Lexus UX concept – a vision for a premium compact crossover with X-shaped design

This concept car looks like it’s from the future, designed for a sci-fi movie, or from a distant solar system.  Yet Lexus says it is a compact crossover vehicle vision.

Create something new and original

A big challenge for any designer is to create something new and original, yet with relevance to the customer and the brand.  Somehow this other-worldly design uses Lexus design signatures, like that unmistakably Lexus grille, but pulled to new boundaries, literally and figuratively.

This strong design is combined with imaginative, forward-thinking technologies to provide occupants with a “fully immersive experience”.  This sensation is generated by cockpit ergonomics that flow from the driver’s body, and innovative, 3-dimensional HMI technology.

The vehicle also features the first design execution of a breakthrough seat technology, named the Kinetic Seat, designed by Lexus in response to a re-evaluation of the principles of car seat occupancy.

Premium compact SUV segment growth

The premium compact SUV segment is experiencing very high levels of growth, with young customers upgrading in a quest for distinctive styling, a versatile interior and engaging driving experience.  

With premium-car customers looking to downsize without compromising on comfort, driving position and space, the premium compact SUV is destined to become the largest part of the SUV segment.  

The Lexus UX concept highlights Lexus’ intention to attract an ever-wider group of new, younger, always-connected “Urbanites” as customers to the brand for the first time.

Radical compact crossover packaging

The design brief was to create a new genre of the compact crossover – a vehicle that would progress the user experience, creating something new from a customer’s point of view.

Key design phrases representing the character of the car include “robust yet agile” and “in-and-out styling concept”.  The UX concept is a new kind of 4-seat crossover which contrasts the “almost brutal” (ahem) appearance and 4x4 presence of an off-roader with a low ground clearance and coupé-like driving position.  This reinforces the promise of dynamic performance that’s embedded in the design’s compact packaging.

Unique “inside-out” X-shaped design concept

At the front, the wings flow seamlessly into the cabin to form housings for e-mirror screens that display images from door-mounted, rear-facing cameras.  

The top of the dashboard sits lower than these screens to combine a “deconstructed” look with excellent forward visibility.  

At the rear the bodywork again flows into the cabin, where it forms the main structure of the rear seat headrests.

The X-shaped movement from the inside outwards is similarly reinforced by the 4x4 style emphasis of the powerful wings

Wheel arch cladding is not just to butch up the looks – these are aerodynamically efficient.

Unique, see-through A-pillar

A unique, see-through A-pillar is another example of how the boundaries between the exterior and interior are blurred.  While a fully transparent polycarbonate A-pillar is feasible, the UX concept uses polycarbonate fins attached to an aluminium member.

Imaginative 3D technology

In a development of Lexus’ dual-zone instrumentation approach, all the UX concept’s on-board HMI technology has been designed to provide an innovative 3D driver experience, deemed well-suited to progressive customers who live and work in an increasingly connected environment.

The upper display is projected in such a way that it appears to sit in the far distance, under the bonnet, making for easy viewing when driving.  The driver’s instrument binnacle houses a transparent globe, which floats like a hologram, displaying information in a user interface that is functional, yet unexpected.

A faceted crystal structure is located in the centre console, providing a hologram-style display of air conditioning and infotainment information, clearly visible to both driver and front seat passenger.

Latest advances in electrical technology

The Lexus UX concept also displays some of the latest advances in electrical technology, using electrochromatic windows and electrostatic switchgear housed beneath transparent covers.