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Posted March, 2007

Road Test: 2007 Lexus ES 350

By Thomas E. Bonsall

The ES350 is Lexus' mid-sized luxury sedan, sandwiched between the IS and the GS. (For our past reviews of the IS 250/IS 350 and the GS 300 click on the links.) The prime competition includes models such as the Acura TL, the Infiniti G35 and the Volvo S60.

It isn't entirely clear to me why Lexus has all these sedans in its product program. The IS occupies roughly the same price bracket as the ES, even though it is a much smaller car. The GS, which is also somewhat smaller, is considerably more expensive and forms a bridge between the ES 350 and the flagship LS 460.

As its designation implies, the ES 350 is powered by an all-aluminum, 3.5-liter V6 engine that belts out 272 horsepower. It is mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. The performance was excellent for a mid-sized luxury sedan, the engine was whisper smooth, the handling was more than adequate and it seemed to float over the surfaces of all but the worst roads. I was constantly reminded of the LS series. The ES is a smaller and less expensive version of the LS concept, which still retains much the same quality and feel of its far more expensive sibling. I loved driving it; it put a smile on my face every time I climbed behind the wheel.

The exterior styling, on the other hand, I could take or leave. Recent Toyota/Lexus styling hasn't been much to my liking, as I've commented on before in Toyota/Lexus reviews. Clearly, mine is a minority view for Toyota/Lexus sales have hardly suffered of late.

The interior styling was better than the exterior. What was surprising was how spacious the ES is. After our experience with the claustrophobic IS, the ES seemed like an auditorium on wheels. I was half expecting echoes. The gauges and controls are well placed and functional. Everyone who rode in the car had mild difficulties latching their seatbelts. And the front doors need stronger stops. On any kind of an incline they were too weak to hold the doors in position with any degree of assurance. Also, the rain-sensing windshield wipers didn't seem to work very well, but, then, I have never liked this particular option on any brand. Anyhow, those are relative nitpicks on an otherwise wonderful car.

The base price of the ES 350 is $33,170. Our test car had $10,000 worth of optional equipment resulting in a final sticker price of $43,989 (including $695 in destination charges). The two killers were the Luxury Package ($5,380) and the Navigation/Mark Levinson Premium Audio Package ($4,050).

The Luxury Package included: Leather-trim interior, Front Seat Memory (Driver), Exterior Mirror Functions (memory, electrochromic, reverse-tilt), Steering Wheel Memory, RKE-Controlled Memory, Power Cushion Extender (Driver), Rain-sensing Wipers, Heated/Ventilated Fronts Seats, Front Seat Memory (Passenger), Panorama Glass Roof, Upgraded leather, 17” Wheel (Graphite Finish) and Spare, Power Rear Sunshade, Wood/Leather-trimmed Steering Wheel & Shift Knob, HID with Intelligent Adaptive Front lighting System (AFS), NAV/Back-up Camera and Rear-Seat Side Airbags.

The Navigation/Mark Levinson Premium Audio Package included: DVD Navigation System with touch-screen, voice-activation, back-up camera and Bluetooth, Mark Levinson Premium Surround Sound Audio with DVD-Audio/Video, 14 speakers and 5.1-channel playback.

I thought the Luxury Package was probably worth it, but wouldn't be inclined to opt for the Navigation/Mark Levinson Premium Audio Package. In the first place, the former package already includes the basic navigation system. All you’re doing here is adding some expensive bells and whistles you probably don't need and won't use. Secondly, we here at Ride&Drive have never been impressed with Mark Levinson sound systems, and the ES 350 was more of the same in that regard. It proved to be adequate, although without much base response. But certainly not worth four grand. If the standard sound system doesn't meet you're standards, you would be better off buying it anyway then taking it to a sound shop for the upgrade.

Other options included Intuitive Parking Assist ($500) and the Preferred Accessory Package ($194). The former warns you as you are backing toward objects, such as cars or posts, and is very useful. The latter consists of a trunk mat, a cargo net and wheel locks. Another good value.

The EPA rating for the ES 350 is 21 city/30 highway. This is pretty respectable for luxury sedan that offers as much as the ES 350 does.

When you test vehicles week-in and week-out they all tend to blur into one another until you find one that stands out. Then you say to yourself, if this crazy game of automotive musical chairs we auto writers play were suddenly to stop and strand us forever with whatever vehicle we're testing that week, I would be perfectly content to be "stuck" with the ES 350.

In the 1950 film version of Mary Chase's play, Harvey, Jimmy Stewart plays a tippler named Elwood P. Dowd. At one point, Dowd says (and I'm doing this from memory so don't hold me to the exact wording), "There are two ways to go through life. You can be oh so clever or you can be oh so pleasant. I prefer pleasant." That's the ES 350: Oh so pleasant. R&D