from last year, Lexus has built the NX, a premium SUV based on the Toyota RAV4. With me so far? Then let's continue.

2011 Lexus LF-LC Blue Concept

The Lexus periodic table spans attention-grabbing show cars and attention-seeking production cars. The brand is just beginning to consolidate the two, starting with the LF-Gh concept in 2011, which outlined a new face and fresh take on headlamps, followed by last year’s powerful LF-LC concept that introduced a dramatic gesture and beautiful interior.

The stance of the NX is defined by a high-point somewhere over the rear passengers, lending a gesture that is more dynamic than the surging Infiniti FX55. A triangular shoulder peaks in width at the B-post, where it creates a diagonal bone-line that intersects the front axle. The shoulder dives into the window-line ahead of the A-post, making way for a prominent front wheel-arch from which point forward the LF-LC’s face is found. 


At the back, the haunch resists bringing the shoulder out to cover the wide track: the vertical surface below pressing into the wheel-arch is the more memorable aspect. In this space, between arch and shoulder, the short surface is drum tight, giving a machined look that softens as one reaches the middle door-cut.

Much has changed since I first walked into a Lexus design studio. Today's cars embrace a deeper appreciation of worldly tastes, the richness now inherent in their designs as strong as the marketing and engineering that propelled the brand nearly thirty years ago. Japanese companies have been the slowest to promote foreign design leadership, so the mixing of cultures at Lexus must be the harbinger of change if their compatriots are to expect the same success.

2014 Infiniti Q80 Inspiration Concept Shows How It Should Be Done

SHOWCARS need to sell an image, and what you need is a roofline twice the height of the wheel, and a gap between wheel and arch barely broader than your pinky. 2.2 and thumb won’t cut it. Put the Q80 Inspiration Concept next to the any other four-door and you understand the difference proportions make. Every predecessor is tall, boxy and narrow, while the Q80 offers a sublime flourish of surfaces: well done Infiniti. 

The Inspiration does a fantastic job of selling the interior too, designer Nicki Kwee using a very clear graphical distinction between front and rear to explain the passenger-focused concept. I love the strip of quilted white leather running down the sill, and there is an intriguing modesty about the driver’s cockpit. Double gullwing doors help show the whole thing off to marvelous effect.

Disappointments include a front graphic that still does not nail it for me, in terms of distinguishing Infiniti from Lexus, and the undoubtedly handsome rear remains somewhat benign. Fine. It does the job of finishing the car, and does not need to carry the message of identity (front) or concept (proportions). In terms of taste, I find it too curvaceous; I prefer clearer linearity with exquisite details. But it is hard to contest the beauty of the surfaces fore of the haunch, highlights spilling like water around the wheel, or the bulb of glass being blown.

The job now is to get this drama into production across the range. Not easy, as it will take serious investment to nail the proportions and the details, as the theme alone may still be a little too evolutionary . But for now the Inspiration concept demonstrates that Infiniti has the talent to worry the best of them.