Compare the2023 Audi e-tron SportbackVS 2022 Lexus RXL

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics

Safety

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The e-tron Sportback’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The RXL doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the e-tron Sportback and RXL have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The e-tron Sportback has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The RXL’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard Secondary Collision Brake Assist, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The RXL doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the e-tron Sportback. But it costs extra on the RXL.

An active infrared night vision system optional on the e-tron Sportback helps the driver to more easily detect people, animals or other objects in front of the vehicle at night. Using an infrared camera and near-infrared lights to detect heat, the system then displays the image on a monitor in the dashboard. The RXL doesn’t offer a night vision system.

Both the e-tron Sportback and the RXL have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

The Audi e-tron Sportback weighs 849 to 1290 pounds more than the Lexus RXL. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Audi e-tron Sportback is safer than the Lexus RXL:

	e-tron Sportback	RXL
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	3 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	23%	33.2%
Neck Stress	253 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	16 lbs.	60 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	137/335 lbs.	433/719 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	38%	40.1%
Neck Stress	157 lbs.	267 lbs.
Neck Compression	67 lbs.	70 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	244/319 lbs.	403/457 lbs.

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Audi e-tron Sportback is safer than the Lexus RXL:

	e-tron Sportback	RXL
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	44	53
Chest Movement	.7 inches	.7 inches
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	123	165
Spine Acceleration	44 G’s	44 G’s
Hip Force	579 lbs.	594 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	8 inches	14 inches
Hip Force	631 lbs.	685 lbs.

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 e-tron Sportback, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 7.5% less likely to roll over than the RXL, which received a four-star rating.

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 vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the e-tron Sportback its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 89 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The RXL is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2022.

Warranty

The e-tron Sportback’s corrosion warranty is 6 years longer than the RXL’s (12 vs. 6 years).

There are over 25 percent more Audi dealers than there are Lexus dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the e-tron Sportback’s warranty.

Engine

The e-tron Sportback’s standard electric motors produces 112 more horsepower (402 vs. 290) and 227 lbs.-ft. more torque (490 vs. 263) than the RX 350L’s standard 3.5 DOHC V6. The e-tron Sportback’s electric motors produces 94 more horsepower (402 vs. 308) than the RX 450hL’s standard 3.5 DOHC V6 hybrid. The e-tron Sportback S’ standard electric motors produces 188 more horsepower (496 vs. 308) than the RX 450hL’s standard 3.5 DOHC V6 hybrid.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the e-tron Sportback gets better mileage than the RXL:

			MPGe
e-tron Sportback
	AWD	Electric Motors	77 city/80 hwy
		S Electric Motors	73 city/77 hwy
RXL
			MPG
	FWD	3.5 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy
	AWD	3.5 V6 Hybrid	29 city/28 hwy
		3.5 DOHC V6	18 city/25 hwy

The e-tron Sportback can travel with zero emissions for 212 to 225 miles (dependent on model). The RXL can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

Regardless of its engine, regenerative brakes improve the e-tron Sportback’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. Lexus only offers a regenerative brake system on the RXL Hybrid.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Audi e-tron Sportback higher (10 out of 10) than the Lexus RXL (5 to 7). This means the e-tron Sportback produces up to 19.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the RXL every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

The e-tron Sportback’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The RXL doesn’t offer launch control.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the e-tron Sportback’s brake rotors are larger than those on the RXL:

	e-tron Sportback	RXL
Front Rotors	15.7 inches	12.9 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	13.3 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the e-tron Sportback has larger standard tires than the RXL (255/50R20 vs. 235/65R18). The e-tron Sportback Premium Plus/Prestige’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the RXL (265/45R21 vs. 235/65R18).

The e-tron Sportback’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the RXL’s standard 65 series tires. The e-tron Sportback’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the RXL’s optional 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the e-tron Sportback has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the RXL. The e-tron Sportback’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels optional on the RXL.

Suspension and Handling

The front and rear suspension of the e-tron Sportback uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the RXL, which uses coil springs. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The RXL’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The e-tron Sportback’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The RXL doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the e-tron Sportback’s wheelbase is 5.2 inches longer than on the RXL (115 inches vs. 109.8 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the e-tron Sportback is .3 inches wider in the front and 1.2 inches wider in the rear than on the RXL.

Chassis

The e-tron Sportback is 3.9 inches shorter than the RXL, making the e-tron Sportback easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The front grille of the e-tron Sportback uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The RXL doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

The e-tron Sportback has .3 inches more front shoulder room and 8.2 inches more rear legroom than the RXL.

Cargo Capacity

The e-tron Sportback has a much larger cargo volume than the RXL with its rear seat up (27.2 vs. 7.5 cubic feet).

Towing

Maximum trailer towing in the Lexus RXL is limited to 3500 pounds. The e-tron Sportback offers up to a 4000 lbs. towing capacity.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system optional at extra cost in the RXL, the e-tron Sportback Prestige has a passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

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 e-tron Sportback’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the RXL’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Marginal.”

Optional air conditioned front and rear seats keep the e-tron Sportback’s passengers comfortable and take the sting out of hot leather in summer. The RXL doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats for the second row.

The e-tron Sportback has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the RXL.

The e-tron Sportback offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the RXL.

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