2024 Lexus TX 3-row SUV fits a family, finally

We hummed along, out of darkness into daybreak. The rare winter sun burst out of fields of snow, the highway waking up with weekend travelers. It was a fight against the lull of cruising speed, cocooned from January in the new 2024 Lexus TX.

The teenage hockey teammates succumbed in the captain’s chairs behind me, their heads lolled toward each other in teammate telepathy. Behind them, two ginormous hockey bags of stink sat on top of the folded third row, along with five sticks, four backpacks, three roll-aboards, and one crucial cooler. We could have fit another teammate and her gear, as well, in total comfort, proving that Lexus finally has a proper three-row crossover SUV. 

Forget the discontinued RX-L and its emergency third row. The Lexus LX costs more than $92,000 and rides on a truck platform, same as the new 2024 Lexus GX that’s geared more for off-road adventure than family duty. The TX best satisfies the family mission. 

Lexus TX sized right for families

Sharing a platform with the 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander, the TX has a 116.1-inch wheelbase that translates to three roomy rows of seats and 20.1 cubic feet of space behind the third row. That’s enough to fit one hockey goalie bag or all the duffle bags for the starting basketball team, excluding the driver. It specs out to 57.4 cubic feet with the third row flat. The third row splits 50:50, and all but the base TX has power-folding third-row seats.

Each of the seven seats is easy to access. This is key in rousing teenagers at 5 a.m. or hustling grade schoolers in back. Every TX has second-row seats that tilt and slide forward with the push of a button on the seat top. The Grand Highlander has a more cumbersome lever and latch system. Wide door openings help, but the wide-shouldered (or wide-hipped) might prefer stepping over the small console between the second-row captain’s chairs to access the third row. 

My TX 350 tester in top Luxury trim had the captain’s chairs with six seats. At 5-foot-8, I fit in the third row easily, but needed the seat in front of me moved out of its deepest position for more toeroom. The 6-footer in front of me had plenty of legroom with our adjustment, but he had a scrape with the headliner moving to the third row, so save the first two rows for the taller hominids. 

The only difficulty with ingress and egress is an odd one to admit. Like other Lexus vehicles and unlike the Grand Highlander, the TX uses electronic pushbutton door handles. They work fine, even in the cold, and there are emergency releases if it’s a problem. But the doors were unusually heavy. Several times, my passengers and I shut our doors only to find it hadn’t shut. A soft-close feature would be welcome. 

Lexus TX turbo-4 is enough

Another way the TX deviates from the Grand Highlander is in its powertrain options. The Grand Highlander lacks a plug-in hybrid option, unlike the TX 550h+ plug-in hybrid. The TX 550+ reigns as the power and efficiency king with a 3.5-liter V-6 paired with three electric motors in standard all-wheel drive. The system churns out 404 hp, and it can travel 33 miles on electric power alone; otherwise it gets 29 mpg combined. At just under $80,000, it’s also the price king. 

The TX 500h hybrid pairs a 2.4-liter turbo-4 with a motor powering the rear wheels and standard all-wheel drive. It makes 366 hp, gets 27 mpg combined, and costs more than $70,000. It’s similar to the Hybrid Max offered in the Grand Highlander. 

I tested the base TX 350 and its 2.4-liter turbo-4 that makes 275 hp and 317 lb-ft of torque. It’s the same engine used in the smaller RX and even smaller NX, but it didn’t feel underpowered in my travels around town and on the road. Some drivers might prefer the power boost of the 500h, and I suspect the turbo-4 might strain under a max towing capacity of 5,000 pounds, but it hauled our 700-pound ass around without issue. 

Our collective weight may have been one reason we fell well short of the EPA-rated 23 mpg combined with all-wheel drive: we got 19.4 mpg at 64 mph over 176 miles.

The 8-speed automatic flicked through the gears almost imperceptibly under moderate throttle, and mashing the pedal at an on-ramp was met with longer gears before the shift. The true Lexus charm of the TX was how hushed the large three-row was when cruising, as it muted  road and wind noise to a distant rustle. Off throttle, it was as quiet as an EV. Poke the throttle and you’re poking a beehive of turbo-4 buzz. 

The sunlight seemed to make the potholes grow in real time between the Chicago burbs and Madison, like some time-warped dystopia; the TX and its MacPherson front struts and multilink rear suspension smothered them well. 

Lexus says there’s more body rigidity than the Grand Highlander, due to the addition of a rear floor brace, twin hood locks, a cowl brace, and aluminum and steel hybrid instrument panel reinforcements. It felt solid and insulated from the road throughout, and the cabin was soporific in the best possible ways, as the teens could attest.

One criticism of the power delivery in the TX was more about how Lexus buries the five drive modes in the touchscreen. It’s fine at startup, but calling upon a different mode while driving when you need it takes too many presses to meet the demand of the moment.

Is the Lexus TX worth $10,000 more than the Grand Highlander?

Toyota pits the Grand Highlander as a premium offering in its three-row range. But Lexus is its luxury brand, despite its massive cow-catcher grille. It comes with 20-inch alloys instead of the 18s on the Grand Highlander 

The base TX 350 starts at $55,000, including destination, which is about $10,000 more than the base Grand Highlander. Same as the TX, the Grand Highlander XLE has heated front seats with power adjustments, synthetic leather upholstery, a wireless smartphone charger, wireless smartphone connectivity on a large touchscreen (12.3 inches on the Grand Highlander, 14.0 inches on the TX), and seven USB ports. Functionally, they’re similar, with seven seats to boot.

Then there’s all the Lexus options. 

Step up from the base trim over the Premium ($3,400 more), to the top Luxury grade for $60,950 and the Lexus difference shines much greater than the stitching on the seats and the wood and leather dash materials. It has power-folding third-row seats, a heated steering wheel, headlight washers, and other gear, but the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a head-up display still costs extra. 

Lexus expects you to purchase the premium engine options to get the premium features. Factoring in standard all-wheel drive, the 500h hybrid costs about $10,000 more than a similarly equipped TX 350, and the PHEV comes only in top Luxury trim, at a price of $78,050, but at least the 12.3-inch instrument cluster is included on all the hybrids.

The TX 350 I tested had the $2,150 Technology Package with the large digital cluster and head-up display, all-wheel drive, and another $4,000 in options to $69,044. 

The TX base and Luxury tester are as much more than a Grand Highlander as they are less than a Lexus LX. The world’s largest automaker knows a thing or two about how to price its audience. Is it worth it?

The teens would say absolutely. All I can say is the TX should sell very well for Lexus.