Lexus Honoured for Safety Innovation in the All-new NX

• Lexus’s all-new mid-size luxury SUV debuts new and effective safety features 
• Safe Exit Assist linked to the new e-latch electronic door release system receives the Secure Car honour in France’s 2021 Automobile Awards 
• Debut of the third generation of Lexus Safety System+ safety and driver assistance features, providing greater safeguards against accident risks than ever before 

Lexus has a proud history of innovation in safety, a reputation that advances to an even higher level in the all-new NX. This luxury mid-size SUV goes further than any Lexus before with new technologies and safeguards to protect everyone on board, establishing a new partnership between car and driver to reduce the risk of an accident happening. 

A new feature that exemplifies the high level of intelligent safety available on the new NX is the Safe Exit Assist system. Linked to the new e-latch one-touch electronic door release, this uses the Blind Spot Monitor radar to check for any traffic approaching from the rear. If there’s a risk of the door opening into the path of a vehicle or cyclist, it will flash a warning light in the door mirror, sound an alert, and cancel the door unlatching. The process is much like how a personal chauffeur would ensure the way is clear before opening the door for passengers to exit the vehicle safely. 

Lexus was the first manufacturer to combine this safety technology with an e-latch system, earning it the Secure Car honour in France’s prestigious 2021 Automobile Awards, hosted by the Automobile Club de France. Lexus estimates that Safe Exit Assist can help prevent 95 per cent of the accidents caused by untimely or inadvertent opening of the car’s doors. 

This is one element in a comprehensive safety package for the new NX that also marks the debut of the third generation of Lexus Safety System+. This brings new features and greater functionality to detect significantly more accident risks, alert the driver and implement braking or steering to help prevent a collision, or reduce the consequences if an impact is unavoidable. 

For example, upgrades to the Pre-Collision System enable its radar and camera systems to now identify pedestrians and motorcycles in the car’s path. Its performance when the driver is making a turn at intersection has also been extended so that high collision risks with oncoming traffic and crossing pedestrians can be detected. There’s also a new Emergency Steering Assist function that recognises when the driver is swerving to avoid an obstacle – a pedestrian or stationary vehicle, for example – and provides automatic assistance to avoid a collision while keeping the car within its traffic lane. And the car can intelligently spot and suppress unintended sharp acceleration at low speed. These improvements mean the PCS’s accident risk detection capability has significantly increased compared to the previous system. 

The sense of a safe, reliable partnership between driver and car is further demonstrated in Lexus Safety System+ features that reduce the driving burden. For example, intelligent, Adaptive Cruise Control that adjusts automatically to bends in the road ahead and the varying speeds of preceding vehicles, with speed control that feels more natural. It helps with smoother overtaking, with acceleration as the driver indicates to change lane, or automatic slowing when they move in behind a slower vehicle. Lane Departure Alert and Lane Trace Assist also help ensure the car keeps safely within its lane. 

Lexus offers the option of a digital rear-view mirror, which gives the driver a clearer, unobstructed view using a real-time feed from the rear-mounted camera. In night-time driving and poor weather, the images are clearer than those from a conventional mirror. Also, the view isn’t compromised if the vehicle is fully loaded with holiday luggage or large items. Going further still, NX customers can also add an Extended Safety Package*, providing Lane Change Assistance, with automatic steering when the turn indicators are used to change lanes in high driving, and a Front Cross Traffic Alert, warning of unseen vehicles approaching from either side when emerging from a junction at low speed. 

Lexus’s ultimate goal is the elimination of traffic accidents, injuries and fatalities. The all-new NX demonstrates how the clever application of innovative technologies is giving drivers unprecedented support, creating a partnership with their vehicle that feels natural and is highly effective. 

* Standard on NX Takumi, part of Takumi Pack option on NX F Sport. 

ENDS