| 2015 |
As a rule, all-new cars aren't the best bets for reliability. But one reason Toyota has become so slow to join new trends is it doesn't want to jeopardize a reputation that took decades to build, and that was threatened not long ago by the unintended acceleration fiasco.
The Lexus NX 200t is powered by Toyota's first turbocharged gas engine since the 1990s, and Lexus's first ever. But this new engine has no doubt been subjected to some of the most thorough testing in the history of the industry. Just about everyone not Japanese, including Ford / Lincoln, introduced a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cyinder engine much earlier.
The new engine, like those in competitors, is direct-injected, meaning that fuel is injected under very high pressure directly into the combustion chamber, rather than into the intake. But, unlike other direct-injected engines, the Lexus engine retains a second set of injectors in the passe intake port location. One advantage of this costly approach: port injectors spray their fuel onto the backsides of the intake valves, preventing the carbon buildup that has all too often afflicted Audis.
New design with a new engine notwithstanding, many people will buy the Lexus NX instead of something else because they expect it will prove more reliable down the road. Based on our reliability data for other Toyota and Lexus models, I don't think they will be disappointed.
And the Lincoln MKC? It's still early, but the data we have so far does not bode well.
full 2015 Lexus NX review |
