The Lexus LBX crams automotive luxury into a pocket-sized contemporary package

Lexus has compressed its long-held reputation for build quality and supreme reliability into this, the new LBX. As the smallest Lexus model built to date, the LBX is a distillation of all the things that make the Japanese luxury brand great, rather than a concentrate, and as a result some aspects of essential Lexus-ness have been lost in the process.

That’s not to say it’s not a likeable and competent car. Barely larger than a Mini Cooper, the LBX (which stands for ‘Lexus Breakthrough Crossover’) takes the near-ubiquitous compact SUV format and runs with it, attempting to cram as much into the cabin as possible.

The company did have an earlier foray into smaller vehicles with the long-running CT200h, an early hybrid that used Toyota underpinnings beneath a relatively ungainly hatchback body. The CT (‘Creative Touring’) lasted from 2011 all the way to 2022, and was the first Lexus to feature the much maligned (in some quarters) Lexus ‘spindle grille’.

Even though the LBX is a small SUV, it’s shorter still than the CT (4.19m to 4.35m), although it sits 10cm higher and 5cm wider than the earlier car. It also highlights changing aspects of car design fashion. For example, the old CT was usually found on 16” wheels, which always looked a bit small for the bodywork. The LBX is usually depicted on 18” wheels and as any car designer will tell you, bigger wheels look better. Not only do improve a car’s stance, but by filling up the wheelarches, they appear to shrink the bodywork around it.

As any engineer will counter, bigger wheels usually mean worse ride quality and poorer economy, as well as being way more prone to nicks and dings in everyday encounters with curbs and potholes. The high-riding stance implies a bit of off-road agility, but the car is front wheel drive only and the hybridised 1.5-litre, 3-cylinder engine doesn’t have much pulling power. The upside is that economy is pretty good, with a promised average of 62.7mpg, even if the entry price for the higher-specification model is serious money.

The top-end LBX is the Takumi Design model which adds some exclusive trim, along with a 13-speaker Mark Levinson sound system, heated and powered front seats and the largest 18” wheels. At £41,475, you don’t want to be reminded that this car shares a platform – and many other characteristics – with the humble Toyota Yaris Cross. In a head to head, the Toyota might not cosset, but it is certainly more spirited, with an angular body that feels less conservative than the LBX.

The LBX is slightly bigger all round than the Toyota, and the combination of long wheelbase and short overhang give it a purposeful appearance, robust and solid-looking. Admittedly from some angles it looks a little stout, which is no doubt the combination of the blacked-out pillars and glasshouse contrasting with the high shoulder line and large expanse of bodywork below.

There are a few tech foibles, like a rather slow responding 9.8” touchscreen display. While Apple CarPlay can be wired or wireless, Android Auto is wired only. The quirky e-latch doors also take some getting used to, with buttons rather than physical handles, and a corresponding lack of engagement with opening and closing the doors. On top of all this, the LBX feels a little underpowered, with progress not as effortless as a true luxury car should be.

So can true luxury be presented in such a small package? For downsizers who don’t want to ditch the creative comforts they’ve become accustomed to, the LBX doesn’t really have any competition. Or do we need a new definition of luxury for a world that desperately needs LBX-scale cars to be the norm, and not the exception?

Lexus LBX, from £29,995, Lexus.co.uk, @LexusUK