Fortune's Sue Callaway put the hotly anticipated hybrid luxury flagship from Lexus to the test.
"It's a SULEV (super-ultra-low-emission vehicle) powered by a five-liter V-8 coupled with a high-output electric motor. The mating of the two produces 438 horsepower and a 5.5-second 0-to-60 time - impressive for a 5,000-pound sedan. "
"There's an EV (electric vehicle) mode for quiet operation for three minutes max at speeds under ten miles per hour."
"Now the bad news. The car achieved an average of only 17 miles per gallon during my test period ..."
Answer: very green. It's a SULEV. That means that even though its mileage is poor, it still puts out very little pollution per mile. It's clean, but not fuel-efficient.
Answer: very green. It's a SULEV. That means that even though its mileage is poor, it still puts out very little pollution per mile. It's clean, but not fuel-efficient.
I would agree that it puts out very little pollution per gallon (SULEV), but since it uses so many gallons, overall, I think it is still a pretty heavy polluter.
I would agree that it puts out very little pollution per gallon (SULEV), but since it uses so many gallons, overall, I think it is still a pretty heavy polluter.
No, you misunderstand. Pollution designations are measured as grams of greenhouse gases released per mile, not per gallon. Despite the fact that its fuel economy is poor, it still manages to be a SULEV.
The $104,000 hybrid
