Lexus ES review

• What is it?
• HIT ME WITH THE FACTS.
• HYBRID ONLY, YOU SAY?
• IS THE CABIN A LUXURIOUS AFFAIR?
• HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
• Our choice from the range
• What's the verdict?
• What is it like to drive?
• AND WHEN YOU PUT YOUR FOOT DOWN?
• WHAT’S THE HANDLING LIKE?
• AND THOSE FANCY MIRRORS?
• What is it like on the inside?
• WHAT’S THE TECH LIKE?
• WILL MY PASSENGERS BE COMFORTABLE, THOUGH?
• What should I be paying?
• WHAT ARE THE KIT OPTIONS?
• SO, WHAT’S THE BEST SPEC?

Overview

What is it?

UX, ES, NX, RX, RX L, RC F, LC, LC Convertible, LS. Nope, it’s not some sort of World War II cipher, but the current Lexus range list.

Confusing at the best of times, then. The one we’re focusing on here, the ES, is actually now in its seventh generation, having been part of the Lexus line-up since the brand was launched in ‘89, but was only introduced (as a replacement for the GS) to Europe in 2018, while it received a mid-life facelift late last year.

It faces off against the likes of the Audi A6, BMW 5 Series and Mercedes E-Class in the mid-sized saloon sector. Tough competition, then.

HIT ME WITH THE FACTS.

Well, in the UK, it comes with a single engine and transmission set-up (ES 300h) and a fairly keen set of trims and packages (base ES300h, Premium Edition, F-Sport and Takumi, which is the bells’n’whistles grade). It shares its basic ‘GA-K’ architecture with the US Toyota Camry, albeit with some extra bracing to add body stiffness.

It’s front-wheel drive, a mild-hybrid, and biased more towards economy than performance – and for the first time anywhere, it also gets a specific F-Sport variant, although this model actually only designates some suspension improvements (adaptive damping), rather than any bald performance gains. Full details on the driving tab.

The bold front-end styling appears to have been based on a pair of semi-drawn curtains, a real love-it-or-loathe-it aesthetic, but you can’t complain that it doesn’t look different. Tweaks for 2022 models include a revised grille, slimmer headlights, and “three-eye” LED units on upper specs, but only the eagle-eyed will likely notice.

HYBRID ONLY, YOU SAY?

Yup. The drivetrain combines a clever 2.5-litre Atkinson cycle four-cylinder petrol and self-charging electric-motor/smallish-battery arrangement, coupled to an E-CVT gearbox. Lexus neglects to give an electric range, with battery power solely reserved for pulling away and at low speeds around town. There’s a surprising amount of electric running to be had, but don’t expect to get anywhere near the distance of any plug-in rivals, such as the claimed 37 miles of the BMW 530e.

The car isn’t awfully powerful, kicking out a combined 215bhp/221lb ft, but coupled with that endless-ratio ‘box, Lexus claims nearly 55mpg and just 119g/km of CO2 on the smallest wheels/tyres. For a car of this size, that’s spectacular, and offers big savings for business users. Head over to the buying tab for the full lowdown.

IS THE CABIN A LUXURIOUS AFFAIR?

Lexus has clearly put in a considerable amount of time (and learned lessons from the LS limo) making sure it’s quiet and comfortable, tweaking cabin tranquillity via aero and noise blocking, and sorting out the seats and driving position… even some of the alloy wheels have drone-absorbing hollow rims. The multimedia system has also been addressed in the mid-life facelift, with the 12.3-inch infotainment display now offering much welcome touchscreen functionality. See the interior tab for more.

But the real talking point is the £1,600 optional ‘digital door mirrors’, which help to reduce aero drag. Regular side mirrors make way for a pair of growths resembling bug antennae, relaying their camera feeds to 5in screens inside the doors. The display will zoom in and out as you park and display alerts when someone’s hovering in your blind spot. It takes a while to get used to them, but for those buying into a Lexus for its tech and its wilful styling flamboyance beside more sensible rivals, they’re a strong talking point.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

Prices start from just shy of £39k for the entry-level ES trim, rising to an eye-watering £52k in top-spec Takumi trim. Full details over on the buying tab.

Our choice from the range

Lexus

300h 2.5 4dr CVT Premium Edition

Ј36,330

A saloon car for people who don’t really care about/enjoy driving, but quite like big mpg and a nice stereo. And cutting-edge tech, if you’re after its fancy mirrors. Plus, Lexus’s legendary reliability.

A big front-drive premium car is never going to stir the soul, but by offering it as a tax-swerving hybrid and focusing on making it a nice, serene place to be, Lexus may have found a gap in the market. Just not one that’s ever going to interest the enthusiast.

Driving

What is it like to drive?

Immediate impressions are that the ES rides very well indeed, is very quiet on a constant throttle (that might sound nit-picky but it’s important, believe us) and has perfectly acceptable steering, brakes and body control.

In town, it makes a pretty agreeable cruiser, and seems to bolt down its EV-only running capacity with some vigour. There’s a surprising amount of shutdown and silent running to be had, no doubt the major contributor to that spectacular efficiency, but being a self-charging hybrid only don’t expect to rely on electric power for the entirety of your journey alone, like you’d find in a plug-in. Still, against a claimed near-55mpg figure, we averaged an impressive 50mpg.

AND WHEN YOU PUT YOUR FOOT DOWN?

Not quite as good. The CVT ‘box, although pretty good for its type, still bungees the response when you demand more from the engine, making the whole car feel laggard. The fact that there’s not a great deal of horsepower to be had in the first place compounds the problem, along with a droning engine note under load that acts like Valium for the soul.

It’s not that this car is about performance, more that overtaking would be a rare occurrence, and we’d definitely think twice about pulling out onto a major road. Similarly, when you ask more of the handling, the ES doesn’t really surprise or delight. Nothing actively bad, just bland. There’s no risk of taking the long way home in this just for the fun of it, something you might just do in a BMW 5 Series or Jaguar XF.

WHAT’S THE HANDLING LIKE?

The F-Sport gets adaptive damping and some other tweaks that make it more positive and confident, and you start to see that the ES could actually be quite good fun, with an accomplished front-wheel drive chassis. But that engine and transmission package has one thing in mind, and fun isn’t it. Lexus has attempted to address this with retuned suspension in the updated ES, but it still leaves much to be desired compared to rivals.

Other markets get various other motors (ES200 and ES250), but you can’t help feeling that the not-coming-to-the-UK ES350 might unlock all the ES’s full-on waftability and satisfaction.

AND THOSE FANCY MIRRORS?

Our time with the car never saw them make the leap from ‘interesting gimmick’ to ‘vital tech’, and they’re not especially well integrated – at least not as well as they are in cars like an Audi e-tron or Honda e, where camera-mirrors were designed to be there from the outset. Lexus, however, is sticking to its guns, tweaking them as part of the mid-life facelift to ensure clearer images in poor lighting. Live with them and you’ll probably end up loving them.

Interior

What is it like on the inside?

Smart, well-equipped (especially in full house ‘Takumi’ grade), lovely Mark Levinson stereo on some versions, comfy seats… the ES has a lot going for it from the point of view of just existing inside it.

Lexus – as ever – has a name for the driver-centric set-up of the displays and buttons, and calls it ‘Seat in Control’, which is just a conceptual tag for a cabin that feels like someone thought where to put all the buttons. But more vitally, the seats and wheel all seem to be in very accommodating positions for a variety of drivers. It’s not hard to get comfortable in here.

WHAT’S THE TECH LIKE?

Lexus has upgraded the multimedia system for 2022 models, with the 12.3-inch infotainment display now offering touchscreen functionality, while still allowing operation via the central trackpad. It’s a welcome addition although the graphics aren’t quite as crisp, nor is it as intuitive, as you find in a BMW or a Mercedes.

There’s also head-up display (only standard on Takumi grade, mind), that shows lots of relevant info: speed, fuel, gear, speed limit signs, nav directions and lane keep assist warnings. It might sound confusing, but it really isn’t. Ditto the touchpad control – it’s more intuitive than it first appears, pretty much like everything in here; it might look like a lot of buttons and functions, but you get used to it quickly.

WILL MY PASSENGERS BE COMFORTABLE, THOUGH?

There’s plenty of room up front, slightly less in the rear – blame that sloping roofline – but generally more than you’ll need. The rear seats don’t fold down (thank the extra bracing to make it feel more structurally sound than the US Camry for that) though you do get a handy ski hatch, but the 454-litre boot itself isn’t the biggest in the sector – you get a like-for-like 76 litres more in the Audi A6 and BMW 5 Series and 86 litres more in the Mercedes E-Class.

There’s a lot of solid craftsmanship and thought that’s gone into the ES, and although it’s a little nerveless, it’s got some qualities that will definitely shine through should you spend a decent amount of miles in it.

Buying

What should I be paying?

The cheapest ES you can buy starts from £38,765 in entry-level ES trim. Next up, the Premium Edition, starts from £39,265, followed by the F Sport, which starts from £40,930. Want the range-topping Takumi trim? That’ll be an eye-watering £52,315, please. Monthly payments start at around £475, rising to a whopping £760 for the top-spec trim, on a four-year agreement with a six-month initial payment.

Rivals include the Audi A6, which starts from just shy of £39k, along with the BMW 5 Series – certainly a better driving car – and the Mercedes E-Class – the biggest challenger in the comfort class – which start from around £41.5k. In plug-in hybrid guise you’re looking at around the £50k mark and around 35 miles of electric-only running for all three, significantly more than you’ll achieve in the mild-hybrid only ES.

WHAT ARE THE KIT OPTIONS?

As standard, the ES comes with a 10-speaker Pioneer audio system, dual-zone climate control, heated front seats with eight-way power adjustment, sunroof, parking sensors, smartphone mirroring and 17-inch alloy wheels. The Premium edition adds a 12.3-inch touchscreen, heated steering wheel, wireless smartphone charger, rear privacy glass and 18-inch alloys.

The F Sport version adds adaptive variable suspension and adjustable dampers, F Sport exterior and interior styling details, auto door mirrors and 19-inch alloy wheels, while the top-of-the-range Takumi model includes a 17-speaker Mark Levinson sound system, head-up display 12.3-inch multimedia display, power boot lid with hands-free kick sensor and head-up display.

SO, WHAT’S THE BEST SPEC?

If you’re buying on a budget and looking to avoid falling into the £40k tax trap the pick of the bunch is the Premium Edition, which comes with extensive additional equipment worth more than £3,000, but an on-the-road price tag just £590 greater than the entry-level ES.

Otherwise we reckon the F-Sport variant might be the pick of the bunch due to the slightly improved handling and superior ride. That starts at £40,930, or £545 on lease.

Keyword: Lexus ES review