Lexus CT 200h – Entry-level luxury
In many ways, Lexus can rightly be regarded as one of the big success stories in the subject of branding. Out of nowhere, Toyota created an obscure brand, and took just 20 years, may be less, to fire it to a pedestal previously exclusive only to German marques. These days, you can turn up at a cocktail party in a LS 460 and nobody will ask why didn’t you buy an S-Class instead.
Even if Lexus does not boast of the same brand heritage that Mercedes-Benz and BMW have, it has certainly cemented its position as an aspirational brand. People don’t exactly lust for a Lexus, but it is as convincing a status symbol as any. Until recently, your most affordable means of obtaining this status symbol costs RM280k, which gets you the IS 250 sedan.
Budget 2011 changed that by removing all excise and import duties for low capacity (below 2,000cc) hybrid vehicles. Due to its engine capacity-based legislation, this ruling does not benefit Lexus’ existing hybrids in our market, namely the LS 600h L and RX 450h, but thanks to its use of a 1.8-litre Atkinson cycle engine donated from the Toyota Prius, the newly-launched Lexus CT 200h joins the Prius and Honda Insight as beneficiaries of the Government’s initiative.
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| Supposed to combine environmental friendliness and sportiness into one package. |
Its future beyond 31 December this year remains uncertain, but for now, it is the most affordable Lexus officially sold in the market, starting at RM172,603.90 with insurance for the standard model. However, getting your CT 200h to the spec level of our Luxury variant test car here bumps the final price to a cool RM201,857.90 with insurance.
Going for the standard model nets you a useful RM29k of savings, but as a result, you will have to sacrifice auto-folding side mirrors, auto wipers, electric adjusting seats, Bluetooth connectivity, LED headlamps, reverse camera, and on-board GPS. The audio unit loses a few speakers, and crucially, there will be actual differences in handling due to the omission of what Lexus calls the Performance Damper.
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| LED headlights also for Luxury model. |
Interaction with the GPS unit is via a mouse-like contraption on the centre console, and displayed through a pop-up LCD monitor. The interface and graphics used feel old-fashioned, but did not prove too unfriendly to use. The GPS software had impressive recovery time – the time taken to calculate a new route when a wrong turn is made – but I was able to find one not very new housing area not covered by its map data.
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| Sat-nav system operated by a mouse-like contraption. |
It is important to make clear that with the CT 200h, you are not getting a dolled-up Toyota Prius, even if both these cars share the same powertrain. The CT 200h’s platform is taken from the Corolla-sized Lexus HS sedan, which is not officially sold in Malaysia. Unlike the Prius, which has a torsion beam holding its rear axle, the CT 200h sports a double wishbone rear suspension setup.
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| Its platform is shared with the Lexus HS sedan. |
Lexus’ refusal to settle for the cheaper torsion beam solution has compromised luggage space, a problem exacerbated by the need to fit the batteries in that already limited space. Of course, the benefits from this sacrifice comes back many fold in the handling department – there’s just about enough poise and grip for the CT 200h to justify the ‘sports’ half of its brief when gunned hard along trunk roads.
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| Double wishbone suspension and battery pack necessitates compromise in boot space. |
While the CT 200h won’t out-corner a Ford Focus anytime soon, it is nevertheless able to string a series of corners fluidly and convincingly. Don’t expect too much in feedback from its electric power steering, but poise and composure is definitely present in this chassis. On a straight line, it felt stable at extra-legal speeds.
In the CT 200h’s engine room, the same partnership that powers the Prius is called into action once again. The petrol half of this setup is based on the 2ZR-FE engine currently powering the Corolla 1.8, but with compression ratio raised to 13.0 for it to run on the more efficient Atkinson combustion cycle. Its contribution to the cause is 98hp @ 5,200rpm and 142Nm @ 2,800 – 4,400rpm. Put together with the 80hp/207Nm electric motor, we have a setup rated at a combined output of 134hp driving the front wheels with an electronic CVT.
The quoted figures are identical to what’s printed for the Prius, but the CT 200h allows the driver to alternate between three settings – Eco, Normal, and Sport. Between the three drive settings, differences in the car’s character are noticeable, with things sharpening up significantly in Sport mode. Drag races are still out of the question, but brisk progress is hardly an issue, with speeds of 150-160kph within easy reach on open roads.
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| The instrument panel that changes colour based on mood. |
On the question of fuel economy, the CT 200h’s trip computer claimed an average consumption of 7.1 l/100km over our three day stint with the car, in which we subjected it to a mix of the sedate, the sporty, and the mundane. We were only able to clock about 300km of road time during the three days, which was far from enough to dry its 45 litre petrol tank. Lexus claims a possible 3.0 l/100km under ideal driving conditions.
At its price range, comparable alternatives to the CT 200h would be the BMW 118i, which boasts far superior dynamics, but is slightly more expensive and also fast approaching its sell-by date. The Mercedes-Benz B 180 and Volvo C30 are both priced nearly RM15k higher, and that’s before insurance. With no other member in this crowd offering diesel or hybrid powertrains, the CT 200h distinguishes itself with its excellent fuel economy and pretty respectable driving dynamics.
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