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| Pleasantville on wheels, the ES 350 typifies Lexus concept of luxury. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press) |
Lexus' ES was once the most popular luxury car in Canada, but things have changed since this midsize model reinvented its segment decades ago. Now, entry-level brands are offering up competitors that are as good and in some cases better than the once-vaunted Japanese sedan, some even for less money.
For instance, Hyundai's Genesis offers more power as well as rear-wheel drive in a larger package with more amenities for less money, go figure. Of course, it comes with a Hyundai badge, a negative to some, but then again the Genesis has garnered so much respect over the last year that it's almost a brand unto itself, and for the first three quarters of this year it placed fifth most popular amongst luxury nameplates in Canada. What were four through one? Infiniti's G, Audi's A4, Mercedes-Benz' C-Class and BMW's 3-Series, respectively. Yes, the ES didn't even place.
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| The ES 350 has nice lines that exude class and sophistication. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press) |
Of course, if luxury were about popularity everyone would be driving a Rolls-Royce… other than that darned price of entry. But you get my point. The ES does some things better than any other car, and because of this it still garners its fair share of sales by diehard loyalists who come back generation after generation. And a week spent in a 2010 model recently helped me understand the draw.
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| Lexus went to great lengths to separate the ES 350 from its Camry cousin, and the interior shows differentiation, especially in the teardrop shaped centre stack. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press) |
It's a good looking car, featuring Lexus' L-Finesse design language now used across the entire lineup, other than the soon-to-be-replaced SC sports convertible. Graceful lines capped off by a classic chrome horizontally ribbed grille give the ES the look of luxury, hardly revolutionary but nevertheless an appearance that shows you've arrived when pulling up to the valet for dinner or at the country club.
