With over 30 years of history, Lexus is pretty much a household name now. Much of that name is built on the sales of models like the Lexus ES. The ES (Executive Sedan) was one of the original 2 Lexus models, alongside the flagship LS (Luxury Sedan). For a long time the ES also stood as the entry point into the Lexus brand and was commonly the sales leader until platform mate RX came along. Today, the RX still holds the sales title for the brand, but the ES continues to lead the sedan side of the house.
The ES has grown quite a bit in size over its lifetime. Where the 1989 ES 250 came in at 183 inches in length, today’s model, now the 7th generation ES, is over a foot longer now at nearly 196 inches. Where there is some commonality is in the engine sizing. The original ES 250 was powered by a 2.5-liter V6 engine pumping out 156 horsepower. This ES300h is also powered by a 2.5-liter engine, but it’s actually a 4-cylinder and paired with the Lexus Hybrid Drive system for total of 215 horsepower.
215 horsepower is definitely not a lot in this day and age where we have nearly limitless power in anything from minivans to pickup trucks. Not helping things, especially for something labeled as F SPORT, is the typical Lexus hybrid CVT-esque drone during acceleration. The low power numbers result in a decided lack of punch for something costing $55,000. Sure the proposed 40+ miles per gallon in fuel efficiency stand out in the luxury sedan set, but is that what the midsize luxury F SPORT buyer is really looking for? To that end, we saw 35.7 miles per gallon during our week of testing and 250 mixed use miles, pretty far below the EPA rating of 44 miles per gallon combined.
With the ES now doing duty in the line of the defunct GS line (my former Lexus lineup sweet spot) this seems a bit of a miss. To the F SPORT-ness side of the equation our tester is specifically an F SPORT HANDLING (vs DESIGN) and so the ride is firm and controlled while the fairly responsive steering is leaps and bounds better than what the ES used to be. This is thanks to the adaptive variable suspension with performance dampers and customizable drive modes. It does make me wonder what the ESh F SPORT could be with something like…. the Toyota Crown’s Hybrid Max powertrain with 340 horsepower, but at the cost of achieving “just” 30 miles per gallon, which is offered at a very similar price point.
So where does the ES sell itself? There’s undoubtedly good space, especially in the back seat. That’s a large part of what Lexus customers seemed to prefer over the GS which always had a tighter back seat package due to rear wheel drive-ness. The Lexus ES also offers good updated tech with the newer touchscreen based Lexus Interface. I do think they can add some customization and even a Home Screen with widgets to take advantage the real estate of the 12.3″ screen.
Elsewhere in the interior, the materials are decent. Lots of soft touch areas and pleasing metallic trim all around. Luckily minimal use of the dreaded piano black glossy stuff. 2-way lumbar adjustment for the front seats is a bit of a bummer to see on a luxury car though, c’mon Lexus.
The driving assistance technology is also a bit basic by today’s standards. The active driving display doesn’t show any tracking of vehicles in adjacent lanes and no assisted lane changes or anything like that. Our tester featured signature triple beam LED headlights, which look nice, but they’re super pricey at $1,215. The head up display, a $500 option, is nice to see here, but subscription based embedded navigation feels like a bit of a miss with a luxury car. Although with wireless CarPlay finally onboard I’m sure most customers won’t even bother.
With the love of everything SUV, will the storied ES live to see an 8th generation? I feel like the ES in combination with 300h hybrid and F SPORT HANDLING (the all caps are from Lexus) needs a sharper understanding. Sure not everyone needs 300+ horsepower, but I also question if the 215 horsepower ES300h buyer is truly seeking the F SPORT HANDLING versus simply the F SPORT DESIGN (again ask Lexus why they love to shout). So does this particular configuration need to exist? Will the next ES hybrid see a shift to something more performance oriented like the RX 500h F SPORT PERFORMANCE and cousin Toyota Crown Platinum? That would be more congruous in our eyes and help elevate the Lexus brand away from its mainstream roots.
