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Lexus
officially introduced its hybrid sport-utility vehicle
at the Detroit Auto show in January 2004. The RX 400h
hybrid SUV,
based on the popular RX 330, utilizes Toyota's
revolutionary Hybrid Synergy Drive.
Originally, the Lexus hybrid
received incredible interest,
including almost 11,000 confirmed orders, and more than
9,000 buyers
on waiting lists before it was first sold.
Since;
however, interest in this performance hybrid SUV has
slowed, which brings up an important point about this
Lexus hybrid SUV. The RX400h hybrid was not built solely
for fuel efficiency. This hybrid is a clean performer. A
luxury hybrid.
For more
information on the real world fuel economy of the Lexus
400h hybrid, check out our RX400h
testimonials.
Based on Toyota's second-generation
hybrid synergy drive, the RX400h generates up to 270 horsepower with front and
rear electric motors combined with a front mounted, 3.3
liter V6
internal combustion engine.
As stated before, the Lexus RX400h is all
about performance, and this combination of engine and
motor will create
the power and torque of a V8 while offering a driving range of
more than 600 miles on a single tank of gas.
"The Rx 400h with
Hybrid Synergy Drive has a V-6 engine with the power and
torque of a V-8 and delivers the fuel mileage of a
compact car, while producing a fraction of the emissions
of standard SUVs," according to Toyota President
Fujio Cho.
The Lexus
hybrid requires double the battery voltage to power
its all-wheel-drive system via front and rear electric
drive motors, so the car feels and drives a little heavy
- to support the hybrid battery packages.
According
to Lexus, the RX400h is "A luxurious, stylish,
innovative vehicle that appeals to the senses. A vehicle
that allows the words "elegant" and
"environmentally sound" to sit comfortably
within the same sentence. A vehicle that out-performs
most gas-powered cars."
An LATimes
auto writer wrote "On the open road, the RX
400h has plenty of moxie. Because all the outputs are
thoroughly massaged by computer, when you put your foot
down nothing dramatic happens — no gut-knotting windup
of the motor and no open-asphalt lunge — it just gains
speed like the Eurostar pulling out of Waterloo,"
and concluded that "the RX 400h feels like a
masterpiece."
Not bad.
If you would like to
receive future information on the Toyota Lexus RX400h Hybrid
SUV, please
Click here.
Read
about the Lexus
RX400h on the Hybridcarblog.
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