2025 Lexus RX 500h Review and Test Drive

The 2025 RX 500h is a best-of-both-worlds choice for performance and fuel economy.

James Riswick | 

May 16, 2025 | 7 min read

James Riswick

The Lexus RX was arguably the first luxury crossover SUV when it went on sale in the late 1990s, yet a true performance version just recently became available. The F Sport variants provided suspension enhancements and sportier looks, but the engines were untouched. That changed when a redesigned RX debuted in 2023, including a new RX 500h model boasting 366 horsepower from a hybrid powertrain with better fuel economy than the RX 350's gas-only engine.

The Canada-built 2025 Lexus RX lineup includes four models. They are the gas-only RX 350, hybrid RX 350h, plug-in hybrid RX 450h+, and performance hybrid RX 500h. After choosing a model, you pick from Premium, Luxury, and F Sport trim levels. Base prices range from the low $50,000s to the low $70,000s.

For this review, I tested an RX 500h F Sport Performance with the new-for-2025 Black Line Special Edition package. That option includes black wheels, orange brake calipers, and the exclusive Incognito paint color. The test vehicle also had upgraded headlights, heated and ventilated rear seats, a Mark Levinson audio system, and a Convenience package with added driver-assistance features.

Those options increased the manufacturer's suggested retail price to $74,900, including the $1,350 destination charge. Lexus provided the vehicle for this RX review.

James Riswick

Is the 2025 Lexus RX a Good SUV?

The Lexus RX is a well-made, well-rounded luxury SUV. Its different powertrain types result in different driving experiences, so it's important to test-drive more than one variation. The RX 500h reviewed here provides a best-of-both-worlds choice of performance and fuel economy, but it comes at a cost.

James Riswick

What's Different About the 2025 Lexus RX 500h?

Little has changed with the RX since Lexus last redesigned it. This review is focused on the RX 500h performance model, as opposed to the 2023 RX lineup and 2024 RX 450h+ plug-in hybrid. The RX 500h highlights include an adaptive variable suspension, a rear-wheel steering system, upgraded brakes, and a distinct all-wheel-drive system featuring a more powerful rear motor for superior performance and handling.

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How the RX 500h Hybrid Powertrain Performs

The 2025 Lexus RX 500h has a performance-oriented hybrid powertrain with a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine and an electric motor integrated within a six-speed automatic transmission. Working together, the gas engine and electric motor motivate the SUV nearly all the time. That's different from the efficiency-focused RX 350h and RX 450h+, which can use only the electric motor, only the gas engine, or a combination of both.

The transmission's gear changes also stand out when compared with other Lexus hybrids, which tend to build revs without interruption and suffer droning engine noise. When you add in the way the gas engine and electric motor almost always operate in concert, the result is smooth, powerful acceleration that sounds and feels enjoyable.

With 366 horsepower and 406 pound-feet of torque, the RX 500h's sheer output starkly contrasts with the other RX models, which offer acceleration best described as sufficient. Not only does the RX 500h's powertrain sound far better than its RX hybrid counterparts, this version also charges up freeway on-ramps and makes highway passes with genuine authority.

James Riswick

That said, the RX 500h represents more of a performance upgrade than a genuine performance powertrain. It reminds me of the similarly priced BMW X5 xDrive40i rather than one of the M-badged X5 models. To that point, a base X5 is more powerful (375 horsepower) and quicker to 60 mph (5.2 versus 5.9 seconds, according to manufacturer specs) than the Lexus RX 500h.

Fuel economy depends on the details. The EPA estimates come in at 27/28/27 mpg in city/highway/combined driving. That falls well short of the RX 350h's 37/34/36 mpg, but it's better than the 275-hp gas-only RX 350 with all-wheel drive at 21/28/24 mpg. The similarly priced 355-hp Acura MDX Type S earns a rating of 17/21/19 mpg. Compared with the BMW X5 xDrive40i, which gets 23/27/25 mpg, the RX 500h isn't much better.

I put 480 miles on the RX 500h, most of them accumulated during a road trip up the California coast. My observed fuel economy of 26.4 mpg seems adequate for a 366-hp SUV and, when rounded up, equals the EPA combined figure.

James Riswick

Road-Tripping and Driving Winding Roads in the RX 500h

The RX 500h's sporty chassis enhancements affect comfort. You feel more of the road, especially concrete highway joints, and there's less suspension rebound over bumps. The adaptive variable suspension still provides a comfortable ride; it's just that everything feels a little buttoned down and tauter.

The suspension also reduces body roll and improves handling. Indeed, this is a much better RX to drive on a winding road. The steering is also tighter on-center and when turning into a corner. However, I only noticed the Dynamic Rear Steering system when going extra quick around ultra-tight corners.

When I wanted to take a semi-break from driving, the RX's adaptive cruise control braked, accelerated, and reacted to traffic naturally, and the lane-centering system effortlessly kept the SUV on the straight and narrow. Better yet, I could keep a token finger on the wheel to let the technology know I was still ready to take control if necessary.

Despite this, there are still issues. The driver-inattention-warning system is hyperactive and unreasonable. If I looked at pretty scenery for more than a second, the tech made "ding ding" alerts for me to pay attention to the road. When I leaned on the center console, a "ding ding" sound reminded me to sit up. That isn't to correct my posture, but to put my eyes within view of the driver-monitoring camera. Driver-inattention warning is an excellent feature, but if it nags you to the point of turning it off, it's effectively useless.

James Riswick

The user interface for the adaptive cruise control is even worse. It relies on unmarked steering wheel buttons that double as infotainment controls. To know what you're pressing, you must first press one of those unmarked buttons, which then brings up a diagram on the instrument panel and the head-up display. Only at that point can you make your selection. This interface is obtuse and counterproductive. In effect, one system told me to pay attention while another distracted me.

Other interior controls, including those embedded into the standard 14.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system, make total sense and are simple to use. The impeccably constructed interior made the road trip more pleasurable, most notably the storage, with its depth-expanding center console cupholders, big bottle holders in the doors, huge under-armrest bin, and easily accessed phone tray.

We didn't have much luggage on the trip, but my separate testing showed the RX can hold two check-in suitcases, three roll-aboards, a duffel bag, and a 38-quart cooler. Passenger space was also abundant for a family of three (my wife's passenger seat was nowhere close to my son's legs in his child seat). However, taller rear occupants will likely graze their heads on the ceiling unless they generously recline the seat back.

James Riswick

Having tested every Lexus RX version, I can confidently say the RX 500h is the one I'd most want on a road trip. Power is important to me out on the open road, and because the RX 500h has a hybrid powertrain, you won't sacrifice as much fuel economy as you might in other, similarly powered luxury SUVs.

All vehicle pricing includes MSRP plus destination charges (set at the time of publication), and will be rounded to the nearest thousand.

James Riswick

James Riswick has been testing cars and writing about them for more than 20 years. He was the senior reviews editor for Autoblog and previously served multiple editor roles at Edmunds. He has also contributed to Autotrader, Car and Driver, Hagerty, J.D. Power, and Autoguide Magazine. He has been interested in cars forever; his mom took him to the Toronto Auto Show when he was 18 months old and he has attended at least one every year since (OK, except in 2020). When he's not testing the latest cars, he has a babied 1998 BMW Z3 in James Bond blue, a 2013 Mercedes-Benz E350 Wagon, and a 2023 Kia Niro EV.