Lexus first PHEV to be based on Toyota RAV4 Prime

KUALA LUMPUR: Lexus has been selling a wide range of hybrids for a decade now and might be the first automaker to embrace electrification. And in the recent past, many carmakers took the lead in the same direction over above Lexus. Even though it seels regular non-plug-in hybrid cars, it offers no plug-in hybrid and only one fully-electric car.

But it looks like the scenario is about to change soon, as Lexus has reportedly filed a trademark application in Europe concerning several new variants of the NX crossover. A few being the NX350h and the more exciting being NX450+.

It is believed that the plus in the name indicates a PHEV, and there is a high chance of it getting the same powerplant found in the Toyota RAV4 Prime. So, a 2.5-liter naturally-aspirated four-cyl making 176 hp, but thanks to the electric motors, the combined power output reaches 302 hp, thus allowing the RAV4 Prime sprint from 0 to 100 kmph in around 5.8 seconds.

Thanks to RAV4 Prime large battery pack, its pure-electric range is expected to be quite impressive, maybe around 16 kWh. This should allow the car to be driven up to 63 km on a single charge.

The Lexus NX and RAV4 Prime are roughly the same in size and weight, so their performance and range would be quite similar.

It’s worth noting that the NX450+ trademark was filed in Europe and not the US. In the later, Lexus applied trademarks for the NX350 and NX250 nameplates.

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