09-08-2025
This luxury Lexus crossover promises something pretty useful … eventually
ALGARVE, PORTUGAL—You have to hand it to the Portuguese; they really know how to build a road. Winding; straight; through villages of white-walled, clay-roofed houses; lined with olive trees; finished in a rich, black bitumen with nary a crack, dent, heave or pothole. It's so perfect my hosts, for fear of I get too comfortable on the glassy surface, warn me to be wary of a single bump about 20 minutes down the road. Noted!
I have a front-row seat to it all at the wheel of the 2026 Lexus RZ electric luxury crossover. A view, it should be said, that's clearer than usual because this particular '26 RZ, the all-new 550e F Sport, has something called 'drive-by-wire steering.' That replaces a traditional round steering wheel with a yoke, just like you might see on an airplane, F1 car or, hey, how about the Batmobile? Since it only has grips at the nine o'clock and three o'clock positions, your view forward and of the instruments is clearer than ever.
