Toyota has filed trademark applications with the European Union Intellectual Property Office and the British Intellectual Property Office for two new Lexus models, As he discovered it Lexus RX Owner Forum. One of the names is the Lexus TZ450e, the other is the Lexus TZ550e. There are no Lexus models for sale anywhere in the world right now. If luxury brand naming conventions hold, T indicates these will be three-row SUVs like the new TX, and Z indicates they will be battery-powered cars. Right now, the only battery-powered Lexus models for sale are the UX300e in international markets, and the RZ450e is sold here and nowhere else. The RZ450e uses an electric motor on each axle that’s linked to a 71.4-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. The front motor makes 201 horsepower, and the rear-axle electronic motor makes 107 horsepower, for 308 horsepower and 320 pound-feet of torque.
If that entire powertrain were transferred to a three-row coming-of-age SUV, those production numbers would certainly be appropriate. EPA range numbers for the RZ are yet to be released; Lexus estimates the crossover’s range to be 220 miles in the base Premium model on 18-inch wheels, and 196 miles in the heavier Deluxe model equipped with 20-inch wheels. We suspect the larger platform in the three rows will translate into a larger battery that can at least manage those totals. Toyota plans a three-row bZ5X SUV to debut around 2025, possibly for 2026. If the automaker’s new battery technology is ready for production, Toyota and Lexus trucks are expected to make significant improvements to the RZ’s numbers, especially with a more powerful variant like the TZ550e than Brings a greater appetite for ions.
Toyota’s electrification goals have undergone some adjustments in the past few years. photo above It came from the Lexus retail web site, so we’re going to present it as the latest in what the three-row Lexus SUV could look like. Not a bad place to put a TZ badge, if you ask us. The Toyota version is headed to production at its Georgetown, Kentucky, assembly plant in two years, with batteries arriving from a new plant being built in North Carolina.
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