You pretty much said it yourself, why the ES sells so well. It is a quiet, comfortable, no fuss, powerful, reliable, affordable luxury sedan that people connect well with. The name LEXUS is probably the biggest draw, and this car leases for dirt cheap in SoCal. Throw in legendary dealer service and it's an easy choice.

I'd be curious to hear how the ES300h is more refined than the gas model. With a four cylinder engine, that could be a challenge. But I want to believe, so lay it on me.

The lack of a folding rear seat is my biggest complaint with the ES. I'd have this at the #1 requirement for my "next car" list, as I need to be able to throw my mountain bike in the trunk without having to take the wheels off. That's a process I have to go through with my current IS, which really got old quick, As I age and lose more of my patience, I just want to ride and not get my hands greasy.

Otherwise, I've been VERY impressed with the refreshed ES. I feel it has the most modern and stylish front end of all current Lexi. The taillights are nicely balanced and look expensive, the body in general is clean, modern, but not overdone like other models, the wood steering wheel is posh and says luxury like nothing else can, and the angled, squared off tailpipe tips are nice sporty surprise that beats anything BMW offers for $70k. The design of the dash needs improvement, as there's really no compelling theme or eye-pleasing shapes that make an impression. I hope the re-do will fix all these things in a few years. Also hope the re-do doesn't get the flabby, saggy shoulder line the new LS just got. That's an automatic "no" for me.

 

Pete, you're looking at replacing the front suspension again? Didn't you already spend $5,000 to replace the front suspension with the one from the 2013 GS Luxury?!

Time to trade the car on something that fits your needs. Just throwing money away here.

 

The electric motors and the eCVT in the ES Hybrid really smooth out the 4-cylinder. There are other factors: The 2.5-litre 4-cylinder engine is not bad, it may not be as smooth as a Toyota V6 but it is quite good at lower engine speeds and only really gruff at high rpm (and when driving a Hybrid, you try to avoid running at the engine redline).

The engine also turns off when the car is stopped or driving at slow speeds, when you are more likely to feel the engine.

 

Eh, I personally don't like the feel of the ES300h. The 4cyl isn't as refined and sounds buzzy, I don't like the feel of the CVT either. I'd chose the ES350 every time.

 

As you age, the more you will need to ride (or do other regular exercise)....trust me on that one.

That I will agree with. IMO, the spindle-grille on the latest ES is probably the least-offensive and least in-your-face of any of the current Lexus models. I find the ones on the RX and NX the most garish.

 

I recently put some substantial miles on a 2017 ES350 dealer loaner while they screwed up the service call on my GS, and I really very much disliked the ES. Both my GS and the ES had that irritating lack of A/C hard switch that the OP noted, having to go through multiple screens to turn off A/C compressor when it's not needed is aggravating.

As far as the rest of the car, which was pretty heavily optioned, a lot of interior materials were not impressive for the price, and the steering wheel was not a pleasant grip. The ride had some surprising harshness on some of my familiar road surfaces, and the handling and steering were both sloppy and disengaged. I suspect the big wheels and low profile tires did not help here at all, and Lexus is not the only manufacturer to make those wheel/tire mistakes. While there were a lot of features, it was a long reach to cup holders where I wanted to park an electronic device, and the remote touch system is no better in the ES than in GS, and far behind iDrive or MMI for example.

The trunk was a good size, but again no fold-down rear seat to optimize the utility of the car. The drivetrain had decent response and refinement, Sport mode caused the transmission to have a few hiccups though, so this car is better left in the default mode.

After a lot of adjusting the seats, I was never able to find a comfortable seating position in relation to the steering wheel and pedals. The seat cushions and back were okay, nothing special, but they could not be adjusted for proper hip placement and reach, so I found the ES a lot less comfortable than a lot of other cars in this class. Coupled with the "eh" aesthetics and the "ugh" driving characteristics, the ES seemed overpriced and not a good fit for me, at least. There are other roomy, comfortable, and quiet vehicles on the market that seem more appealing and capable that are worth considering closely if one is inclined to this type of car.

 

Hmm, for this I just set mine to Eco mode when I had a loaner ES 350, and that quieted the A/C a lot. Though, I never turned the compressor off. (Auto for the win)

I personally enjoyed the ES 350. Compared to the IS F Sport I have, it rides smoothly. Mind you, the RX 350 loaner I had before that was pretty much the smoothest-riding car I have driven, probably ever, but this ES wasn't bad by any stretch. I was a bit disappointed by the steering wheel, like Seppo, but I found the seats comfy and the go pedal to be pretty responsive - more so than expected. I think on the highway, while at speed, it picks up and does passing maneuvers more rapidly than my IS (though of course, off-the-line traction is in short supply... thanks to FWD). I didn't futz with the radio much, since I had fairly short 15-minute drives. Besides, it's basically identical to what's in my IS. Overall, would I buy this car? No. But I certainly would like to have it as a loaner again.

 

Your original 2013 4GS electronic front shock absorbers are a bit softer and floatier than the 2015's, however those European & Malaysian GS250's & 300h's are genuinely traditional Lexus; it's even smoother than our ES350's.
From previous experience, I suspect only the front coils and dampers are changed, and not the rears, nor the sway bars.
I sense that the electronic variable valve dampers gradually firm up from 40 to 60 mph as cruising speeds rise in both 3GS & 4GS.
The non-electronic variable valve dampers will be much cheaper too.
The coils are cheap.
The front coils have to be clamped before the coil/shock unit is removed, such that the labour is essentially the same.

My friends have been spending tens of thousands of dollars modding cars since the mid 1980's, to the point of installing turbos and superchargers etc.
They change to Koni to Tanabe suspension, and front and rears too.
We sell the OEM parts on eBay.com, so in the end it doesn't cost much.

Once you have experience over decades, changing front coils and shockies is only a simple job.
It's no different to replacing old worn shock absorbers on an old car with high mileage.
When we replace worn shockies, we tend to replace both left and right at front or rear for symmetry.

However it is a good stop gap till the next model comes along.
Presently, there is no ideal for me.
Genesis G80 too bland, and too bulky for me.
E300 & new 5 Series not totally sold on - spent $20k repairing my last Mercedes V6 outside warranty; I'd rather wait for 5GS.

When you're picky and experienced like me, you will learn to customize your vehicles, because nothing else on the market suits.

I've never driven an ES300h.
However, I have driven a distant relative's IS300h & GS300h, and the IS & GS versions were surprizingly different.
The IS300h felt crappy with a weaker, coarser 4 cylinder engine.
However, the GS300h was supposedly using the same 2.5L four cylinder, yet it felt more powerful, smoother revving, more isolated, and quieter - it was totally different, and it surprized us.
The GS300h's four cylinder has instant throttle response, more bottom end punch, and is significantly smoother than my wife's IS200t four cylinder turbo.
The GS300h had traditional Lexus NVH; it's even smoother and quieter all around than an ES350.
One thing I'll give you is that the 300h cannot match the performance of the 200t, let alone the 350, but then the latter two cannot match the economy & emission levels of the 300h.

Test driving cars can be tricky.
The more hours behind the wheel, the better.
Many years ago, I test drove a brand new 2010 Mercedes E350 V6, and it felt smooth and quiet.
A few years ago, my friend purchased a similar used 2010 Mercedes E350 V6 with AMG Sports suspension & asymmetric OEM AMG alloy wheels, and the car feels terrible.
The car has only 50k miles on the odometer, yet it is incredibly loud cruising at 40-60 mph compared to a 4GS.
The noise isn't just in the tires; it is actually in engine and wind noise too.
My friend is an Europhile and a constant critic of Japanese cars; when he test drove my 4GS, his mouth just zipped - he was lost for words.

In the 4GS, we sit closer to the doors with a wide central console; in the old E Class Benz, we sit further away from the doors, via a very narrow central console.
Personally, I prefer wider central consoles to narrower central consoles.
_

 

where did you drive the IS 300h, peteharvey? are you european? your location is listed as "ca" -- california?

 

Mother's cousin in Paris on vacation.
Had to visit my mother's auntie in Paris.

 

gotcha -- thanks! i agree, the IS 300h is coarse and unrefined compared to the rest of the IS lineup.