Lexus CT 200h hits the market at below RM200k
Nobody in the auto industry knows how long our government will keep up their support of hybrid cars with their generous tax incentives. But that’s not stopping the Japanese big two – namely Honda and Toyota – from trying to cash in for the short term.
The complete exemption of import and excise duties has already paved the way for Honda’s Insight to enter our market at an attractive RM98k price tag, and the Toyota Prius also had its asking price slashed from RM175k to RM140k. At the other end of the market, we then have Lexus selling the LS 600h L and RX 450h at prices from half to one million – not exactly within reach of most of us.
Happily now, however, there is Lexus hybrid that can be considered relatively affordable, and that model is the Lexus CT 200h, which was just launched today. Under the old tax structure, the CT 200h would probably have been priced north of RM250k, placing it alongside the IS 250. But, without those pesky taxes to worry about, the sticker price on the windscreen is now a more palatable RM168,000 (RM172,603.90 if you factor in insurance), ironically even lower than the Prius when it was first launched here in August 2009.
 |
| Internationally, the CT 200h is priced almost on par with the IS 250. |
This price tag hardly represents good news for Toyota sales reps looking to push the Prius, but once you step into the Lexus showroom, you will also see that at RM173k, the CT 200h comes without Bluetooth connectivity or even electric adjusting seats, both items that you naturally expect in a Lexus.
You can add those two items into the car, but that means going for the CT 200h Luxury, and that little bugger takes you just over the RM200k mark once you factor in insurance. That’s a RM30k premium, which buys you performance dampers, LED headlamps, a built-in navigator, reverse camera, and a few extra speakers to go with the audio unit.
Some may wonder if the CT 200h is essentially a Toyota Prius with a different skin slapped on with a Lexus badge. That’s not entirely wrong, but it is also quite far from being accurate. Lexus did pluck the Prius’ Hybrid Synergy Drive to power the CT 200h in an almost unchanged state, but the underpinnings are most certainly not based on the Prius.
 |
| Powertrain aside, nothing else in this car is shared with the Prius. |
The CT 200h’s platform is in fact more closely related to the Lexus HS hybrid sedan. The crucial difference between the CT 200h and the Prius is at the rear, where the Lexus utilizes double wishbone suspension in place of the Prius’ torsion beam. This setup does entail a compromise in luggage carrying capacity, but it also gives Lexus engineers a better platform to endow the CT 200h with superior ride and handling characteristics.
 |
| Double wishbone rear suspension. |
Members of the media were given a preview drive of the CT 200h around the streets of Cyberjaya and Putrajaya yesterday. On a short drive over the relatively smooth roads of our capital, we were able to fleetingly experience the CT 200h in its three drive modes – Eco, Normal, and Sport.
One trick that never failed to amuse was the switching of drive modes from Normal to Sport, which actually sees instrument panel backlighting turn from blue to red and the eco charge meter transform itself into a tachometer. It’s not all show and no go – in Sport mode, throttle response, electric boost, damper setting, and steering response all sharpen up for a sportier drive.
 |
| Instrument panel actually transforms based on driving mode. |
Lexus Malaysia expects to sell a total of 800 units of the CT 200h, and as we write this piece, they are quarter-way there already, having amassed 200 bookings, almost evenly distributed between both variants. If you walk into a Lexus showroom today and put a booking down, expect to get your car in June, longer if you opt for more obscure colour combinations.
