Lexus CT 200h Review (2011-2020)

When it was first launched in 2011, the Lexus CT was the first hatchback at the premium end of the market to go on sale with a hybrid powertrain, offering a genuine alternative to the most efficient (i.e diesel) versions of its major rivals, the Audi A3 and BMW 1 Series, with the Mercedes-Benz A-Class soon following in hot pursuit.

The CT had a lot going for it in the styling stakes, with the design tweaked in 2014 and 2017. It’s a rather elegant-looking car, or at least, it was until the 2017 facelift, when the spindle-shaped grille that Lexus has introduced to all its models in recent years was added. But even so the CT looks compact, stylish and premium.

The CT is a slightly curious thing to drive. It was pitched as something of a sporty option (especially in F Sport guise) but it’s really no match for its rivals in that department, with the 1-Series and A3 both obviously holding an advantage. The CT doesn’t feel particularly well balanced (due to the weight of the batteries at the rear), lacks some grip in fast corners and the steering is little too heavy. The ride is also overly firm, and frequently feels unsettled when confronted with roads that have scarred and potholed surfaces.

Refinement is a similarly mixed bag. At low speeds, with the hybrid system’s electric motor in play, this a lovely car to be in, wafting around town with hushed tones. However, when hitting the motorway or an open road, a combination of an engine working hard and a continuous variable transmission (CVT) gearbox that likes to hold on to revs means that it can get quite noisy.

And despite the engine's often high work rate, the performance that you'd expect to accompany it never really arrives: 0-62mph takes 10.3 seconds, which isn’t up to speed with most comparable variants of the 1-Series.

The interior – which had some nips and tucks along with the exterior tweaks in 2014 and 2017 – is a comfortable place to be. All cars, except the entry-level SE grade, have leather upholstery on the seats and the cabin has premium-quality materials throughout.

Where the CT starts to fall down is the infotainment system, which controls features such as the sat nav, and has a seven-inch display as standard in most versions, or a 10.3-inch screen for the Premium trim-level cars (and as an option on Luxury and F Sport trims) after the late 2017 revisions. The mouse-like controller for the system, located in the centre console, is clunky - and worst of all, distracting - to use. And in an era of touchscreens, it also now feels very dated.

A 6-speaker stereo with DAB radio, USB and Bluetooth connectivity was standard across most models. The range-topping Premier edition came with a 13-speaker Mark Levinson hifi that delivers genuinely impressive audio quality.

One of the core qualities of the CT is that, as a hybrid-engined car, its drivetrain returns a better fuel consumption figure than rivals with conventional petrol engines and emits less CO2.

Cars that were built while the NEDC fuel economy and emissions testing protocol was in operation will officially return between 68.9mpg and 74.3mpg, depending on the amount of equipment onboard and the size of its wheels. Under the newer WLTP tests, however, fuel economy dropped to between 53.2mpg and 55.3mpg, depending on spec. This is largely due to the testing procedures used – we would expect them to return much the same results in the real world.

Likewise, the change in testing resulted in a change to the CO2 emissions figures, from 88-94g/km to 115-118g/km. That means that owners of cars registered before April 2017 – for which the old CO2-based taxation system applies – will pay no car tax (Vehicle Excise Duty), while cars registered after April 2017 will be liable for £155 tax a year under the flat-rate system.

Insurance costs for the Lexus CT aren’t as high as you might expect from a premium car model, as they start in insurance group 17, and rise to group 21.

The CT needs to be serviced every 12 months or 10,000 miles (depending which comes first). Lexus has a number of service plans for customers, starting from £270 for the CT200h.

There’s not really much to say about the reliability of the CT, other than, like pretty much every car sold by Lexus, problems are relatively rare.

Lexus is consistently placed at, or near, the top of manufacturer tables compiled from the various customer satisfaction surveys. Parent company Toyota has a pretty bulletproof reputation and, as befits a car that is essentially a more expensive Toyota (which means customers expect even higher standards), the Lexus CT is even less likely to go wrong, it seems.

If you buy one of the last of the line examples it may still have some of its three-year/60,000-mile warranty remaining. That level of cover is comparable to other premium manufacturers such as Audi and BMW, although BMW's has no upper mileage limit. Lexus owners are also covered by five-year/60,000-mile cover on the hybrid technology and the battery.