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For Lexus, the RX crossover is the sales and profit monster of the line, which is good news for the folks in Cambridge, Ont., who build the new-for-2010 RX 350. Its success in this country already looks assured, reaching a sales record in May, just three months after its Canadian launch, in an overall market that was down by more than 16 per cent.

Now it's the RX hybrid's chance to join the party. The 2010 Lexus RX 450h, which reached dealers at the end of June, actually boasts a lot more noteworthy upgrades than its gas-only counterpart, even if it's not yet built outside Japan.

The changes to the all-wheel-drive, mid-size crossover make it both significantly more powerful and less thirsty than the smaller-engined RX 400h it replaces, with overall fuel economy numbers now on par with your automatic Honda Civic, and ones that will make Ford Focus drivers blush with envy.

The official numbers are admirable for any car: 6.6 litres/100 km in the city, 7.2 on the highway. But they're staggeringly low for a luxury-lined, all-wheel-drive, roomy five-seater, even though these Canadian figures are unrealistically optimistic.

U.S. government mileage numbers, which use more real-world methods that take into account A/C use and actually reaching posted speed limits (even slightly beyond), suggest that the non-hybrid Civic automatic and 450h are a wash if you do equal city and highway driving, with the RX much better in the city, the Civic much better on the highway. That said, the RX's premium-only engine would cost more to fill than most compacts.

The RX 450h's engine now displaces 3.5 litres, up from the 3.3-litre V-6 of the 400h. This new power plant also becomes an Atkinson-cycle engine, which elongates the power stroke while shortening up the compression phase of the typical suck-compress-power-exhaust four-cycle engine.

The RX 450h combines this with an exhaust gas recirculation system that minimizes the amount of extra revs the engine needs to warm up on cold mornings and cools engine temperatures year-round, all of which helps the second-generation RXh use 8 per cent less premium fuel than before.

As the larger engine size implies, this increased fuel efficiency did not come at the expense of power, which is also up by 10 per cent. The gas engine alone produces 245 hp and drivers will enjoy a total of 295 hp when power from the electric motor is added to the equation, as compared to 268 previously.

There's a lot of green appeal to this more-power, less-fuel, more planet-friendly formula for the RXh. Last year, about one-fifth of all RXs sold bore the 400h badge, and they were selling in record numbers near the end of the year, even though they were on their last legs in the market with their replacement in the wings.

The new RX 450h is also slightly easier to spot than the 400h, with the new model's blue-tinted headlight lens covers, blue accents on the circular Lexus badges front and rear, slightly different wheel designs - not just darker grey ones that look like you keep forgetting to wash the brake dust off your wheels - as well as a tell-tale Hybrid badge along the lower rear door's new pocket-knife-shaped chromed accent.

Otherwise, its styling is noticeably sleeker but modernly familiar, taking few chances that the brand's bread-and-butter crossover will offend current or potential Lexus "guests" (as customers are known).

More pronounced shoulders and a rear wiper that hides gracefully below the standard rear spoiler are also new touches. Lexus officials boast the wiper design came through Canadian input to the design. That's great, but I'm sure Cambridge workers as well as government officials would be much happier to see the hybrid version also built in Canada.

High-ranking Lexus types from Japan have suggested that the supplier base for suitable batteries and other hybrid components in and around southern Ontario is still not quite there, but have admitted that they have looked into the matter, especially with the Japanese yen's strength.

The yen's strength has contributed to the RX 450h's hefty $58,900 starting price tag, compared to the $48,900 price tag for the RX 350. So don't expect to make your money back on the fuel economy savings, at least for the first decade you own it.

Again, going by the U.S. government's handy fuel economy website fueleconomy.gov, even at higher Canadian fuel prices, an RX 450h driver who does 24,000 km a year of about half-and-half city and highway driving, will save $950 at today's fuel prices, with premium at about $1.09 a litre.

And yes, I did check the Canadian government's fuel economy site, at ecoaction.gc.ca/vehicles, which in comparison is a disgrace. Not only are there no 2010 models at all listed on the Department of Natural Resources' site, it doesn't allow you to change the true cost of fuel, annual mileage you accumulate, or percentage of city and highway driving, which would help drivers at least get in the ball park of figuring out how much money they'll really spend on gas in a year in each vehicle. But the biggest problem is that it lists the government's highly optimistic fuel economy figures, thanks in part to a simulated highway run that averages a speed of 77 km/h and never ventures past 97 km/h.

Speaking of pricing, both the RX 450h and Cambridge-built 350 carry a destination and delivery charge of $1,895 - not only is that steep to begin with, some financially savvy Lexus buyers may not be thrilled with being charged such a dear price to deliver a vehicle that's not coming from Japan, but their own backyard, in relative terms.

Lexus officials quickly point out that the RX hybrid's 10-grand premium over the base RX includes new items not offered on the 350 or the previous RXh, on top of the more advanced drive train, such as new knee airbags for both front seats, rear side bags and seat belt pretensioners, heated and cooled front seats, and bi-xenon headlamps, among other goodies.

Lexus has adopted an interior design that offers the auto world's first organic LED lighting, a heads-up display that ghosts speed, audio and navigation directions into the driver's line of sight, and an all-new Remote Touch system that brings the RX into the era of multifunction controllers.

The new system works well enough, but Lexus was smart to integrate the most commonly used functions into the RX's steering-wheel controls. This way, even drivers who don't opt for the navi system can quickly access key vehicle functions.

More fun-to-drive attention was paid to the rear suspension, which becomes a sportier double wishbone design in place of the previous rear struts.

The 2010 RX is no doubt a sharper handler than its predecessor, but it's still a serene operator first and foremost. The quiet engine and electric steering never really entice you to push it, while the high centre-console-mounted shifter still offers a manumatic mode, although the transmission is really a fuel-saving CVT, so they're simulated shifts.

Overall, with notably more power and better handling, the RX 450h adds a dash of fun to its popular comfort-first personality. Combine that with compact car-like fuel bills, and it's the automotive equivalent of non-fat chocolate ice cream: pricier, but most of the enjoyment, and none of the guilt.

2010 LEXUS RX 450h

Type: Mid-size, luxury, five-passenger, hybrid crossover

Base price: $48,900

Engine: 3.5-litre, Atkinson-cycle, V-6, DOHC

Horsepower/torque: 295 hp/ 234 lb-ft

Transmission: CVT

Drive: All-wheel-drive

Fuel economy (litres/100 km): 6.6 city/7.2 highway/6.8 combined; premium required

Alternatives: Acura MDX, Audi Q5, BMW X3, Cadillac SRX, Infiniti FX, Lincoln MKX

globeauto@globeandmail.com

LIKE

• Styling says new and sophisticated, not rap video-ready flashy
• Smooth and silent electric vehicle mode in the city increases the already high road isolation factor
• Real-world fuel economy should be at compact-car levels, especially with lots of city driving

DON'T LIKE

• Required premium fuel makes the compact-car comparisons a touch unrealistic, as you'll still pay more for fuel than all but the thirstiest small cars
• More fun than before, but not near the class leaders in overall performance
• Not built in Canada
• The high $1,895 delivery charge