The Lexus/Toyota brand always seemed to stay on top of the latest trends. They were ahead of the hybrid game with Lexus being the first to introduce a premium hybrid in the early 2000’s; they were ahead of the safety features with standard Safety Sense that offered forward collision, adaptive cruise, & lane assist long before other brands made it standard. So, to see them running behind on the EV bandwagon is a bit unorthodox, especially given that they were ahead of the trend in 2013 with the Toyota RAV4 EV. Well, we welcome their all-new Lexus RZ 450e; better late than ever we suppose,  

At first glance, we thought this was just an upgraded version of the latest generation Toyota RAV4/Lexus NX platform – but pictures do not do it any justice to how big the RZ really is. Built on a completely different platform that is shared with its sister product, the Toyota bZ4X, the RZ is a little longer, a little lower and a little wider – in essence, putting it similarly close to the dimensions of the roomier Lexus RX. This also puts the RZ 450e in quite the competitive segment against the Genesis GV70, Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV, Tesla Model Y and BMW iX – which means the RZ has some big shoes to keep up with. 

From a visual aspect, the RZ follows the Lexus branding design relatively closely. Without the need for a front grille, the signature spindle design gets crafted into the shape of the body. Depending on color choices, the design can be sharp – there are solid color options, like our example in its sky blue; while others offer a two-tone option with the center part of the vehicle painted in Black Onyx that cascades over the spindle nose. We think this would be a better alternative that could give the RZ a dramatic contrast. In a way, the RZ sort of looks cool, in a Lexus kind of way, bringing back some of those dramatic sharp angles, the blacked-out C-pillar gives the roofline a floating affect, the body wrapping rear led lights are dazzling to the eyes and with a $200 optional illuminated Lexus logo in the front, it gives you all the bragging rights. 

The interior cabin is also quite an exquisite place with the use of rich blue Ultrasuede seats and unique premium upscale materials. The RZ follows the “green” recipe lifestyle by not offering any leather options, instead we find Lexus’ NuLuxe synthetic leather on touchable surfaces such as the steering wheel, door panels and center console. And while the dual-pane panoramic sunroof is standard on the Premium and Luxury trim, the Dynamic Sky sunroof with its frosted switch glass technology, like the Toyota Venza is available as an option on the Luxury trim.  

Similar to the latest Lexus design elements, the interior carries a suave contemporary appearance with a host of technology at the driver’s fingertips. The large 14-inch touchscreen infotainment system dominates the cabin space and houses most of the controlling elements like radio and climate control. Luckily, there is still a knob for volume and temperature adjustments. Interestingly, Lexus opted out of doing a traditional glove box in lieu of a new heating system – working more like a radiator, passenger side portion of the dash heats up to create a more comfortable environment verses having warm air blowing on their legs.  

With the size of the RZ being close to the mid-size range of the RX, we find that the RZ offers a very spacious cabin for five. And because there is no prop-shaft driving the rear-wheels due to its separate electric motor assembly, we find a flat floor space with an abondance of knee and leg space with enough space left over in the cargo area to stow many things.   

Getting into the core of the RZ’s powerplant, it offers a dual-motor, all-wheel drive system that produces a comforting 308-horsepower and 320 lbs-ft of torque. Those figures might seem low for an electric vehicle, but we must remember this is a Lexus, and a Lexus crossover is not about performance, but about premium comfort. So, despite its lower performance figures, it still manages to pack a hardy punch to 60-mph in just over 4 and half seconds. 

The targeted demographic for the RZ will appreciate that its comparable performance figures will not always be out to kill its drivers with ultra lightning quick acceleration times. Instead, what we find is an electric vehicle that is very Lexus that caters to the brand and its patrons that follow. It carries a well-balanced presence to its driving behavior that one would not find necessarily athletic, but rather comforting. The ride is urbane with gentle body motions and a level of floating ride comfort at higher speeds that feel cloud like, even with our example riding on 20-inch rims.  

Unfortunately, since the battery back in the RZ is shared from the single-motor Toyota bZ4X, its estimated range is depressing to say the least. On paper, a full charge is estimated to get somewhere in the realm of 220-miles; which by industry standards these days, is not a healthy number. But things also worsen from there. You see, we are based in Phoenix, Arizona, and if you are unfamiliar with our weather, it gets hot here… well into the triple digit temperatures hot. And despite there being a ‘Range’ drive mode that shuts off the air conditioning to achieve the alleged 220-miles, here in Phoenix, trust us, you will want air conditioning. So by keeping the drive mode in ‘normal,’ the RZ’s range drops to a sad 150-miles at full charge. 

Well that makes things interesting since it requires maintaining our charging levels. This too leaves the RZ with a minor problem, because it contains a large 71.4 kWh battery pack the way it absorbs power made it someone of an inconvenient challenge, Now there is a whole slurry of kilowatt numbers we can go into, but we would be confusing ourselves let alone you, the reader. What we can tell you is that by charging on a level 2 charging station, 50% recharge requires just over 5-hours, whereas some of its competitors can charge in about 3-hours. Going from 20% allocated nearly an entire 10-hour day of charge time and that’s when we had a level 2 at our disposal. A level 1 will require about 40-hours of charge time from 50%.  

We could talk about charging times on a level 3 charger, but we’re starting to believe that those are a myth – partly because less than 5% of the charging stations in Phoenix are a claimed level 3, and if were lucky to find one, its general max output of power barely exceeds anything more than what a standard level 2 station emits. But that has nothing to do with the Lexus RZ, just a short rant on charging stations in general. In reality, the best solution for charging is by implementing an in-home level 2 charging station.  

Back to the Lexus RZ 450e… what Lexus has developed is an EV for their consumer loyalists. The RZ mimics the likableness of a traditional Lexus product. However, Lexus has taken this EV thing a step further; understanding not just the limitations of its range, but the restrictions on EV’s in general, every RZ 450e comes with their Lexus Reserve Program that provides the customer a complimentary gasoline/hybrid vehicle over the course of 30 days for 3-years – providing customers assurance they can go the extra mile and save on the range anxiety. Now that makes the shortcomings of the RZ 450e seem not so significant after all.