- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 5 seats
- Engine
2.4T, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
205kW, 430Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (95) 8.1L/100KM
- Manufacturer
4WD
- Transmission
Auto
- Warranty
5 Yr, Unltd KMs
- Ancap Safety
5/5 star (2022)
2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport review
Lexus has always been synonymous with luxury in Australia, but the 2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport gets the gloves on in one of the most competitive segments in this country – medium luxury SUVs. Trent Nikolic samples the new and improved NX to find out how well-equipped it is against its competition.
- Cabin execution and quality are excellent
- Extensive list of standard features
- New infotainment makes a huge difference
- Second row a little tight for tall occupants
- Run-flat tyres not our preference
- Engine is efficient, but could use a little more punch
2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport
When Kez first drove the then-new 2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport, he summed up its market position beautifully.
“With the new-generation 2022 Lexus NX350 F Sport, the Lexus brand moves its SUV out of the space where you feel compelled to make excuses for it. Not that the old NX was particularly bad, but it struggled against fierce competition from BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz. Never quite as spacious, not as tech-laden, and not as dynamic. With a new platform, new engines, and – finally – a new infotainment platform, Lexus has a competitor in the medium SUV class that ticks all the boxes.”
Spot on. Further, fierce competition is exactly what this luxury medium SUV segment is defined by. You can add Genesis to that mix now as well, not to mention the likes of Jaguar, Alfa Romeo, Volvo and Maserati, all vying for your attention and sharp eye for luxury. And, with a move that for many is the first step into luxury ownership, there’s deep expectation from the buyer as well.
There’s no doubt that buyers have never had so many high-quality options – and Lexus is no longer the fallback option. Or the default option for those stepping up from the more mainstream offerings from Mazda, Toyota, Kia, Hyundai, Honda and Nissan among others.
So where does this segment sit right now? Audi Q5, BMW X3, Mercedes-Benz GLC, Genesis GV70, Jaguar F-Pace, Alfa Romeo Stelvio, and Maserati Grecale all ensure there’s a heady mix of quality, luxury, performance, and driving engagement on offer for those looking for more than just day-to-day practicality. That means any combatant in this segment needs to bring more than just luxury to the table.
Aussies love medium SUVs, we know that. But with that love for the segment comes the aspirational glance further up the ladder into the luxury sphere, and as such, this segment is more popular than ever. It also needs to deliver everything the regular medium SUV segment has to deliver – and then some.
The 2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport is new, improved, and features significant upgrades in crucial areas that had become non-negotiable – infotainment being one. Let's find out whether the new NX is truly primed for the luxury slugfest.
How much does the Lexus NX350 cost in Australia?
The Lexus NX350 F Sport starts from $77,511 before on-road costs, with the non-hybrid 2.4-litre version coming in one specification grade with the petrol engine and AWD. There is, of course, an NX250 2WD petrol, as well as the NX350h in both 2WD and AWD variants, across Luxury, Sports Luxury and F Sport model grades. Step up to the range-topping NX450+ F Sport plug-in hybrid and the price starts from $90,984 before on-road costs.
With a long list of standard inclusions and no need to tick copious options boxes, it's hard to argue the Lexus value proposition. That price spread across the NX model range runs from $62,275 before on-road costs, up to the aforementioned $90,948 before on-road costs.
Our tester has the Enhancement Pack 2 added, which includes a panoramic sunroof, heated steering wheel, digital rear-view mirror and excellent 17-speaker Mark Levinson audio system for an additional $6000 (including on-road costs). The pricing breakdown below reflects our test NX, as well as indicative drive-away pricing for Sydney.
The 2.4-litre engine generates 205kW and 430Nm and drives through a conventional eight-speed automatic. While there's the word Sport in the F Sport's name, it isn't a sporty SUV to be fair, with the engine doing enough without being dynamic. The NX350 F Sport rarely feels like a fast SUV. Sport S and Sport+ driving modes definitely firm up the driving experience, but you won't be tricked into thinking you're driving a proper sports car.
Standard features are many, as per the Lexus playbook, and highlights include: red leather trim, 10-way adjustable driver's seat, eight-way adjustable for the passenger as well as heating and ventilation.
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You also get 20-inch alloy wheels, a 14-inch infotainment touchscreen, 8.0-inch driver's display, head-up display, surround-view cameras, wireless smartphone charging, adaptive suspension with F Sport performance dampers, F Sport pedals, shifter, steering wheel and sill plates, tri-beam LED headlights with adaptive high-beam, special aluminium trim, and selectable driving modes.
Key details | 2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport |
Price | $77,511 plus on-road costs |
Colour of test car | Graphite Black |
Options | Enhancement Pack 2 – $4615.28 - Panoramic sunroof - Heated steering wheel - Digital rear-view mirror - 17-speaker Mark Levinson audio system Graphite Black paint – $1346.16 |
Price as tested | $83,472 plus on-road costs |
Drive-away price | $93,365 (Sydney) |
Rivals | Audi Q5 | BMW X3 | Mercedes-Benz GLC |
How much space does the Lexus NX350 have inside?
Firstly, the electric door handles – or E-latches as Lexus calls them. I reckon we can file them under the ‘answer to a question nobody asked’ column. There’s more and more on that list with modern cars, of course, but I can’t see any argument for them.
Quieter than a traditional latch and lever mechanism? Yes. Were the traditional-style mechanisms likely to impinge on the luxury experience of driving a Lexus? No. Still, once you get used to them, they do become intuitive enough, but you’d struggle to convince me a modern car needs any more electronic complexity than it already has.
The cabin is perhaps the most important element of executing a luxury vehicle of any kind. And as expected from Lexus, the NX350 F Sport delivers a cabin that is just that. Our tester has the red leather trim, which some of you will love. Others maybe not, but that’s a personal opinion.
Visibility is excellent, as is seat and steering wheel adjustability, and the way you can position yourself behind the wheel. The shorter among us will appreciate the way in which you can jack the seat up to have plenty of fore and aft visibility.
For some time now, Lexus has delivered seats that are among the best in the business, and once again the NX delivers on that front too. The seats are nicely sculpted, comfortable, and you can head off on a long road trip knowing you won’t need a chiro at the other end. In fact, the ‘Sport’ in F Sport is evident in the seats, which have the appearance of sculpted buckets and the ability to tuck you into place, but aren’t so firm that they feel hard.
Storage is well catered to, especially given the compact exterior dimensions. Up front you get two cupholders, a conventional glovebox, centre storage bin in the console, and a storage section that is hidden beneath the wireless charging pad. The latter of which can be retracted out of the way to access that storage.
I’d think of the NX as a four-seat rather than five-seat SUV, especially if you need to move teenage kids or adults around. There’s room in the back, but once you get over six-foot it starts to get cosy. Two child seats, not three, is also our recommendation for the second row.
Second-row occupants get air vents, twin USB-A charge ports, a regular 12-volt socket and map pockets in the back of the seats. Temperature and air controls would be an appreciated addition back there.
The powered tailgate opens to reveal 520 litres of space with the rear seats up, or 1141L with the 60:40-split seats folded. It’s a decently sized space able to comfortably fit in most things a busy family will need, with a flat-laid lip and a pair of fold-away bag hooks nestled in the sides.
Beneath the boot floor is a large space to store additional items out of sight but no dual-height boot floor. The specification of run-flat tyres means there’s no spare eating into boot space. Opening the tailgate via the key fob is easy enough, and the kick-to-open function works, but it’s not something I find myself using too often beyond testing that it works as it should.
2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport | |
Seats | Five |
Boot volume | 520L seats up 1141L seats folded |
Length | 4660mm |
Width | 1865mm |
Height | 1670mm |
Wheelbase | 2690mm |
Does the Lexus NX350 have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto?
Nowhere is the new model more obvious than when you're inside the cabin interacting with the infotainment system. This new system is a massive improvement over the old, fiddly and well past its use-by date system, which we rated poorly many times over the years. Thankfully that system is now a distant memory.
The 14-inch touchscreen display inside the F Sport is matched by sharp graphics and it's quick to respond too. To give you an idea of how good it is, and how much processing power it has up its sleeve, when you invoke the 360-degree camera system the changeover is instant and the area underneath the car (displayed as a see-through wire frame) is already mapped and held in cache, ready to go.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity are both standard, Apple users can connect via a wired or wireless connection, but Android users can only connect through wired access. When I do have wireless smartphone connectivity, I tend to charge my phone wirelessly too, and I'm not a big fan of cooking an expensive smartphone on a wireless charging pad. And they all seem to heat the phones up, so the option of plugging in is welcomed.
Also standard are DAB, satellite navigation, Bluetooth and three years' subscription to Lexus Connected services for access to connected navigation, and Lexus Remote Connect that allows users to lock and unlock the doors and tailgate, start or stop the engine, search the car’s location, activate the horn or headlights, or precondition the climate control remotely.
Our test NX has the optional Enhancement Pack 2 fitted, which replaces the quality 10-speaker system with an excellent 17-speaker Mark Levinson-branded system. It delivers clear, powerful sound at any volume, and in our opinion is well worth the upgrade.
An 8.0-inch digital driver's instrument display – smaller than larger screens in some key rivals it has to be said – displays key info, but lacks the kind of multi-format and customisable display modes available from the likes of Audi or Mercedes-Benz.
Across the Drive team, we don't love the new touch-trace steering wheel controls. As you move your finger over the unmarked D-pad on each side of the steering wheel, the head-up display shows where you are and what the function is. A page button underneath allows each pad to be switched between two function sets.
You might think that it's a useful addition, and the theory is that it assists in keeping your eyes on the road, but each function requires a double click – once to activate and another to confirm. If you don't lift your finger, you can make concurrent single presses, but otherwise we found the system to be unresponsive and fiddly to work out.
Is the Lexus NX350 a safe car?
Tested in 2022, the Lexus NX350 earned a full five-star safety rating from ANCAP. Safety is a crucial element of the luxury experience, especially for family buyers, and the NX range is impressive on that front.
The ANCAP scoring covers all NX variants, and in terms of component scores, the NX earned 91 per cent for adult occupant protection, 89 per cent for child occupant protection, 83 per cent for vulnerable road user protection, and 92 per cent for safety assist systems.
2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport | |
ANCAP rating | Five stars (tested 2022) |
Safety report | Link to ANCAP report |
What safety technology does the Lexus NX350 have?
All NX models feature the same suite of active and passive safety technology, which includes autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection and intersection turn assist, allowing the AEB to intervene if it detects the vehicle turning into oncoming traffic.
Other included tech covers safe-exit assist to prevent opening the doors into cyclists or traffic, emergency steering assist, road sign assist and radar active cruise control, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, lane keep and lane trace assist, front and rear park sensors, parking support with brake, 360-degree cameras, and 10 airbags.
I like the way Lexus's safety systems work, and the NX is no different. They do what they do, mostly in the background, without encroaching on driving enjoyment in a jarring way. Plenty of other manufacturers could learn a thing or two in that sense. Lexus's lane-keep assist system especially is a good one, and blind-spot monitoring also worked well on test.
How much does the Lexus NX350 cost to maintain?
As is the case with the whole Lexus range, the NX350 F Sport is covered by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty as well as five years of roadside assistance. Lexus includes three years' access to its Encore ownership benefits program that includes rewards, events offers, and fuel discounts. In regard to accessible luxury, the Encore program is a tangible example of making buyers feel good about their purchase after the fact.
Three years of capped-price servicing is available and priced at $495 per visit (at 12-month/15,000km intervals), but also includes vehicle pick-up and delivery, or a service loan vehicle.
The Lexus NX350 F Sport will set you back $2676.68 to insure comprehensively per annum, based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male driver living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.
At a glance | 2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport |
Warranty | Five years, unlimited km |
Service intervals | 12 months or 15,000km |
Servicing costs | $1485 (3 years) |
Is the Lexus NX350 fuel-efficient?
Lexus quotes the official fuel consumption as 8.1 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined cycle. Despite being an all-new engine, the 2.4-litre turbo doesn’t feature any form of mild hybrid assistance (although Lexus has the more frugal full-hybrid range on NX350h models) but does come with stop-start tech.
That consumption had crept up to 10.1L/100km after long periods sitting idle with the engine running for filming and photography, but in testing on our regular loop, the NX350 F Sport used an indicated 9.2L/100km. If you're chasing the lowest fuel consumption figure you can get, the NX350h – with hybrid tech – is the model to buy.
Fuel Consumption - brought to you by bp
Fuel Useage | Fuel Stats |
Fuel cons. (claimed) | 8.1L/100km |
Fuel cons. (on test) | 9.2L/100km |
Fuel type | 95-octane premium unleaded |
Fuel tank size | 55L |
What is the Lexus NX350 like to drive?
That Lexus has nailed the luxury requirement of the equation is irrefutable. The brand has been synonymous with exactly that since its launch in this country. As such, the cabin experience, and indeed the driving experience, is premium, insulated and quiet. For many of you, that alone defines a luxury driving experience. In line with the F Sport badging, though, the NX experience isn't just about cabin quality.
The NX350 F Sport also packs a decent punch under the bonnet. The 2.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine feels typically understressed and generates an easy 205kW and 430Nm. The engine is mated to a smooth eight-speed automatic and AWD, and while there's no hybrid technology in this model, it's still an efficient combo in the real world. It won't match a hybrid NX for fuel use in traffic, of course, but on the open road it's still impressive.
Don't expect the NX to be a sports car stand-in, and to be honest, medium SUVs shouldn't really have to tick that box anyway. This is more a family cruiser – with some pep in its step – than it is a rapid SUV. Everything about the drive experience feels insulated, even the way in which it gets off the mark if you nail the throttle pedal. It doesn't surge forward the way a sporty SUV might, rather it rides the wave of torque and gathers pace gracefully.
Ride quality is exceptional. The NX is incredibly well tuned when it comes to ironing out poor road surfaces, the likes of which most of you experience around town. The balance between firmness and poise when you turn into a corner, and ride quality when the NX needs to absorb a hit, is noteworthy, and there's basically no situation where the NX350 F Sport feels uncomfortable. Given the NX uses run-flat tyres, it's impressive how well it can insulate cabin occupants over nasty surfaces.
You can, of course, manipulate the drive settings, and the adaptive suspension is changed by using the drive modes, which can be moved into Sport S and Sport S+ modes to firm up the steering and suspension. Those modes also subtly change the shift response, and make the eight-speed automatic more eager, but they don't entirely change the character of the NX. For mine, keep the suspension in Comfort mode.
Key details | 2023 Lexus NX350 F Sport |
Engine | 2.4-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol |
Power | 205kW @ 6000rpm |
Torque | 430Nm @ 1700–3600rpm |
Drive type | All-wheel drive |
Transmission | 8-speed torque converter automatic |
Power-to-weight ratio | 110.2kW/t |
Weight (kerb) | 1860kg |
Spare tyre type | None (run-flat tyres standard) |
Tow rating | 1000kg braked 750kg unbraked |
Turning circle | 11.6m |
Should I buy a Lexus NX350?
This is a very good luxury SUV – and in many ways that goes without saying. But after a week behind the wheel, and with the best in the segment taken into account, Lexus is onto a winner with the new NX. In non-hybrid F Sport guise, it still makes a compelling argument, delivering fuel efficiency the equal of, or better than, some rivals that can't offer the same real-world frugality.
Whether the quality of the Lexus NX is enough to drag those who value the worth of a European badge away from said badge is not really the point. If you're in the market for a medium-size, luxury SUV, the Lexus NX should be on your hit list. Take a look at the hybrid if you desire outright efficiency, but it's hard to argue with the all-round ability and quality of the Lexus NX.
How do I buy a Lexus NX350 – next steps?
We’ve tested the Lexus NX350 F Sport for this review, and the reality that the NX range is well specified makes choosing the model you prefer a little more complex. You should also consider a hybrid NX if saving money on fuel will make a demonstrable difference to your budget. NX250 2WD is a strong option, and the range then steps through NX350 AWD, NX350h 2WD and NX350h AWD, before topping out at NX450h+ AWD.
Stock shortages continue to be an issue at the time of writing, and Lexus is not entirely immune, although the picture is the best it's been since before the COVID-19 pandemic. I spoke to Lexus, and it says that wait times for NX250 and NX30 non-hybrid are around 2–4 months, which is back to normal, even before COVID-19.
As a guide, wait times for NX350h have been slashed dramatically, down to around 5–7 months, which is the best that's been for years. The NX450h+ plug-in hybrid is still pushed out to more than 24 months, so Lexus is only taking expressions of interest on that model until wait times are more palatable.
The next steps on the purchase journey are to check the Lexus website for stock of your preferred NX variant, whether that's hybrid or with a conventional powertrain. You can also find Lexus models for sale at Drive.com.au/cars-for-sale.
We strongly recommend taking a test drive at a dealership before committing because personal needs and tastes can differ. Find your nearest Lexus dealer via this link. We’d also recommend test-driving the hybrid variants of the NX, especially if you want to save as much money on fuel as possible. Also, have a look at the Audi Q5, BMW X3 and Mercedes-Benz GLC.
If you want to stay updated with everything that's happened to this car since our review, you'll find all the latest news here.