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The Lexus RZ 550e is an all-electric SUV that has been updated for 2026 and features now include ‘steer-by-wire’ steering, an airplane-style ‘yoke’ steering wheel, virtual manual gear shift, all-wheel drive, more power and a longer driving range.
Lexus, like Toyota, is best known for its petrol-electric hybrids rather than battery electric vehicles. However Lexus launched the all-electric RZ in 2023, and this SUV has now been updated for 2026 with a number of new features. So is it now more competitive?
The Lexus RZ is built on a bespoke electric vehicle platform which is shared with the Toyota bZ4X (and Subaru Solterra). For 2026 the Lexus RZ gets a number of upgrades, including the introduction of the RZ 550e F Sport, the performance flagship of the range (as tested). New features include Lexus’s steer-by-wire system, with an optional, airplane-style ‘yoke’ steering wheel, a virtual manual gear shift and a larger 77kWh lithium-ion battery; it still has all-wheel drive, but now has more power.
The body style remains the same, which means a 4,805mm length, resulting in spacious rear legroom and a boot capacity of 522 litres, with an extra 58 litres under the boot floor, or 1,451 litres with the rear seats folded. One useful feature is the parcel shelf that sits over the boot, which you can fold in half and store under the boot floor – we’re surprised that other manufacturers don’t copy this idea. The cabin will be familiar in terms of design, technology and quality to drivers of other recent Lexus models.
The RZ 550e in top of the range Takumi spec also has a clever dimmable panoramic roof – you can press a button to switch the glass from being clear to opaque.
Our test car had an interesting colour scheme: Neutrino Grey BiTone / Special Metallic Bi-Tone, meaning a light grey body with black bonnet and black wheels.
Although the (front-wheel drive) RZ 350e has a towing capacity of 750kg, or 1,500kg for the AWD RZ 500e and RZ 550e, the Lexus RZ 550e F SPORT doesn’t have a towing rating.
An option on other Lexus RZ models, the RZ 550e F SPORT (and F SPORT Takumi) features the airplane-style ‘yoke’ steering wheel as standard, which becomes one of the key features of the car. With the aim of increasing the driver’s field of forward vision and creating more space, the wheel is only around half the height of a normal circular wheel, and so it certainly stands out (it’s worth noting that Chinese car manufacturers will no longer be able to install yoke-style steering wheels from January 2027 – along with flush door handles – both due to safety concerns).
In the Lexus the steering wheel is mated to a steer-by-wire system, ie. there’s no mechanical link between the steering wheel and the wheels – the steering inputs are relayed by electrical signals. The system has a 200-degree turn-to-lock range, which eliminates the need for hand-over-hand steering. It certainly feels different to a traditional steering set-up; at lower speeds you just need to turn the wheel slightly and the car turns sharply.
The RZ 550e F SPORT also debuts Lexus’s Interactive Manual Drive with virtual manual gear-shifting, which aims to replicate the performance, sound and feel of a manual transmission in a fully electric vehicle. To use this feature, you need to press the ‘M mode’ switch on the centre console. You can then change gear (there are 8 gears in total) using the paddle shift controls behind the steering wheel. Like the steering wheel, the virtual manual gear-shifting gives the RZ 550e some individual character to set it aside from the many electric SUVs out there. The virtual manual gear-shifting is fun to use – you actually reach a (simulated) ‘rev limit’ if you don’t change gear – and it’s accompanied by a simulated noise, with the car being more responsive in Sport mode. If you don’t select M mode, the paddle shifters change the level of brake regeneration.
One issue with the steering wheel and paddle combination is that when your hands are on the steering wheel, the nearest controls to reach for are the (very small and stubby) stalks for the indicators and wipers; the paddles to change gear are positioned very close to these but are too high for such a shallow wheel, and they’re also very small.
Another issue is that when you turn the wheel, the stalks for the indicators and wipers also move, presumably because you’re supposed to keep your hands in the same place on the steering wheel when turning it.
The new model has more power: 227 hp from the front motor and 227 hp from the rear motor, which results in a total power output of 408 hp, so the RZ 550e certainly has sufficient performance. There’s also 269 Nm of torque from the front motor, and the same from the rear. The result of all this is a 0-62 mph time of 4.4 seconds, and power is channelled through Direct4 all-wheel drive, an electric AWD control technology that instantly balances torque and braking between all four wheels using front and rear e-Axles to adjust power distribution from 100:0 to 0:100 in milliseconds, working faster than conventional mechanical systems. As well as impressive grip, ride quality is comfortable, and the car feels refined and very quiet.
The RZ 550e has drive modes of Normal, Sport, Eco, Range and Custom. Unlike the button for ‘M mode’, there’s no quick-access control on the dashboard to change the drive mode, instead you have to go into the vehicle menu on the large 14-inch touchscreen and then select the drive mode sub menu, then select the drive mode. It’s a similar story to control driver assistance settings. You can also access a number of car controls by swiping the screen.
There are separate climate controls which are always accessible under the touchscreen, which is good, but compared to rivals, the layout of the infotainment system isn’t very well organised, and the graphics look dated. If you’re using Apple CarPlay, the infotainment system shortcut buttons on the touchscreen can disappear, which isn’t helpful to control car functions, but if you press a small icon with two arrows you can get the shortcut buttons to reappear.
The Lexus RZ 550e F SPORT Takumi has a WLTP combined electric driving range of 280 miles. After a week on test in winter the real-world range was averaging 220 miles. It has an efficiency figure of 3.4 miles per kWh.
The WLTP driving range increases to 353 miles for the RZ 350e front-wheel drive model on 18-inch wheels.
The RZ 550e F SPORT has a maximum rapid charging rate of 150 kW which should deliver a 10% – 80% DC charging time of 30 minutes. The RZ 550e also has a more powerful 22kW onboard charger as standard, replacing the previous 11kW unit.
The Lexus RZ 550e F SPORT Takumi, in Neutrino Grey BiTone / Special Metallic Bi-Tone, is priced at £71,095. The RZ range is comprised of the RZ 350e with front-wheel drive, the RZ 500e and the RZ 550e, both with all-wheel drive, with prices starting at £52,380 for the RZ 300e Premium. There are five equipment grades: Premium, Premium Plus, Takumi, F Sport and F Sport Takumi.
The Lexus RZ 550e F SPORT Takumi offers something unique in its segment with an airplane-style ‘yoke’ steering wheel mated to a steering system with an electrical rather than a mechanical connection to the wheels, together with a simulated manual gear shift. Whether you see these things as desirable features or gimmicks is a matter of personal preference, but the steering wheel is certainly a talking point, and the manual gear shift adds a bit of fun. However aside from these features the RZ 550e is the normal Lexus offering of a refined and premium driving experience in a spacious SUV body style, with lots of performance. Most rivals have a longer real-world driving range, and a better organised and more modern appearance for the infotainment system. And in F SPORT Takumi trim, the RZ 550e is quite pricey. The Lexus RZ 550e F SPORT is awarded a Green Car Guide rating of 8 out of 10.
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