2025 Lexus UX 300h F Sport Handling - The Return Of The Tailfin?

 

No, it's not much of a tailfin; maybe just a finette? I doubt that it is going to start a fad. 

With the exception of the the Lexus corporate nose (I just don't like it), I thought the UX 300h F Sport Handling was attractive. Lexus says the UX is a SUV but to me it was a sport wagon. It is a four-door hatchback of a size that is a good fit for me. It will comfortably carry four adults (five in a pinch) with room for some luggage.

By the numbers the UX is 176.9" long, 72.44" wide, and 60.63" tall to the tippy top of its shark fin (there's that fin again) antenna. It sits on a wheelbase of 103.94", and it weighs 3,575 lbs. in its AWD guise. 

The UX is only available as a hybrid. In the AWD version there are two electric motors, one front and one rear. Under the hood is a 2.0-liter gasoline engine that produces 150 hp. Combined with the electric motors there are 196 combined horses available. That is enough "go" to get the UX 350h AWD from 0-60 in 7.9 seconds. 

Fuel economy is usually the strong point of a hybrid and the UX 350h AWD is no different. It is rated at 44-mpg around town, and 40-mpg on the highway. And you do not have to plug it in.

What Makes the F Sport Handling special? According to Lexus the three key features are F Sport tuned adaptive variable suspension, F Sport front seats with enhanced bolsters, and a 12.3" touch screen display (what this has to do with "sport" is beyond me). 

There was nothing spectacular looking about the interior, and nothing bad. For me, as a driver, I view my place behind the wheel as my workspace. So everything must be easy to see and use. The UX 300h F Sport Handling is like most current vehicles in that there are just too many switches, and generally the writing or pictographs are too small to easily read at a glance. I think that as you get used to a vehicle you learn what is what but for a one week test drive it is maddening. 

I enjoyed my week in the '25 UX 300h F Sport Handling. I did not feel that it was all that sporty; perhaps if I'd driven a base model to compare ... Maybe a bit more power in a "Sport" version would be appropriate?

The UX 300h F Sport Handling was a very good, all around vehicle, a good vehicle for someone that doesn't need seating for eight, someone who likes a vehicle that can fit into an ever-shrinking parking space, or someone who has enough money to enjoy the finer things in life but who practices some frugality.

I am coming around to accepting today's prices. The 2025 Lexus UX 300h F Sport Handling starts at $47,550 (lexus.com) which isn't unreasonable for a Lexus. A base UX 300h with FWD starts at $37,515.