Lexus hybrid targets young guns

Lexus expands its range of hybrids in Hong Kong this evening with the Ocean Terminal launch of the CT 200h, the first petrol-and-electric small luxury car and the Japanese marque's first compact hatchback.

Hybrids are well established in Hong Kong, with several hundred Toyota Prius in government and private use, and an elite fleet of Lexus LS600hL limousines. Lexus is often seen here as the maker of highly technical, plush and reliable, and occasionally uninvolving rides, so the marque has styled the CT 200h to appeal to a younger clientele.

Launched last September in Paris, the 4.32-metre-long, 1.76m-wide hatchback gets a grille that is pushed forward, and below are single halogen or double LED low beam headlamps, with integrated LED daytime running lights in an arrowhead shape. The windscreen is steeply raked with a long roof and side lines highlight a step in the tailgate under the wraparound rear window.

Built on a new platform, the CT 200h has been given a low centre of gravity, a lightweight body shell and an optional lateral performance damper system - a first for the small luxury car segment - that features horizontal dampers between the front suspension towers and the left and right sides of the rear structural frame.

Inside, the dashboard has a seven-inch LCD multidisplay screen with thinner front seatbacks and flatter rear seats to increase head, shoulder and legroom. The back seats fold back to extend the 375-litre boot into 985 litres, thanks to the designs of the double wishbone suspension and the setting of the hybrid battery beneath the floor.

The CT 200h has 134bhp, thanks to the combination of 1.8-litre VVT-i petrol engine and a powerful electric motor. An electronic continuously variable transmission enables sprints to 100km/h in 10.3 seconds for fuel consumption of 4.2 litres per kilometre and a 'class-leading' carbon dioxide spew of 96 grams per kilometre.