Stylish Gas-Sipping Midsize Luxury Sedan
Lexus is Toyota’s luxury brand, so you expect extra style, comfort and maybe even performance when you opt for the “L” instead of the “T” logo on nose and tail. The 2020 Lexus ES 300, now in its seventh generation, remains a pleasant midsize sedan (the Lexus cousin of the Toyota Camry). After a major styling upgrade last year, it’s carryover for ‘20, but continues to offer a hybrid version, one of six Lexus hybrids.
The look is hardly placid, as were earlier models, although there is a new shade of beige available this year. Toyota, and Lexus in particular, are going all-out for in-your-face styling, so the front of this car takes the giant spindle grille in an even more evocative direction. With carefully crafted pieces, it sprawls over the face of the car and positively radiates with energy to the eye. It must take some sophisticated CAD/CAM software to draw and build that. Sharply drawn headlamp pods and jaunty corner air vents all contribute to the intense, sharp-edged design.
Inside, a large center screen makes it easy to use Apple CarPlay and deal with other necessities. Comfort is naturally expected and enjoyed within, while not mimicking German or American styling. You know it’s a Lexus by the touch pad on the center console where you just slip your finger up and down or side to side and press to select items on the eye-level screen. It works well most of the time.
I wasn’t enamored with the textured faux-looking wood trim ($540), but there were no other complaints about riding in this cushy car.
The Hybrid Difference
The major difference between the 2020 Lexus ES 300h and its Lexus sibling, the gas-powered ES 350, is what’s under the hood. To generate much higher EPA miles-per-gallon numbers, Lexus puts a 2.5-liter four-cylinder in with a high-density motor and nickel-metal-hydride battery (now moved from the trunk to under the rear seat), which together put out 215 horsepower. This will launch the 300h from 0-60 in a respectable 8.1 seconds. But the V6 in the ES 350 offers 302 horsepower and will do 0-60 in 6.6 seconds. Hmm—that sounds better.
But—when you look at the EPA fuel economy numbers, it reverses, and the 2020 Lexus 300h earns 44 mpg combined versus just 26 mpg for the 350. It’s up to you what’s more important, but of course I’m hoping it’s the hybrid. The hybrid’s EPA green scores are a tidy 7 for Smog and 9 for Greenhouse Gas. It’ll save you $3,000 in fuel costs over five years versus the average car.
Luxury—and More
It always amazes me that you can get a luxury car but then add so much to it. In this case, my Atomic Silver test car carried $10,945 worth of options, driving the base price of $41,760 to $52,505 (plus $1,025 delivery). Some is safety-related, like the blind spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and parking assist ($1,065). Some is flash, like upgrading to 18-inch split-spoke alloys ($770). Handy is the head-up display ($500). The Mark Levinson audio and navigation sounds wonderful–and it had better for a $2,900 premium.
However, do you really need to pay $550 for a hands-free power trunk lid or $400 for illuminated door sills? It must have something to do with the kind of buyer who wants to customize their car that so many choices exist. The list does make me wonder if anyone ever orders the car without all of these items. Perhaps it’s just broken out this way, and all ES 300h’s are shipped to the dealers loaded.
It says something that I didn’t make any notes about the 2020 Lexus ES 300h driving experience. It was nice, but I don’t remember a thing. There is a whole lot more insulation in the floor, so you know it was a quiet week. The new model (starting with the ’19) comes on a robust new chassis, allowing the engineers to better control noise and harshness as well as finely tune the ride. Suspension changes have led to a higher quality feel as well—or so they tell me.
The hybrid control system delivers more linear acceleration, reducing the tendency of hybrid vehicles to have a “rubber band” feel. And, Auto Glide Control improves efficiency by adding a “coast” mode, so the car slows more predictably, reducing the switch from accelerator to brake pedal while braking,
Lexus’ midsize luxury sedan is forced to compete with German, Swedish, American, Korean and other Japanese products. Lexus has carved out an enviable reputation now, so this better, more attractive, and more feature-filled new ES 300h should do well in the market segment. With its higher fuel economy, it is a more responsible citizen, as well. I’m still waiting for the fully electric one, though (ES 300e?).
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Disclosure:
Clean Fleet Report is loaned free test vehicles from automakers to evaluate, typically for a week at a time. Our road tests are based on this one-week drive of a new vehicle. Because of this we don’t address issues such as long-term reliability or total cost of ownership. In addition, we are often invited to manufacturer events highlighting new vehicles or technology. As part of these events we may be offered free transportation, lodging or meals. We do our best to present our unvarnished evaluations of vehicles and news irrespective of these inducements.
Our focus is on vehicles that offer the best fuel economy in their class, which leads us to emphasize electric cars, plug-in hybrids, hybrids and diesels. We also feature those efficient gas-powered vehicles that are among the top mpg vehicles in their class. In addition, we aim to offer reviews and news on advanced technology and the alternative fuel vehicle market. We welcome any feedback from vehicle owners and are dedicated to providing a forum for alternative viewpoints. Please let us know your views at publisher@cleanfleetreport.com.
