Actually, a lot companies don't like leather on top of the dash due to sun damage.  Theres the low to mid tier luxury buyer that is actually cheap and will not take care of their cars at all.  A typical Lexus buyer is a much higher maintenance, whiny bitch compared to just about any other luxury brand, especially the Germans and Brits.  Seriously, you would not believe it.  "I think my cat farted while in the car, but I'm not sure if it wasn't the engine about to explode can you rip the engine out and have a look please?"  "Oh, I heard this noise five months ago from my brakes and it never returned, may or may not have been my car, can you check please?"  "When I close my eyes on the freeway, I sense the ride becomes bumpier, can you make my butt more comfortable when I drive with my eyes closed?"  "Can you tell me where the free Lexus water bottles are?  You don't mind if I load up this bag with 20 bottles of water do you?"  "Hey, who said you could remove my triple stack of floor mats?  Sir, there was a recall about drivers crashing their....  I don't care, put my fucking stack of floor mats back you jerk!!"

I don't so much have a problem with the clock, the Lexus is much better integrated than that Acura pic.  I also don't have a problem w/ the flow of the RX dash myself.  It suits the aesthetic of the overall vehicle, except for the new predator face they slapped on the RX.  The RX was the one car they had nailed their design aesthetic with and they drop that new grill on it...

The SC wasn't a 'Lexus' anyway, it was a rebadged Toyota Soarer.  But you could Supra up the 2JZ and it looked more elegant done right.

I don't really agree it's Lexus building expectations, it is really more the demographic.  Older, grumpier, cheaper.  Most Lexus owners are just self-entitled Corolla/Camry drivers.  That's been their bread and butter demo.

Get a Subie.

I never understood SUVs. You get all the same utility in a station wagon, minus the ground clearance I suppose. Most people who get SUVs don't need the ground clearance anyway.

And if I lived in a snowy climate, 4WD would be mandatory. Putting on chains suuuucks.

My parents are considering trading-in our 2000 Xterra, since it's getting too costly to repair at this point. The trade won't likely occur in the next year. I personally like the Honda Fit, but dad is adamant on all-wheel drive since we're in Mass. Another SUV would just be a waste, I've never gone off-roading in this mother.

The Fit is ok for short trips, but rather unpleasant at anything more than that. If they want to continue with a higher driving position/more ground clearance but want something a little more refined (the Xterra is basically a truck) the CR-V remains a solid choice, though both Toyota and Subaru are about to debut a brand new RAV4 and Forester to challenge it. The Mazda CX-5 is another one, less sophisticated as per usual with Mazda, but more fun. The gutless engine problem is being remedied. Subaru tried to make an Allroad with the XV Crosstek, but it didn't really work. It's worse in pretty much every way than the standard Impreza hatch. 

If you can get past the looks, the Honda Crosstour has AWD, and I imagine they are going at firesale prices now with the new Accord now out. There's also the Legacy, and the Fusion has AWD as well, but I'm pretty sure they make you get the top trim level in order to get it, which is $35K+.

I personally favor symmetrical AWD type systems.  Not FWD or RWD derivatives.  As someone who believes in AWD for emergency situations and weather conditions and someone who has done 720s in storm conditions with less than ideal orientations, I prefer a more balanced, well laid out design for when things go south real fast in that 1% extreme scenario.  99% of the time, most AWD is fine unless they are devoid of LSDs like the older X3's that couldn't even climb a low lying grassy knoll.