There’s an overwhelming number of three-row crossovers and SUVs to pick from these days. You can select your list of top priorities using whatever online tool tickles your fancy, and before long, you’ll have a list of anywhere from five to 10 or 15 choices in front of you. Some of them are more budget-friendly, like the Mitsubishi Outlander, while others are more expensive than a high-end sports car. Price out a new Escalade and you’ll see.
The 2025 Lexus TX 500h is neither the budget choice nor the most premium one—and in another world, it might be considered the sweet spot. In ours, however, it’s not spacious or boujee enough to command the attention of affluent American families while still costing more than many folks could afford. That makes it more of an $80,000 compromise than anything else.
The TX 500h isn’t a bad car, it’s just not special. Sure, it’s as lovely inside as any Lexus, but the brand offers better options for very similar money. And yeah, it’s a dependable Toyota at its core, but you could save a little bit of coin and get the mechanically identical Grand Highlander instead.
Rather than hitting the sweet spot, then, it lands squarely in no man’s land.
Lexus sells several crossover models, and has for a while. Still, the TX is its newest nameplate, explicitly designed for the U.S. It launched in the 2024 model year and is available in three flavors: the TX 350, 500h, and 550h+. What you see here is the mid-range model.
Most TXs look super similar, though my tester was equipped with the F Sport package, which added some go-fast aesthetics. The roof rails, window trim surrounds, and mirrors are all black rather than shiny, while the front fascia is a bit more sculpted with the bumper featuring wider openings on each side of the spindle grille. The car I drove also had 22-inch wheels that are specific to the trim.
You’ll find more goodies once you open the door, as you’re greeted by special leather-trimmed seats that are, of course, heated and ventilated. Lexus really wants folks to know this is the F Sport model because the logo is right there on the scuff plates, and to reinforce the sportiness further, the pedals are aluminum. Finally, there’s a panoramic sunroof and Mark Levinson premium audio for blasting some stellar classical tunes (or the new Twenty One Pilots record, in my case).
TX 500h models get the 2.4-liter hybrid powertrain, similar to what you get in a Toyota Tacoma or 4Runner. Interestingly, it makes more power in the Lexus—366 horses in the TX compared to 326 hp in the ‘Yotas—though it’s paired to a six-speed automatic rather than the eight-speed in those other applications. All-wheel drive is standard on TX hybrids.
The TX is a nice place to sit, even for a big fella like me—as long as the passenger behind isn’t too long-legged. I have to sit pretty far back in any car, and while all six-foot-five of me fit comfortably in the driver’s seat, my back got awfully acquainted with my little one’s feet. Things were tight with her in the car seat, so if your family situation is similar to mine—and you’re as big and tall as I am—it’s something to keep in mind.
With Apple CarPlay dialed in to my fam’s favorite tunes, I set off and realized straight away that I quite like the TX 500h powertrain. Is it inspiring? Not exactly, but it’s more than peppy enough to zip around slow-moving traffic or pull a big hill. Both are common where I live in the Ozarks, so I appreciated the hybrid system’s torque fill that helped it chug right along, even if I didn’t do the best job anticipating a steep climb. It’s still wild to me that a car like this has 406 lb-ft of torque, but in the age of turbos and electric motors, it’s obviously possible.
I would still stop short of calling the TX a high-performer for all the same reasons that keep any front-biased crossover from becoming one. It’s easy to overdrive the tires with that much power, and during a spirited drive where I left the kiddos at home, I smelled the brakes immediately after opening the driver’s door. It doesn’t pitch and roll too much on fast corners, but it doesn’t have enough grip to inspire confidence. This doesn’t factor into my review criteria that much since I understand this car is still a comfortable daily at its core, though I figure it’s worth mentioning given all the F Sport badging.
It’s much better at its intended purpose: Driving quietly around town and silently to the first window at the McDonald’s drive-thru. If you can ignore the tiny heels digging into your scapula, you’ll have a great time in either of those cases. The TX 500h is as well-mannered as any good Lexus, and it’s not too portly to maneuver in a tight parking lot, either. It isn’t as nimble as an NX, but it doesn’t feel nearly as large and in charge as the three-row, body-on-frame LX despite being three inches longer.
I know that internet commenters love to hate big screens—the TX display measures 14 inches diagonally—but I bet buyers will love it. The resolution is crisp, and it runs without much lag, even when using wireless CarPlay. I would rate the multimedia experience as decent, all things considered, mainly because of the odd positioning of the Mark Levinson speakers, which bounce sound off the windshield rather than channeling it to the listeners. I could hear every time John Piper licked his lips during a sermon, but then again, I’m not sure that’s what I’m looking for out of a stereo system.
To quickly sum it up, I never lamented getting behind the wheel of the TX during my week with it, but I was less enthused when we were cramming our entire family of five into it.
The best part about the TX is that it’s a Lexus. Most everything about it feels solid (except for the cup holders, which I forgive because they remove easily for dumping spilled drinks). Its powertrain is well integrated and refined, and although it’s not as fuel-efficient as a RAV4, it’s still pretty good—especially considering the amount of power it makes.
The TX’s proficiencies might mask its problems, but they don’t eliminate them altogether. While it’s true that it gets around town exceptionally well for such a large car, nothing about it feels leagues above its competitors. And although it does what you expect it to, none of the sterile execution makes you feel like, “Wow, this was totally worth the extra scratch.”
You can snag a TX 500h in two trims: the $70,610 F Sport Performance Premium and the $73,760 F Sport Performance Luxury. I tested the latter, which swaps the former’s second-row bench for captain’s chairs and also adds a panoramic glass roof. Extra niceties available only on the Luxury include a digital rearview mirror, a heads-up display, and smooth leather-trimmed seating for six.
My tester had quite a few options tacked on, resulting in a $79,614 MSRP. The single most expensive add-on was the $2,380 Technology Package, which gets you a 360-degree panoramic camera view, advanced parking with remote functionality so you can park it with your key fob, and the aforementioned heads-up display with a digital rearview. Then there was the $1,390 tow hitch, an $895 Convenience Package with front cross-traffic alert and a digital key, a 120-volt outlet for $560, puddle lights with the Lexus logo for $574, cross bars for $420, and, finally, $85 wheel locks.
In the luxury three-row crossover segment, the TX has plenty of competition. The Acura MDX and Infiniti QX60 come to mind as options from fellow Japanese manufacturers, while the Audi Q7 is a comparable German alternative. We’ve tested each and tend to prefer the MDX, which is cheaper than the TX I drove across all trims except the top-performing Type S model.
The TX 500h stands head and shoulders above the competition in fuel economy. Its rating of 27 mpg city, 28 mpg highway, and 27 mpg combined outdoes the second-best Infiniti QX60, which nets 22/27/24 mpg. The Lexus makes its Audi rival look bad, as the Q7 makes less torque with its hybrid V6 while still managing just 18/23/20 mpg.
I don’t think Lexus did anything wrong with the TX 500h. Instead, it capitalized on a hot U.S. market that can’t get enough cars like this for one reason or another. But coming from a dad with a wife and three kids, it feels too cramped even to consider spending Tahoe money on one.
So sure, many of the gripes I have about the TX are true of other midsize luxury crossovers, but the one I tested was also far and away more expensive than its competition. It’s not a bad car in the slightest, but for $80,000? I’d rather shop the next size up.
Lexus provided The Drive with access to the vehicle for the purpose of writing this review.
It’s a good car that costs the same as even better ones with more space to boot.
From running point on new car launch coverage to editing long-form features and reviews, Caleb does some of everything at The Drive. And he really, really loves trucks.
Car Buying Service
