Browse over 9,000 car reviews

Lexus ES vs Lexus ES350

What's the difference?

VS
Lexus ES
Lexus ES

$54,999 - $77,900

2023 price

Lexus ES350
Lexus ES350

2019 price

Summary

2023 Lexus ES
2019 Lexus ES350
Safety Rating

Engine Type
Inline 4, 2.5L

V6, 3.5L
Fuel Type
Premium Unleaded/Electric

Premium Unleaded Petrol
Fuel Efficiency
4.8L/100km (combined)

9.5L/100km (combined)
Seating
5

5
Dislikes
  • Dated interior, fiddly controls
  • Firm ride
  • Road and engine noise at speed

2023 Lexus ES Summary

What’s the closest thing we have to a modern-day Holden Statesman/Caprice?

If, like General Motors, you obliterate Australia’s Own from existence altogether, you’re left with time-honoured rivals also made in this country, like the Ford Fairlane, Chrysler by Chrysler and Toyota’s Crown and Avalon.

But they’re also all in history’s dustbin (well, the American ones, anyway), leaving the humble Camry as the sole living nameplate with any connection to Australian manufacturing.

And since the Lexus ES is a close relative, we’re going to take a fresh look at the latest version, with a view of it as a bit of a survivor of a bygone era – where aspirational vehicles were created from normal family sedans.

Just like the Fairlane, Crown and of course, the Caprice.

Launched in mid 2018 but facelifted in 2021, we test the ultimate version of the seventh-generation ES, the 300h Sports Luxury – or SL, if we’re to make yet another tenuous connection to long-gone Holdens.

Let’s go!

View full pricing & specs
Interested in a Lexus ES?
2019 Lexus ES350 Summary

CT, IS, GS, LS, RC, LC. Yes, that list of letters looks like something you’d read when getting your eyes tested at an optometrist, but they are actually all Lexus models.

Ok, you may have known that already, but did you know that those are just their initials? They actually have full names, too; Compact Touring, Intelligent Sport, Grand Sport, Luxury Saloon, Racing Coupe, Luxury Coupe.

And so this review isn’t just on the new-generation ES, but on the Elegant Sedan, which made it to Australia in 2018. And, as if hinting at things to come, it’s available in ES300h petrol-electric hybrid guise only.

This is the seventh-generation of a model that has been part of the Lexus line-up since the very beginning, way back when the luxury arm of Toyota first stepped onto the world stage in 1989.

So, does the ES300h live up to its Elegant Sedan name? Does being hybrid-only in Australia mean it loses its powerful presence? And is there any reason why you’d get one over a Mercedes-Benz E-Class or BMW 5 Series?

So many questions, but after living with the ES300h in top-of-the-range Sports Luxury guise for a week, we now have all the answers.

View full pricing & specs
Interested in a Lexus ES350?

Deep dive comparison

2023 Lexus ES 2019 Lexus ES350

Change vehicle