2021 Lexus NX300h Review

Buying a hybrid is beginning to make economic sense again because the price of gas is going up again, making up for the hybrid’s higher buy-in price.

And maybe more so.

How much you save or not ultimately depends on how high the price of gas goes. Right now, it’s looking like gas will be at least $3 by Memorial Day and already is higher than that in some parts of the country.

Paying a little more initially for a hybrid something could well be worth the expense, especially given what you might be having to pay at the pump by Labor Day.

What It Is

The NX300h is the hybrid version of the Lexus NX, a compact-sized/two-row luxury crossover very similar in appearance and layout to the better-known and mid-sized Lexus RX (which is also available in hybrid configuration).

It’s meant to appeal to people who like the RX’s looks and layout but would like a bit less RX in terms of size and price.

The NX300h stickers for $40,160 to start vs. $47,820 for a third more of a similar thing in an RX-sized package.

A top-of-the-line NX300h F Sport Black Line trim lists for $46,910 is still less than the base trim hybrid RX price.

The hybrid NX price is also not much higher than the otherwise-equivalent non-hybrid NX300, which starts at $37,610 without all-wheel-drive, which is optional.

It is standard in all NX300h trims.

Equipped with the optional AWD system, the non-hybrid NX300 stickers for $39,010. This is only $1,150 less than the hybrid/AWD-equipped NX, which is also capable of going 11 miles farther on a gallon of gas in city driving and 2 miles farther on the highway.

Given how high gas prices have risen already, that $1,150 difference in the price you pay for the NX hybrid vs. the regular NX might end up saving you considerably more at the pump — over the life of the car.

You might also make some up of what you spent upfront come trade-in time when a hybrid that costs less to drive could be worth more than the same thing without the hybrid drivetrain that costs more to drive.

What’s New

The Black Line trim is new and unique to the NX300 hybrid. It includes leather sport seats with contrast blue stitching (that’s not offered in the non-hybrid NX) plus a heated steering wheel, heated/cooled driver/front passenger seats, and a firmer-riding suspension.

What’s Good

  • A lot like the RX for a lot less than the RX.
  • You can’t control gas prices, but you can control how much gas you use.
  • Redundant manual controls for essential functions such as the climate control and stereo, which still comes with a CD player.

What’s Not So Good

  • Mileage advantage is almost entirely in city driving situations.
  • Not as speedy as the RX.
  • The trackpad interface is hard to use accurately when the NX is moving.

Under The Hood

Like other hybrids, the NX300h can be more accurately described as a part-time electric car.

It has a gas-burning engine that powers the drive wheels, like any other car. In this case, a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine. But like an electric car, it also has a high-voltage (NiMH) battery pack that feeds volts to electric motors that can also power the drive wheels and accessories like the air conditioning, which continues to work even when the gas engine is off.

The advantage to this combo layout is an electric car without the disadvantages of an electric car.

You don’t have to worry about how far it can go before it runs out of range or how long you will have to wait to recharge.

It recharges itself as you drive. And it uses less gas (and emits fewer gasses, if you are into that) during the drive because the gas engine is often off.

It also costs much less than an entirely electric car, saving money on the car and gas.

How much you could save depends significantly on where you drive, and that will help decide whether what you spend on the car is worth the additional expense.

The hybrid NX can deliver 33 MPG in city driving, which is in the same ballpark as many compact economy cars and a very impressive 11 MPG higher than the non-hybrid NX300 delivers. It does this trick by frequently cycling the gas engine off when the NX is stationary or not moving faster than about 25 MPH, as in stop-and-go driving. The hybrid’s 2.5-liter engine isn’t as powerful as the non-hybrid’s smaller but turbocharged 2.0-liter and 235 horsepower engine, vs. the hybrid NX’s combined (gas engine and electric motor/battery) 194 hp.

It uses less gas for that reason, too.

Regardless, an 11 MPG difference is a pretty big difference.

It means the hybrid NX can travel almost 500 miles on 15 gallons in city driving while the non-hybrid NX can only go about 330 miles on the same amount of gas, assuming the same stop-and-go/lower-speed city driving conditions.

That’s a difference of 170 miles per tankful in favor of the hybrid, which works out to a savings of about $12 per tankful in gasoline (at current prices) you didn’t burn or have to buy to travel the almost 500 miles vs. traveling the same distance in the non-hybrid.

If you fill up once a week, that’s a potential savings of about $48 per month or $576 annually. In about two years of driving, you’d make up in gas savings what you spent to buy the hybrid NX vs. its otherwise-equivalent non-hybrid/AWD equivalent. Over five years, you’d have saved more than you spent even if the price of gas doesn’t go much higher than the current (as of mid-March when this review was written) $2.80 or so it costs right now.

And if the price of gas should hit $4 or $5 per gallon.

On the downside, the NX hybrid’s mileage advantage slims to margin-of-error on the highway, 30 MPG vs. 28 for the non-hybrid NX, because the gas engine is almost always on to keep the NX hybrid moving at those speeds.

Speaking of speed—the NX300h takes about 9 seconds to get to 60, which isn’t speedy for a car in this class.

But it’s much speedier than a Prius hybrid, which is part of the point. The Prius is both slow and looks it. The NX300h doesn’t look slow and isn’t. There is enough power to comfortably keep up with traffic, with some reserve power for passing traffic.

It’s a hybrid for people who like the idea of using less gas but not to the exclusion of every other consideration.

On The Road

There is another functional advantage the hybrid can tout to justify its higher price: Its silence. This isn’t just a quiet vehicle. It’s an almost noiseless vehicle. All you’ll hear as you roll down your driveway to the main road is the sound of gravel under your tires.

The gas engine comes on once you’re on the road and rolling faster than about 25 MPH when you need to roll quicker, but it’s quiet, too. Lexus (Toyota) has been selling hybrids longer than any other car company and has refined the art of the seamless transition from silent electric drive to combustion-engine drive to an art.

You can monitor the transitions via the large power/charge gauge to the left of the speedometer in the instrument cluster. There is also a kind of animated display you can find on the touchscreen that shows how hard and how much the battery/motor side is working and whether the gas engine is contributing and how much as-you-drive the recharging is occurring.

This is not a plug-in hybrid but rather a self-contained hybrid that you never plug-in. The advantage here is you never have to plug-in. And the battery will never run “empty.” The internal system makes sure of that, automatically, by relieving it of duty when the charge gets too low and tapping the gas engine do its thing to keep you moving. At the same time, the battery recovers its motive power.

The disadvantage vs. a plug-in is that it’s less of an electric car; the NX300h relies primarily on its gas engine to keep you moving at speeds above 25 MPH. Many plug-ins come with larger/stronger batteries/motors and can be driven at much higher speeds and for (typically) 12-15 miles or so at those speeds without relying on the gas engine at all.

And of course, they can be recharged without burning any gas by plugging them in.

But the plug-in hybrids cost a lot more than closed-loop hybrids like the NX300h, and for that reason, the gas mileage advantage is more questionable unless gas gets really expensive.

Otherwise, the NX300h is unremarkable—a compliment. It drives very much like the non-hybrid NX300, just farther and (when on the electric side) silently rather than just really quietly, as is characteristic of other Lexus vehicles. It isn’t especially sporty even in F Sport trim because it’s a Lexus. Here the specialty is comfort, which manifests as quiet and as plush. Soft seats, soft-to-the-touch trim. It also manifests as tire squeal and some body roll. If you drive it like a Porsche, why not just buy the Porsche?

It’s nice that Lexus remains Lexus.

At The Curb

Lexus built the NX hybrid to appeal to customers who like the RX, which created the luxury crossover SUV class when the first one came out back in 1998, but who’d also like a bit less of it.

The mid-sized RX350 isn’t huge, but it’s larger than many people looking for a luxury crossover need.

Enter the RX, which is about a foot shorter end to end (182.7 inches vs. 192.5 for the RX), making it easier to park and take up less space when it is parked. Having an extra nearly foot of space between the tailgate and the closed garage door is nice.

This is especially nice since the NX has slightly more cargo room behind its second row (16.8 cubic feet) than the significantly larger-footprinted RX (which has 16 cubic feet) and almost as much space for stuff with its second row folded flat (53.7 cubic feet vs. 56.3 cubic feet in the RX).

Even backseat legroom is close. The NX offers 36.1 inches vs. 38 for the RX.

The RX is speedier—it comes standard with a powerful 3.5-liter V6 and capable of pulling twice as much (3,500 lbs. vs. just 1,500 for the NX), but there’s a great deal of overlap, otherwise.

Just not price-wise.

The Rest

It’s hard to find a new car that still has a CD player. The NX is one of the few that still does. This is a nice feature to have if you haven’t transferred all your CDs to digital format or just like playing a CD every once in a while.

Also nice are the redundant controls for use-them-regularly (and while you’re driving) accessories such as the stereo and climate controls. Lexus gives you the option of raising or lowering the cabin temperature via the trackpad interface, LCD touchscreen (8.3 inches or 10.3 inches, depending on the trim), or via manual finger controls mounted on the center stack. You can raise or lower the stereo and change stations’ volume similarly, via knobs for each function or via the trackpad as you prefer.

The standard 8-speaker audio system is good, but it’s money well-spent to spring for the optional 14 speaker Mark Levinson premium audio system. It’s one of the best factory-available audio systems on the market.

The Bottom Line

Until just a few months ago, when gas was only about $2 per gallon, it was hard to make an economic case for any hybrid. But that was then, and hybrids are beginning to make more sense again.

And maybe a lot more tomorrow.

Eric Peters lives in Virginia and enjoys driving cars and motorcycles. In the past, Eric worked as a car journalist for many prominent mainstream media outlets. Currently, he focuses his time writing auto history books, reviewing cars, and blogging about cars+ for his website EricPetersAutos.com.

Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.

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Leave a Comment

7 Responses to “2021 Lexus NX300h Review”

  1. RICKY says:

    I also drive a 1998 V 70 estate, had it for 10 years, and doesn’t burn any oil or miss a beat, a fantastic machine!

  2. RICKY says:

    the best car and the best engine so far I have used. The car goes smooth and the mileage is good. Volkswagen beetle engine works excellently.

  3. titus says:

    Thanks For sharing your good information

  4. Isabella Manson says:

    the best car and the best engine so far I have used. The car goes smooth and the mileage is good. Volkswagen beetle engine works excellently.

  5. Isabella Manson says:

    Similarly, while electric (e.g. Li-Ion) batteries are still very costly to produce, their refurbishing is a great opportunity for manufacturers to lower the maintenance cost of electric cars and therefore to gain market share.

  6. Isabella Mason says:

    Honda crosstour engines are good engines and good for atmosphere also

  7. Isabella Mason says:

    Datsun it does not have a good service network. The Automatic gearbox here is not up to the mark but does a good job as a city car.