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Externally, the NX 200T F Sport gets
unique bumpers, grille and black wing
mirrors while the tyres are also upgraded
to 235/55 R18 Bridgestone Dueler rubber.
Unlike a lot of other body kits, this one
adds to the extravagantly sharp lines of
the NX 200T and makes it look even more
Lexus Hits The Jackpot
Car
Review
Their carsmay be a hard sell against their German
opposition, butwith theNX200T Lexus has hit the jackpot.
T
he
300. No, that’s not
a reference to a movie
where men with spray-on
abs speak with macho
voices while chopping up
their enemies, but rather
it’s the number of orders
Lexus Malaysia received for the new
NX 200T before it was even launched.
These weren’t speculators with RM1,000
deposits, they were serious about buying
the latest lifestyle SUV in town.
Out of those initial buyers, apparently
nearly 70% opted for this car, the Lexus
NX 200T F Sport. This is the top of the tree
NX variants and it costs over RM75,000
more than a regular NX 200T, which is the
equivalent of a brand new Honda Jazz.
So why would they pay such a massive
premium for essentially the same car?
Well, if you know Lexus, you’ll have
realised that they’re masters at making
their customers want an upgrade. The F
Sport line is similar to BMW’s MSport and
the AMG line for Mercedes-Benz, a visual
and mechanical upgrade to the basic car
without resorting to pricey and potentially
problematic performance modifications.
W o r d s :
F a i s a l S h a h
aggressive and sporty. The Sonic Titanium
test car looks a little subtle but order one
in the F Sport specific Exceed Blue and
you’ll really see the difference.
The cabin has been treated to metallic
interior trim panels. There are F Sport
seats, contrast red stitching, a perforated
leather gearknob, aluminium pedals and
scuff plates, a Qi charger as well as the F
Sport instrument cluster. That last bit is
important because it also relates to the
adaptive suspension you can access via
the Sport+ drive mode. The regular NX
200T doesn’t get this option.
Under the bonnet is the same four-cyl-
inder motor powering all other NX 200T
variants. Displacing 1998cc, it produces
235hp from 4800-5600rpm and a healthy
350Nm from1650-4000rpm. The numbers
are almost exactly the same as those for
the 2.0-litre TwinPower turbo BMW uses
in the X4 xDrive28i and the Ford 2.0-litre
turbocharged motor used by Land Rover
and Volvo. The Porsche Macan and Audi
Q5 are also similarly endowed so it looks
like everyone is competing with the same
amount of muscle.