Ebrahim Kanoo strapped his brand-new Lexus LX 600 F Sport to the dyno, and the force-fed V6 luxobarge didn’t disappoint. The full-size sport utility vehicle channels up to 362 horsepower and 407 pound-feet (552 Nm) of torque to the wheels even though the engine isn’t broken in.
The following clip reveals only 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) on the odo. According to the owner’s manual, breaking in the 3.4-liter V6 twin-turbo powerplant requires the owner to avoid towing, emergency braking, sudden acceleration, driving at a constant speed for extended periods, driving continuously in low gears, and driving at high speed for the first 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers).
Being a force-fed lump, the V35A should be allowed “to idle immediately after high-speed driving or hill climbing to prevent damage to the turbochargers.”
The six-cylinder mill is known for wastegate actuators that may go kaput in the new Tundra pickup truck. The Japanese automaker isn’t really transparent with this problem, which only aggravates the urban myth according to which turbocharged engines aren’t reliable. Spoiler alert: they sure are if properly operated and maintained. What’s more, the V35A debuted in the 2018 LS 500, a vehicle that’s never been recalled for an engine issue.
Imposing on the outside, the fourth-gen LX is the luxed-up sibling of the J300 that’s not available stateside because the Land Cruiser would’ve overlapped with the LX too much in terms of pricing. On the upside, Land Cruiser loyalists are offered an alternative in the form of the new Sequoia TRD Pro.
Currently available in LX 600 guise, the gentle giant starts at $88,245 excluding destination charge and optional extras. At the other end of the spectrum, Lexus offers the LX Ultra Luxury for a whopping $127,345.
Fully stock, the 3.4-liter V6 cranks out 409 horsepower and 479 pound-feet (650 Nm) of torque at 2,000 revolutions per minute. By comparison, the old model’s free-breathing V8 is boasting 383 hp and 403 lb-ft (546 Nm).
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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