Lexus CT200hIn a move that’ll be common to many viewers of TV ads, my neighbour, on seeing the Lexus test car, referred to it with a far-away look in his eye as Kylie’s car. It joins the Lexus line-up that is now almost exclusively, and soon will be totally, a hybrid one.The CT200h certainly won’t win over buyers through the beauty of its name, but refinements to the hybrid system that have been incorporated in this model are interesting, and likely to attract yet more buyers to the hybrid genre. The company refers to their new model as “the world’s first premium full hybrid compact”, which may well be true, if somewhat contrived. More notable are the hybrid system design changes that have gradually improved battery usage, and in the CT one can now switch on the EV mode and motor for quite a useful distance under electric power alone, provided you’re prepared to motor slowly; useful for late-night assignations! The system does go into electric mode at other times – notably when cruising on a light throttle – and Lexus personnel reckoned up to 40% of ones motoring life in a CT can be fossil-free, which seems to me optimistic, but you get the idea.The ‘CT’ designation apparently stands for Creative Tourer (yup, that’s what they say), and it’s powered by a 1.8-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine in conjunction with an electric motor whose nickel-metal hydride battery lies under the boot floor. Maximum output of this is 37bhp, and when it joins forces with the petrol motor the two combined will get the CT200h from 0 to 62mph in a respectable 10.3 seconds. More to the point the official combined consumption is a very respectable 68.9mpg. Unlike a normal non-hybrid machine, the Lexus produces almost as good consumption figures in town as out of it (68.9 v 70.6), which is of course down to the electric motor and the automatic start/stop of the petrol engine. It’s really great watching your consumption actually improve as you sit in a jam and creep along slowly with no use whatever of fossil fuel.That’s all good news. Not quite so good is the fact that in my experience the mpg figures one gets in the real world tend to be smaller than a car’s official ones, and in the case of hybrids of any persuasion markedly so. So I was keen to see what consumption I could achieve whilst driving carefully. The answer was an average of 57.8mpg, which whilst well adrift of the Lexus figure is nonetheless pretty good for a car of this size. But then it’s no better than a good diesel!Talking of size, the CT offers excellent room up front, and it’s not bad in the rear, with good head room wherever you sit. At 375 litres (13 cubic feet) the boot looks fairly spacious, but thanks to that battery it’s shallow; very easily loaded however, thanks to a sill which is level with the boot floor. Under the boot floor is a usefully large compartment hidden from view, even when the luggage cover is not in use.This is an easy car to drive thanks to the auto gearbox (CVT) and the wealth of electrical assistance; rain-sensing wipers for instance are standard, and up at the top of the range the SE-L Premier model also offers parking sensors, cruise control and electrically adjustable seats. Handling is all you’d reasonably want, and the only downside I found in the driving experience is the view to the rear quarters which is cluttered; those parking sensors might come in very useful when you’re threading your way rearward into a tight spot.Perhaps surprisingly for what styles itself, and indeed is, a luxurious machine, the CT ride proved quite firm. Wherever you motor in the UK these days the ravages of unexpected winter are evident, as pockmarked surfaces give ones suspension a hard time. Our car had the 17” wheels with 45 section tyres. Many owners would probably be happier with the optional 16” ones, and their higher profile tyres that would offer a softer ride.I do like the CT200h; it’s quiet, comfortable, quick enough and relatively cheap to fuel. It’s also very well equipped even at the bottom of the range; safety kit includes front, side, curtain and knee airbags, traction and stability control, brake assist and tyre pressure warning system. And with CO2 emissions of just 94g/km it’s not going to cost anything in road tax, nor indeed in the congestion charge zone, al least until Transport for London moves the goalposts.Size: 4.32m x 1.77mEngine: Hybrid: 1.8 petrol 99PS + electric 38PSGearbox: CVT FWDConsumption: 68.9mpgPrice at May ’11: from £23,485Full details of the CT200h are available on the manufacturer’s website: www.lexus.co.ukPeter Cracknell – May 2011
Lexus CT200h
In a move that’ll be common to many viewers of TV
ads, my neighbour, on seeing the Lexus test car,
referred to it with a far-away look in his eye as Kylie’s
car. It joins the Lexus line-up that is now almost
exclusively, and soon will be totally, a hybrid one.
The CT200h certainly won’t win over buyers through
the beauty of its name, but refinements to the hybrid
system that have been incorporated in this model are
interesting, and likely to attract yet more buyers to the
hybrid genre. The company refers to their new model
as “the world’s first premium full hybrid compact”,
which may well be
true, if somewhat
contrived. More
notable are the
hybrid system
design changes that
have gradually
improved battery
usage, and in the
CT one can now
switch on the EV
mode and motor for
quite a useful
distance under
electric power
alone, provided
you’re prepared to
motor slowly; useful
for late-night
assignations! The
system does go into
electric mode at other times – notably when cruising
on a light throttle – and Lexus personnel reckoned up
to 40% of ones motoring life in a CT can be fossil-
free, which seems to me optimistic, but you get the
idea.
The ‘CT’ designation apparently stands for Creative
Tourer (yup, that’s what they say), and it’s powered by
a 1.8-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine in conjunction with
an electric motor whose nickel-metal hydride battery
lies under the boot floor. Maximum output of this is
37bhp, and when it joins forces with the petrol motor
the two combined will get the CT200h from 0 to
62mph in a respectable 10.3 seconds. More to the
point the official combined consumption is a very
respectable 68.9mpg. Unlike a normal non-hybrid
machine, the Lexus produces almost as good
consumption figures in town as out of it (68.9 v 70.6),
which is of course down to the electric motor and the
automatic start/stop of the petrol engine. It’s really
great watching your consumption actually improve as
you sit in a jam and creep along slowly with no use
whatever of fossil fuel.
That’s all good news. Not quite so good is the fact that
in my experience the mpg figures one gets in the real
world tend to be smaller than a car’s official ones, and
in the case of hybrids of any persuasion markedly so.
So I was keen to see what consumption I could
achieve whilst driving carefully. The answer was an
average of 57.8mpg, which whilst well adrift of the
Lexus figure is nonetheless pretty good for a car of
this size. But then it’s no better than a good diesel!
Talking of size, the CT offers excellent room up front,
and it’s not bad in the rear, with good head room
wherever you sit. At 375 litres (13 cubic feet) the boot
looks fairly spacious, but thanks to that battery it’s
shallow; very easily loaded however, thanks to a sill
which is level with the boot floor. Under the boot floor is a
usefully large compartment hidden from view, even when
the luggage cover is not in use.
This is an easy car to drive thanks to the auto gearbox
(CVT) and the wealth of electrical assistance; rain-
sensing wipers for instance are standard, and up at the
top of the range the SE-L Premier model also offers
parking sensors, cruise control and electrically adjustable
seats. Handling is all you’d reasonably want, and the only
downside I found in the driving experience is the view to
the rear quarters which
is cluttered; those
parking sensors might
come in very useful
when you’re threading
your way rearward into
a tight spot.
Perhaps surprisingly for
what styles itself, and
indeed is, a luxurious
machine, the CT ride
proved quite firm.
Wherever you motor in
the UK these days the
ravages of unexpected
winter are evident, as
pockmarked surfaces
give ones suspension a
hard time. Our car had
the 17” wheels with 45
section tyres. Many
owners would probably be happier with the optional 16”
ones, and their higher profile tyres that would offer a
softer ride.
I do like the CT200h; it’s quiet, comfortable, quick enough
and relatively cheap to fuel. It’s also very well equipped
even at the bottom of the range; safety kit includes front,
side, curtain and knee airbags, traction and stability
control, brake assist and tyre pressure warning system.
And with CO2 emissions of just 94g/km it’s not going to
cost anything in road tax, nor indeed in the congestion
charge zone, al least until Transport for London moves
the goalposts.
Size:
4.32m x 1.77m
Engine:
Hybrid: 1.8 petrol 99PS + electric 38PS
Gearbox:
CVT FWD
Consumption:
68.9mpg
Price at May ’11:
from £23,485
Full details of the CT200h are available on the manufacturer’s
website: www.lexus.co.uk
Peter Cracknell – May 2011
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