Will the Lexus LX gain Hybrid variants in 2024? [Update]

Update: ‘On the Lexus LX Hybrid’ section updated.

The 2023 Lexus LX is the fourth generation of the flagship Lexus SUV and a sister model of Toyota’s all-new Land Cruiser 300 (J300). It’s among the few Lexuses that still hasn’t adopted any sort of electrification.

Presenting the Lexus LF-Z Electrified electric SUV coupe concept, Lexus briefed on its new electrification strategy in March 2021. It will roll out 20 new or improved models by 2025, and more than ten of them will have electrification. At one end of the spectrum, there are BEVs like the Lexus RZ, and on the other, traditional models like the Lexus LX will come in one or more partially electrified forms eventually.

Waiting period in Japan at 4 years

In February 2022, just about a month after Lexus announced the LX 600, the brand’s Japanese website issued an all-important notice. Lexus said that it might take up to 4 years for customers to get delivery of their Lexus SUV. The company suspended new orders because it didn’t have enough production capacity. That status remains unchanged as of April 20, 2023.

The announcement was made in the wake of another similar notice by Toyota regarding the Land Cruiser 300, on which the Lexus LX 600 is based. Toyota issued a similar apology in January 2022, stating that deliveries for the SUV could take up to 4 years in the Japanese market. This explains how sought-after the new flagship SUVs from Lexus and Toyota are worldwide, and how the semiconductor shortage has curtailed production. For this reason, Lexus may delay new variants including the Hybrid.

2023 Lexus LX Design

The 2023 Lexus LX features no exterior design changes compared to the MY2022. Unlike before, the new model’s F Sport Handling trim is available in the Nori Green Pearl paint. The F Sport Handling trim gives the LX a sportier styling with a special spindle grille with jet-black chrome grille frame and a mesh pattern, exclusive 22-inch forged aluminum wheels, and F Sport emblems.

The fourth-gen LX features a design that is both familiar and refreshing. It’s quite different from the latest Land Cruiser model, but the similarities are seen in the more pronounced power bulges on the hood and the rounded-off door mirrors.

At the front, the fourth-gen Lexus LX has a new spindle grille with a 3D shape consisting of seven floating bars, straighter headlamps with new L-shaped DRLs, and new, large side air inlets cut into the bumper.

On the sides, Lexus has pulled the A-pillars back to form the so-called “cab-backward design” and given the wheel arches more definition. The D-pillars lean forward, just like those of the outgoing LX, so, the 2023 LX doesn’t have the upright tailgate of the Land Cruiser 300. LX customers were asking for more differentiation from the Land Cruiser, and Lexus has delivered, not by introducing remarkably different changes but by retaining the familiar silhouette from the third generation.

At the rear, the 2023 LX offers a greater road presence than the LC300 with new tail lamps featuring L-shaped light clusters and a light blade spanning the vehicle width, a feature Lexus offered first on the UX and then the all-new NX. The tail lamps are larger and emphasize the width of the SUV much better, and their outer section running onto the shoulders is reminiscent of the third-gen Mitsubishi Outlander. Instead of the brand emblem, the fourth-gen LX has ‘Lexus’ in block lettering and an inverted license plate section on the tailgate.

The Hybrid variant of the Lexus LX is unlikely to have major tell-tale signs of electrification on the body. Earlier, Lexus used brand logos that have a blue tinge to indicate the Hybrid powertrain, but in recent models, it has moved away from this tradition.

2023 Lexus LX interior & safety

The 2023 Lexus LX’s interior design is no different from the previous model. However, there are three noteworthy equipment changes. The base grade includes a heated steering wheel, meaning customers don’t need to upgrade to the Premium grade to get that feature. Rear-seat entertainment screen covers are a new interior feature in the updated model and are part of the standard equipment. The Ultra-Luxury grade features a new Takanoha wood trim as standard and is available in a new Sunflare color.

Compared to the third-gen Lexus LX, the fourth-gen SUV packs noteworthy upgrades on the inside. There’s a new steering wheel with more buttons, an all-new, North American-developed Lexus Interface dual-screen touchscreen infotainment system that gives the center console a cleaner look, and a new, semi-digital instrument cluster. Customers can specify their LX in an all-new Ultra Luxury grade with four individual seats, a dedicated rear-seat console, and exclusive ceiling AC vents. Five-seat and seven-seat seating layouts are also available.

The Lexus Interface infotainment system comprises a 12.3-inch upper screen and a 7-inch lower screen. The upper screen shows navigation and audio controls, and it serves as the Multi-Terrain Monitor during off-road driving. The lower screen allows controlling the climate control system and serves as a driving-support screen for Multi-Terrain Select. Also new on the tech features list is wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto support.

Multi-Terrain Monitor shows the vehicle’s surroundings using four cameras. The upper screen can display the composite images of the foreground taken in advance as transparent underfloor images. The driver can check the front-wheel position and underfloor conditions with these pictures. A Lexus-first and world-first feature called Back Underfloor View, using similar composite images, helps the driver check the position of the rear wheels and get an understanding of obstacles as well as details of the terrain. This feature is available when reversing the vehicle.

The Lexus Safety System+ 2.5 (LSS+ 2.5) safety suite is standard equipment. Pre-Collision System (PCS) with Frontal Collision Warning (FCW), Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB), Pedestrian Detection, Bicyclist Detection, and Emergency Steering Assist (ESA), All-Speed Dynamic Radar Cruise Control (DRCC), and Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist (LDA w/ SA) are some of the main features of Lexus Safety System+ 2.5.

The future LX Hybrid should keep this overall design in the interior. However, it should feature modified displays that show the energy flow and other details about the operation of the hybrid system. We don’t expect any obvious visual cues indicating electrification, such as blue accents or badges.

2023 Lexus LX technical info

TNGA-F platform

The fourth-gen Lexus LX has adopted the newly developed, 20% more rigid GA-F platform. It’s still a body-on-frame SUV, only more robust and yet lighter. Belonging to the TNGA platform family, the GA-F platform brings a weight reduction of 441 pounds to the LX.

Lexus has increased the usage of high-strength steel plates, and for the first time ever in any of its models, made the roof out of aluminum. The hood and all door panels are also of aluminum. The company has pushed back the powertrain 70 mm (2.8 inches) and kept it 28 mm (1.1 inches) lower, improving the front-rear weight distribution and the center of gravity.

Key technical changes in the new Lexus LX include the adoption of an electric power steering, an electronic brake system, Active Height Control (AHC) system, and an Adaptive Variable System (AVS) as well. The Land Cruiser 300’s Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System isn’t available in the 2023 LX.

Powertrain & Variants

Lexus offers the 2023 LX in the U.S. exclusively in the 600 variant, which packs the V35A-FTS 3.4-liter engine, a 10-speed automatic transmission, and a full-time four-wheel drive system. The twin-turbo gas engine produces 409 hp and 479 lb.-ft. of torque. The EPA-est. fuel economy rating of the 2023 LX 600 is 17 mpg (city)/22 mpg (hwy)/19 mpg (cmb).

On the Lexus LX Hybrid

In Europe, 89% of total Lexus models sold in 2022 (50,467 units) were electrified, the company announced on December 5, 2022. In the U.S., the share of electrified vehicles in total Lexus sales (258,704 units) was just 21.3% in 2022, but it should grow significantly in a few years. The LX and GX are the only SUVs in the range that have no electrification whatsoever, and Lexus does seem to have plans to change that.

The fourth-gen LX could get multiple facelifts during its lifecycle. At the time of the first refresh, which could come at the earliest in 2024, Lexus will likely introduce one or two hybrid variants. A U.S.-bound gasoline-electric full-hybrid variant is almost a certainty, while a diesel mild-hybrid variant could be in the pipeline, in markets where diesel is predominant.

Lexus LX700h

One of the hybrid variants of the LX will likely be ‘LX700h.’ On March 6, 2023, Toyota Motor Corporation filed a trademark application for the name LX700H, stylized as LX700h, at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The same day, the company filed the same trademark application at the Canadian Intellectual Property Office as well. Both applications state “automobiles and structural parts thereof” as the use case. The LX700h (or LX 700h) will likely be a full-hybrid variant available in both U.S. and Canada, while any possible mild-hybrid variant could be mainly targeted at European countries.

i-Force Max

On June 6, 2021, creative311.com had reported that the fourth-gen Lexus LX line-up would gain an LX 750h hybrid variant with the 3.5L gasoline hybrid powertrain, with the maximum power and maximum torque set at 480 hp and 871 Nm (642 lb.-ft.), respectively.

A logical conclusion is that the U.S.-spec LX Hybrid is in contention for a modified version of the Tundra Hybrid‘s i-Force Max hybrid system in which a 3.5L twin-turbo V6 gasoline engine is linked to a motor-generator system integrated into the bell-housing. The inline hybrid powertrain develops 437 hp and 583 lb.-ft. of torque in the hybrid truck.

Lexus needs an LX Hybrid in other parts of the world as well, like in Australia, for instance, where it wants electrified vehicles to account for 80% of sales by 2025. The company has lined up more than 10 new/improved electrified models for launch by 2025. It aims to offer all models in at least one electrified form by 2025.

Price & Release Date

The regular gas-powered 2023 Lexus LX prices start at USD 90,660 and go up to USD 130,750.

2023 Lexus LX 600 Grade	2023 Lexus LX 600 Price
Base	USD 90,660
Premium	USD 98,610
F Sport Handling	USD 104,870
Luxury	USD 106,610
Ultra Luxury	USD 130,750

TopElectricSUV says

The Lexus LX is one of the most capable go-anywhere luxury SUVs offering style, plenty of comfort and convenience features, and immense off-road capabilities all in a single package. Its only downside is its poor fuel economy, which could be addressed with hybrid technology such as the V6 i-Force Max, without compromising on the performance.

2023 Lexus LX FAQs

Featured image: Lexus