Article content A couple of days into my long-term test drive of the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e I thought there might be something wrong with the all-electric luxury SUV. There was a significant amount of heat coming from below the steering wheel. But after diving into the owner’s manual, I discovered all was good since the heat was actually coming from the EV’s radiant heat system, which is designed to heat the legs and laps of front-seat passengers without the use of climate control system, which as any EV owner will tell you that when engaged carves out precious kilometres from the vehicle’s range.
There is a similar heater on the passenger’s side where a traditional glove box would be. What had me puzzled was why the radiant heat was coming on in the first place. Again, the manual provided the answer.
Turns out the radiant heat is activated when the seat heater is turned on, and as we’d been experiencing cool weather out here in Vancouver — our infamous ‘June-uary’ — I had turned on my heat seater in the mornings on a couple of occasions. Mystery solved. No doubt I’d have discovered this if I had the RZ 450e for our typical test period of one week, but the beauty of doing a long-term test in a vehicle, particularly an electric vehicle, is the ability to live with the vehicle under changing weather conditions, during a number of driving scenarios and assorted charging situations.
On that latter point, I plan to charge the RZ 450e from a 20% of charge using Level 1, Level 2 and DC fast charging to determine how long it takes to achieve an 80% state of charge using those different levels. Look for that report in a few weeks’ time in the second instalment of this three-part review. For this initial part, let’s introduce you to the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e and provide some early observations.
Learn more about the cars What is the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e? The Lexus RZ 450e debuted as a 2023 model and is the luxury brand’s first-ever dedicated battery electric vehicle. Though it is offered as both a single motor (two-wheel drive) and dual motor (all-wheel drive) globally, in Canada only the dual motor version is available. It is a small SUV with seating for five, and has distinctive Lexus exterior styling (read: dramatic and angular body work, particularly up front and in the rear).
The RZ 450e shares a number of things with Toyota’s all-electric bZ4X (also Subaru Solterra ), chiefly the e-TNGA platform, the battery pack and the front axle electric motor. That EV architecture platform features a fully independent suspension with McPherson struts up front and trailing-arm double-wishbones in the rear. What is the horsepower and range of the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e? That shared battery from the bZ4X/Solterra is a 71.
4 kWh unit, which provides 308 horsepower, with 201 of those coming from the front motor and 107 from the rear motor. Maximum torque is rated at 320 lb-ft. That smaller battery — at least for an SUV of this size and weight — means a full-charge range of just 315 to 354 kilometres (depending on the trim), which is below, in some cases significantly, the competition in the all-electric luxury SUV segment.
Some of those competitors include the single-motor Cadillac Lyriq (505 km full-charge range), the Volvo XC40 (412 km), the Genesis GV60 (399 km) and the Tesla Model Y (459 km). All RZ 450e models come standard with a Level 1 charging cable — which increasingly isn’t the case in the EV segment. The battery and all EV components are warrantied for eight years or 160,000 km.
What trims are available on the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e? Canada gets three trims: Signature, Luxury and Executive, the latter being the trim of our long-term test vehicles (automakers can’t help themselves but offer their top-of-the-line, fully loaded models to automotive journalists). The base Signature comes well stocked, including a Lexus Display Audio system with 14-inch touchscreen and 10 speakers, the Lexus Interface with Remote Connect, Service Connect, and Safety Connect features, a 7-inch full digital instrument cluster, electrochromatic rear view mirror with integrated HomeLink system, dual-zone independent automatic climate control, a heated steering wheel, heated front seats, NuLuxe upholstery, an ambient cabin lighting system, headlamp washers, hi-LED tail lamps, roof rails, and all-season tires mounted on signature-grade, 18-inch, five-spoke alloy wheels with a dark metallic grey and machined finish. New this year, this model is now fitted with carpeted floor mats and an updated meter cluster that displays power consumption as a percentage.
The range of the Signature model is 345 km. The Luxury grade adds a fixed glass panoramic roof, a power back door with kick-sensor activation for hands-free operation, heated and ventilated front seats including radiant knee heaters, a driver’s seat memory system, a power tilting/telescoping steering column, reverse auto-tilting exterior mirrors, decorated instrument panel, door courtesy lamps, single shadow ambient cabin lighting system, additional safety technologies (including traffic jam assist, lane change assist, and front cross traffic alert), intuitive parking assist with auto braking, and performance summer tires mounted on luxury-grade 20-inch split-10-spoke alloy wheels with a black and machined finish. New for 2024, this model also includes a digital key and digital rear view mirror.
This model offers a range of up to 315 km. And the Executive upgrades with a 13-speaker Mark Levinson Premium Audio system, advanced touch steering wheel, hi-grade meter cluster, head up display, adaptive high beam system with dynamic levelling, a fixed glass panoramic roof with dimming feature, ultrasuede upholstery, heated rear seats, the Advanced Park system, a digital key, acoustic front and rear side glass, multi-colour shadowy illumination system, and performance summer tires mounted on executive-grade 20-inch, split 10-spoke alloy wheels with gunmetal finish. Like the Signature trim, range for the Executive is 315 km.
What is the price of the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e? MSRP pricing for the 2024 Lexus RZ 450e starts at 64,900; the Luxury at $74,150; and the Executive at $81,050. Our long-term tester has a delivered price of $84,788, which includes that two-tone paint option ($1,405), freight and PDI ($2,205), A/C charge ($100) $28 in other charges. Initial Impressions Apart from the puzzle — since solved — of that radiant heater, a couple of weeks into this long-term test I’m really enjoying living with the Lexus RZ 450e.
Despite being classified as a ‘small’ SUV, it feels more like a mid-size, and so I find the list of competitors including the Volvo XC40 and the Genesis GV60 a bit confusing. As we’ve come to appreciate about EV cabins, the rear seat room in the RZ 450e is very generous, and in no way diminishes the size and ergonomics of the roomy rear cargo area. I’ve just done city driving so far, so haven’t really had an opportunity to test out the handling characteristics of this Lexus — look for that in a future instalment after a sprint up the Sea-to-Sky Highway and back — but it’s proven a competent and confident performer in an urban environment.
One feature that was driving me crazy until I finally turned it off was the auto braking setting, which abruptly stopped the RZ 450e every time I backed out of my driveway, which is on a slight incline. A bit too sensitive for my tastes. Speaking of personal tastes, I absolutely loved the two-tone Copper Crest with Black roof exterior when I first saw it, and continue to think it is one of the best looking colour combinations of any 2024 vehicle, all-electric or otherwise.
And those split 10-spoke alloy wheels with gunmetal finish just add to the fantastic looks of this long-term tester. Judging from the number of comments I’ve received about the copper colour, others are of the same opinion. Sign up for our newsletter Blind-Spot Monitor and follow our social channels on Instagram , Facebook and X to stay up to date on the latest automotive news, reviews, car culture, and vehicle shopping advice.
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