2002 Lexus RX 300 4WD

Call it the right product at the right time. Since its introduction for the '99 model year, the RX 300 has become a runaway success for Lexus—so much so that it now stands as the division's top-selling vehicle. One quick drive confirms why. In a universe populated by SUVs of every stripe, the RX 300 excels at delivering what the vast majority of buyers really need. An anathema to hardcore off-roaders and maximum posers, this highly refined hauler was conceived and executed to take care of the business at hand without resorting to pointless excess. It's comfortable, safe, luxurious, decently capacious, easy to drive, and fully capable of going just about anywhere the vast majority of SUV buyers really want to go.

Elegant and refined visually, the RX 300 features fully independent underpinnings, front and rear, unlike most truck-based SUVs.

Although sharing some common platform traits with the previous-generation front-drive ES 300 and its Toyota Camry cousin, the RX 300 comes with its own portfolio of bespoke engineering that fine-tunes this package directly to the heart of the market. At the center of it all is a strong, stiff unibody, bolstered by fully engineered front/rear crumple zones, energy-absorbing materials in the upper interior trim and front/front-side airbags. Augmenting the structural heart of the RX 300 are standard traction and stability-control systems as well as anti-lock disc brakes with Brake Assist to maximize the overall effectiveness of the ABS. These electro-mechanical aids are found on both the front-drive and full-time all-wheel drive (which Lexus markets as 4WD) models.


Powering both versions of the RX 300 is a smooth and torquey 3.0-liter DOHC V-6 that makes 220 horsepower at 5,800 rpm and 222 lb.-ft. of twist at 4,400 revs. However, fortified with Toyota's VVT-i continuously variable valve timing with intelligence on the intake cam, it develops upwards of 80 percent of that latter commodity from 1,600 rpm on up.

The DOHC V-6 provides enough power where needed most for everyday driving situations. VVT-i supplies decent economy and LEV emissions compliance.

Sole transmission in either variant is a smooth-shifting, electronically controlled 4-speed automatic that's also equipped with a Winter mode switch for starting out on slick surfaces. While the RX 300 AWD does not have a low range, this completely transparent full-time system employs a viscous-coupled center differential that allocates power to each individual axle according to available grip. With base curb weights running between 3,715-3,924 pounds, the RX 300 is not exactly built for street sprints. Even so, our AWD tester easily held its own under all urban traffic conditions and cruised effortlessly—and remarkably quietly—out on the freeway. Opting to send drive to all four wheels has only a modest impact on fuel efficiency, dropping the EPA city/highway mpg specs from 19/23 to 18/22. In both applications, the engine still meets stringent passenger-car LEV smog levels and employs a special electronically controlled motor mount to quell vibration at low rpm.


Upholding the well-established Lexus tradition, the RX 300 comes with a long list of comfort and convenience standards. Base price on a front-drive version starts at $33,339 plus $575 in destination while a 4WD version commands $35,705. Topping their rosters of included items are climate-control air conditioning, power windows/locks/mirrors, dual power front seats, tilt steering column, front/rear intermittent wipers/washers, walnut interior trim, keyless remote entry, anti-theft system, 240-watt AM/FM/cassette sound system, dual 12-volt powerpoints, 60/40 split folding/sliding rear seat and the requisite raft of front/rear cupholders.