You might've spotted a Lexus you didn't recognize...
when you were visiting the USA. It read "Lexus ES" on the boot,
and you wondered what kind of car that was, because in the Netherlands we've got the IS, GS, and LS,
and that about covers the whole saloon segment for Lexus.
The ES has been positioned next to the GS for quite a few years, even though we don't know it in the Netherlands.
The ES was so incredibly popular, it became the most successful Lexus saloon car.
It's even the most popular Lexus around the world, coming just behind the RX.
Relatively speaking, the GS wasn't successful enough so it's being cancelled.
From now on, it's just the ES. That's not a big deal in the USA,
because they'll just axe the GS, but in the Netherlands, we only had the GS.
The ES will replace the GS, and it's going to be the first ES in the Netherlands.
It's the seventh generation in the USA, but it's going to be the first in the Netherlands.
In the Netherlands, it's pretty clear which drivetrains we're going to get.
Where Lexus'll supply petrol drivetrains in other countries, we only get a hybrid car in the form of the ES 300h.
It has a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder engine producing 178 horsepower, with two electric motors on either side producing a total of 120 horsepower.
You can't add those numbers in Toyota's hybrid system, but the total system power is 218 horsepower.
The design language is completely according to Lexus-standards. It's not anonymous in any way,
just look at those headlights and huge grille, or the folds and edges and such.
It's longer and lower than its predecessor, and even though we don't know that car, I'm still mentioning it.
That said, it's 4,98 m long, which is huge, but it has some effects on the legroom as well.
So the length and big wheelbase are very good for the rear passengers. Just look at the legroom.
It's almost like a Skoda Superb, and a Mercedes-Benz doesn't do any better.
That says a lot. The headroom is just alright.
It's got a sloped roof for the coupé-design, or what they call coupé-design.
That means my head touches the roof though, and I'm only 1,83 m.
Besides that, the seat is high enough, so my legs aren't in an unnatural angle,
and the finishing... Well, they don't skimp on that,
so it looks great from front to back.
The battery pack, which isn't a lithium-ion pack remarkably enough, but a nickel-metal hydrid,
isn't in the boot, but beneath the rear seat, so you've got more room.
It's still a sedan, but it has 454 litres of luggage space.
It doesn't have a weird bump or a thin back, because the battery is fitted in a smart package.
What I didn't mention yet, is the biggest difference between the GS and the ES.
The GS is a rear-wheel drive car, but the ES has been a front-wheel drive car for generations.
And it's not just the drivetrain itself, but it's the whole positioning of the car.
A GS has been marketed as a very dynamic car, whilst the ES was supposed to be the more practical car.
It's more spacious, it has more legroom in the back, thus more practical as a daily driver.
The GS on the other hand, was meant for people who really focused on driving.
And it succeeded. The outgoing GS, especially in F-Sport trim,
was a very dynamic car. A real drivers saloon,
which kind of aimed at the 5-series. Even though it never reached that level,
if you were driving it; road or track, the balance was always right
The GS-F was really cool; a power saloon with a huge V8 in the front.
It also had a chassis which was in sync with the engine, but that's something you can forget about with the ES.
Lexus themselves say they've made it incredibly dynamic, which has to get close to the level of the GS,
but there's so much you can do with a front-wheel drive car. It's direct, it isn't afraid of corners,
but it just won't reach that level of excitement. And that comes with the question of how bad that exactly is.
If you look at the GS in the Netherlands, only a few dozen were sold per year, no more.
Lexus won't risk it to present a completely different car, and the things the typical Dutch Lexus-driver is looking for,
are available on this ES. It's incredibly comfortable,
the chassis perfectly processes bumps and such, a lot of torque in lower revs because of the hybrid system,
it's incredibly quiet as well... That's something in which Lexus invested a lot of time.
They think it's one of the most important things on this ES, and you do notice that.
The tires almost don't make a sound, I'm doing 90 km/h and there's almost no wind noise,
I don't hear anything. It's all quiet in here.
Bumps in the road get filtered out, and that contributes to the amount of comfort as well.
You should be able to enjoy the quietness for long travels.
When it comes to finishing and the materials... We're talking about Lexus-experts,
so there aren't any cracks which are placed wrong, there's no seam sticking out,
and it all feels good, like it can remain this way for 500.000 km.
That's great, and those are the perks of a car like this.
In this case, you also get the legroom at the rear. If only you used this car as a taxi., that's brilliant.
There's a low fuel consumption because of the hybrid drivetrain, you can quietly set off,
which is comfortable for your passengers, your passengers have lots of legroom as well...
That's what this car is good at. That comes with a problem though,
will people in the Netherland buy this car because of those things?
If you think legroom is very important, you won't be browsing for BMW's 5-series.
You could get away with a Mercedes E-Class, or maybe an Audi A6,
but people in the Netherlands browsing for cars in this segment, usually aren't looking for cars which are like this.
Then, the technology and drivetrain. It's a hybrid, as I already mentioned,
and you notice that Lexus and Toyota have gained so much experience, it just keeps getting better and better.
Our complaints about the drivetrain and CVT are becoming less as well, in this case, that's mostly because you've got lots of torque,
so you won't have to make lots of revs which produces a CVT-howl. You can drive the car on torque,
and it's pretty quick with that as well. Quick enough in 90% of the cases.
It has a nickel-metal hydrid battery pack, and Lexus has chosen for that because they were able to make it small,
because of new coolant systems. Also, they said lithium-ion was more expensive and less reliable,
because technology like this has been around for longer, so there wasn't any reason for Lexus to switch.
The battery pack is beneath the rear seat, and with the engine and gearbox at the front,
Lexus says it's not a problem that it's heavier than a lithium-ion pack, it's good for the balance they say.
If you want to drive dynamically, the engine response is the biggest problem.
You can choose to change gears manually, and it will create fake gears for you.
When I start to rev, I can sort of shift, but if I lift my foot,
the engine braking isn't enough. If you want to drive dynamically,
it's important to steer the car with throttle movements. You can't do that with this ES, so it's not a drivers car.
Anyway, when I drive on twisty roads, the chassis has a decent balance,
and it keeps straight, so the car won't misbehave.
It's not a car which twists around if you throw it into a corner, or that the ESP will kick in with every steering move.
That's not happening in here, but combining a hybrid drivetrain with dynamic driving...
With this Atkinson-engine, with this technology, that's going to be difficult.
This ES has all of Lexus' qualities, and it's even better than it has been before.
The quietness, the comfort, most definitely the reliability,
because the build quality, the drivetrain, the hybrid system...
they're making a lot of progress in those departments. It's still not the most dynamic engine around,
but the torque is incredibly nice. Also, the CVT keeps getting better,
and it's an economical car, not only on paper but in the real world as well.
In times like this, it could be a good alternative to diesel powered cars.
Before the Dutch abandon BMW's and Audi's... That's going to be hard.
Sure, it won't be a risk to axe the GS, because they only sold a handful a year,
so why wouldn't they try it. I think that's a good idea.
This is a great car for taxi drivers, because they can offer a lot to their passengers.
It has a low total cost of ownership, lots of legroom, lots of comfort... The perfect taxi I'd say.
Still, the sales numbers are still low, but on the other hand, Lexus has sold so little in this segment,
they don't have to sell much more to do better than before. With that in mind, the ES is a car with which they can try something new,
whilst trying to convince enough people that a car like this...
is a very good alternative to the German choices...