Lexus to offer more than just SUVs in global EV push

Despite SUV’s popularity, Lexus’ European boss said the brand is working on alternative body types that would allow for a wider range of vehicles.

Published On May 18, 2022 08:00:00 AM

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Luxury brand Lexus has no plans to become an SUV specialist – despite its first two electric cars being SUVs as well as the success of the Lexus NX – and is considering a vast array of bodystyles for its future EVs.

The brand’s European boss Spiros Fotinos said that while it “can’t ignore the demand for SUVs” globally, Lexus hasn’t written off plans for more traditional, lower-slung cars in its future line-up. He pointed to the large SUV, saloon and supercar EV concept cars that Lexus revealed late in 2021 as a statement of intent.

“We’re clearly working on alternative body types that would allow us to not only offer a wider range of vehicles but also meet the growth ambitions we have for Europe,” our sister publication Autocar UK quoted Fotinos as saying.

Interestingly, Lexus isn’t only planning to use Toyota's e-TNGA platform for its EVs. Fotinos said that it’s “a great starting point”, but that “for a company and a brand that has the ambitions we do – to be 100 percent BEV-ready, offering a BEV in every segment we compete in – technically that would be impossible to do with one platform, so obviously we’re looking at other opportunities as well.”

Lexus in India

Lexus launched the 2022 Lexus NX 350h in India earlier this year, which is available with a single petrol-hybrid powertrain. You can read our review of the new NX here. Naveen Soni, president, Lexus India, in an interview with Autocar India, said as part of the brand’s global plan to go 100 percent electric by 2035, Lexus UX BEV is on the cards for India.

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Lexus’ EV supercar to launch by 2030