Lexus ES 300h 2019 Ultra Luxury Hybrid
Lexus Brand was started its journey with ES and LS models while both of these vehicles were different based on their driving design, LS was a rear wheel drive and was made to compete against European rear wheel drive luxury entries on the other hand ES has always work with front wheel drive. ES always sold because of reliability and fuel economy but at the same time this front wheel drive vehicle has larger back seat while having the same price tag as many of rear wheel drive entries. In comparison with front wheel drive Lexus ES is considerably large as Audi A4 and Volvo S60 both falls in the same price category but both are smaller than this.
Design Cues of ES 300H 2019:
Design of all the Lexus vehicles is appealing but there are some major changes in 2019 Lexus ES 300H that could make it little different than other models.
Exterior:
This is the seventh generation of Lexus ES and the major change done on its exterior is the integration of new spindle grille that has vertical bars instead of horizontal. If we compare the design language of Lexus Pioneer models than we will see that both of the vehicles shared so many similarities and also have many in this generation. LED headlamps are standard on all trim levels of Lexus ES 300H but there are few differences among hybrid and non hybrid model, Hybrid model has up level 3 module system and headlamps turn in the corners while base model do not have. Lexus ES has large logo on the front that houses the radar sensor. Comparing current 2019 Lexus ES to the previous model this model is 2.6 inch larger and also larger than Mercedes Benz E-Class that is why it is different than European entries. On the rear side of the vehicle tail lights are extended quite far on the side of the body, has spoiler on the trunk lid and there are no visible exhaust tips present but are hidden under the bumper.
Interior:
Lexus vehicles always known for their high quality interior; seats are leather upholstered and heated | ventilated as well. All around on door panels, dashboard and center console you will find soft touch material with little bit of hard plastic at bottom. Some interesting treatments also done with interior that is the use of real wood trim above door panels, on steering wheel and also on dashboard. One of the biggest change in 2019 year model is the addition of apple car play to the infotainment system but android is still not given and again no details if when will Lexus add this feature. This infotainment system is controlled using track pad and even if you don’t own or have an IOS device there are still some apps those allow you to integrate like Amazon and Alexa integration. Instrument cluster is an 8 inch LCD display that gives us details related to our trip and some other settings related to vehicle. One thing that looks good as well little UN usual and different are the knobs behind the steering wheel those control driving modes and traction control settings.
Engine & Power:
Lexus ES available with two different engine configurations one is hybrid and other is non Hybrid, most of the vehicles at dealer’s resorts are non Hybrid with 3.5 liter V6 engine that produces 302@6600rpm horse power and 267@4700 Lb ft torque. Hybrid version houses 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine that produces 176 horse power on its own and when coupled with 4th generation Lexus Hybrid system it gives 215 horse power which is also 15 points more than last year. Hybrid version of Lexus ES 300h possess the top speed of 116 miles per hour  and takes 8.3 seconds to accelerate 0-60 miles per hour and in comparison with non hybrid version 0-60 acceleration time is just 1.5 seconds less. One biggest edge you will have with ES is the class leading fuel economy; it gives 44 miles per gallon combine which makes it the most efficient luxury car sold in America.
Driving Experience:
The difference between ES and ES Hybrid is obviously the acceleration but things those become a reason for better driving experience are quieter interior, Great Handling, Less body Flex and Body roll. ES Hybrid gives you easier handling and little bit firmer ride quality but still it is very comfortable on a long journey.
Comfort & Safety ES 300h:
Comfort:
Front seats are quite comfortable and good; front driver’s seat is four ways adjustable with lumbar support while passenger side has less range of motion, in some of the European entries you can get same range of motion for passenger as driver Like (Mercedes & Volvo Models). Seats of ES are very comfortable if compared against the mainstream competitors for the ES Hybrid like MKZ hybrid. On the rear side it has great amount of leg room that is due to front wheel drive engine design, Head room is not as great as it should be and passengers with height more than 6 feet can face little trouble while the rear seats of ES don’t fold as well. It is little bit more comfortable on road, have less road noise and feels little bit more refined.
Safety:
There has been given latest Lexus safety system 2.0 as standard which includes;
- Full range adaptive cruise control
- Lane departure warning
- Lane keep assist
- Road edge detection
- Pedestrian detection
- Cyclist detection
- Expanded lower light operation
- Autonomous braking
- Road side information
- Auto high beams
Lot of the vehicles out there has these safety features as optional even in their luxury segments but in Lexus these are standard on every trim level. This 2.0 system has expanded capabilities over previous generation system.
Conclusion:
One of the better large front wheel drive sedans on sale in America, ES is comfortable and quiet while performance and handling is fairly good. Comparing to Large and midsized sedans it has a very large trunk and the change from last year is that batteries has been shifted under the rear seats form trunk. Has best fuel economy in the business and comparing to Mercedes, BMW or Volvo Plug-in Hybrids on gasoline this Lexus ES 300h is the most efficient among all. Lexus has used Nickel metal batteries those are less expensive than lithium ion batteries as well have better power dissipation characteristic and also known for longevity and reliability.
