LEXUS RZ 550E F SPORT
Toyota’ s luxury sub-brand has earned a deserved reputation for impeccable build quality and an ownership experience that surpasses most German luxury brands. But in the local EV market, dominated by world-beating Chinese models, the RZ 550e F Sport is a very brave car. On a pure price-to-performance comparison, it can’ t compete with BYD models. The Lexus just doesn’ t have the battery technology or power density to match the Chinese. Its real-world range is also only about 350 km.
What the RZ 500e F Sport has, is a more resolved driving experience and better build quality. If you find Chinese in-car UX overwhelming, the RZ 550e F’ s exemplary balance of tactile controls and digitisation is terrific. The novel steering yoke system features true steer-by-wire. It makes parking and emergency collision avoidance much more intuitive, because you never have to cross your hands or wind the steering through a second rotation to gain full steering lock.
GWM TANK 300 2.4 TD SUPER LUXURY
Probably the Chinese SUV closest to what South Africans really need. The Tank 300 is effectively a smaller Toyota Prado. It features an overengineered steel ladder-frame chassis, which means you can subject it to thousands of kilometres of punishing South African corrugated Karoo roads without it suffering premature component wear.
Chinese automakers are known for their battery powertrains, but a very decent 2.4-litre turbodiesel engine powers the Tank 300 2.4 TD. It’ s not very powerful for its size. But it delivers the in-gear acceleration, steepgradient crawling torque, and highway fuel economy that make most South African rugged SUV buyers choose diesel.
With a cabin featuring more kit and better trim materials than American and Japanese rivals costing nearly twice as much, the Tank 300 2.4 TD Super Luxury is legitimately the best-value rugged 4x4 family vehicle you can buy.
OCTOBER 2026 45 WORDS IN ACTION