Lexus offers the NX in either petrol-electric hybrid or petrol-only guises. The former, badged '300h', uses an electric motor up front producing up to 141bhp and 199lb ft of torque. That supplements the naturally aspirated 2.5-litre petrol engine, a four-cylinder unit developed with efficiency more than anything else in mind. It's smooth and refined even if you could do without hearing it so much on the open road. All versions of the NX 300h, other than the entry-level S model, have an extra motor out back (providing four-wheel drive with no physical connection between the front and rear axles) and Lexus quotes a maximum total power output of 194bhp.
The NX 200t is more conventional, if set to be rather rare in the UK. It's powered by a turbocharged 2.0-litre petrol engine producing 235bhp and 258lb ft of torque with drive to all four wheels going through a slick six-speed automatic gearbox - with paddle shifts. It's a good combination, smooth, refined and powerful - if pointless in the diesel-lead SUV market in the UK.
