My Test Drive Impressions of the 2010 HS250h

A friend of mine wanted to take a look at the HS250h. Naturally, I agreed to accompany him since I've been wanting to take a look at it closely myself and take it out for a drive.

We dropped by the local dealership who happened to have an Ultra Premium HS250h draped in beautiful Aurora White Pearl finish. If you like Blizzard Pearl, you'll love Aurora White Pearl. The interior was finished in Black with Bird's Eye Maple wood trim.

As typical, the salesman didn't know much about the car other than "this is the loaded package so it has leather and navigation... and uh power seats" (yeah.. I can see that) so I'll jump straight to my impressions.


Despite looking like it's the size of a Corolla, the rear seats are actually quite spacious. They're not cramped as the IS but certainly not as generous as the Prius or the ES350. The driver's seat is very easy to get comfortable in as it comes with a full 10-way adjustable seat with memory. The passenger seat gets the same treatment, a rarity in this segment.

Operating the Remote Touch is fairly easy and intuitive. The pointer jumps from icon to icon so there's no need to take your eyes off the road once you remember where the icons are in the most-used menus.


On the road, the HS250h is nicely balanced. The ride is firm but not choppy despite wearing 18" low profile rubber. The electric steering isn't anything to write home about in a sense that I didn't feel that it was that connected nor did I feel like I was operatng a Logitech steering wheel. The interior is nicely insulated, as you'd expect of a Lexus and engine noise is muffled unless called upon with a healthy prod of the right foot.

Under the hood, the HS250h is powered by a 2.4 litre Atkinson cycle 4 cylinder engine transplanted from the Camry Hybrid. It benefits from the latest HSD upgrades found on the Prius and RXh however so despite it's heavier weight, fuel economy estimates of 5.6/5.9 city/hwy is not far off from the Camry's 5.7/5.7. Power output is the same 187hp and it motivates the HS nicely. It isn't meant to compete with its sibling, the IS350, but it can haul itself around nicely. Toyota does present the same 3 driver-selectable modes as the Prius but they are tuned differently. ECO mode isn't as strict on the fuel economy side and doesn't feel as sluggish as the same mode in the Prius. Perhaps this is closer to the Euro-Prius' ECO mode setting. After all, owners of the HS250h don't have achieving max fuel economy on their mind so much as having a fuel efficient luxury hybrid vehicle that's already more fuel efficient than any other luxury vehicle they've owned.

On the flip side, PWR mode isn't as drastic on the HS as it is on the Prius compared to their respective default driving mode. Tyre chirping (maybe it's those eco tyres?) and some serious kick that are present on the Prius are toned down in the HS. Rather, it takes a more Rolls-Royce approach in power delivery; a surging wave of torque that propels the vehicle in a commanding fashion but never leaves the misses frightened.

Most of the controls in the HS is fairly accessible from the driver's seat. Everything is logically placed and will be familiar if you're a seasoned Toyota or Lexus owner. The ventilated seats worked marvellously and are a nice luxury feature.

The navigation screen is bright and sharp. I couldn't tell much difference from the HS' screen to the Prius screen but I'm sure it's one of those things where you have to have the two screens side-by-side to see the difference. The menus are the same though they may be accessed slightly differently. The voice commands worked well and there is the Energy Monitor and Consumption Screen but those are only available if you choose the navigation option. Furthermore, I'm rather intrigued as to why Toyota only uses the leaf cars on the Prius to display the amount of energy recovered via regenerative braking while on its other hybrid models, it simply uses a diamond with the letter "E" inside it. (if it's half filled, it looks like "L").

On the technology front, I'm sorely disappointed at what Lexus Canada has to offer. The Ultra Premium Package offers only traditional luxury options such as Premium Leather Seat Surfaces, Power Moonroof, Navigation System and a Mark Levinson Surround Sound Audio System. All the cool toys available on the Prius (and in fact the U.S. HS250h model) is not available on the Canadian-spec car. Try as I might, I could not find IPA, DRCC, PCS or LKA in the car or on the specification sheet. For a tad under $50k, that's a lot for simply a Lexus badge. Granted, you'd need to move up to the RXh or the GS range for DRCC/PCS. The LS still keeps LKA and IPA to itself. The only "new" toy is the automatic high beam function.


Another beef, and it's a BIG one. WHY IS HEATED SEATS AN OPTION ON A $40K CAR?!?! Apparently leather can be standard but not heated seats. We're in Canada. How about heated seats standard and optional leather?


Either way, I'm truly baffled at the way Lexus Canada has packaged and priced the HS250h. It starts at $39,900 without the heated seats. Move up to the Premium Sport Package and for $41,400, you get the heated seats, sport suspension, unique 18" alloys, wallet-sized smart key, two-tone leather seats, front illuminated "LEXUS" scuff plates and aluminium pedals. The Ultra Premium costs a cool $48,750.

I do like the way the HS drives and the interior isn't too bad. The leather-stitched instrument panel hood is a very nice touch. However, the packaging is just outrageous. I'd have to say, save your loonies and grab a Prius or a Camry Hybrid or scrimp some more and go for the RXh which is a much better vehicle (even if it costs $58k)

 

I don't know if basing an entire brand on one vehicle is fair. It's like test driving the Yaris and saying it's crap and wondering why people buy Toyotas