Lexus, which has long been one of the more thoughtful car makers when it comes to in-car refinement and comfort (remember the old 'the car that gets out of the way for you' adverts for the original LS 400?), has designed a new cabin air filtration system which is meant to suppress potentially harmful and unpleasant particles.
Climate Concierge
The new nanoe X cabin air filtration system has been designed in collaboration with Panasonic and was originally developed for the ES saloon. It will now be fitted to the new UX, the new generation RX and the all-new RZ as part of the 'Lexus Climate Concierge' system.
Lab tested
It's not just a question of filtering harmful particles out of the air as the airflow enters the car - plenty of other cars do that already. No, the idea behind nanoe X is that it injects water into the airflow. That water contains microscopic hydroxyl radicals, which can inhibit viruses, bacteria, pollen and other allergens and can act against the spread of mould. They can also deodorise bad odours and stops moisture evaporation, leading to hydrated skin and hair. Lexus has had the system independently lab tested, and those tests found that the nanoe X system can inhibit more than 99 per cent of viruses and bacteria; achieve a 1.8-times reduction in odour intensity.
Hazardous substances
Lexus claims that the new nanoe X system is a major improvement on its old nanoe cabin air filtration systems, and that's largely down to a 10-fold increase in the number of hydroxyl radical particles that are emitted - from 480 billion per second to 4.8 trillion. What are hydroxyl radical particles? They sound potentially scary, but actually, they're commonly used to improve air quality in enclosed areas such as vehicles, places of work and public spaces. Once released, they react with elements in the atmosphere. This is a naturally occurring process that allows them to inhibit the growth of pollutants, breaking them down and neutralising their adverse effects. These include hazardous substances contained in PM2.5 particulates.
Lexus claims that the nanoe X system "an be enjoyed on every car journey but are of particular value when driving in heavily polluted urban areas. Its rewards will also be appreciated when different passengers are carried day-to-day. This can include private hire vehicles, business fleets with multiple users and cars used to ferry groups of children to and from school."