Skip to main content

For 2023, Toyota and Lexus are coming for the competition, notably the Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade successes. For new for 2023 Toyota Grand Highlander will be a bigger SUV. Lexus is repurposing the platform to build the new 2023 Lexus TX. Between the two brands, there are now 6 three-row SUVs that can carry at least seven passengers. Today, the 2022 Lexus RX350 is the luxury version of the 2022 Toyota Highlander. But, what will the new models have in common?

What are the new Grand Highlander and Lexus TX?

Toyota and Lexus make reliable used SUVs
The Toyota Highlander SUV and Lexus RX SUV | Toyota, Lexus

Neither the 2023 Grand Highlander or the 2023 Lexus TX are official yet, according to CarsDirect, but there is a lot of information about both. We expect the TX to retain the current Lexus design language, which means a large swoopy glass panel at the rear and a big, front grille. We also expect it to offer a hybrid powerplant, if not a plug-in hybrid option for silent electric running.

The two vehicles would be unibody SUVs, so they will be built more like cars, not trucks. That will mean that both will handle a bit better than a body-on-frame SUV, as well as quieter. But that will also mean that they won’t be able to handle the tough off-road stuff. For that, Lexus will sell you an LX 600 and Toyota will be happy to show you a lot of Tundras and Tacomas.

The Lexus TX will be the luxury version

Lexus has been making huge strides with its technology and its drivers aids. We expect the new TX to offer as much tech as the company can pack in, as that’s what luxury buyers are clamoring for. The LX, for example, offers the new Lexus Interface. It has a pair of touch screens in different places instead of just one, and new voice technology that Lexus says can help you control the SUV just by speaking.

We would also expect the TX to offer the Lexus Safety System+ 2.5, or something similar. The new system has all-speed dynamic radar cruise and lane departure assistance.

Lexus would be crazy not to offer an F-Sport version like it does with other SUVs.  

The new 2023 Grand Highlander will be longer than the 2022.

The 2023 Toyota Grand Highlander should be the same … but bigger

The big news for the Toyota Highlander is that it’s getting bigger. That makes sense because buyers are wanting the functionality of a seven, or even eight, passenger vehicle, as well as the extra cargo space. The Grand Highlander should fit in the lineup as the extra-Highlander. It should still be smaller than the Sequoia. The Sequoia is Toyota’s full-size SUV that offers a bit of off-road capability and a third row.

Today’s Highlander has a 295-horsepower V6 that is certainly adequate. But it’s hard to say what the extra heft of an extended Highlander would do to its fuel economy and performance. Toyota, however, does offer a clever hybrid all-wheel-drive system in the RAV4 SUV and Sienna minivan that simply adds a hybrid electric motor in the back. Today’s Highlander Hybrid combines a 2.5-liter four-cylinder with a hybrid motor to make 243 horsepower. Either way, the new Highlander will face the new seven-seat Honda CR-V competition.

Related

Want an Old Truck? Buy the 2021 Nissan Frontier

Best in Trucks & SUVs
Writer - Sedans & Coupes

Dan Mayfield

Dan joined MotorBiscuit in 2022 with over 20 years of experience in journalism and a lifelong passion for anything related to the automotive industry. He grew up wrenching a 1949 Ford pickup truck and an MGB with his dad, learning how not to wire a fuel pump (he inadvertently set the MGB on fire).

After earning a bachelor’s degree in photojournalism from the University of New Mexico, Dan has contributed his expertise to a range of local outlets, including the City of Albuquerque, US Eagle, and the Alliance for Local Economic Prosperity.

On weekends, Dan spends Saturdays enjoying “cars and coffee” chats and, on Sundays, he’s watching the Route 66 Cruise roll through town. He also races motorcycles, and it’s not unusual to find him elbows-deep in his latest cafe racer build.

Taking advantage of the local desert terrain, Dan also enjoys exploring and driving off-road in his trusty Ram Rebel pickup truck, which provides personal insights into his contributions to our Trucks, SUVs, & Crossovers coverage. Dan strives to give our readers unique information about the dynamic automotive market, reading anything that has to do with cars, trucks, bikes, 4X4s, and, in his words, “everything with a motor.”

Dan has earned a number of accolades from the Public Relations Society of America, and is a University of Southern California, Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism Fellow.