2025 Lexus LX 700h First Drive Review: Great for a Few

“Who am I?”

Really, really, ridiculously good-looking person Derek Zoolander once asked this question to his reflection. Like Derek, I too have had a lot to ponder recently. Like, how do I describe the Lexus LX? Who is it for? What even is the LX? And finally, does the LX know what it wants to be?

While I understand the used LX buyer—the LX has always been just fancy Land Cruisers after all—the person who buys a new LX has always been a bit of a mystery to me. Who are these affluent adventurists who need Land Cruiser toughness but LS luxury and serenity? Lexus understood this called for some soul searching and so they brought me out to wine country for a tasting of their latest fruit of the vine: The 2025 Lexus LX 700h.

The Basics

Let’s start at the top and see if we can figure this out together. The Lexus LX is the company’s flagship SUV and this 700h is more LX than ever before. It is also the first hybrid LX ever. This SUV is a series hybrid much like the Toyota Tundra, Sequoia, Land Cruiser, 4Runner, and Tacoma, all with which this Lexus shares a platform. In this application, it makes 457 horsepower and 583 lb-ft of torque. For reference, the “standard” LX 600 makes do with 409 hp and 479 lb-ft.

Toyota/Lexus have said that this system is more for power rather than efficiency, but mileage figures do improve slightly to 19/22/20 mpg city/highway/combined, up from 17/22/19 in the LX 600. I can’t confirm consumption data but I can confirm the power part. An informal launch to 60 in the mid-to-high six seconds feels more than adequately quick for something that weighs the better part of three tons. The internal combustion engine is a 3.4-liter twin-turbo V6 while an electric motor sandwiched between the engine and transmission fills in the rest.

6,200 Pounds of F-Sport

Though quick, the LX 700h is not a sporting machine. The most street-focused F-Sport model adds unique suspension tuning as well as a rear anti-sway bar and rear Torsen LSD, in addition to the center Torsen in an attempt to sharpen things up. On the rough and winding roads above Napa, it makes a good showing, but you can easily add speed faster than the chassis wants to deal with. 

This definitely isn’t what the LX is about, but it doesn’t embarrass itself driven hard like I imagined it might. On a particularly rough and narrow section of road where I was expecting the rear solid axle and prodigious mass to show its uglier traits, the LX just… hooked up. There was no tramming, there was no traction control intervention, and the LX handled it just as easily as any smooth bit of road I tried. Benefits of an advanced, long-travel suspension I suppose—more on that later.

Combined with a strong mid-range gut punch, the 700h digs out of corners way better than it has any right to. Not that you would push a vehicle this size to the limits, but you can and it’s predictable and manageable when you do. Brakes are strong but I wouldn’t press your luck canyon carving with something this heavy—this full-size luxury SUV weighs 6,200 pounds. One of the many superlatives Lexus uses to describe the LX is “effortless and refined on any road”. Effortless and refined is indeed a nice way to put it.

Over Trails in the Overtrail

When Lexus says “any road,” the implication is that some of those roads might not be paved, maintained, or even be roads. For that, Lexus offers a new Overtrail trim exclusive to the 700h. First seen on the GX, the Overtrail trim is the “overlanders choice” of the range. It’s Lexus’ attempt to capitalize on the popular vehicle-supported adventure travel trend of recent years. Thankfully, unlike so many “rugged” trims these days, the Overtrail LX is so much more than a little plastic cladding and some badges. As a matter of fact, there are no badges of any kind on the LX 700h Overtrail to signal its specialness, which is refreshing. The biggest giveaway is the rather plain-looking black 18-inch wheels that are given 33-inch Toyo A/T tires, the same as the GX Overtrail, as well as unique colors and slightly different front-end styling. 

On that topic, I suppose I should touch on the looks of the LX. Like the Land Cruiser 300 it’s based on, the LX is not a looker in my opinion, and the Lexus spindle grill still looks iffy scaled up this big. It definitely looks expensive, but not enough to grab your attention. What do you even call it? Underground ostentation? The luxury of the design is in the details rather than in the broad strokes. This “stealth wealth” vibe was a big part of the Land Cruiser 200’s appeal, but the LX shouts about it a little too much and ends up being stealthy like a ninja wearing a bright gold chain. Who are you trying to be, LX? 

Off-road, the Overtrail does feature a little more approach angle, but not by much, and it doesn’t change the departure angle at all. What does help dramatically is a new version of a novel suspension system that the LX has used for years called Automatic Height Control/Adaptive Variable Suspension (AHC/AVS). I could write another story entirely on it, but the short version is that it’s a hydraulic damper assembly that handles ride height, a portion of the spring rate, load leveling, compression, rebound, and roll stiffness.

Adjustable suspension tech is nothing new in vehicles with even a slight off-road bent, but the way the LX 700h accomplishes it solves most of the pitfalls of those other vehicles, which usually rely on air. For one, there are steel coil springs front and rear in addition to the fancy hydraulics. This takes some of the load off the hydraulic system and offers redundancy in the event of a failure; It won’t be a comfortable ride, but it will get you home. Speed is another feature of this system which can go from full access height to full off-road height in seconds with only a minor hydraulic pump whir.

Most interesting to me is how it affects ride height without sacrificing ride quality or suspension down travel the way air does. The system does affect spring rate, but it doesn’t seem to affect performance adversely. Off-road, in the highest setting there is no sense that you are on “tip toes” like with other systems and the body control and suspension movement are still present.

Most of the articulation is gained from the solid five-link rear axle having no sway bar to limit motion. However, you can see that the front is no slouch either. With a traditional sway bar connected and no hydraulic cross-linking, the front wheel still tucks in tightly into the wheel well and the opposite wheel drops substantially. I couldn’t take accurate measurements, but even compared to my solid front axle Land Cruiser 80 series, it’s excellent performance and superior to even the best air systems at these ride heights. From lowest to highest, there are over four inches of adjustability in the system with an additional ¾ inch if the computer deems it necessary.

As expected of an off-roader in this price range, the LX will automatically control off-road parameters based on mode selection, but thankfully, all important off-road settings can also be manually controlled. The LX 700h Overtrail is that rare off-roader that is both “point-and-shoot” and “choose your own adventure.” If you leave it alone, it will figure things out for you, but it lets you do it yourself if you want. Most off-road controls are well labeled and fall easily to hand on the tall center console. Everything is a physical dial or button and nothing is buried in an on-screen menu. It’s a bold move to dedicate so much real estate to controls that—let’s be real—will likely never get used, but I appreciate it.

Oh, and I haven’t even gotten to the best part yet: Standard on the LX 700h Overtrail and making a 28-year comeback to the LX are front and rear locking differentials. These unassuming buttons tucked away by your right knee add a massive amount of capability that has been sorely missing from Toyota/Lexus trucks for decades. Lexus tells me that the business case of adding these to the LX is to add meat to the rich feature stew in the face of strong consumer demand, and I get it.

Whether or not they end up being used or even understood, luxury buyers want all the features and alphabet soup, and if acronyms printed money, the LX would be a mint: AHC, AHS, MTS, DAC, CRAWL, OTA, CDL, it’s all here. “Triple locked” also has a nice G-Wagen-esque ring to it, although it certainly has a strong whiff of “space pen” or “10,000-foot rated dive watch.”

Ritzy Roughneck

While slogging through mud and testing axle articulation and locker engagement, I was also being tended to by a “climate concierge” that managed the heating and cooling of my various body parts. The thick, extremely comfortable front buckets massaged me gently while I bathed in 2,400 watts of reference audio Synthwave. All doors soft close and there is no surface you can see or touch that doesn’t feel premium.

The ride quality is controlled and supple, the sound isolation is top-tier, and, under the hood, the power borders on excessive. And, of course, being a flagship of the most fastidious arm of the most fastidious mainstream automobile manufacturer out there means the fit, finish, and quality are, naturally, impeccable. I’m sure even the paint process has a story to tell about its expensive nature.

The Early Verdict

This car’s marketing materials use words and phrases such as “paradigm,” “incomparable indulgence,” and “dignified sophistication.” This type of $20 word salad is what I would expect from a luxury good. Yet the LX somehow makes the pretension feel earned. I know how seriously Toyota takes the Land Cruiser mission and yes, the LX experience was undeniably indulgent.

The LX 700h’s chief engineer, who was formerly the chief engineer of the Land Cruiser 300, tells me that every version of the LX should be there for you when you need it; be it natural disaster egress, or vacation property access. Sort of like a six-figure bug out bag that’s also a first-class daily driver. Bizarre, but practical in a way only Toyota/Lexus can pull off. 

So, is the 2025 Lexus LX 700h a master of all trades? No. It’s clearly compromised by trying to do it all. So what is it? I think I get it now. The LX is a niche product for a niche buyer. In fact, Lexus only expects to sell around 7,500 a year in the U.S., its second-largest market behind Saudi Arabia, and production capacity is apparently the limiting factor. If you are one of these 7,500 buyers, chances are you already know the LX since more than 50% of sales are to repeat buyers.

The LX simply isn’t for everyone. Partly because of its eye-watering price—the 700h starts at $106,850 and can climb to nearly $150,000—and partly because of who it targets. It doesn’t dazzle with tech, it’s not the latest fashion statement, nor is it the fastest or most economical or even the best at any one thing.

What is the LX? It’s the current peak of automotive engineering, for a very small niche. 

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