Having it all is just part of owning the LX 570

A menu of Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews can be seen on the Business page of The Sacramento Bee’s website – www.sacbee.com/news/business/article4005306.html

Sacramento, California – So sure, when you get the primo Lexus sport-utility vehicle, you expect to see a hefty number on the sticker’s bottom line.

But even my jaded eyes blinked hard when I saw $99,315 on the tested 2018 Lexus LX 570.

That’s more than I paid for my three-bedroom home when I moved to California in the mid-1980s.

Welcome to the era of the super-loaded, high-priced SUV.  I’m sure plenty of people can afford a hundred-grand for a new vehicle, and for the record, those folks get a lot in the LX 570.

It’s an imposing-looking vehicle at first glance, particularly with that monster-size grille and riding on 21-inch alloy wheels. LED headlights and taillamps look sharp as well.

The package includes an adaptive variable suspension, a blizzard of on-board airbags, multiple braking-enhancement features, leather surfaces with rich wood trim and enough safety technology to impress a veteran astronaut.

My ride included extras, like a 19-speaker Mark Levinson audio system and a handy-dandy cool box in the center console, presumably to keep my splits of Dom Perignon chilled.

Yup, this is pretty much a rolling five-star hotel room.

And on the roll, it’s a sweet ride.  The 5.7-liter V-8 is rated at 383 horsepower and 403 foot-pounds of torque.  Mated to an eight-speed, sequential-shift automatic transmission, that power package moves the LX 570 down the freeway with buttery-smooth, reading-room-quiet authority.

Cars tended to move out of the way of the tester, and I confess that it was easy to suddenly hit 80 miles per hour, a surprise because it felt like 50 mph by the seat of my pants.

In downtown settings, you have to be a bit more forceful with your right foot to get the LX 570 out of harm’s way.  And getting it settled into tight parking spots is no picnic.

Not surprisingly, fuel mileage ratings are a dreadful 13 miles per gallon in the city and 18 mpg on the highway.  That said, fuel economy and gas pump savings are not the appeal of this vehicle.

The target audience has money to burn and a desire for a big vehicle with seemingly every perk known to the auto industry.  If this is you, I am officially envious.