Lexus LM Review & Prices

The Lexus LM might as well be a joint venture between Lexus and the World Wide Fund for Nature. You see, while most car makers have put the MPV on the endangered species list, Lexus has decided to build a people carrier for the first time.

If MPVs are rare these days, MPVs with premium badges are even tougher to spot in the wild. There’s the new LM, the Mercedes EQV and V-Class and, well, that’s about it.

Lexus hasn’t been shy in pricing the LM, with a starting point of about £90,000 and a six-figure sum for the range-topping Takumi. The Lexus LM backs up its bold pricing with a long list of standard equipment, though. The regular version has a big touchscreen infotainment system, a 360-degree camera system and artificial leather upholstery. There’s also a 14.0-inch drop-down rear monitor to keep passengers entertained, and a 21-speaker Mark Levinson surround-sound stereo.

If 21 speakers aren’t enough, upgrading to Takumi spec adds two more. Other upgrades include a whopping 48.0-inch widescreen monitor upgrade, a fridge for keeping your champagne cold, and a centre partition between the front and rear cabin with dimmable glass.

That last item of equipment tells you a lot about the LM. This isn’t an MPV for taking the kids to school, the LM is for VIPs to waft around in luxury and comfort while someone else takes care of the driving.

For extra space and comfort, the Takumi comes as standard with just four seats. The armchair-like rear seats give celebs and captains of industry space to stretch out, whether working or relaxing. They even fold flat for power naps between meetings. Takumi buyers can choose to keep the standard car’s seven seats if preferred.

Every LM is powered by the same 2.5-litre hybrid with 247hp. The entry-level model is front-wheel drive, all others send power to all four wheels. The 4x4 models reach 62mph from a standstill in 8.7 seconds, which is brisk rather than quick, but performance isn’t really what this car is all about. Space and luxury are the LM’s forte.

As a result of all that space, the LM feels big on the road, but its smooth gearbox and hybrid engine make it quiet and refined to drive around town, while the suspension soaks up bumps like they're not even there. Good news if you're lounging in the back.

Out on the motorway the LM is a comfortable and relaxing way to roll through big miles, but the engine is very noisy when accelerating up to speed or when pulling off swift overtakes.

Check out the latest prices available on Carwow’s Lexus LM deals page. You can also browse used Lexus models from our network of trusted dealers, and if you need to sell your current car, Carwow can help with that, too.

That circa-£90,000 starting price is a whole heap of change for a humble MPV, but then there’s nothing very humble about the Lexus LM. It’s a different take on what a luxury car should be as much as it’s a people carrier, with luxury saloons like the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes S-Class in its sights. And if you have the cash for one of those, the LM’s price tag is unlikely to put you off.

Besides, even the entry-level model is brilliantly equipped – in fact, the more basic spec comes with a head-up display which is missing from the range-topper’s list of kit.

The Lexus LM is incredibly comfortable, but this is not a quick or agile car

In town

The LM is big enough to take up an entire postcode, but while it’s very large and has a big turning circle it’s not a hard car to drive around town.

You sit up high with a good view forward, and the CVT auto makes for smooth driving in heavy traffic. Be careful changing lanes, though, as the massive pillar between the front and rear doors makes for a huge blind spot.

The suspension is soft and a bit squidgy, so the car rocks from side to side a bit if the road surface is rough. But the plus side is that this means the LM soaks up potholes and speed bumps without disturbing passengers unduly.

With 247hp, the LM isn’t as powerful as some luxury cars, but there’s enough punch for pulling into gaps in town traffic.

Being hybrid, the LM can run on electricity alone some of the time, but the battery is relatively small. It’s what Lexus describes as a ‘self-charging’ hybrid rather than a plug-in hybrid, so it doesn’t have the electric range to tackle a typical commute without burning petrol.

On the motorway

You’re not going to be in the outside lane quite as quickly as your fellow board member in his BMW 7 Series, but the LM has adequate motorway performance.

It’s happier cruising along at a steady speed rather than accelerating hard, though. Engine noise becomes intrusive as speed builds, not helped by the CVT gearbox which tends to dial up lots of revs while you're accelerating. A diesel Mercedes S-Class is punchier and more refined.

As a motorway car, the LM will suit you if you have a chauffeur to do the driving. Just sit back, ask Parker to switch the suspension to ‘rear comfort mode’, and enjoy the ride.

On a twisty road

If you are driving yourself, there’s nothing very exciting about a twisty country road in the LM. The four-cylinder engine feels a bit underpowered when accelerating between bends, and cornering is neat and tidy but uninvolving. You want luxury and fun from one car? A BMW 7 Series will suit you better.

On the other hand, if you’re travelling in the back seats, you probably don’t care whether your driver has a smile on their face. Maybe there’s a little more road noise in the back of the cabin than in the best limos, but the soft suspension keeps things controlled and comfortable so you shouldn’t spill Cristal on your Tom Ford suit.

Roomy for seven, but the Lexus LM is at its best as a four-seater

Chauffeur driven? Then skip this bit and read about the space in the back. If you are driving yourself, though, the front of the LM is very comfy and practical.

You sit up high in a seat so plush you’ll want it for your living room. It adjusts electrically every which way, so you can fine-tune your driving position for exceptional long-distance comfort. The steering wheel is electrically adjustable too.

There’s a lot of storage space. You’ll find a large cubby under the driver’s armrest. Cleverly, Lexus has designed it so it will open from both sides. Not only is the space nice and deep, but there’s an HDMI input, a USB port, and an old-fashioned 12-volt socket.

There’s another lidded storage space at the base of the centre console with a couple more USB ports, including the one you’ll need to use to hook-up Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

There are twin cupholders next to the gearlever, and the door bins are large enough to fit a bottle of water. They are quite thin towards the back of the door, though. The glovebox could be roomier, but it’s not a big deal when there are lots of other spaces to fill.

Space in the back seats

Normally you’d expect a big MPV to have seven seats or more. These cars are designed for carrying lots of people aren’t they?

The LM has a different remit. Yes, you can buy a seven-seat version if you want your family to travel first class. But if you prefer the full private jet treatment, the four-seat LM is the one to have.

Instead of five seats in the back, this set up comes with two colossal armchairs. They can recline to an almost horizontal position if you need a powernap between meetings and come with their own wireless charging pads for mobile phones. That’s not to mention the huge screen for conference calls and entertainment. You can even raise a barrier between the front and rear seats in Takumi-spec cars, just in case you suspect the chauffeur of industrial espionage. It really is a wonderful way to travel.

Boot space

In the four-seater, the second row is set a long way back so passengers have exceptional legroom. This hasn’t harmed luggage space, though – there’s an immense 752 litres for your designer bags.

In the seven-seater, with the third row upright there’s just 110 litres – enough for a few carrier bags of duty-free, but not your holiday suitcases. With the third row stowed away that grows to a huge 1,191 litres.

So, whichever layout you go for there’s lots of luggage room unless the sixth and seventh seats are upright.

If you want extra room with all three rows of seats in use, a long-wheelbase Mercedes-Benz V-Class may suit you better.

Superb build quality and high-tech infotainment worthy of the price, but if we're being picky a Mercedes S-Class feels better in the details

You may have heard the old jibe about an MPV being a van with windows. Well, there may be an outside chance you will think that about the Lexus from the outside, but there’s no way that thought will crop up once behind the wheel.

Sit behind the wheel and you are greeted by twin screens. The driver’s display is the smaller of the two, but it still looks impressive. On the entry-level car it’s supplemented by a head-up display, although oddly this handy feature isn’t fitted to the range-topper. Presumably that’s because Lexus expects Takumi owners to sit in the back rather than drive themselves.

Infotainment is taken care of by a massive 14.0-inch screen and the resolution is crisp and clear. The climate controls run along the bottom of the screen, so there are no fiddly menus to work through if you want to change the fan speed. There are physical dials for quick and easy temperature changes without any distraction.

While the native Lexus system is pretty good, you can switch to Android Auto or Apple CarPlay by plugging in your smartphone.

Every car comes with a Mark Levinson stereo. The standard version has 21 speakers, but the top-spec Takumi has 23. You have to hear the sound quality to believe it.

As for the standard of finish, well, it’s worthy of the car’s luxury price tag. The leather is soft and supple, and just about every surface looks and feels to be of the highest quality. There are some places where the plastics aren’t quite so good, but you really must go looking for them. They’re generally low down or tucked away where they don’t compromise the car’s upmarket ambience.

There’s a solid, well-damped feel to all the switches, and the whole cabin feels like it will look just as good and work just as well a decade down the road.

You have the choice of front-wheel and four-wheel-drive versions of the LM. Despite having an extra electric motor to drive the rear wheels, the 4x4 is no more powerful than the front-wheel-drive car.

There’s not a significant difference in economy and emissions between the two versions. You’re looking at 40mpg or so based on the official tests. When we were driving, we saw a slightly disappointing 33.5mpg.

In terms of CO2 emissions, you’re looking at 161-167g/km. For a car weighing well over two tonnes, that’s not excessive. On the other hand, there’s no shortage of luxurious plug-in hybrids and fully electric cars that emit far less.

They’ll cost less in tax, too. Despite being a hybrid, the LM’s first year Vehicle Excise Duty bill is quite high, and from years two to six you’ll be paying the hefty supplement applied to any car costing over £40,000.

The safety gurus at Euro NCAP have not yet tested the LM. However, other Lexus models that have been tested in recent years have performed well.

As standard on all versions, the Lexus Safety System + is fitted. This suite of driver aids includes automatic high-beam headlights, adaptive cruise control, lane-changing assistance and more.

Automatic emergency braking is also included on all models, and it’s one of the more sophisticated systems that can detect cyclists and pedestrians as well as other motor vehicles.

An immobiliser and alarm are fitted to every LM, along with wireless door locking.

The LM is far too new for a definite assessment of reliability, although it is a Lexus – the brand is either at the top or close to the top of any major reliability or customer satisfaction survey.

It's highly unlikely, therefore, that the car will give you any trouble, and the Lexus dealer network is usually very quick to correct any fault.

Like any Lexus, the LM has a warranty lasting up to 10 years and 100,000 miles so long as the car is serviced annually within the franchised network.