TRADEMARKS uncovered by a keen-eyed member of the Lexus RX House owners discussion board have sparked hypothesis round whether or not Lexus might be readying an electrical equal to the not too long ago revealed TX three-row massive SUV.
Each ‘Lexus TZ450e’ and ‘Lexus TZ550e’ have been trademarked, the ‘Z’ designation aligning with the model’s naming conference for electrical automobiles, an instance being the RZ prefix used for the electrical equal to the RX.
Offering clues concerning the first half of the trademarked names, Lexus not too long ago introduced its 2024 three-row TX for North America, the biggest SUV the corporate has produced at 5159mm lengthy and primarily based on the Toyota Grand Highlander that’s, in flip, a stretched model of Australia’s Kluger.
A Lexus Australia spokesperson informed GoAuto it was too early to touch upon a future three-row electrical SUV – the off-road-oriented, Prado-based GX arriving subsequent 12 months will fill such a job with its petrol-electric hybrid drivetrain choice within the meantime.
Nevertheless, an idea unveiled amongst 15 others from Lexus and dad or mum firm Toyota within the late-2021 ‘Megaweb’ future product showcase might present clues as to the seems to be of the Lexus TZ.
It resembles a bigger model of the Lexus RX electrical SUV that was not too long ago launched in Australia and is constructed on the brand new e-TNGA platform shared with Toyota’s bZ4X and the Subaru Solterra.
Whether or not a automobile the scale of a TX might be constructed upon the identical platform is unclear; a heavier, three-row SUV would absolutely require a bigger battery than the RZ’s 71.5kWh lithium-ion pack with the intention to obtain a aggressive vary.
To that finish, the RZ 450e bought in Australia presents a claimed driving vary of 470km that’s shy of the 500km+ provided by opponents just like the Tesla Mannequin Y Lengthy Vary.
Incoming massive electrical SUVs just like the Hyundai Ioniq 7 and Kia EV9 – the latter providing a 500km+ claimed vary – will present a similar-sized electrical Lexus with some stiff competitors.
Whereas neither the seven-seat Lexus TX nor its Toyota Grand Highlander twin are probably for Australia, it’s too early to invest whether or not the TZ fashions would possibly make it Down Underneath.
