Lexus announces new LBX luxury small car, not yet confirmed for Australia

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Lexus has pulled the covers off its latest luxury small car – the LBX – that will ride upon the same platform as the current Toyota Yaris Cross. 

LBX stands for Lexus Breakthrough X, with designers using inspiration from the 2003 Lexus LS-F concept. 

Measuring in at 4190mm long, 1825mm wide and 1560mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2580mm, the new LBX is longer, wider but shorter than the current Toyota Yaris Cross (4180mm tall, 1765mm wide and 1590mm tall). 

Powering the new LBX will be a 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol hybrid powertrain and will be available with both front- and all-wheel drive variants. 

Power and torque outputs are yet to be released, however it is likely that the hybrid system will be shared with the Toyota Yaris’ 85kW/141Nm hybrid system. 

While Lexus Australia has not confirmed the LBX for our market, the brand has released a statement saying that it “continues to assess models that may be suitable for the needs of local customers, with the LBX no exception. A decision on LBX will be made at a later stage.”

What else should you know about the Lexus LBX?

The LBX will undoubtedly be one of the most luxurious cars on the small car market when it comes into production. 

Technology in the LBX will include a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 9.8-inch centre console touchscreen for infotainment. 

Lexus has also installed ambient lighting with 14 preset themes and an additional 50 colours for owners to choose from. 

Lexus says that it has worked to make the driving experience of the LBX as quiet and refined as possible and has implemented larger exhaust mufflers, precision engine mounts, a balance shaft for the engine and has added a resonator in the air intake to reduce unwanted noise.

There are plenty of safety technologies, too, with Lexus adding driving assist, pre-crash safety, dynamic radar cruise control, lane departure alert and lane tracing assist.