Japanese luxury car maker Lexus has confirmed its second battery-electric model, the RZ 450e SUV, will be sold in Australia from next year.

The new SUV is the first Lexus model to be built from a clean-sheet design, using a specific (e-TNGA) platform that allows the batteries and motor to be placed low to the ground for optimal weight distribution and a low centre of gravity.

The brand’s only other full battery-electric model, the UX 300e compact SUV, is an electrified variant of an existing internal combustion-powered vehicle, so has some inherent compromises in its design compared with the RZ 450e.

Similar in size to the existing Lexus RX large SUV, the RZ 450e features front and rear electric motors and an all-wheel drive system that automatically adjusts front-rear torque delivery and braking force to all four wheels to maximise grip, stability and comfort.

While Lexus Australia is keeping its cards close to its chest with regards technical specifications, the company has said that customers can expect a single-charge driving range of about 450km (WLTC).

Overseas media outlets report the lithium-ion battery will be a 71.4kWh unit, which is the same size as Toyota’s forthcoming bZ4X electric SUV and its Subaru Solterra twin.

The same outlets report the RZ 450e’s front and rear electric motors are good for 150kW and 80kW respectively, for a combined 230kW, enabling the luxury SUV to accelerate from 0-100km/h in 5.6 seconds.

Not everyone agrees that hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) should be classified as EVs due to their reliance on a combustion engine, but Lexus clearly has no such qualms, claiming the RZ 450e will take its electrified portfolio to nine vehicles, encompassing six hybrid-electric vehicles (HEVs), the NX 450h+ plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle (PHEV) and the fully electric UX 300e (BEV).

The company also lays claim to being the first carmaker to have launched an electrified luxury SUV with the RX 400h hybrid, which arrived in Australia in 2006, and that it leads the way in sales of luxury cars with electrified powertrains, with almost half (47.3%) of Lexus sales in the first nine months of 2022 being either HEV, PHEV or BEV.

Critics point to the fact that the bulk of these electrified vehicles are HEVs which are reliant on fuel-burning combustion engines, so should not technically be considered electric vehicles.

Many state government EV incentives, including the Queensland Government’s $3,000 zero-emission vehicle rebate, exclude HEVs and PHEVs in their eligibility criteria, despite the fact these cars display an EV logo on their plates.

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