2018 Lexus NX vs BMW X3

What's the difference?

It’s only taken nearly 15 years, but Lexus has become a fully accepted prestige brand in Australia – it outsells Jaguar, Alfa Romeo, Mini, Porsche and Peugeot. And the NX mid-sized SUV is far and away the most popular Lexus model. 

I’ve tested the hybrid version of the NX – the 300h - in the F Sport grade. It’s unique because mid-sized petrol-electric prestige SUVs in Australia are rare on the ground. 

So, are the benefits of a hybrid just fuel-saving ones and, are there disadvantages to one? Also why would you buy an NX over a rival from BMW, Audi, Volvo or Benz which cost about the same price?

Read on to find out what I found out.

BMW's 'B58' six-cylinder engine is what's known in the trade as 'a cracker'. Three litres and a turbo's worth of silky smooth power, it delivers big dollops of torque with the kind of immediacy once reserved for much larger units.

It's already a perfect match for the M140i hatch, as well as the M240i coupe and convertible. And once you hit on a winning formula, why not spread the joy into the ever-growing world of SUVs?

Enter the X3 M40i, the first performance variant in BMW's compact SUV range, sitting just under $100k (before on-road costs) and aiming up at a quality field of similarly sized and specified performance versions like the Audi Q3, Jaguar F-Pace, Merc-AMG GLC, Porsche Macan, and Volvo XC60.