Lexus has unveiled the new LBX compact SUV, an acronym for Lexus Breakthrough Crossover. According to the statement, the Japanese manufacturer’s design ambition was to create a car with a relaxed rather than formal character, displaying an authentic, casual style that people would immediately feel in tune with. The most significant aspect of the design is the new front end that breaks with the concept of the hourglass grille, the hallmark of Lexus design over the past decade. “We re-imagined the hourglass grille to make room for a new design. We managed to create a new identity for the front end, completely different from the previous one, but instantly recognisable as Lexus,” explained Koichi Suga, General Manager Lexus Design.
The grille has been merged into a single trapezoidal shape, positioned under a narrow opening that runs under the front edge of the bonnet, connecting the slender light clusters. The design harks back to Lexus’ ‘Resolute Look’ heritage, introduced with the LF-S concept car in 2003 and which has become a characteristic styling element of Lexus production models since the early 2000s. The LBX, the first Lexus built on the Japanese manufacturer’s GA-B platform (the same used for the Yaris Cross) is 4.19 metres long, 1.82 metres wide and 1.54 metres high.
The manufacturer’s intentions for the interior design aimed at a simple and refined, upper segment interior. The design of the driver’s seat followed the Tazuna concept: main controls and information sources immediately around the driver with their operation requiring small hand or eye movements. The car also features a new 9.8-inch infotainment display and 12.3-inch digital instrumentation, a first for a Lexus.
