I tested the plush Lexus RZ300e SUV near Loch Lomond - why less power equals more value for this luxury EV

The RZ series is the Japanese manufacturer’s first model designed as an EV from the get-go, the UX range being built on shared architecture with the brand’s internal combustion engine cars. Less powerful than the all-wheel drive Lexus RZ450e, the two-wheel drive RZ300e offers a driving range of up to 297 miles, with pricing starting at a shade under fifty thousand pounds.

Our Premium Plus trim test car - second from top in the range behind Takumi - adds enough bells and whistles to push the price to £55,695, mounted as it was on the smaller, 18-inch wheels with bi-tone paint. I took it out for a spin on a meandering cross-country route past Loch Lomond, into the Trossachs and then wafted past picturesque waterfront villas in affluent Helensburgh.

With the tail end of Scotland’s three-day summer in the air, it was perfect sports car weather, but against such a backdrop, luxury and refinement felt entirely appropriate.

Design, interior and technology

The RZ 300e shares its underpinnings with the Toyota BZ4x, but the interior of the Lexus dispenses with the airy, lightweight feel of its mid-market cousin in favour of a plush, well-appointed cabin. Heavy on the sound insulation, premium materials and with the controls all angling toward the driver, the dashboard is dominated by a horizontal 14-inch screen with a sharp display and a much-improved operating system over older Lexus models.

Eight-way, power adjustable heated and ventilated front seats, clad in synthetic leather upholstery, add to the sensation of being cocooned in the cabin, but while all the soft-touch materials seem to melt around the driver like a Salvador Dali timepiece, the interior is plenty spacious. Four adults will find little fault with the cabin proportions and the 522-litre boot beats the Audi Q4 e-tron and also outswallows the BMW iX.

Drive, range and performance

Dispensing with the rear drive unit from the RZ450e, Lexus decreases the power output from 309bhp to 201bhp, increases the nought to 62mph time to a more leisurely 8 seconds and switches to a front-wheel drive configuration powered by the same primary motor from the more powerful car.

The benefits of these performance sacrifices are an improved range of between 295 - 297 miles on a single charge, 25 miles more than in the all-wheel drive version and a much more accessible price point than the more powerful car, which starts at over £57k in the UK.

Cruising through Helensburgh’s cherry tree-lined thoroughfares the power differential is an irrelevance and the composed, refined ride and silent cruising is very much in the foreground. Stretching things out on the A817 - a nine-mile stretch of road originally built during the Cold War to link Faslane with the A82 - the RZ300e felt neither sluggish or quick, skirting the line between being powerful enough that you never feel frustrated at a lack of input yet never feeling particularly purposeful either.

It makes no pretence of being a performance car and, with Lexus majoring on luxury and refinement the smooth, quiet delivery and easy steering suits the car perfectly. Over the course of my drive onward up the A82, I managed to average 3.2m/kWh without much effort to keep consumption down whilst I got to know the car. With a 71.4kWh battery that would indicate around 230 miles of range under the demands of my clubbed feet in the real world.

Verdict

Whilst the RZ300e definitely takes a performance hit versus the RZ450e that launched earlier this year, in the crucial stats of price and range, the less powerful version wins out convincingly. At almost sixty thousand pounds, the RZ450e looks steeply priced in comparison to the likes of an Audi Q4 e-tron and the range figures, while likely to cover the needs of most drivers, are weak in comparison to many less expensive offerings. The aforementioned Audi can exceed 300 miles of range as can lower price, mid-market offerings from the likes of Kia and Hyundai.

With a lower barrier to entry in terms of cost and an improved range figure, the RZ300e starts to make sense as a premium alternative to the various all-electric models around the fifty thousand pound mark. Those enticed by the Lexus badge over European or South Korean alternatives will find the great looks, impressive levels of comfort, space and refinement are all there in the RZ300e and, in terms of cost and range, less is more.