A dual-screen infotainment system reserves audio, navigation, and (wireless) smartphone-mirroring functions for the 12.3-inch upper screen, with secondary HVAC, situational, and off-road controls reserved for the lower 7.0-inch display. The most often-used climate adjustments are made via physical controls. The result is one of the cleaner Lexus interfaces in recent memory. If only the Start button wasn't so high up on the main infotainment bezel, where it's easy to mistake for the smaller, higher, and slightly out-of-reach volume ****—and the stereo's equalizer controls weren't so deeply buried in the menus.

We're also fans of the twin-turbo 3.4-liter V-6 and its 409 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque, which amounts to 26 more ponies and 76 more pound-feet than the 5.7-liter V-8 it replaces. This engine pulls hard but remains smooth, with none of the old powertrain's occasional initial lurching, thanks to a combination of peak torque that arrives 1600 rpm sooner and more progressive throttle tip-in. The 60-mph run in our loaded Ultra Luxury took us just 6.1 seconds, which is exactly one second quicker than the last LX570 we tested.

Gearchanges are smooth, and even though this is a 10-speed, there's no excess gear shuffling. Passing maneuvers are easier to execute thanks to top-gear 30-to-50- and 50-to-70-mph acceleration times of 3.4 and 4.4 seconds, which are some 15 percent quicker than before. Shift paddles are there should you desire to choose your gear, but that hardly seems necessary unless you're selecting the optimal ratio off-road in low range. This powertrain is also far more economical, with EPA estimates of 19 mpg combined, 17 city, and 22 highway, easily exceeding the outgoing setup's dismal 14 mpg combined. It can also pull a fair bit, with a new higher tow rating of 8000 pounds.

Still, we can fully see why Lexus expects the lower-spec Premium ($96,345) to be the volume seller. That price is barely $3000 more than the outgoing three-row LX570, and despite the lack of the height-control option, it's a better vehicle in numerous ways. Its interior includes most of the essentials and looks fantastic, and it rides on 20-inch wheels and adaptive dampers. Our favorite option here might be the $1295 Appearance package (also available on the Luxury), which blacks out the exterior trim and that admittedly massive front grille. It's also a prerequisite for the no-cost 18-inch wheel-and-tire package, which the overlanders and Land Cruiser fanboys among us will surely appreciate. We managed some quality time in this configuration, and the extra sidewall absolutely proved its worth on local Forest Service dirt roads.

Whether the Premium with 18-inch wheels will be enough to appease the Land Cruiser faithful remains to be seen. Regardless, this kind of variety never existed in the LX lineup before the 2022 Lexus LX600 arrived. The new LX600 is clearly eons better and far less one-dimensional than the one it replaces, and that certainly will be enough for most buyers.