I had an ES350 loaner. It was pretty much new, with only 5k miles on the odo. I was shocked how much better my IS350 is.

The ES350 was FWD and the torque steer was driving me crazy. It struggled with spinning the tires during hard acceleration and I constantly fight the wheel. I was most disappointed in the ride, however. It felt a bit soft and floaty so it should have had better ride quality. Wrong. There was actually more impact harshness than my IS, which was surprising.

The ES was more powerful than I expected, but I was very happy to get back in my car.

 

I had a 2014 ES 350 loaner yesterday! I agree with everything you said, however, I was envious of all the options it had compared to my is.

 

Yeah, the fact that my IS350 F-Sport isn't available with memory seats is a head scratcher.

 

I actually find the IS350's drivetrain quieter as well. Something about our AVS systems in the IS350 F-sport gives it a magic carpet ride while also keeping the driver informed of the road via steering feedback that makes the it so well-rounded

 

When i went in for service i got the ct200 talk about no power. I just wanted to try a hybrid. It was actually pretty cool trying to see how high i could get the mpg it became like a game

 

I wanted ventilated seats.. Also the option where when you turn off your car, the steering wheel goes up and your seat goes back. That was nice.

 

I have a 2015, so I have ventilated seats and a heated steering wheel. The "comfort access" or whatever Lexus calls is would just be annoying for me. I'm not a big guy, so getting in and out of the car is not the least bit challenging. The memory seats on the other hand. Grrrr... Every time my GF drives the car or I go to the car wash, I have to spend 10 minutes trying to find my preferred seating position. I know, I know. First world problems.

 

I had similar initial reactions on the ES loaners then noticed the tire pressures set at 38-40! Dealers seem to love to bump up the air pressure consistently on loaners and delivered cars. Needless to say, I dropped it to 32-33 and the ride was cloud-like.

 

But you gotta love how smooth the ES was!

 

The first loaner I had from my dealership was a CT. I told my service advisor not to put in one the next time & I got an ES. I couldn't wait to give the ES back. I can see it being a great car for somebody - just not me. The next time it was a CT again & I prefer it now to the ES.

These loaner just remind me how much I hate FWD cars.

 

100% agree.

 

I too had a ES350 loaner, the thing that shocked me the most was how light the steering was, it felt dangerously too light.

Will say, the one option it had that I wish my IS had was the easy entry/exit.

 

I had an ES and a GS loaner several weeks ago; neither were f sports. actually, the ES was a hybrid so that made things a little more different. there wasn't much to it that I was impressed with. the motor was really quiet which made me laugh because I never thought I would miss my car's sound (I have a cat back system). I wasn't impressed w/ the look of the interior. a couple of things that I did like was how the gage faces changed when I went through the different driving modes. the auto telescoping steering wheel made me grin. I think the best part of that car was that I could use the cheap gas to fill it up...haha. just like it's predecessors, it's just and over priced camry or Avalon.


the GS on the other hand was a different story. one thing I didn't mention was, like the ES, the **** pit is or seemed more open; that's the ONE thing my wife LOVED in both cars...haha. she doesn't like the bolstered seats in my 3is...haha. but it kind of took me back to my is300 to wear the seats didn't "hug" the driver and passenger. the nav/radio screen was MASSIVE!!! I mean, I think the space used is the same as ours in the 3is, but the GS uses the whole space. it was like IMAX in the car...haha! I didn't like how the menu for the enfotainment was set up. I loved that there was memory seating and steering wheel position. every time I got in the car I swore like I was a voltron pilot or something cause when you start the car, it's ready for me! some of the other options that were cool were auto folding side view mirrors when you leave and lock the car. it also had parking assist built in. the center console better aranged; the cup holders were in a more descent place. but as far as how it looked, it looked dated...like some of the benzos still do. one thing that was hit or miss was the auto shade in the back. I didn't get briefed on how to control it, but goes up when you drive and comes down when you go to reverse. I couldn't figure out how to keep it down. I like to look back every once and a while to see if there's a friendly neighborhood popo around. oh and one more thing...when car starts initially, the enfotainment screen goes to radio/nav or what ever screen you had it last WAY faster than our cars!


as for some of the options our 3is doesn't have, I really want to believe that the car is "option ready." meaning the wiring harnesses are there, but just capped and stowed. all these other options like: memory seat and steering, auto tilt side view mirros, and maybe even folding mirrors can be functional if connected and "fixed" if done correctly and if the harness are just stowed away. even if the harnesses aren't there, a good tech could make a harness and diy. just need the wiring diagrams. but like the majority of us, I too scratch the noggin when it comes to why the f sport could come w/ some of the options from the "luxury" package. maybe we just can't have the best of both worlds...sigh

 

what will happen is in the last model year of the current body IS 2014+ they will have every option known to man in it. But then next year they will redesign it to something even better with a bunch of new stuff in it and cut options but people would want the newer body instead and sacrifice options and complain like we are now haha. its a never ending cycle. should have bought stock in the automotive industry!

 

Yup, I'm pretty sure this was all planned out with each new model change. A 5-7 year business plan to "release" new features every year. Kind of like Apple and their strategy...