As already noted, fuel economy is not a strong point for the RX 450h. To the man in the street, this might seem a little odd, given that this is an expensive petrol-hybrid car.

To the long in the tooth motoring writer, it’s a little strange too. Today I drove the Lexus around Cirencester and the slightest blip with the right foot brought the petrol engine in to play.

I know this because the RX has a huge infotainment screen that dominates the top of the dashboard in w-i-d-e-s-c-r-e-e-n. And I mean wide.

In the ‘CAR’ setting, you can monitor a diagram of the Lexus showing where the energy is coming from to drive the wheels.

Now, I tried damn hard to keep it in electric motor only but it’s almost impossible. A decent diesel SUV would do better, if I’m totally honest.

So, just what is the point of the RX 450h. Great technology but rather useless in the real world…