wivenhoe

John. You didn’t mis-hear it - it’s in the title ! I couldn’t see when this was made - Tesla really shook the EV market up when overnight it discounted list prices by $ 10k. The EV world in the States will get even more disrupted later this year when cars and batteries that don’t have a stipulated percentage US parts and ‘minerals’ there is a loss of up to $7,500 in tax credits. Tesla can’t comply with the limits due to the constituents of the batteries. Similarly, now there is a price limit on the cost of the car to gain the tax discount - for saloons it’s $55k and for SUV’s $ 80k. Hence importers like Lexus and the Chinese companies will be fighting against US made cars with a $ 7,500 discount. The EU & UK are fighting over a 10% tax being applied from 2024 to EU & UK cars imported ! Ironically, this won’t affect diesel and petrol as it’s the batteries in EV’s that cannot be sourced in-country with the necessary percentage of home parts / constituents. I hadn’t realised that after Brexit and the adoption of WTO rules, all Chinese cars already have a 10% tariff applied. Japanese imports are subject to a tariff but it is on a reducing scale. Typical, UK government push EV’s then take away the discount on one and a home charger and then levy a tax on EV’s coming in but don’t do anything to support the battery factories needed to stay in their own tax credit system. Crazy.

Apologies for always appearing to be RZ defender, please remember I have come from a 2 year old Range Rover Velar that was in the garage 8 times in its 2 years I had it from new. Admittedly it was defective software and audio but drove me mad. Hopefully the RZ won’t suffer the same way. I understand that coming from previous Lexus’s you’re bound to compare but I think it is important to remember EV’s are different. Say the lack of gas struts, the only reason to open the bonnet is to fill the screen wash - what 3 times a year ? Unfortunately, most manufacturers are jumping on the cheaper eco bandwagon to provide anything bar leather. Range Rover charge £ 2k more for a vegan interior. I do miss the lush leather I had in my 2008 GS 450h but I don’t miss the poor quality leather in 3 new Merc’s and a new BMW. I had my car ceramic coated by a professional detailer - he said it was one of the best ‘factory finish’ cars he had detailed. I also noted in the tech spec I got from the web it confirmed that film paint protection was used instead of wax. Again, apologies for always looking on the bright side and perhaps not being as critical as I should be.

If you are happier after the test drive, I’d have a look on Autotrader and find a car with a spec I wanted, having now seen and test driven the car. I’d then ask them to source that car at that price less my £ 2k deposit. I ordered mine last May when the deposit was £ 500 and was given the opportunity to change the spec before build. I suspect that the car being offered is a cancelled order swapped to your order number - easy for Lexus or the dealer to do as the options are really only the colours. After driving the car for almost 2 months in relatively hot weather, I wouldn’t be without the dimming sunroof - really does reduce the heat through the roof above about 15oC.

Out of interest what was the blunder ? Are you still going ahead with the test drive after being unimpressed with the interior. I have the Ultrasuede and compared to good quality leather it doesn’t look as prestigious but is very comfortable and practical. I was in a RZ Takumi recently with the grey interior and I found it a little gloomy compared to my Orage. The Orage has very light grey leather trim and I think suits the interior better - each to their own. What was the interior you were in ? If you search the web for the improvements in the Toyota BZ’s range after the May update, you’ll see that there is a significantly less drop in range when using the a/c (was about 40 miles post update about 15) and an increase in range generally. I read one post where a guy said the range actual increased by about 40 miles.

I think you’ll find the 130 was from a review in Scandinavia with a temperature well below -10. if you preheat the car (and therefore the battery) and use the radiant heaters and heated seats the range doesn’t diminish in use - not sure what you’ll start with at say -2.

Talaipwros. As long as you are ok with a real range of 220 and less than 200 with a/c then you will probably enjoy the test drive. If you are looking for say 250+ with the a/c on it’s the wrong car !

It cost me £ 40 more to insure my new RZ for 6 months over my existing policy for a 2 year old Range Rover Velar P400e. They did say the renewal for the Velar would rocket in November if I kept it !

Then why not buy that one if losing the £ 500 the car is still cheaper ? Is the Bolton one registered or just a discounted new one ?

I am with NFU and their standard cover is far greater than most insurers. Until 2 months ago I had a 2 year old Range Rover Velar, having read about insurance for all Range Rovers rocketing I called them. They said they are refusing to insure any Range Rovers less than 5 years old but as an existing customer (2 cars & house) they would renew in November. The guy said they would try to be competitive but it could cost a fortune. He said, they refuse to insure RR’s younger than 5 years as they are a mutual society and so losses tend to be spread across all customers. The insurance hike made my mind up, so I bought the RZ I had on order for a year - it cost £ 20 more to insure than last years RR - I’m not sure the actual cost as it is a dual car policy. NFU are the only insurers I know that provide cover ‘new for old’ for 2 years on a new car. Saves GAP insurance and I particularly like that you speak to knowledgable staff and can also use a local office to discuss anything face to face.

I totally agree - the reason there are so many different models is because there are so many different needs and preferences. I’m not sure whether it’s the overall look or the two tone copper & black, but I have never had so much interest shown in any previous cars. In the last week, I have had someone stop and take a photo in a car park, stopped by someone in a supermarket car park to say he thought it was the best looking SUV he has seen and was going off to order one and the husband of my wife’s friend say he thought it looked fantastic. I doubt a Model Y would have had the same effect, but if I was doing 15,000 miles a year I am sure I would prefer a Tesla Long Range.

Apologies if my post was a bit strong - but there are so many Tesla fans that (including most online reviewers) deride the RZ without reporting any of the good points. From what I’ve read, Lexus are taking a more conservative approach so they can warrant the battery for a minimum 90% at 10 years. The majority of others warrant 70% for 7 or 8 years. It’s noticeable that the updated UX with the same battery is only warranted for 70% for 8 years and that is reported to be more efficient by having a greater range with same capacity battery as the RZ. Some dealers are telling customers that there is a software update coming which will significantly increase the range of the RZ. My contacts in customer service (very helpful and knowledgable guy) and the dealer haven’t heard this. In fact the dealer said on handover that the brief from Lexus was to stress the warranty and the real range. I hope that they are wrong and the range increases.

We ordered and bought the RZ knowing that the range and efficiency was lower than Teslas (even 7 year old ones). I didn’t fancy waiting over 2 years for a £100k+ left hand drive Model X. According to independent real range reports the Model Y Long Range with heating at 70mph is 2.9 kw / mile. Similar to the RZ in my experience. Some Tesla fans don’t see the reasons why people buy other EV’s - build quality, having a speedo that can be read without taking eyes off the road, a HUD, service centres in convenient locations, residuals that don’t plummet because the maker overnight reduces published list by £10k. I’m sure you’re very happy with your 7 year old Tesla as am I with my 3 miles / kw Lexus. The Tesla I sat in had the fit and finish of my wife’s Metro 40 years ago - it may have been a one off but as it was a demo I thought it representative of the car I would be ordering. A recent survey in the USA (massive market for Tesla’s) found - Consumer Reports recently published its updated reliability report pertaining to the most unreliable electric vehicles on the market today. As has been the case in the past, the Tesla Model S and Tesla Model X are both on the top 10 list. According to Drive Tesla Canada, Consumer Reports issued the Tesla Model S an overall score of 62 out of 100, and a two out of five for predicted reliability, which it considers less reliable than the average new car. Apologies for the very long post but I think the merits of the RZ over the Tesla are just as valid as the critical comparisons with Teslas and other marques.

Glad to see it’s going reasonably well - charger wise. The car may feel a bit more comfortable when the tyres wear in. I think I have flat spotted mine ! I am still getting a minimum of 200 with the a/c on Eco and not full time.

I think the WLTP test is unreliable. It puts the RZ Premium at 270 miles with a usable battery of 64kw = 4.2 miles / kw which is utter tosh. Nearer 3.5 would be more accurate. That said, as above, I do wonder if they have increased the usable from 64kw to say 70kw so the 270 is a bit more realistic. If increasing the usable means a bit more degradation then they are in a bit of a bind as they have sold cars with a warranty of 10 years minimum 90%. They could make any update an option with a changed warranty but that would be really messy to manage in say 9 years !

The updated UX300e has been announced with 40% more range. It now has the same battery size as the RZ but is single engine drive and a smaller car. On 17” wheels the generous WLTP range is 270 miles the same as a RZ Premium. BUT as they must have made more of the battery available for the UX they are only warranting 70% at 8 years rather than RZ’s 90% at 10 years. As per the RZ they will extend warranty to 10 years if serviced at main dealers. As the WLTP is the same for the same size battery, I can’t see Lexus providing a software update increasing the RZ range - wouldn’t that have done that on the updated UX ? I hope I am wrong.

Evoque’s have traditionally held their value so you may be ok. My Velar lost only about 10% over 2 years - I couldn’t see that rate holding. Especially with insurance costs rocketing on RR’s. I now think that Lexus has increased the list so the dealers can offer ‘discounts’ and those on the £ 500 deposits can be told they already have a say £ 3k discount. The residuals in PCP’s seem to reflect ‘normality’ with the likes of Lexus’s being circa 50% after 3 years, certainly not 80% - 90% that they actually were ! Looking at the deals available now, I think the market is heading back to what it was - discounts available on new cars and used a fair bit cheaper than new, a reversal of a few months ago.

DriveTheDeal have unregistered Audi ETron 55 Fastbacks for June delivery from a main dealer for £ 70k - £ 15k discount. Residuals are reducing too - the RR Velar I px’d against the RZ has lost £ 4K in a month. One of the reasons I bought the RZ is that I expect residuals to drop like a stone on ‘prestige cars’ so my Velar could well have lost £ 20k over the next 12 months, so it looked sensible to get rid now. I bought the RZ to keep for some time, with the comprehensive warranty. It would be economic suicide to have a 3 year old Range Rover without a warranty - approx cost £ 1k / year.

Thought this might be of interest

I’m ok with this one as it’s more than I paid !

I once bought an ex demo for the wife and despite the dealer being keen to sell he said that because of VAT they couldn’t sell it for 3 months as they had registered it in their name. Might have changed or he was wrong.

I asked if the RZ was protected against or will be and was told the RZ is on a ‘different security platform’ and there are no plans to fit plates. I asked if the ‘different security platform’ meant it was protected and the answer was I don’t know !

That’s a £ 5k less than current list but about the same if ordered last year. I don’t think it can be an ex demo as for tax reasons they must be a minimum of 3 months old. That’s the first 2 month old car I have seen for sale at a 7% discount off list. My 2 year old Range Rover Velar lost only £ 7k in px against the RZ !

I’ve just switched from a 2 year old Range Rover Velar to a RZ. The RR dealer was a Lookers franchise and they used a central booking centre which were rubbish, offered appointments weeks ahead for the inevitable warranty work and needed at least 2 months notice of a standard service. BUT they had an option ‘if your car is with us’ and this took you to an available service individual - always worked. I can’t see how a call centre 200 miles away can tell you what time you can collect your car or for it to be delivered. It was just as well that the RR dealer were very helpful and contactable as in the 2 years from new, the car was with them 8 times !

In my case, I would appreciate someone knowledgable checking my car over every year especially before an MoT after 3 years. If not now, then soon, the MoT will have to take in things like HV cabling as I am sure it would be a fire hazard or electrocution risk - the fire service already have special procedures for dealing with EV’s involved in accidents. Tesla did have some cars catching fire in the early days. Gaining the extended warranty by having the car serviced at a main dealer is a choice, not mandatory. It will take years for second hand buyers to not look for full main dealer service history so the lack of it would probably hit the residual hard - I think I am right in saying that the subsequent owners can keep the warranty going so which 5 year old car would you buy, one with full manufacturers warranty or one where you had to buy one. I came out of a Range Rover and a Land Rover extended warranty on those are about £ 1,000 / year so I’d rather pay for a service !

I can’t help with what the annual service is or the cost. I have read that the service is a only a check over and replacement of consumables such as fluids and brakes The 10 year battery warranty that the battery will have 90% is not directly linked to the 10 year extended car warranty if you have the car serviced every year at a main dealers. Toyota & Lexus offer the same warranty for all their cars.