The Lexus LBX Morizo RR Is More Everything
When you fly to Queenstown for a launch event, you know it’s got to be something special. The natural location is beautiful, and Lexus matched the hospitality to the location, lodgings at Gibbston Lodge, discovering Ben Bayly’s Aosta in Arrowtown, and visiting Te Kano Vineyard and Winery and Edgewater, all beautiful locations in themselves. Yet I was here for the car.
Toyota is 35 years into its luxury Lexus brand and, having had a lot of success with the GR-branded “go-fast” versions of their cars—such as the Yaris and Corolla—they’ve brought that know-how plus extra luxury into the small SUV in the Lexus range: the LBX. The new model, or grade in Toyota language, is called the Morizo RR.
Akio Toyoda, chair of Toyota Group, absolutely loves his automobiles and has been guiding Toyota back to motorsport and with it, models that customers love with great success over recent years. This has culminated in the Morizo RR. “Morizo” is the undercover name he uses IN racing so people don’t know who he is. Arguably, ironically, he’s created a new brand, and something Lexus is pretty happy about. RR stands for Rookie Racing, his favorite performance and racing house in Japan. So all in all, this is an enthusiast’s car from arguably one of the most influential enthusiasts of them all—the head of the Toyota Corporation.
This Lexus starts off with the LBX, a compact SUV, and then you add more: More luxury, more go-fast, more stopping power, more looks, more rims, more tires, more engine excitement, more of more.
The looks of this go-fast model are striking. Over the two days I spent with the cars, they really grew on me. There’s an exclusive range of colors available for this that you won’t find elsewhere in the Lexus lineup. The rims themselves truly stand out, looking resplendent in their multi-spoke engineering beauty. Being all-wheel drive, this car sports a square stance with 235-wide low-profile tires, RR badging, black roof, lower body, and the wider stance and bigger wheels set this aside from the LBX, which was released earlier this year to a welcoming buying public.
The powertrain in this little firecracker is lifted from the GR Corolla—a 1.6-liter, three-cylinder peppy little engine putting out 206 kilowatts through all four wheels. Sounds good too, the performance exhaust gives it a pleasant snarl from the three-cylinder. Feedback from the engine really lets you know what it’s doing. Suspension is firm yet fair, and the vehicles were right at home in city traffic but also when we put them to the test on the track. More about that later.
Internally it shares most of its interior with the LBX, adding stitched Alcantara and leather. Pleasingly, there are lots of buttons enabling you to do things without referring to screens or a user manual. Wireless and wired phone options extend your media suite, navigation, etc. I and other drivers kept commenting on the quality and comfort of the seats. For the driver and front seat passenger, space is plentiful. The back seat is going to suit a school run, but remember it’s a compact car.
The highlight of the first-look launch of this car was being able to take it on Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell. The professional driving team were on hand to demonstrate just how capable this pocket rocket is. Country road driving is great, but there’s nothing like getting a car on a track so you can test acceleration, braking, performance, you name it.
First up was a gymkhana-style handling test, where we swooped between the cones. The standout feature for me here was the consistent all-wheel-drive handling demonstrated as all 12 of us successfully navigated the course a couple of times. When you put a bunch of motoring journalists together, it seems they get a little bit competitive. Most importantly, doing this little exercise, the car was just a bundle of fun, and everyone came back grinning from ear to ear—which is my basic test of what a car is like to own: the grin factor.
After this, we took a corner at speed, practicing turn-in points and how to get a good start. I experimented with a number of modes and found that if I put everything automatic, it did the best job. Of course, there are paddles so you can play with the rather impressive eight-speed direct-drive transmission, and that’s great for changing down in a hurry to make you feel like you’re really in control. And I think control is a good summary for this car. You know exactly what’s happening. It’s predictable, which is one of the most critical things in any car, and especially a car with a performance edge like this one.
Finally, for our track activities, we did laps of the full circuit at increasing speeds, and in a testament to the car more than people’s skills perhaps, everyone kept it on the tarmac, and while wheels might have been squealing a little, a lot of safe fun was had.
The true appeal of this car lies in its versatility—it can comfortably be your daily driver while also satisfying your cravings for performance. It’s compact and maneuverable, making city driving and parking effortless. The excellent visibility enhances safety and ease of navigation, and its round-town zippiness injects a bit of fun into your everyday commute. But when the weekend arrives, the LBX Morizo RR comes alive, allowing you to stretch your legs and explore its track-bred capabilities. Whether you’re carving through winding country roads or taking it to the track, this car delivers exhilarating performance that thrills. It seamlessly blends practicality with excitement, offering a driving experience that caters to both your everyday needs and your passion for the road. In essence, it’s a vehicle that doesn’t force you to choose between comfort and performance—you get the best of both worlds in one stylish, dynamic package.
