2022 Lexus NX 450h+ – Toyota’s Upscale Tiptoe Into Electrification
By Edward A. Sanchez – June 15, 2021
With the introduction of the 2022 Lexus NX 450h+, Toyota is inching forward in its steps toward electrification. We’ve published many a post here at The Watt Car analyzing, criticizing, and puzzling over Toyota’s seeming reluctance to embrace an electrified future. The best we can figure, it comes down to Toyota’s profoundly conservative and tradition-bound culture, the desire to maintain healthy profit margins, and only wanting to release and sell what it considers well-proven, reliable technology. Although the company loves to parade its leadership in the hybrid space with the Prius and its numerous other hybrid models, Toyota (including its premium division Lexus) has yet to field a global battery electric. And the NX 450h+ still isn’t one of them.
By all appearances, the NX 450h+ appears to be an upscale version of the Toyota RAV4 Prime plug-in hybrid. This means its specifications are suspiciously familiar to those in the know about the RAV4 Prime. It combines a naturally aspirated 2.5L I-4 with an electric motor with what Lexus claims is a combined system output of more than 300 hp, although “official” specifications have not yet been confirmed. Considering the RAV4 Prime puts out a combined 302 hp, it’s a safe assumption the NX 450h+ will be in the same ballpark. Target 0-60 mph time is 6.0 seconds.
The plug-in NX will be offered with a 3.3 kW on-board charger standard, with a 6.6 kW charger optional. The standard charger offers charging on a 240V outlet in four and a half hours, with the optional charger cutting that time down to two and a half hours. Lexus is claiming a 36-mile EV-only range on a full charge.
Like the RAV4 Prime, the NX 450h+ features an all-wheel-drive system with an electric motor providing propulsion to the rear wheels. The NX 450h+’s navigation system features a “Predictive Efficient Drive” function that remembers common routes, learns the driver’s habits, and factors in traffic congestion along the predicted route to manage battery charge and discharge, optimizing range and efficiency.
Following Toyota’s “something for everyone” credo (except for full battery electrics, evidently) the NX is also offered in non-PHEV hybrid and conventional internal-combustion configurations. For those models, the hybrid is rated at 239 combined horsepower and 36 mpg combined fuel economy, a claimed improvement of 6 mpg over the current NX hybrid.
Like everything else with the Lexus NX, the interior design takes few chances. Although that doesn’t mean it’s not nice.
The ICE model features a new 2.4L I-4 turbo making 275 hp and 317 lb-ft of torque as an option. Toyota is claiming a 0-60 mph time of 6.8 seconds for this configuration. For those who have little interest in winning stoplight grand prixs, a naturally aspirated 2.5L I-4 is offered with a modest, but acceptable 203 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque.
While the addition of a plug-in hybrid to Lexus’ lineup is noteworthy and commendable, it strikes us as rather timid as most other premium brands are working on full-fledged battery electrics coming to market in the next 18 months. It’s possible Lexus could get a version of the upcoming bZ4X EV crossover. But if you’ve been waiting for a Lexus with charge port, your wait will soon be over.
The 2022 NX starts production in Q3 2021 and will presumably hit showrooms around fall 2021.
(Images courtesy Lexus)
(Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correct the on-board charging specs)
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