Msnowdon

What do you think of Lexus newest model?





I like the IS better, but it isn't made for bigger guys.

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

It still resembles the Camry, with which it shares a platform, a little too much. It's plush, but a little too cushy and definitely not a drivers car. If you were looking for something fun to drive, skip it.

Time For Sleeep

If a soft luxurious cushy ride is what the consumer had in mind I don't see any reason why the ES350 would fall short.

I'd love one of them.

I guess I'm just an old man @ heart. AND I wish I had air conditioned seats on my CL

95gt

As always the interior is

Not a drivers car so I would never consider it but I am also not their target audience.

Will sell

ilitig8

Great car, very impressed when I drove one. It is just about the perfect entry lux car, despite the Camry genes and Toyota still struggles with V6s+DBW+auto tranny. It does not pretend to be a sport sedan and is a better choice for most people than a RWD sport sedan.

Ken1997TL

Its a GREAT car for a segment of drivers who want luxurious transportation from point A to B.

heyitsme

If u want a camry with wood, tHATS IT.

TL Maestro

BS. Camry might cast a similar silhouette, but that's where it stops.
You buy Lexus for the luxury and the absolute serene ride. Nothing short of a big rig driving alongside you is going to make noise in that cabin.
There's no need to compare it to any Acura on the market; they aren't aiming for the same thing.

It's a gorgeous car that wraps you in plush comfort and isolated refinement.

West6MT

jlukja

A good friend of my wife's is getting one. Cushy, not sporty.

FastAcura

That's

I better more people cross shop the TL and Accord than the ES and Camry.

derrick

This will be my parents' next car. Bye-bye Volvo. Hello, Lex.

Made in Japan quality. Lexus interior. L-finesse design. I think this car will sell like hot cakes. (Not as if the previous gens sold poorly...)

Remember: A to B in luxury. Poor man's LS. No sportiness in this part of the Lexus line-up. FWD for those people who live up north and have to deal with snow (ie to 'ease' their paranoid minds and not having to buy 2 sets of tires/rims). Believe me ... I've talked to my dad, probably a typical car buyer in this segment, in great detail about all of the above and he still wants one.

For most people looking to buy one of these, this car will meet all their expectations.

pimpin-tl

The Camry has a awesome interior with the new L-Finesse design in it as well.

Here are some pictures of ours we just got as well.

derrick

One thing about the Camry -- that light blue that goes around the instrument panel cluster in the centre stack. I'm not feelin' it.

Sclass88

The interior of that Camry is

The exterior of that Camry is

lscld

I agree 100% with you Sclass88!!

Sly Raskal

iTrader: (1)

blah, never been a fan of the ES

I'm sure it's a great car, I just don't like it.

FastAcura

Camry > Accord

CGTSX2004

iTrader: (1)

For now, but a new Accord is only a couple years away...

GIBSON6594

I think it's gorgeous, but to make my point...my grandfather is picking one up next week

Stealth CL

My mom just got an Avalon, and i think it outdoes the lexus in interior and exterior.

youngTL

Like the ES330, this one has a very classy, nice interior.

However, the centre stack "key loop" is fugly, very much so. Additionally, I'm not a fan of the way they designed the steering wheel controls. It looks weird for some reason.

Ergonomically, it looks like it needs work (just like the RL, GS, and less so the M). There are too many small buttons to control simple functions.

If I were to buy a luxo-cruiser around this price, the ES would be my first choice, but as it stands that's not what I'm looking for.

youngTL

For you maybe. I bought an Accord because it had more of what I was looking for. I can tell you that the 6MT Accord feels a LOT sharper than the Camry XLE, not to mention that it's MT which doesn't exist with the V6 Camry and probably never will.

The Camry's handling has improved, but it doesn't do it with the same finesse that my Accord does. And I prefer the Accord's interior design and seats over those of the Camry. In addition, I think my car looks better, but that's personal opinion and my preference for 2 doors. And I have a nice little button called VSA OFF which the Camry doesn't have.

I forget where I read it, but the 1/4 mile was 14.5 for both the 6MT Accord and 6AT camry, and the Accord was 0.2s faster in the 0-60. Due to my MT I'm not really worried that a Camry is that fast. Most people aren't going to be racing them anyway, and my engine is 0.5L smaller.



Anyway, back to the topic, the ES350 is without a doubt a better car than the Camry. Anyone who thinks otherwise hasn't driven both.

Beltfed

The Avalon isn't bad, but I disagree.

ES350 looks more high end exterior wise and the Avalon's interior with all that silver plastic shit on the dash along with all the stupid flip up covers overall just looks weak.

We were at the dealer last weekend actually sitting in a Limited version waiting for a salesperson to help us (buddy bought a Highlander for his GF.....although she is paying for it).

Leather quality I must say was nice though.

SpeedyV6

I'd rather drive an Avalon.

chungkopi

the rear looks aweful in person.

dozorca

ES350 looks really good imho.

03TL-S

Its still not the greatest looking car, but it will sell. I saw one on the road yesterday....it gave me too much of a toyota camry look to it.

BadBadNeil

The ES is still my least favorite Lexus car. I love the IS and like the new LS design but the ES always seems to be more generic than the others to me. It is an improvement over the last one, which was an elongated boat but not by much.

phile

I thought it looked decent at the auto show, reminded me a little of the RL. But I think the RL looks better.

SSMTL01

Couldnt agree more- they hit their target market for this car right on.

Is the camry's wood real?

derrick

I test drove one yesterday. I was very impressed with the 6-speed (auto) tranny. Butter smooth .. the previous gen ES330 I have driven would sometimes search for gears at low speed (on flat terrain!). None of that in the 15 minutes of mixed city / highway driving I completed.

The interior -- beautiful layout -- materials top notch. Real wood. Leather was really soft. (I am so addicted to the 'new car' smell ... ) Instrument panel easy to read. Font was large; you could read the speed, fuel, all other necessary info with just a glance. It was a really sunny day out and everything was no problems to read. Radio controls / AC controls on the centre stack was well laid out. A/C was cold from the start and I could imagine the interior to get to a nice temp on a warm day fairly quickly. I could figure the instrumental panel out intuitively while driving (I don't like listening to the radio while I test drive ... want to 'hear' the car. Shut A/C off since it was only 68F outside.) Seating position easy to find -- telescopic steering wheel, multi-adjustable driver's seat. Good amount of bolstering of seats (surprisingly!). I didn't play around with the steering wheel controls to the radio, etc. Was more concerned with how well it drove.

While driving, the first thing I noticed was the heavy amount of power steering assist getting out of the parking lot. I'm not big into turning the wheel with one finger, but it could be done with this car (re: parallel parking). Brakes felt strong and firm -- a slightly noticeable nose dive on moderate braking. Engine was smooth and when I goosed the gas, it would downshift and get you to the desired speed (again -- not violently, but smoothly...) As the drive proceeded, it had vault-like quietness ... smooth over the bumpy roads where the dealership is (re: construction). There was minimal body roll for a car this size in its class. Mind you, I didn't push the car around the corners but it did just as well as my TLS with mods. (My car is 5 years old; this car was probably no older than 1 month.) One thing that I didn't like was the thick C-pillar due to the L-finesse design. I think that will be a sore spot with my mom (who is not the greatest driver!) The smaller rear windshield may raise questions on backing up and parking. Otherwise, view was pretty good.

Based on the numbers: it had impressive EPA fuel economy numbers (better than my TLS but don't know what it's like in the real world). I could imagine putting in 3 good sized pieces of luggage in the trunk. My dad would like the full-sized spare in the trunk (but that would mean we'd have to rotate the tires more frequently to add the 5th tire in the rotation). Didn't get a chance to sit in the rear seats but me being 5'9", a quick glance in the back would seem that there would easily be enough space for 4 comfortably for long trips. All the safety features you could imagine -- I am surprised in Canada the rear side air bags are and upgrade in the premium package.

Final impression: a nice family hauler. No real sporting intentions but that's not its purpose. To get to where you want to go comfortably in somewhat style. Japanese assembly, worksmanship, reliability. This car won't be noticed since it's plain looking but it has vastly improved from the last generation. The size has considerably grown in dimensions. Parking it might be a little more tricky than the model it replaces. I do look forward to when my folks trade in the Volvo for this car. I do recommend the red or the blue -- they are pretty sharp.

Newplay1

wow

lexus ES > new camry bad.