![Lexus gives us a closer look at its first all-electric RZ 450e model [Images]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/03/Lexus-RZ-450e-images-5.jpeg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Lexus gives us a closer look at its first all-electric RZ 450e model [Images]
Lexus has begun accepting orders for its first fully electric vehicle, the RZ 450e, an upscale luxury alternative to the Toyota bZ4X. Check out the latest RZ 450e images from Lexus below.
Lexus RZ 450e electric vehicle images and specs
Like parent company Toyota, Lexus is playing catch up when it comes to fully electric vehicles. The luxury brand’s initial focus on hybrid and fuel cell technology delayed its first EV from hitting the market.
Lexus finally unveiled its first electric production model last April, the RZ 450e, which will ride on Toyota’s e-TNGA platform, the same used for the bZ4X and Subaru Solterra.
Although the RZ 450e shares a platform, Lexus has assured the EV is differentiated with an “innovative design, inside and out” and “signature Lexus driving experience.”
Essentially, Lexus designed its first electric vehicle to be a Lexus first and EV second to stick out from the competition. As such, the car offers its Direct4 AWD system to ensure stability and traction on the road alongside regenerative braking.
Lexus offers one 71.4 kWh battery option with two e-motors, 150 kW in the back and 80 kW in the front, for a total of 308 system horsepower and up to 220 miles EPA-estimated range (with 18-inch wheels). If you opt for the 20-inch wheels, the EPA-estimated range drops to 196 miles.
According to Lexus, with a DC L2 fast charger, the RX 450e can be charged from 0 to 80% in about 30 minutes.
The RZ 450e exterior looks similar to the bZ4X but incorporates a more aerodynamic front and distinct lines on the sides, giving it a more luxurious feel.
Unlike the bZ4X, Lexus’s first EV will feature a “premium” interior with an intelligent 14-inch touchscreen, radiant heating, a wireless charger, a panorama glass sunroof, and more.
One of the coolest features is the available Steer by Wire, a yoke racing-inspired steering wheel (images below) that constantly adjusts to the RZ’s speed, offering agility at slow speeds and stability while driving fast.
| RZ 450 e trim options | MSRP + Delivery Processing and Handling (DPH) |
| Premium AWD w/ 18″ wheels | $59,650 |
| Premium AWD w/ 20″ wheels | $60,890 |
| Luxury AWD | $65,150 |
Lexus offers the RZ 450e in two trims: Premium and Luxury. The Premium comes with 18-inch dark gray metallic aluminum wheels, while the Luxury comes with a 20-inch black and machined finish.
Electrek’s Take
The RZ 405 e is about what you would expect from Lexus. It features distinct lines with the automaker’s signature grille and driving experience.
Although you get more power than the bZ4X, an improved design, and added features, the RZ 450e starts at just under $60,000, while the bZ4X has an MSRP of $42,000.
At $60K, Lexus is competing with the Tesla Model Y, which has a 330-mile range and starting price of $54,990, and others, such as the Audi e-tron Q4 (starting at less than $50K) and Volvo’s electric SUVs, the C40 and XC40 Recharge, which start at $55,300 and $53,000.
What do you think? Can Lexus keep up with a $60K electric SUV in this market?
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
The all-electric luxury electric SUV is getting significantly cheaper. Lexus launched a new entry-level 2025 RZ trim with starting prices over $10,000 less than last year’s model. And you get just as much driving range.
2025 Lexus RZ electric SUV prices and driving range
Lexus launched its first dedicated EV last year, the RZ electric SUV. Starting at $55,175, the 2024 Lexus RZ 300e has a range of up to 266 miles.
The 2024 RZ 450e AWD, equipped with its dual-moto DIRECT4 system, has a range of up to 196 miles. Prices start at just under $60,000. Both models are offered in Premium or Luxury packages.
Lexus is drastically lowering prices for the 2025 model year. The 2025 Lexus RZ starts at $43,975, and that includes the $1,175 delivery fee.
At under $44,000, prices for the 2025 RZ start at over $10,000 less than last year’s model. The lower price tag comes as Lexus added a new entry-level RZ 300e FWD trim to the lineup.
The 2025 Lexus RZ 300e FWD still has an EPA-estimated 266-mile range (18″ wheels), so despite the lower price, it’s no loss from last year’s model. It’s powered by a 72.8 kWh battery pack from global leader CATL.
Lexus modified the subframe for the FWD model, replacing the rear eAxle from the AWD model. The result is a quieter, smoother drive.
Powered by a 71.4 kWh battery, the 2025 RZ 450e AWD has an EPA-estimated driving range of up to 220 miles (18″ wheels).
| 2025 Lexus RZ model | Starting Price* | EPA-estimated Driving Range |
| RZ 450e AWD | $48,675 | 220 miles |
| RZ 450e Premium AWD w/ 18″ Wheel | $52,875 | 220 miles |
| RZ 450e Premium AWD w/ 20″ Wheel | $54,115 | 196 miles |
| RZ 450e Luxury AWD | $58,605 | 220 miles |
| RZ 300e FWD | $43,975 | 266 miles |
| RZ 300e Premium FWD w/ 18″ Wheel | $48,175 | 266 miles |
| RZ 300e Premium FWD w/ 20″ Wheel | $49,415 | 224 miles |
| RZ 300e Luxury FWD | $53,905 | 266 miles |
The 2025 Lexus RZ is available in three grades. These include the new entry-level model, in addition to the current Premium and Luxury trims.
Inside, the electric SUV has a minimalistic feel with a standard 14″ infotainment with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support at the center.
You can also opt for the available 10″ head-up display (HUD), Mark Levinson Surround Sound System, and a host of safety features.
The flat platform provides a spacious interior with 37.52″ of rear legroom, nearly as much as the second row of a Ford Explorer (39″).
With the 2025 model arriving at dealerships soon, Lexus is offering closeout prices on 2024 models with up to $18,500 in lease cash discounts. You can use our link to find the best offers on the Lexus RZ at a dealer near you today.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Environment
‘Political malpractice’ if Trump undoes climate-geared Biden projects, outgoing U.S. energy secretary says
U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm speaks to the media on day five at the UNFCCC COP29 Climate Conference on November 15, 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty Images
A potential decision by Donald Trump to walk back the Biden administration’s climate-geared projects would impact jobs in areas governed by the President-elect’s own party, outgoing U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told CNBC, urging consistency in Washington’s green transition policies.
Referencing the White House’s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement — a 2015 treaty in which nearly 200 governments made non-binding pledges to reduce greenhouse emissions — during Trump’s first mandate, Granholm said the U.S. pressed ahead with projects linked to the green transition that members of Congress wanted to undertake in their districts.
“We are now building all of these projects. We’re building batteries for electric vehicles, we’re building the vehicles, we’re building the offshore wind turbines, we’re building the solar panels. And all of those are factories. And those factories are in districts of members of Congress,” she told CNBC’s Dan Murphy on Friday at the COP29 U.N. climate conference held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
She estimated that 80% of the funding from U.S. President Joe Biden’s legacy bills — the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law — went to U.S. districts represented by Republican leadership.
“It would be political malpractice to undo those opportunities when people are just now getting hired,” she said, stressing benefits to the manufacturing sector and noting that the business community of the world’s largest economy and oil producer now wants a clear course from Washington on its climate policy.
“This isn’t about in [the Paris Agreement], out, shifting back and forth. Let’s have a consistent practice,” she said.
When asked for a response on Granholm’s comments, Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for Trump’s transition team, said the president-elect will “deliver” on the promises he made on the campaign trail.
International focus has now shifted on the shape of the U.S.’ future role in global climate policy, as Trump prepares to take the helm at the White House for a second mandate in January, following a sweeping victory against Democrat candidate Kamala Harris. Trump — who has yet to announce his own pick to lead the U.S. Department of Energy — put hydrocarbons at the front and center of his campaigning agenda, pledging to “end Biden’s delays in federal drilling permits and leases that are needed to unleash American oil and natural gas production.”
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) in March said that the country already “produced more crude oil than any nation at any time” for the past six years to 2023, averaging a crude oil and condensate production of 12.9 million barrels per day that year — breaking the previous U.S. and global record of 12.3 million barrels per day recorded in 2019, during Trump’s first mandate.
Yet Granholm on Friday stressed that the clean transition is also “unleashed” and will take place regardless of who is leading the White House — and that ignoring climate change risks sacrificing Washington’s position as a frontrunner in the blooming decarbonization industry.
“Why would we take a second, a backseat to an economic competitor like China?” she asked. “They have an economic strategy, they want to be number one. So if we get out of the game, we’re just going to cede that territory all over again. It’s bad strategy for the United States and for workers and for communities across the country.”
As the world braces for the possibility of a second U.S. exit from the Paris Agreement, some climate activists note that the green transition has now gained a different global momentum than during Trump’s first turn at the White House:
“There is no denying that another Trump presidency will stall national efforts to tackle the climate crisis and protect the environment, but most U.S. state, local, and private sector leaders are committed to charging ahead,” Dan Lashof, U.S. director of the World Resources Institute, said in a Nov. 6 statement.
“Donald Trump heading back to the White House won’t be a death knell to the clean energy transition that has rapidly picked up pace these last four years.”
Granholm also identified potential support in Trump’s current entourage, which this week welcomed business tycoon Elon Musk as the president-elect’s choice to head a new Department of Government Efficiency, alongside conservative activist Vivek Ramaswamy:
“His right-hand man, Elon Musk, is somebody who has been strongly in favor of products that … address climate change. Obviously, he’s the founder of Tesla,” Granholm pointed out.
Musk’s environmental stance has come under question over the years, shifting from telling Rolling Stone magazine that “climate change is the biggest threat that humanity faces this century, except for AI” and backing carbon taxes to holding that the world needs hydrocarbon supplies as a bridge to renewable energy.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports7 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports1 year agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Environment1 year agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business2 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway