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2022 LEXUS UX 300e Electric SUV Review – Agony and Ecstasy

gaycarboys - Alan Zurvas

As big as they are, LEXUS and Toyota are way behind the pack when it comes to EVs, even though decades have been spent perfecting hybrid drives, enter UX300e.

Did LEXUS dragoon the all new NX into EV-dom? For some reason, no. Instead, the cutsie-pie UX is the electric Trojan horse. There is an unlikely-named Toyota BZ4X coming along any time, and that is electric from the ground up. Not only that, it is shared with Subaru in their shiny new Solterra SUV, but for LEXUS, it is UX 300e.

I’ve wandered somewhat off-piste, so back to the UX 300e, and LEXUS throwing electric spitballs at the wall. What stuck was an electric motor and battery being stuck in their diminutive crossover hatch/SUV/SAV, or whatever they’re calling it this week.

The last UX we drove was the Crafted Edition. We liked it. The sexy little SUV is small enough to be a hatch, but tall enough to pass as an SUV. The interior was 1st class, in that precise LEXUS way. The only thing to let it down, as it does with all LEXUS vehicles, is the human interface between man and menu. That touch-pad infotainment system is still present in the UX 300e, but has been replaced by something more modern in the NX range.

Now that we’ve dealt with the elephant in the room, I want to spend a moment talking specifics. UX 300e comes in 2 models, Luxury and Sport Luxury, available with enhancement packs. The front wheels are powered by a 150kw/300Nm electric motor, with a 7.5 0-100kph sprint that is more than respectable. The ride is as sublime as its sisters, and other siblings in the Japanese car-maker’s stable. It feels properly sophisticated, because, it is.

MacPherson struts and a fancy link rear end has luxurious overtones that are known to give a decent showing in tight corners or straight lines. The 1740kg UX 300e feels heavier than the other UX’s, but once the little hatch is under way, it is almost silent and light as a feather. The front windows are dual-paned to combat errant turbulence buffeting the glass.

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The drive:

There is enough room for 4 comfy mates, 5 if those in the back are either very small, or very good friends. Outer seats have heating for longer trips, but I suspect UX 300e will be a workhorse, used for city trips and daily chores.

She is a nippy little minx, and comes with a couple of nifty drive modes, making her even friskier. You get to dart in and out of traffic in a way petrol engines can’t match, at least not those normally found in tiny transport.

There is no spare tyre, so don’t get a flat. The repair pack, laughingly called, “mobility Kit”, is little more than a marketing gimmick, none of them are worth a tinker’s cuss.

The ride as we have said, it gorgeous. Steering feels on the heavier side, giving the UX 300e a coupé-esque drive experience.

Having already dealt with one elephant, we now run smack into another, and that is the range, claimed to be 360km. It is a nonsense, with even the brochure showing a fully charged UX 300e at 300km. That really frosts my cookies!

With the Climate Concierge doing its thing, the range is further reduced as the passengers are conveyed in curated comfort. We did around town jobs where UX 300e  was most at home. The range would then last a week, probably. However, the first whiff of freeway and the K’s fall off the range metre like proverbial bottle off a wall. We did a pie run to the city limits and back, using half our allotted electrons in the process. You simply wouldn’t be able to manage without your daily plugging in the rear. That is where you’ll get a socket on either side, one for AC and one for DC chargers. If you feel another rub coming on, you’re right.

UX 300e gets 3 free years of Chargefox to top up your tank, so to speak. You can use type 2 AC, or CHAdeMO 50kw. Good god, fancy being tethered to an 80 minute bowser, when the IONIQ 5 next to you is chowing down on a 350kw dinner. He will be gone in 18 minutes with up to 500km, leaving you to twiddle your thumbs for an hour waiting for a miserable 300km’s worth. By the way, the IONIQ 5 is worth around the same bucks as our UX 300e tester. All is not lost though. There is a chasm in quality, albeit a smallish one. UX 300e feels properly posh.

UX 300e is really aimed at someone who can charge on off-peak loveliness in the comfort of their own garage. That’s the next thing;  you get 3 years of free “fast charging” at the Slowfox charger. However, if you use it all the time, a line in the LEXUS user guide warns of dire consequences. Your 54.35Kwh battery will die faster than a comic on a cruise ship.

There are active driver and safety systems, and a cool HUD, but the lane centering was a bit iffy.

The Wrap Up:

Just as in the video review, my experience was a mix of agony and ecstasy. I love LEXUS, especially now the designers have found their sexy rhythm. UX 300e is lovely to look at, gorgeous to sit in, and sublime to drive. As frisky as it is, it isn’t a sports car, but that’s OK.

You get killer audio by Mark Levinson, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, and an interior that feels crafted by someone who gives a damn. There is proper ambience, and a genuine luxury feeling, and there aren’t many of those to be had under a hundred grand, if battery power is what you desire.

Let’s imagine for a moment I do have somewhere to plug in every night, and I don’t do road trips, then it all looks sunnier. Let’s sweeten that pot even more with what LEXUS calls, Encore Platinum.

That is the duck’s nuts. Apart from the 3 years of (often faulty) Chargefox, you get a free home charger, additional cables in car, 4 x 8 day loans of other posh LEXUS models (such as LC, LX, and LS), and 8 chances to valet park at participating locations. You also get 5 years of loan cars during servicing, 5 years roadside assist, and invites to fancy events.

Suddenly, LEXUS UX 300e has gone from having me on the fence, to making me want that driver’s seat, bad! Oh baby, whatta peach. I have been on a roller coaster of emotion, but instead of disappearing down a rabbit hole of despair, I pictured myself as a buyer. It was then that it all changed.

If you live close to a LEXUS dealer, you’ll find a couple of outlets there as well. So, although I don’t have charging at home, I have a LEXUS dealer next door, and Chargefox only a few blocks away. That means this UX 300e is 100% doable.

  • Price:- $74,000 – $81,000
  • Engine: Permanent magnet synchronous motor
  • Power: 150kw/300Nm
  • Trans: 2-stage reduction gear
  • Battery: Lithium-ion35kWh
  • Charging: Type2 (AC) 6.6kw, CHAdeMO (DC) 50kw
  • Charge Time: 6’6hr AC, 80mins DC
  • Range: 360km claimed (300km shown at full charge on our test)

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