nimble
TVでは「レクサス」がクロスオーバーSUV型乗用車の新車 Lexus NX200t / NX300hのCMを盛んに流しています。
レクサスに限らず新車が出るとそのネーミングを調べるのがクセになっていますが，今度のNXのNはnimbleの頭文字ということ。nimbleはご存知のごとく，「素早い、爽快な」を表します。これはメルセデスがニューCクラスでagilityを謳っているので，それを意識したものでしょうか。なおXは当然，Crossoverだと思っていましたが，こちらはご名答。
以下はCar&DriverのNX試乗記の一部。結構，面白い表現が出ていますので併せてどうぞ。わたしは大きなSUVを経てセダンに戻った方なので，あまり食指は動きません。（UG）
2015 Lexus NX200t / NX200t F Sport / NX300h
Lexus is about to go off its meds. And it isn’t because the brand’s regimen for success hasn’t been effective. On the contrary, since the aptly named RX hit the market in 1998, Lexus has ruled the roost in the mid-size luxury-crossover segment. Competing formulations have come and gone, but the RX’s ability to dull the ruder aspects of the daily drive and encapsulate its occupants in leather-lined finery has proved to be a strong elixir. The Lexus RX is the top-selling luxury crossover, despite, or maybe because of, a demure, soapstone-shaped exterior that inauspiciously dissolves into the suburban landscape. Okay, so maybe the RX isn’t all about rose petals and scented candles, but we’re thinking few are purchased for their maximum 80.3 cubic feet of cargo capacity.
With the NX, Lexus is looking for a younger, and slightly less ovarian, demographic. So it’s out with the pillowy exterior forms long associated with the RX and in with a relatively riotous interplay of creases and folds from the NX concept and the big X-shaped grille that first appeared in the 2012 GS sedan. After all, who doesn’t like to get spindle-faced every now and then?
There are three versions of the NX that will hit U.S. dealerships later this year: the NX200t, the NX200t F Sport, and the NX300h hybrid. All will be available in a choice of front- or all-wheel drive. The hybrid will be the sixth to join the already hybrid-intensive Lexus lineup.
