BEST OF BOTH WORLDS
Karl Puschmann puts the new Lexus flagship SUV, the RZ 550e F Sport, to the test on an overnight roadtrip through the winding Waikato. But, is the car a refined, luxury cruiser or a performance powerhouse? As it turns out, it’s both.
PHOTOS JAHL MARSHALL
A trip to Cambridge seemed the perfect excuse to test drive the new flagship EV SUV from Lexus. But really, it was the other way round. The sleek RZ 550e F Sport provided a compelling reason to drop the kids at Nana’s and hit the open road.
As the crown jewel of their EV range, the F Sport is brimming with high-end tech and all the creature comforts Lexus is renowned for. The package is topped off with a stylish, head-turning design and bleeding- edge performance that practically demands to be taken out of the congested city streets and let loose. I was happy to oblige.
As you’d expect, tackling the mountainous Kaimai Range proved no challenge. With a hefty 402-horsepower on tap, we thundered up its steep, winding slope and had more than enough juice to safely pass the lumbering trucks that pulled into the slow vehicle bays on the short corners of the decline.
From there, State Highway 29 is a mostly straightforward journey to Cambridge, which allowed me to get some real-world testing of the car’s driver features. These are bundled under the Lexus Safety System+ 3.0 umbrella and include Lane Tracing Assist, which helps keep the car centred in its lane when adaptive cruise control is engaged, All-Speed Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, which automatically adjusts acceleration and braking to maintain a safe following distance, and Curve Speed Management, which can reduce speed through bends when cruise control is active.
I found that letting the driver-assist systems shoulder much of the steering, acceleration and braking reduced fatigue, although this would likely be more noticeable on longer trips, with Cambridge only a little over an hour away. With these features engaged, the car can briefly track the lane on its own, though it quickly prompts you to keep your hands on the wheel if it senses you’ve let go.
Setting your speed and engaging the systems is as easy as pressing one of the touch-sensitive buttons on the steering yoke (yes, steering yoke, not steering wheel) once you reach your desired cruising speed. The yoke is the F Sport’s marquee feature, and we’ll get to it in a moment.
From there, you can run adaptive cruise control on its own, or add lane tracing assist for steering support, with the option to have both working together. Their status appears in the heads-up display, projected onto the windscreen directly in the driver’s line of sight.
This may be the sport model, but the ride inside was never anything less than comfortable and whisper-quiet, even on the plentiful stretches of chipseal road. The silence provided the perfect canvas for the impressive 13-speaker Mark Levinson sound system to shine, while the Ultrasuede-trimmed sports seats, with their blue- stitch detailing, proved both comfortable and supportive.
With my phone sitting on the charging pad, it was simple to navigate Apple CarPlay through the Infotainment system’s crisp and bright 14-inch touchscreen display. It was too nice a day to use the heated seats or steering yoke, but pressing a button to switch the Dynamic Sky panoramic roof from opaque to transparent flooded the cabin with natural light and
blue sky, making the spacious interior feel even airier. Much like the seats, the position of the steering yoke can be electronically adjusted for reach and height, with memory settings allowing multiple drivers to quickly return to their preferred seat, steering and mirror positions.
This is a good time to talk about the synthetic leather–clad steering yoke, which replaces the traditional wheel and looks like it’s been transplanted from an F1 car, complete with what Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson dubbed “flappy paddles.” The RZ 550e also ditches the mechanical steering column in favour of a full steer-by- wire system, replacing traditional mechanical linkages with digital precision. It’s easy to oversteer at first, but I quickly acclimated to its responsiveness, with the smallest turn of the wrist producing surgical maneuvers.
Not that I was too worried about precision or scratching the 20-inch alloy wheels, or their aerodynamic resin covers, when I pulled up outside the newly renovated, historic Clements Hotel, our lodgings for the night in the heart of Cambridge. Instead, I happily pushed a button and let the Advanced Park system navigate us into the space. Lexus EVs have had this feature for a couple of years, but it still feels like magic every time, and there’s a satisfying moment seeing the car parked perfectly in the middle of even the tightest spot.
We’d left Tauranga on a full charge and were still sitting above 60 percent on arrival, which was impressive, considering I’d been fiddling with every button I could reach, had the Climate Concierge cranking, and had really been putting the car through its paces.
We cruised all around Cambridge and ventured out to the Sculpture Park at Waitakaruru Arboretum, roughly 20 minutes from town, as well as the Takapoto Estate Winery, which was another 20 minutes in the opposite direction, before bidding farewell to The Clements, packing our two suitcases into the F Sport’s spacious boot, and heading home the next day.
There was one feature I’d purposefully saved for the return trip: the 550e F Sport’s exclusive Manual Mode. This uses the flappy paddles on the yoke to physically simulate an 8-speed manual gearbox, essentially transforming the car from an automatic into a rocket-powered manual, although it must be stressed that in auto, the car is no slouch, capable of throwing you back against your seat as it rockets to 100km/h in a mere 4.4 seconds.
Taking manual control of all that power was a thrill, seeing the rev counter race up to the red and hearing the engine roar as I planted my foot down. But, you may be thinking, this is an EV - I shouldn’t have been hearing any roaring whatsoever out of its battery- powered motor. And you’re right, I shouldn’t have been. But Lexus has very cleverly equipped the F Sport with what they call Active Sound Control, which simulates the sound of a high-performance engine, roaring, rising and falling in perfect sync with every flappy paddle gear shift. It makes for a visceral experience and one that is a heck of a lot of fun.
With an advertised 437 km range on a single charge, I had no battery anxiety at all on our trip, even with how much time we spent in the car and my enthusiastic pushing of the vehicle. In fact, I didn’t charge it at all until we got back to Tauranga, where I gave the car a quick blat from one of the Quick Charge stations at The Crossing while we grabbed a bite to eat.
With its sharp style, racy split rear spoiler, blacked out trim and aerodynamic body kit, the 550e F Sport leaves no doubt that it means business, while the sophistication of its design reinforces its premium luxury roots. This is reflected in its driving experience.
You can cruise in supreme comfort or harness the thrills of its power. Whichever you choose,it doesn’t disappoint.