GOLD STANDARD.(Auto File)(Product/Service Evaluation)

The Lexus RX 330 continues to set the pace in car-based luxury suvs

When Lexus launched the RX 300 in 1998, it not only created the car-based luxury sport/utility vehicle segment, it started a trend. Six years later, with a variety of manufacturers-Acura, BMW, Infiniti and Volvo, just to name a few-now in the game, more than 500,000 of these small sport/utes will be sold in the United States this year. But Lexus remains a leader in the segment and the RX is the marque's biggest seller, with more than 92,000 sold in 2003. That represents an increase of 19,000 from the previous year.

Respondents to our AutoFile survey are quick to sing the praises of the RX 330, with a good number of owners saying they traded in an old RX for the new one. Not surprisingly, a large chunk of these owners also owned other Lexus products, citing a good dealership experience as one of the top factors in returning to the brand.

The RX 330 represents the second generation of the RX model, and demand for the vehicle is so strong that parent company Toyota had to free up assembly space in its Ontario factory in Canada to augment those SUVs being brought in from Japan.

The RX 330 is powered by a 230-hp, 242-lb-ft 3.3-liter V6 engine lauded by owners for its smoothness. The five-speed automatic transmission comes standard with an automanual that stays in whatever gear you select-it won't shift up even when bumping up against the rev limiter. At the track, in our front-wheel-drive model (all-wheel drive is available), we found the V6 potent enough to spin the tires in first gear, and experienced a bit of torque steer. Our best 0-to-60-mph time of 8.24 seconds was a bit slower than the 7.7 seconds Lexus claims, although for a 3860-pound vehicle, the time is respectable. This is a sport/ute, after all.

For our slalom runs, we turned off the vehicle stability control but found a degree of the electronic safety system still working in the ...