2025 Toyota Crown Signia vs. 2024 Lexus RX: Premium Midsize SUVs Compared
More than a Venza: The 2025 Crown Signia hybrid is just premium enough to make a Lexus owner look twice.
Take away the badges and the 2025 Toyota Crown Signia does its best impression of a luxury SUV. The new SUV's name is a mouthful, but you're basically looking at Toyota's new two-row midsize SUV. Unlike the outgoing Venza, the Crown Signia more clearly looks like a size up from the ubiquitous RAV4. In fact, the Crown Signia even has a couple of Lexus-like design cues.
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So just how different is the 2025 Toyota Crown Signia from the 2024 Lexus RX ? We poked around the new SUVs to find out.
2025 Crown Signia vs. 2024 RX: Design
Boulevard appeal is a subjective matter, but we're going to weigh in, anyway. The Crown Signia, especially in the higher Limited trim, has a substantial look that should help justify its higher-than-RAV4 price tag. This is still no Jeep Grand Cherokee, though: The Toyota remains a softer, modern on-road cruiser. After all, if you want an off-road vibe, try the RAV4, 4Runner, or Land Cruiser. There's also a pleasing subtlety to the Crown Signia's modern appeal; we appreciate that the same automotive landscape can accommodate wild SUVs such as the Hyundai Tucson and Cadillac Lyriq, but also the Crown Signia.
From every angle, the Lexus RX is familiar but clearly updated. The elaborate grille has a complex edge that will divide opinions and, to our eye, is more artful than the similar detailing on the Toyota. Heavily sculpted doors make an impression, and the LED light bar looks fantastic at night—especially how it tapers toward the center.
2025 Crown Signia vs. 2024 RX: Power
Every 2025 Toyota Crown Signia gets a 243-hp four-cylinder hybrid powertrain. You don't need to be a hybrid enthusiast to care about the Crown Signia—instead, you simply benefit from a hybrid's advantages: Slightly more power, usually a longer driving range, and lower ownership costs thanks to higher efficiency. The 2024 Lexus RX350h has essentially the same powertrain but with 3 more hp. Woo!
Where the Lexus RX pulls away from the Toyota Crown Signia here is with choice. For about the same price, the RX350 (without an "h") has a 2.4-liter turbocharged inline-four making 275 hp. And that's to say nothing about the 366-hp RX500h hybrid and 304-hp RX450h plug-in hybrid.
The truth is that most buyers will have no issue with either 243 or 246 hp. Also, as long as you aren't used to the swiftness of a fully electric SUV, hybrids can feel more powerful around town than their overall horsepower figures sound.
2025 Crown Signia vs. 2024 RX: Interior and Exterior Colors
This one is a clear win for the Lexus. Where the Toyota only offers five exterior colors and two interior hues, the 2024 Lexus RX350 has double the color selection and the RX350h has nine. And inside, you're offered a handful of colors and trims.
That's not to say the Crown Signia is completely outclassed inside. In its Saddle Tan interior color with subtle copper trim accents, the 2025 Crown Signia Limited feels premium inside and has plenty of soft-touch surfaces. Though we haven't yet experienced the Crown Signia in its lower XLE trim, we can at least speak to the vaguely luxurious feel of the Limited.
2025 Crown Signia vs. 2024 RX: Snob Appeal
The Crown nameplate has a history stretching back more than half a century in Japan. It's a big deal for Toyota, though it means very little in the U.S. That's cool if you dig into the history, but Lexus has a more immediate snob appeal.
We like cars regardless of their badges, but there's no avoiding the Toyota badges on one of these SUVs and Lexus on the other.
2025 Crown Signia vs. 2024 RX: Pricing
Lexus and even the RX itself are more well-known nameplates, and you pay for that status. The 2024 RX350h costs $51,800 (as this is written), while the 2024 RX350 FWD starts at $49,950. Keep in mind the RX350 offers a mechanical AWD system while the RX350h and Crown Signia have standard motor-based AWD setups.
Pricing for the 2025 Toyota Crown Signia is expected to start above $40,000. The smaller Venza has a $36,315 MSRP and the Crown sedan sits just above $41,000. Where does that leave the Crown Signia, which has standard AWD, 12.3-inch touchscreen, and hybrid powertrain? Probably at least $42,000. Load up a Limited model and you'll probably overlap just a bit with a base-model RX.
2025 Crown Signia vs. 2024 RX: Which Is Better?
Let's be honest: some buyers have blinders on when it comes to car-buying: They'll only ever see luxury-branded models. For the rare consumer considering an RX against a Crown Signia, they'll find a compelling package in the Toyota in the low $50,000 range. If, however, that Lexus buyer plans to pile on the options or select the RX500h for more power (or fun), the Lexus is the better choice.
I’ve come a long way since I drove sugar packets across restaurant tables as a kid, pretending they were cars. With more than 17 years of experience, I'm passionate about demystifying the new car market for shoppers and enthusiasts. My expertise comes from thoughtfully reviewing countless vehicles across the automotive spectrum. The greatest thrill I get isn’t just from behind the wheel of an exotic car but from a well-executed car that’s affordable, entertaining, and well-made. Since about the time I learned to walk I’ve been fascinated by cars of all shapes and sizes, but it wasn’t until I struggled through a summer high school class at the Pasadena Art Center College of Design that I realized writing was my ticket into the automotive industry. My drive to high school was magical, taking me through a beautiful and winding canyon; I've never lost the excited feeling some 16-year-olds get when they first set out on the road. The automotive industry, singing, and writing have always been my passions, but because no one seeks a writer who sings about the automotive industry, I honed my writing and editing skills at UC Irvine (zot zot!), serving as an editor of the official campus newspaper and writing stories as a literary journalism major. At USC, I developed a much greater appreciation for broadcast journalists and became acquainted with copy editing rules such as why the Oxford comma is so important. Though my beloved 1996 Audi A4 didn’t survive my college years, my career with MotorTrend did. I started at the company in 2007 building articles for motorcycle magazines, soon transitioning to writing news posts for MotorTrend’s budding online department. I spent some valuable time in the copy editing department, as an online news director, and as a senior production editor. Today, MotorTrend keeps me busy as the Buyer's Guide Director. Not everyone has a career centered on one of their passions, and I remind myself all the time how lucky I am.
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