FAMILY CAR REVIEW: 2018 LEXUS LX450D

How much can I fit in the boot of the Lexus LX450D?

In the five-seater model we tested, the boot is very big! It would hold 2o shopping bags!! That's two less than the Infiniti QX80 and two more than the Lexus RX350L and the Nissan Pathfinder!

I really struggled to reach to the back of the boot, so found I had to load the back bags through the side doors! You have to collapse a second-row seat forward though so removing a child seat each time!

The boot space and its functionality are really important. I like to have a big boot space and little side wells or areas I can divide things into. So something I don’t want to move around while I’m driving such as Tulsi’s lunch bag or her wet swimming gear can be sectioned off in a little well where it’s not going to spill or get squashed by the rest of the things in the boot.

Hooks for securing shopping bags to are also favourites of mine, I like being able to secure the bag containing more fragile things like eggs so they don’t move around on the journey.

I measure the boot space in freezer shopping bags, prams and dogs. Not because I think all there is to a mum’s life is food shopping, prams and dogs. (Although it can feel like it sometimes!!) But because these are visually mesurable items we can all associate with. For me, the car company boot measurement of litres is not an amount I can easily visualise and 400L in one car may differ in usability to that in another due to the configuration or shape of the space.

The Mountain Buggy Duet twin stroller fitted with 9 shopping bags. One less than in the Infiniti QX80.

The Britax Flexx tandem stroller fitted with 12 shopping bags.

The Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle stroller fitted with 10 shopping bags.

The Mountain Buggy Nano compact stroller fitted with 16 shopping bags.

Or a very large dog!

I really couldn't reach the roller blind from outside the car and found I had to climb into the second-row seats and pass it back to my husband in order for us to be able to use it!

Storage inside the cabin of the LX450D is on the whole good. In the front, the central console storage box is a cool box which is a fantastic feature for keeping snacks and lunches cold on day trips and play dates! We actually put the eggs in there when we went to the shops on the way to the beach and it kept them cool until we got home later in the day!

There are two cup holders in the central console which are a good size for reusable or disposable coffee cups. My large refillable water bottle fitted in there but they are not very deep so every time I went around a corner it would fly out into the passenger footwell rather annoyingly!

In front of them is a wireless phone charging bay, the USBs are also positioned there too so I found this the best spot for my phone.

The glove box was divided into two shelves and could hold an iPad and wallet.

The front door bins were small, they would only hold a 600ml bottle or baby bottle and my wallet fitted in them too.

There is a felt lined, glasses case in the ceiling and both visors are extendable and have a second visor, so you can put one to the front window and one to the side window, which is awesome when the sun is low in the sky! They also both have lit vanity mirrors in.

The door bins in the back are similar to those in the front, I could only get a 600ml and Pigeon baby bottle in them.

There are hard, solid map pockets in the back of both front seats. They will hold an iPad but not conceal it.

There is a fold-down armrest in the central seat in the second row which has two cup holders in, they are a good size for a reusable or disposable coffee cup. But rather stupidly the airconditioning controls are positioned on the armrest too and not covered! Soo as you can imagine my daughter's little fingers were straight into them!!

There is also a tray with a cover over for mobile phones perhaps? Or crayons!!!

Will the Lexus LX450D wake my sleeping baby?

The Lexus LX450D has both front and rear parking sensors and when they came on initially they would definitely disturb little passengers and I could not mute them with the icon on the screen, I found I could not select it. Within the media screen settings, I found a list where I could change and mute the sensor volume. 

I did use the 360-degree camera views when parking, as the LX450D is so large and hard to maneuver and I found it hard to see without them.

Becoming a parent I soon realised there are some noises and sounds I feel are unnecessary and I could happily live without if it meant my baby stayed asleep!!

That often the distraction of my screaming, distressed baby is more dangerous when driving than not having a lane departure warning for example.

If it is the lane departure warning beeping that creates distress with my baby then which is safest?

It’s where I think we need to be able to strike a balance and choose when we can mute the warnings or swap them to a vibration in the steering wheel or flashing light perhaps?

A lot of these noises come with the increase in technology and especially linked to safety features and alerts. For me these all have their place.

Another thing I have realised is I spend my time in a lot more places where small children roam, parks, beaches, play gyms, swimming lessons, daycare centre etc. I have become more aware that when I’m reversing or manouvering in the car parks I have to tripple check for small children running around behind me or being in my blind spot when reversing. For this I LOVE reversing cameras, I just don’t like their beeping sounds!!

I have become so much more aware of safety and potential accidents or hazards since having a child and so I love the peace of mind that I get from the cameras and sensors combined with my own vision from windows and mirrors as I don’t trust cameras alone.

Lane departure warning in the LX450D could be turned on and off with a button on the right on the steering wheel. It beeps to alert you and the steering wheel vibrates too.

The cruise control is on a stalk just behind the steering wheel on the right. It was not accurate at keeping to the set speed and the braking and accelerating felt exaggerated when it tried to stick to the set speed, so it really affected the ride.

The media system in the LX450D had a beautiful wide screen that had quite a crisp image, but no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, which I would just expect when paying this much for a car!

Road and engine noise were surprisingly loud having just got out of the Infiniti QX80, which was the same size vehicle but silent and smooth! The LX450D has a tractor like engine noise and feels like you are driving a big, slow, noisy piece of farming machinery.

The indicators were quiet in comparison to the rest of the car and wouldn't really disturb passengers over the sound of the engine! The windows close nice and quietly, they slow down for their final couple of cms as they close so they do not make a loud thud shut. The doors were not too bad either.

How many child seats can I fit in the Lexus LX450D?

I tested a five-seater Lexus LX450D (the petrol LX570 has seven seats) and there are top tether points in the second row all they are within plastic guides. The outer two are well positioned on the back of the seats, but the central one is underneath the very bottom of the seat back and it was also really hard to open the plastic cover over it! Some top tether straps aren't long enough to reach it so you may need an extension strap.

There are ISOFix points in the two outer, second-row seats. They are not within plastic guides either, they have a flap of the seat leather covering them. I did find them very easy to connect to which was a pleasant surprise!

I fitted three child seats easily across the second row. I used the ISOFix for the rear-facing Britax Graphene, besides the forward facing Britax Platinum Pro and Maxi Guard Pro. I also tested the rear-facing Mountain Buggy Protect infant capsule in the other outer position and you can fit two rear facing with the Platinum Pro in the central seat.

Although this model did not have a third row of seats I did have a look at the seat mechanism to see how you would access a third row in the seven-seater models. The second-row seats fold forward so you would have to uninstall a child seat to get in and out, which is totally impractical. The second row of seats does slide to adjust legroom distribution however without third-row seats it was hard to judge if there would be enough legroom. With a rear facing Graphene installed I had 25cm of knee room in the front passenger seat.

Posting bub into their seat from inside the car I actually found easier than from outside! Inside there was plenty of room and easy to reach across. From outside I found I had to climb up into the car to fasten the harness as I just couldn't reach properly from the ground!

Australia being a country of weather extremes- blazing sun and torrential rain, mean you may find it easier to put Bub into their seat from inside the car sometimes. If it’s hot you can get the air-con going, cool the car down and not stand out in the sun while you fasten them in or shelter from the rain and not get soaked yourself whilst you’re doing it. So it is important to test whether Bub can be easily installed from either direction!

There was plenty of room in the second-row seats to feed Bub with only one child seat installed. The worry I had was the interior is all cream leather and the seats are perforated which are both incredibly hard to keep clean with children! The interior of the test car was already very stained and marked.

How comfortable is the Lexus LX450D?

The front seats in the Lexus LX450D are very comfortable, they have electric adjustments on the sides and are heated and cooled, so they are perforated too which obviously will make cleaning harder. The headrests tilted backwards and forwards but I found I couldn't wear a ponytail!

I had spent all morning styling my hair, so no mum ever!!

For mum travelling in the middle of the second row, it is not too bad, the footwell is flat so there is no hump to straddle and the central seat is quite comfortable but the backrest is a bit firm because of the fold-down armrest.

The second-row seat armrest contains the airconditioning controls with no cover over them!? So if you use the cup holders for your rear little passengers be prepared for them to fiddle with the buttons on every journey! Really bad design!!

The steering wheel is fully adjustable using the joystick on the side of it.

The cruise controls are on a stalk on the right, behind the steering wheel. It is quite easy to use and the speeds were shown in the head-up display projected into your windscreen. I found the cruise control was okay on motorways but at 60km/h on undulating roads, it could not keep to the set speed and in trying would brake hard and accelerate roughly, making for a noisy and unpleasant ride.

There are four air conditioning vents across the front dashboard, two in the centre and one at either end. The controls for the front aircon are on the dashboard. They are relatively easy to use and not overly complicated.

In the second row, there are vents in the back of the central console, and controls in the fold down central armrest.

You can control the whole car's air-conditioning from the media screen in the front too, so you can stop the rear passengers fighting over it!!

The Lexus LX450D is sooo high up that visibility where you need it is really difficult. You can see out of the windows at the sky but that's not what you need, you need to be able to see at bumper level. I had to rely on the cameras a lot especially when parking and maneuvering at low speeds but the resolution of the cameras is not great!!

The LX450D has built-in window shades in the side windows which is fantastic!

The front interior lights can be turned on manually. The rear lights are in the centre of the ceiling in both the second and third rows. I found I could not reach the second-row lights.

I have found Tulsi does not like travelling in the dark in the car so if it gets dark whilst travelling then I reach back and turn the interior light on for her. So it’s really important for me that I can reach the rear ceiling light.

Also if I am traveling home and it is getting near to bed time and I DEFINITELY DON’T want her to fall asleep in the car as even a 5minute nap in the car means bed time is all over!!!! I lean back and pop the light on so it’s not dark and try to keep her awake!! Along with screaming/singing at the top of my voice!!!

It is also useful when there are lights situated above the doors where the handles are usually positioned. These are good for when putting baby into their child seats when visibility is poor, so you do not have to reach across them to a light situated in the ceiling centrally etc.

There are handles above both rear doors which are well positioned for hanging a child's toy from.

The dashboard is quite modern in the Lx450D but the rest of the interior feels old-fashioned and farm like and I'm not a fan of the yellowy cream leather.

The Lexus LX450D is yet to be tested by ANCAP.

There are ten airbags in the LX450D; frontal, knee and side airbags for driver and front passenger. Second-row side airbags and side curtain airbags extending to the third-row.

The Lexus LX450D comes with heaps of safety features including backup collision intervention (BCI), blind spot warning (BSW), intelligent parking system with blind spot intervention (BSI), traction control brake assist (BA), distance control assist (DCA) with forward emergency braking (FEB) and predictive forward collision warning (PFCW), lane departure warning (LDW) and lane departure prevention (LDP).

Some of these safety features are also features that drive me crazy as a mum! Like the lane departure and the parking sensor beeping sound. I want all the safety technology AND to be able to mute the sound when Tulsi’s asleep!