Compare the2022 Lexus UXVS 2021 Toyota Venza

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Lexus UX have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Toyota Venza doesn’t offer pretensioners for the rear seat belts.

The Lexus UX has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Venza doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the UX deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The UX’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Venza’s airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

The UX has standard Whiplash Injury Lessening Front Seatbacks, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash Injury Lessening Front Seatbacks system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Venza doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Both the UX and the Venza have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Lexus UX is safer than the Toyota Venza:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the UX is 1.5% less likely to roll over than the Venza.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard front crash prevention system, and its headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the UX its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2019, a rating granted to only 105 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Venza is only a standard “Top Pick” for 2019.

The UX comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Venza’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Lexus’ powertrain warranty covers the UX 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Venza. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Venza ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The UX’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Venza’s (6 vs. 5 years).

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the UX’s reliability 26 points higher than the Venza.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the UX first among small premium suvs in their 2021 Initial Quality Study. The Venza isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Lexus vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Lexus third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked 13th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Lexus vehicles are more reliable than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Lexus first in reliability, above the industry average. With 17 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked fourth.

On the EPA test cycle the UX 250h 2.0 4-cylinder Hybrid AWD gets better fuel mileage than the Venza (41 city/38 hwy vs. 40 city/37 hwy).

The UX stops shorter than the Venza:

The UX’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Venza LE’s standard 60 series tires. The UX’s tires are lower profile than the Venza XLE/Limited’s 55 series tires.

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires standard on the UX can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Venza doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

The UX has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Venza doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The UX 200 Luxury handles at .80 G’s, while the Venza Limited pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the UX’s turning circle is 1.9 feet tighter than the Venza LE’s (34.2 feet vs. 36.1 feet). The UX’s turning circle is 3.2 feet tighter than the Venza XLE/Limited’s (34.2 feet vs. 37.4 feet).

The Lexus UX may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 300 to 550 pounds less than the Toyota Venza.

The UX is 9.6 inches shorter than the Venza, making the UX easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The UX has 1.1 inches more front legroom and 7.1 inches more rear hip room than the Venza.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Lexus service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Lexus second in service department satisfaction. With a 49% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

The UX has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Venza doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The UX’s available headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Venza’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Marginal.”

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The UX offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Venza doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the UX offers optional cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Venza doesn’t offer cornering lights. The UX also offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

When the UX with available tilt-down mirrors is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Venza’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The UX’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Venza offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The UX is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Venza doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Lexus UX and the Toyota Venza, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Lexus UX outsold the Toyota Venza by 30% during 2020.