GR Corolla-Powered Lexus LBX Reminds Us Crossovers Can Be Cool, If We Let Them

About a year after Akio Toyoda all-but-confirmed the release of a performance model based on the Lexus LBX crossover, Lexus has released the LBX Morizo RR in Japan. What started out as a one-off vehicle for the Toyota chairman has made it to production after all, yielding a rare compact crossover focused both on performance and luxury.

The LBX Morizo RR borrows the GR Yaris and GR Corolla’s turbocharged three-cylinder engine, combining the rowdy little G16E-GTS with a six-speed manual transmission or eight-speed auto. That engine’s good for 300 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, which propels the 3,175-pound crossover from 0-62 miles per hour in 5.2 seconds.

Even though the LBX Morizo can’t sprint quite as fast as the Toyota GR Corolla (0-60 mph in 4.99 seconds), it’s in the neighborhood. And because the LBX is a Lexus, so it gets more creature comforts while having comparable performance. Toyota paid special attention to noise, vibration, and harshness, making sure that the car’s performance didn’t compromise the refined road manners Lexus models are known for. The optional eight-speed would seem to be the same “Direct Automatic Transmission” that debuted in the GR Yaris and is reportedly coming to the GR Corolla, and it adds 66 pounds to the tiny SUV’s weight.

It’s unclear if the claimed performance specs from Toyota are for the stick-shift version or the auto, but the LBX Morizo is going to be fast and fun either way. Plus, it looks as fast as it drives, sitting 0.4 inches lower than the standard LBX and being slightly wider by 0.6 inches. It rides on 19-inch forged wheels and 235/45 R19 tires. In order to better suit the 1.6-liter inline-triple, the suspension of the LBX was retuned, its brakes were enlarged, and electronically controlled AWD was thrown into the mix.

The LBX Morizo RR will now be one of the trims making up the LBX lineup in Japan, which is based on the Yaris Cross. Neither the LBX nor Yaris Cross are available in the U.S., and there’s little chance that this new Lexus will be imported. An enthusiast small crossover as enticing as this RR would have limited competition in America; the closest we have to it is the decidedly not luxurious Hyundai Kona N. The LBX Morizo RR will start at ¥6,500,000, or about $41,475 at current exchange rates. But currency conversions are never a straightforward affair, so the price would likely need to be adjusted if Toyota ever decided to grace the U.S. with its sale.

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