People who buy the new Lexus NX 450h+ plug-in hybrid (PHEV) will be provided with an installed home wall charger, and a range of added benefits like the ability to borrow other Lexus vehicles from dealers or airport valets when on holiday.
In other words, Lexus wants to make you like owning and running one of its cars so much that you’ll never look elsewhere.
NX PHEV buyers will be supplied with the ABB Single Phase 7kW wall charger, installed by JetCharge, just as UX 300e BEV buyers are. Owners will also get two charging cables.
The AC wallbox cuts the NX 450h+’s charging time to about 2.5 hours, after which the car offers daily pure-electric range at all legal speeds before reverting to a petrol-hybrid on longer journeys.
NX 450h+ customers can also upgrade to a more premium charger with a touch-display, Wi-Fi and Ethernet compatibility, smartphone app connectivity, and dynamic load management.
The NX 450h+ also joins the UX 300e, LX flagship SUV, LC sports car and LS limousine as vehicles that come with three-year memberships to Lexus’s Encore Platinum program – designed to lure buyers with the promise of a luxury lifestyle experienced through the car brand.
MORE: 2022 Lexus NX price and specs, including PHEV
What does Encore Platinum get you? This story breaks it down in more detail.
The Lexus on Demand component means an invitation to borrow another Lexus up to four times during a three-year membership, for up to eight days at a time: perhaps an LC convertible for a winery weekend, a UX 300e to experience EV driving, or an LS limo for a business trip.
Cars can be booked through an app for collection at Qantas valets in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth airports, or in Auckland and Queenstown in New Zealand. Members can also book a vehicle for collection at some Lexus dealerships.
The NX 450h+ will also be added to the fleet of ‘Lexus on Demand’ models, meaning all members can have a crack in the PHEV, thereby creating a new pool of potential buyers. That said, with supply constraints and high demand, expect this to be a slow burn.
Encore Platinum membership also includes free valet parking at participating Westfield shopping centres nationwide or the massive Chadstone in Melbourne.
Lexus has always made aftersales a point-of-focus, with all buyers able to get service pickups from home or work, loan cars, roadside assist with $150 in taxi fares, and “exclusive access” to events such as golf days, dinners, and track events.
Members also get special offers with hotels that Lexus sponsors.
“It’s all designed to ensure owners of the first Lexus plug-in hybrid enjoy a luxury lifestyle experience to match the electrifying performance and class-leading tailpipe emissions of the flagship NX 450h+,” claims CEO John Pappas.
The NX 450h+ costs $89,900 before on-road costs, and pairs the normal hybrid’s petrol engine with a 18.1kWh battery and two drive motors. System output is 227kW, BEV range is a more substantial than average 87km, and the 0-100km/h dash takes 6.3 seconds.
Bigger picture, Lexus Australia wants 80 per cent of its sales by 2025 to come from cars running either hybrid, plug-in hybrid (PHEV), or battery electric (BEV) drivetrains – making petrol-only offerings a sliver of its volume.
MORE: Lexus Encore Platinum promises ‘one of a kind’ owner benefits
MORE: Lexus launches remote smartphone app
