Lexus UX practicality and boot space

Lexus’s engineers wanted the UX to have a coupe-like feel and to a certain degree they’ve been successful in this aim, although not always to the benefit of passengers. You sit low down, lowering the car’s centre of gravity, but because the window line is also quite high – you feel more hemmed-in than behind the wheel of a BMW X2 or Range Rover Evoque, for instance.

Space-wise the front chairs have ample room for limbs and heads, and also prove very comfortable – it’s possible to spec them with heater and cooling air conditioning fans. F Sport-spec seats are slightly pinchier at the hips, but in no way uncomfortable. Spare a thought for those in the back, though – it’s not especially roomy and tall passengers will struggle for both head- and legroom in particular. Three adults abreast on the rear bench will prove unpopular and uncomfortable, although the transmission tunnel is quite small.

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Even getting in and out of the back seat is a bit of a challenge, with quite a narrow door aperture. Pre-teens aren’t likely to have anywhere near as much bother, and arguably if more space is required, there’s the NX above the UX in Lexus’s SUV hierarchy.

That cosy interior comes partly because the UX is a compact car. It’s smaller than an Audi Q3 – more like the Q2 in size, and as a result is very easy to manoeuvre. Reversing cameras and parking sensors are standard which help, and visibility is good looking forwards and to the sides thanks to slim A-pillars.

Turn around and the angular body work lends a more restricted view out of the back – making it a little trickier to manoeuvre than its Audi rivals. However, those extra assistance systems help to negate this. On the plus side, the UX’s turning circle is nice and tight, so manoeuvring in tight spots is very simple.

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Practicality is also hampered in the boot, with a high loading lip and a shallow depth between the boot floor and the flimsy luggage cover. On front-wheel drive models this load level can be lowered to a space beneath, expanding to 320 litres, but it’s very shallow when it’s in place and in line with the loading lip.

Those cars fitted with E-Four come with this as the only boot set-up – the shallow one that even saw a medium-sized holdall digging into the load cover. In this form, boot capacity is just 283 litres which is worse than many small superminis.

How safe is the UX?

• Excellent safety credentials
• Standard Lexus Safety System+
• Plenty of airbags and systems too

Thanks to standard-fit Lexus Safety System, the UX boasts some impressive safety credentials that have contributed to its five-star rating from Euro NCAP. The suite of driver aids and safety kit consists of:

• Pre-collision system with pedestrian detection
• Adaptive cruise control
• Lane-keep assist
• Lane trace assist
• Traffic sign recognition
• Automatic high beam

On top of this, the UX comes with eight airbags, various braking and traction systems, hill-hold assist and the option of adding blindspot monitors and rear cross-traffic alert. For families, there are two Isofix points in the rear as well.