Consumer Reports Says This Luxury Vehicle Is One Of The Most Reliable Cars
The Lexus NX was listed by Consumer Reports as one of the ten most reliable vehicles. According to the CR report, published in December 2024, the 2025-year model got a score of 78 out of a possible 100 in the reliability category, placing it in seventh place. That might sound a tad underwhelming, especially when you consider the fact that the 2024 Lexus NX model received a score of 95 in terms of reliability while the 2021 model received a score of 94. Keep in mind, these are outliers. The 2023 model rated a worrisome 58, down from 2022's Lexus NX which had a reliability score of 66.
That being said, the Lexus NX has generally achieved solid reliability scores from CR (over 70, apart from '22 and '23) since it first debuted in 2015 which shouldn't be too surprising since its part of the Lexus brand. In 2025, Lexus ranked the highest in terms of vehicle dependability for the third year in a row, according to J.D. Power. Whereas the average vehicle in that survey experienced 202 problems per 100 vehicles over the course of three years, the Lexus vehicles had just 104 problems per 100 vehicles.
Best of all, while the Lexus NX is a luxury SUV it isn't all that expensive compared to other luxury brands. The car sells at an average of $50,896, which is slightly below the average price for a new vehicle of any kind ($50,080) in September 2025. The average price for a luxury compact SUV, as of March 2025, was $52,933.
The reliable Lexus NX is affordable to maintain, but it has had some recall issues
On average, the Lexus NX costs $7,712 in maintenance costs for its first 10 years of service. That's $4,741 less than the average luxury SUV model. Also: There is only a 21.14% chance the Lexus NX will need a huge fix within those ten years. That beats other luxury SUVs by 17.37%. Such low car shop rates would appear to be a testimony to the Lexus NX's overall reliability, but again some model years are better than others.
There were also some recalls implemented by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for issues that included a back over prevention rearview camera that didn't work (model years 2022-2025), a deactivated airbag at the steering column (2023 and 2024), a head restraint on the driver's and passenger's side that could be accidentally removed (2023 and 2024), a defective second-row center seatbelt (2025), and a parking service brake that won't engage while in park (2022). There was also an electrical issue with some Lexus NX450 hybrid electric vehicles that sometimes caused them to overheat while recharging in temperatures below 41 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Lexus RX might be a good used vehicle, but they don't hold value as well as other Lexus models
Recall issues are supposed to be fixed by dealers free of charge. Assuming you can verify that those issues were taken care of, acquiring a preowned Lexus NX might not be a bad idea if you're trying to decide whether to buy new or used. You can save an average of $17,900 acquiring a reliable Lexus NX that is two years old while maintaining confidence it still has years of use ahead of it.
On the flip side, a Lexus NX may not be as good a used car investment as the Lexus RX 350 because the Lexus NX loses 47% of its value after five years while a Lexus RX 350 depreciates just 35% in that time. The Lexus NX depreciation rate is also higher than that of the overall Lexus brand, which averages at 38.3% over five years.
It's no secret that new cars depreciate quickly after you buy them, but among luxury car brands Lexus is the very best when it comes to its ability to retain resale value. A new vehicle usually depreciates 55% over five years, so the Lexus NX's 47% depreciation rate is still above average — unlike the popular Jeep Wagoneer, which has terrible resale value.