The Extra Cost for a Hybrid Lexus Crossover is Much Lower for 2018

Great news if you’re in the market for a Lexus hybrid crossover, bad news if you just bought a 2017 model.

byEric Brandt|
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Toyota has been a pioneer in hybrids ever since the first Prius was built in 1997. It may not have been the first brand to bring hybrids to market, but it’s been the most successful at selling conventional hybrids with gas engines assisted by electric motors providing the excellent fuel economy that many motorists crave.

Now Toyota is taking another step forward in normalizing hybrids, this time in the luxury arena. Lexus hybrids have been around for a while now, but the luxury brand’s hybrid crossovers are seeing a big price drop for the 2018 model year. Now you can get a hybrid Lexus RX or NX for much closer to the price of a normal gas-powered unit than you could previously.

The extra premiums for hybrid variants of the ES, GS, LS, and LC are still a bit steep ranging from $2,870 all the way up to $12,940. However, if you want a hybrid NX 300h AWD it will only cost you an extra $950 over the standard gas model. Additionally, there’s only a $1,025 gap between the ever-popular RX 350 AWD and the hybrid RX 450h AWD. Finally, pricing was announced for the new three-row RX 350L AWD and it’s $1,550 cheaper than its hybrid counterpart, the RX 450hL.

For reference, a hybrid NX used to cost an extra $3,035 and getting a hybrid RX used to mean paying an extra $5,820. These are significant price cuts that will not only help Lexus sell more hybrids but make it easier to meet fuel economy regulations.

“We recognized the benefits that our hybrid powertrains provide our customers as well as society and with this new pricing strategy it will allow us to broaden their appeal even more,” said Michael Moore, senior manager for Lexus product marketing in response to The Drive.

Making more hybrids easily accessible to more drivers has been Toyota’s thing for over two decades now and it’s great to see more affordable luxury hybrids on the market. Here’s hoping other luxury brands follow suit to stay competitive.

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