EV News

“It’s the right time”: Lexus confirms all-electric UX 300e for Australia

Published by
Joshua S. Hill

Japanese luxury automaker Lexus has announced this week that its luxury compact UX300e SUV, the company’s first all-electric vehicle, will debut in Australia at the Lexus Melbourne Cup in November 2021.

Lexus, the luxury vehicle division of Japanese automotive giant Toyota, announced on Tuesday that it would land the UX300e into showrooms in November 2021, seemingly reversing course, albeit slightly, on its parent company’s 2019 promise not to bring electric vehicles to Australia.

First premiered in November 2019, when it went on sale in China and Europe in 2020, the UX300e boasts maximum power of 150kW and torque of 300Nm, building in a high-output motor and high-capacity lithium-ion battery that is able to deliver up to 400-kilometres of driving range.

Looking a lot like the Lexus UX on which it is based, the all-electric UX300e sits the 54kWh battery under the floor, with DC quick charging taking about 50 minutes. AC household charging takes around seven hours from empty.

News that the UX300e is coming to Australia comes only a week after Lexus debuted its one-of-a-kind Lexus LF-30 Electrified concept vehicle at the 2020 Lexus Melbourne Cup, after it was unveiled at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show.

According to Lexus, both the UX300e and LF-30 Electrified reveal the company’s vision of a fully electric Lexus flagship of 2030, part of the the company’s ‘Lexus Electrified’ vision “which targets a fundamental leap in vehicle performance, handling, control and driver enjoyment, evoking the original fun of driving by using an integrated approach to electric motor control and other electrification technologies.”

“As a pioneer of luxury hybrid electric vehicles, Lexus will further accelerate our electrification strategy, but as more than just a technology – we will harness its potential to create a new level of driving excitement as we enter a new era of luxury mobility,” said Lexus International president Koji Sato.

“Electrified technology ensures the UX 300e is both more ‘eco friendly’ and ‘fun to drive’ than ever before, and it is my great honour to offer UX 300e as the first Lexus EV for Australian customers.”

“The amazing LF-30 Electrified also symbolises how we cherish a ‘human-centred’ approach to new technology. The new Tazuna cockpit concept previews a next-generation integration of human and vehicle to pursue a new standard of comfort and safety – and it was actually inspired by how a single rein can be used to achieve mutual understanding between a horse and rider.”

Lexus is also planning to land its first Lexus plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) and battery electric vehicles (BEV) platform will likely come to Australia this decade, seen by the company as “a natural portfolio expansion of the ‘Lexus Electrified’ vision.”

Currently, Lexus is quick to highlight its “self-charging hybrid electric vehicles” – a relatively roundabout way to describe its line of hybrid vehicles that can only be powered by filling up the petrol tank.

Lexus boasts that it’s “self-charging hybrid electric models have been embraced and trusted by 29,000 Australian Lexus customers since the brand’s first electrified vehicle arrived in 2006” but, as the company then goes on to highlight the coming launch of PHEV options, the differentiation is clear.

Nevertheless, Lexus Australia chief executive Scott Thompson believes that now is the time to expand the company’s electrified portfolio in Australia.

“We are privileged to have had overwhelmingly positive feedback from luxury customers who have owned Lexus self-charging hybrid electric vehicles, confirming that we committed to this pioneering technology at the right time,” Thompson said.

“The ‘right time’ also guides the introduction of the first all-electric Lexus.”

“Between now and when the UX 300e arrives in November 2021, we will ensure that all-electric Lexus ownership equals the unwavering standards of owning a Lexus self-charging hybrid electric vehicle.”

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