Lexus RX L 450h (2018-2022) interior & comfort

The Lexus RX L is well equipped, regardless of trim level, while some neat design touches and good build quality lift the interior. You’ll need to splash out on the top trim for the best experience, mind.

Lexus RX L 450h dashboard

Lexus dashboards tend to impress for their quality and technology rather than their style and panache. So you shouldn’t expect the stylish simplicity of a Volvo XC90 T8 or the sophistication of an Audi Q7. It might be over-critical to claim that the dashboard in the RX L looks a tad dated, but the myriad of controls, the questionable quality of some of the plastics, and the ‘Marmite’ analogue clock won’t appeal to all tastes. There are some neat touches, such as the aluminium inlays and the dark wood inlays with laser etching, while a leather and wood steering wheel increases the level of perceived quality inside.

Equipment, options and accessories

The range kicks off with an entry-level model that gets a 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen, six USB ports, smartphone integration via Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, the Lexus Safety System+ active safety package, a powered tailgate, a wireless smartphone charger, Tahara synthetic leather upholstery and eight-way power-adjustable front seats with two-way lumbar adjustment on the driver’s seat.

The standard specification can be upgraded with a 'Premium Pack', which adds smooth leather upholstery, front-seat heating and ventilation, hands-free tailgate operation with a kick sensor, a heated steering wheel, auto-dimming and reverse-tilting functions for the door mirrors and an auto-retracting seat and steering wheel (with memory function).

The Premium Sport Edition trim adds black exterior trim and 20-inch alloys wheels, plus black and white leather seat upholstery, a heads-up display, heated rear seats, sunroof and additional safety systems including blind spot monitoring.

At the top of the range, the RX L Takumi gets power-folding heated rear seats, a 15-speaker Mark Levinson stereo, 360-degree camera, semi-aniline leather upholstery, 10-way powered front seat adjustment, memory settings for the front seats, steering wheel and door mirrors. The RX L in both Premium Sport Edition and Takumi trim can also be ordered in a six-seat layout, with two individual 'captain's chairs' in place of the regular three-seat second-row bench.

Infotainment, apps and sat nav

A large 12.3-inch infotainment display sits atop the dashboard and it certainly looks the part. A facelift introduced in 2019 means this now works as touchscreen, which means you can avoid most of the major frustrations caused by the old trackpad interface. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity are now standard features too, giving the RX L the sort of plug-and-play functionality that most customers demand from a car in this price bracket.

While the touchscreen is an improvement, the graphics and menus are still a little dated for our liking. This makes the screen unappealing to look at, and less than logical to use. The head-up display that comes with Takumi trim is allegedly the largest fitted to any car in the world, and it's a real highlight of the car. There's room for lots of information, including current speed, speed limits, sat nav instructions and cruise control settings. This means you rarely need to divert your gaze away from the road, which is surely a boost for overall safety.