Lexus RZ review

Lexus addresses the key flaw and much more for its luxurious electric SUV, write Jack Warrick, Illya Verpraet and Murray Scullion

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With so many cars spuriously purporting to be sporty or have racing genes, it's refreshing when the presentation for a new one hardly even mentions athleticism.

The Lexus RZ is the firm's flagship electric car and instead its aim is to offer "confidence, control and comfort".

That ethos remains in 2025, but thanks to a midlife update, the RZ now has up to 402bhp, the promise of improved handling and, most importantly, a much longer range than before.

WHAT'S IT LIKE?

While many midlife updates take the form of minor design changes or some additional equipment, the revised RZ actually brings a host of firsts for the luxury Japanese brand.

It's the first electric Lexus with a performance F Sport trim level and the first car in the UK available with a steer-by-wire system, complete with a yoke for a steering wheel and simulated manual gearshifts.

The RZ is still the flagship Lexus EV. The firm has also had the UX 300e for a while, but that was never quite a heavy hitter, whereas this car is and goes toe to toe with the likes of the Tesla Model Y, Nissan Ariya and Hyundai Ioniq 5.

The new RZ looks almost exactly the same as the previous car, with the majority of the changes coming beneath the metal.

Battery upgrades, improvements to body rigidity and handling and enhanced comfort are among the wide-reaching revisions.

They apply across a three-model range that comprises the single-motor, front-wheel-drive RZ 350e (our main focus here, as Lexus expects it will take a 65% share of RZ sales in the UK), the dual-motor, four-wheel-drive 500e and the more overtly performance-oriented 550e.

The most significant change is the introduction of a slightly larger (77kWh) battery, with a new cooling system and preconditioning for rapid charging.

It addresses the original RZ's biggest flaw, a comparatively short range, upping the total from 297 to 353 miles in the 350e (and to 311 miles in the 500e).