Luxury meets utility

Constructing rock solid and richly rewarding vehicles is the Lexus way and its RX series has reflected this philosophy for the past dozen years. The wagon's continuing popularity seems assured with the latest RX350 and RX450h hybrid models.

Toyota's upscale offshoot brand has developed a pretty solid business providing comfortable and comforting transportation modules that barely seem to break a sweat as they ferry their owners and their retinue from place to place. Of course the RX fits this mold, but it can also handle rutted, sloppy and snow-bound excursions when necessary. For many of its loyal customers, the RX represents the perfect harmonization of luxury and utility.

The 2010 edition continues on this same Darwinian path, but with additional style, power and technical upgrading wrapped in a package that still bears close kinship with the original 1998-model-year version.

Lexus' stylists, however, have redone the front and rear fascias, enlarged the grille and reformed the fenders and doors. These changes certainly enhance what was already an attractive package, but you get the feeling that, short of a complete ground-up remake, this is about as much sheetmetal development that the RX can handle while still retaining its taut lines and conservative essence.

If the exterior is a study in restraint, the cabin can be considered wildly fashionable. The dashboard flows dramatically across the control panel as if it was left in the sun too long. The asymmetrical impact is visually arresting and totally unexpected in a Lexus. Additionally, the gauges appear more legible and the shift lever is now positioned directly below the control panel in the interest of easier access.

The body structure rests on a reworked platform highlighted by a newly configured independent rear suspension that, Lexus claims, makes the RX more comfortable and agile and provides an enlarged cargo area. Upon checking the stats, there is a slight gain in stowage space indicated with the rear seat in place, but for some reason the new RX actually offers less room with the back seat folded flat.

Keeping the RX350 on pace is a 3.5-liter V-6 that produces 275 horsepower, an increase of only five versus the outgoing RX350's similar 270-horse 3.5. However a major gain is derived from a new six-speed "Multi-Mode" automatic transmission that replaces the previous five-speed unit. The six-speed, which helps the RX generate slightly improved fuel economy (pegged at 18 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway), gets the Multi-Mode designation since drivers can leave the shifter in "D" or manually select the cogs by moving it to "S" and pushing the lever forward to upshift and back to downshift. Although popular these days, the manual-shift mode on anything but a pure sports machine is a bit of a novelty.

The gasoline-electric RX450h functions with its own 245-horsepower version of the 3.5 V-6, but combines with up to three motor generators (one propels the rear wheels on all-wheel-drive models) to produce a total of 295 horsepower, 27 more than the 2009 hybrid. So, the hybrid equates to more power than the gas-only RX350 and a 32-mpg city rating, which is about 28 percent better than the RX350.

Of course all-wheel-drive is also on the menu on the RX350, consisting of a new electronically controlled system that sends 100 percent of the power to the front wheels under optimal road conditions, but can send up to 50 percent of the torque to the rear wheels when needed. As a bonus, the AWD hardware's weight has been pared by 35 pounds.

As before, the RX arrives crammed with wall-to-wall convenience items, including new-for-2010 keyless access with push-button start. Even so, there's still a multitude of up-level content available, from leather seats, moonroof and voice-activated navigation to a premium sound system and a heads-up windshield display for speedometer and other key functions.

Pricing for the now-available RX350 runs about $37,600, or $42,500 for the RX450h, which represents a modest decrease from 2009 prices. Considering the added style, power and technology, this should place this benchmark Lexus even higher on both the affordability and desirability scale.