2023 Lexus RX 350

CLINT SIMONE: Look what we have here. It's the new Lexus RX 350 and the Mercedes-Benz GLE. That's right, today it's top seller versus top rated. For years now, you, the consumer, have made the Lexus RX America's best selling mid-sized luxury SUV. You buy a lot of them. On the other hand, we at Edmunds have the RX ranked in the middle of the pack behind rivals like the Porsche Cayenne, BMW X5, and Genesis GV80. But that was the old RX, and we're lucky enough to have early access to the car that replaces it. Just look at how shiny it is. In fact, we're so early that this is still a pre-production version, which means the car is basically still in prototype form. This RX is much more upscale than any ones that came before it. And there's also a new standard powertrain. But most importantly, Lexus took that old touchpad-style infotainment system and they threw it right where it belongs-- the garbage. [CHILDREN CHEERING] So, is this generation the car that finally unites popular opinion and our sometimes nitpicky editors? Let's find out. Before we start this test, do us a favor and give this video a like, and don't forget to subscribe to the Edmunds Cars YouTube channel. And if you want an instant cash offer on your car, head over to edmunds.com/sellmycar. The RX has been a sales Goliath for years now, and it's pretty easy to understand why. I mean, Lexus basically created the luxury crossover segment with the RX over 2 decades ago. And since that time, it's built up a solid reputation for quality, reliability, an affordable price tag, and strong resale value. This new model is very much a case of if it ain't broke, you'll probably a million more of them. The RX is now 4-cylinder only, and there's going to be hybrid, plug-in hybrid, even a high-performance version. The RX is getting spicy, folks. The new Lexus RX starts at $48,550, including the destination charge. And that is for the entry level, front-wheel-drive version. The car in our test is an all-wheel-drive F Sport version which costs $57,750. Although it does cost more than before, the RX is still the bargain of the bunch in this segment. But don't forget about the GLE. This car was redesigned for the 2020 model year, and it still sits pretty here today. This is the GLE 350 model, and at won over our vehicle testing team with awesome road manners, an incredibly luxurious interior, and a super smart MBUX infotainment system. And at least for now, Mercedes will sell you this car with 4, 6, and even 8-cylinder engine options. The new Mercedes-Benz GLE 350 starts at $56,150 before destination. Add in active safety tech and the interior features we want, like the Burmester sound system and ambient lighting, that number is more like $60,000. So let's line these two up next to each other so we can see two very different takes on design. Now, this RX has an evolved look to it. But honestly, it looks a lot better than before. That said, there is a giant spindle grille on the front of it because they had to make at least a few of you upset, right? I think I'm just used to it at this point. I have no more hot takes on the spindle grille other than this little blue right here, this body color matching, actually does it some good. And it makes the nose on the RX a lot more prominent and strong. I love these swept-back headlights that run into a much smoother body side that doesn't have too much fuss going on. The same can be said about those 21-inch dark gray wheels, too. But honestly, the best stuff is at the back. That single-bar tail light looks very nice, and the actual detailing in the light is super elegant. The whole vibe here is a car that looks smaller and lower than it really is. And you know what? That's because it is smaller, at least compared to the GLE. This GLE is 2 inches longer than the RX overall, and it has a 6-inch-longer wheelbase. That's a big difference. And over here on the side, you can actually see right next to each other the GLE is also 3 inches taller than the Lexus, which gives it a much more rugged presence overall. But presence is one thing. Practicality is another. [MUSIC PLAYING] Let's talk cargo for a second. Now, Lexus used to make the RXL, which had three rows of seats. But it turns out nobody liked that one, so now the RX is back to two rows only. [RECORD SCRATCH] But between you and me, they're going to make another crossover, and it's going to have three rows. Just don't tell anybody. But back to the car that does exist and the one that you can buy right now. Behind these two rows of seats, there's just under 30 cubic feet of space. And when you fold down the seats, that number grows to 46 cubic feet of space. So, in real terms, take an object like this. One. Thank you. And two. They fit no problem in a car this size. But if you look closely, that second row doesn't fold very flat, and that's a problem for some people. But to those numbers, the Mercedes says, hold my beer. Or hold my White Claw, probably. If you do want that third row of seats, Mercedes will happily give it to you for $2,100. Or if you're like most people, you'll get the two-row option, like we have here. Now, with that middle row folded up you get 33 cubic feet of space. But with that middle row folded down, you get more. A lot more, actually. 75 cubic feet of space. And that is 40% more. This is the test of luxury SUVs. So a nice interior is super important. Now, the RX has always been a nice place to sit in, but it never had up-to-date technology. It was kind of like going and sitting in your grandma's living room. But now, all of a sudden, Grandma got a smartphone and she's showing you how to play "Candy Crush" because the tech in here is really decent. Right here in front of me is a 14-inch Lexus interface infotainment system. And it's a mixture of actual physical dials and knobs, and then menu settings and buttons. So the climate controls stay fixed down here-- your heated, ventilated seats, your HVAC controls, et cetera. And then look at this. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. So I can leave my phone down here on the wireless charging pad. It charges up. You shut this. You can use CarPlay if you want it, don't if you don't. Over here in front of me, I'm going to get a little bit more nitpicky. It's just these touch capacitive buttons on the steering wheel. So it doesn't actually control the screen in front of me as the driver. Instead, it's way up there on the head-up display. So if I want to change a song or if I want to pick up a phone call, you're going to just have to move your thumb around in a circle until you find the right button. And if you're wearing polarized sunglasses, forget about it. You can't see anything. Don't get me wrong, though. The story in here, everything is a million times better than it was before. The downside is that they make you pay for it. To get this car's full range of functionality with all of its smartphone access and cloud-based navigation, it's about $16 a month. That's Netflix money. Let's take a step back from the tech and just look around us because the interior in here is really lovely. There's all these shapes on the doors and fun patterns. There's 64 colors of ambient lighting, and you can do pretty much any color you want. And these seats, they're nice. They're soft to the touch, for sure. They have heating and ventilation. There's a heated steering wheel in front of me. Legroom in the back of the RX is definitely adequate, but you know what? Headroom could be much better, especially for a car this size. But both passengers back here do get a place to plug-in their phone, and there's this nice panoramic sunroof to let in a bunch of light. But then we get to the saga of the door handles-- or buttons, I should say. All you have to do is push it right here and you can get out. But I feel like people's inclination is to look for a handle, and the handle is not there. Good luck if you're using this car for an Uber. SPEAKER: Stupid space car. Get me out. CLINT SIMONE: The buttons-- SPEAKER: Get me out. CLINT SIMONE: --to get out of this car are very hard to find. SPEAKER: Get me out. [THUMPING] [MUSIC PLAYING] CLINT SIMONE: What you see here set the bar for what it takes to compete in this space. The GLE's interior is more luxurious than a BMW. It's higher quality than a Genesis. And while that RX improves in so many important ways, the GLE still has it beat. This is the best in class. I love this gorgeous matte wood trim that spans across the entire dash, and these really neat Burmester speaker grills. They kind of look like the world's fanciest cheese grater. And then in front of me, we have twin 12.3-inch MBUX displays. And they're actually integrated into the dash. It was designed like they're supposed to be there. It's not just two iPads stuck wherever the designers think they should go. You get two choices for interacting with the screen. You can either use this little touchpad that works well, or you can actually touch the screen, if you want. You do get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality, but they're wired connections, not wireless. And the driver's display actually has a surprising amount of functionality. You can hit this Home button right here. You can put your navigation, what song you're listening to. And if you scroll over all the way to the right, you can even change the design of the way the gauge cluster looks, from classic to sport to progressive. The car I'm sitting in right now is a little light on options, but Mercedes rolls out a huge menu of luxury features to pick from. Massaging seats? Yes. Perfume that comes out of the air vents? Definitely. Even augmented reality navigation. And every luxury car now has ambient lighting, but the Mercedes wrote the book on that. The story in the back seat is very similar to the cargo area. There's just a lot more space to work with. There's almost 4 inches more legroom than the RX, but let's make things fair. I complained about the door handles in the RX, so I found one thing that I don't like back here. If you can tell me what that shelf is good for holding, let me in the comments, because the answer is not an iPhone. [MUSIC PLAYING] As I mentioned, the RX lineup is now 4-cylinder only. V-6 out, 4-cylinder in. So this turbocharged 2.4-liter engine has 275 horsepower and 317 pound feet of torque. There's a bit of a trade-off there. It's less horsepower than before, but more torque. Don't be sad. I promise, it's a good thing. The RX rides on a front-wheel-drive-based platform, but this particular car is all-wheel-drive. The engine is shared with the Lexus NX, which is a smaller crossover than this one. And when I drove that car a few months ago, I was a bit unimpressed with this little 4-cylinder. It felt loud and kind of buzzy and intrusive. Unrefined is actually the best word to describe it. And I'm not sure what trickery Lexus has done, but the RX feels much better. It's a lot more calm and a lot more refined. And that calm demeanor extends beyond the engine to the ride quality. Very nice. And the throttle input, the braking feel, everything is just kind of smooth. It's very easy to drive at city speeds. Is it fun to drive? No. No, not particularly. But for the first time ever, Lexus has an answer for you. They now have the RX 500h, a car that has over 400 pound feet of torque. But my question is, who are the people asking for that? If you are that person, the one that wants to drive your RX as fast as possible, please reach out to us. We'd love to say hi to you. We'll send you a T-shirt in the mail. This RX is much more of a highway hero. That 4-cylinder has plenty of power to get up to speed. And once you're there, everything is pretty much effortless. The car does almost all of the work for you. And the other benefit of having this powertrain is pretty stellar fuel economy, to be honest. 22 in the city, 29 on the highway, and overall 25 combined. And remember, they're doing a hybrid version and a plug-in hybrid version. Things only get better from here. But speaking of driving on the highway for long periods of time, that's how we find out small things that annoy you with these cars. I'm driving the right way right now at 10 and 2. But over time, if you're on the highway, traffic gets heavy, you slide your hand over do one of the leans. I don't know if you heard that. The car says-- [LOW BEEP] --no thank you. This sensor right in front of me is part of the safety system, so it's monitoring everything I'm doing. The second you move your hand over and it can't see you anymore, freaks out. Puts up a little thing on the screen, says, what are you doing? What are you doing? And then it goes away. But it will not stop doing it and, over time, gets really annoying. And as soon as I was done exchanging some colorful language with the sensor in front of me, I realized that the technology in this car is, most of the time, working with you and not against you. Lexus put in the time to get those small details right. And all of that adds up to just a really nice driving experience. So I just hopped into this car a few moments ago, and our producer had classical music playing. And I reached for the volume knob to turn it down because I'm not really a huge classical music fan. But then I realized, this actually makes sense in here. The GLE is a classical music kind of place, and I mean that in a good way. All that that I just said about the RX and how easy it is to drive and effortless at what it does, that's all true. But Mercedes just does everything across the board 10% to 20% better. The GLE rides on a rear-wheel-drive-based platform, so it's just a touch more athletic in all of its movements. The way it carries itself on the road just feels a bit more sporty because of it. And we know that this chassis can handle a lot more than what the GLE 350 offers. I mean, there's a version of this car with over 600 horsepower. But this is not a 600 horsepower party. No, the GLE 350 has a turbocharged 2-liter 4-cylinder with 255 horsepower and 273 pound feet of torque. On paper, that's less than the Lexus RX. But actually, in practice, it feels punchier. I prefer this powertrain for city driving to the Lexus. It just downshifts a little bit smooth, and you can access the power more easily. Really, the only spot where the Mercedes hurts you is in fuel economy. This does 19 city, 27 MPG on the highway, and 22 combined. So you're dropping two to three miles per gallon compared to the RX. This is a big SUV with a great ride quality, very quiet interior, and an upright driving position that lets me easily see everything in front of me with really no bad blind spots behind me. And at the end of the day, that's what people want when they're buying a car like this. On the road, the Mercedes just does luxury better. [MUSIC PLAYING] The GLE is at the top of our list for a reason. It's a fantastic luxury SUV with a spacious interior and long list of amenities to pick from. Credit where it's due, the Lexus RX has come a long way, but it just doesn't have what it takes to knock off the king. We look forward to getting our hands on a full production model in the future to see if that changes our mind. Thanks for watching. Now, somebody had the keys to the Benz. [MUSIC PLAYING]