2026 Lexus ES review: Australian first drive

Do you remember Lexus sedans from the '90s? I do. I can’t say I thought they were the best-looking cars on the road, but we had a Toyota at the time as a family car, so I just remember thinking a Lexus was a bit special. 

The Lexus ES has been part of the brand's line-up since the very beginning, launching alongside the flagship LS sedan in 1989.

Fast-forward to today, and the ES has entered its eighth generation with a longer wheelbase, updated styling, a redesigned interior, and a significant technology upgrade.

With buyers increasingly moving towards SUVs, the ES might be a niche player these days, but with 306 examples delivered year-to-date, there’s still clearly an appetite for a comfortable, premium sedan.

This new model also introduces several firsts for the ES, including a fully-electric powertrain, a digital key, hidden interior switches, a new multimedia system, and Lexus's latest software platform.

Of course, those upgrades come at a cost. The range now starts at $75,000 before on-road costs for the ES300h Luxury hybrid (previous model priced at $65,540).

Standard equipment is generous, including a 14-inch infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, embedded navigation, voice control, digital radio, an integrated dashcam, a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, a 10-speaker sound system, Lexus Connected Services, a panoramic glass roof with an electric sunshade, heated eight-way power-adjustable front seats, a heated steering wheel, and a comprehensive suite of safety features, just to name a few.

The ES300h Luxury can also be optioned with a $7000 Enhancement Pack, bringing the price to $82,000 before on-road costs. It adds ventilated front seats, driver's seat memory, a head-up display, wireless phone charging, a digital key with an NFC card, a 360-degree camera, and an automated parking system.

If you fancy a fully-electric option over hybrid, the ES350e Sports Luxury will set you back $77,000 before on-road costs, just $2000 more than the base hybrid.

For this first drive, I sampled the flagship ES500e, which sits at the top of the new ES range.

Both electric variants gain adaptive suspension, upgraded LED headlights with adaptive high beam, cornering and multi-weather lighting, acoustic front and rear side glass, soft-close doors, dual wireless phone chargers, and rear window sunshades.

The ES500e is powered by a 252kW dual-motor all-wheel-drive system and has a claimed WLTP driving range of up to 465km.

This model also gets Lexus's new Interactive Manual Drive system, which simulates eight gear shifts, along with unique 21-inch alloy wheels. For a full list of specifications, click here.

The top-of-the-range variant is priced from $84,000, and while that’s a fair chunk of money, it starts to look more reasonable when compared with its premium EV rivals. 

The ES500e undercuts the Volvo ES90 ($88,880 for the single-motor rear-wheel-drive variant), Polestar 4 Long Range Dual Motor ($88,350) and BMW i4 ($88,900), all prices plus on-road costs.

The ES is the first Lexus to adopt the brand’s new design language. I’ll admit, I wasn’t sold straight away, but it’s a design that’s starting to grow on me. Either way, it won’t have any trouble standing out on the road.

The biggest change is along the side profile, where Lexus has added a new character line. It's a pretty bold design choice and won't be to everyone's taste, but for me it's the standout part of the exterior. 

The front end keeps those familiar Lexus cues, but the brand has reworked its signature spindle grille. The top half is now closed off, giving it a more futuristic, EV-inspired appearance.

Getting into the ES, this is the first Lexus to introduce a digital key, meaning your smartphone can now replace the traditional key fob. Don’t worry, there’s still a physical key!

Once it’s set up, your phone basically becomes your key, which is a handy feature for those moments (and I seem to have plenty of them) when you’re running out the door and suddenly wondering where you put your keys.

There’s also an NFC reader built in, so even if your phone battery dies or you’re somewhere with no reception, you can still unlock and start the car. I did wonder if I’d actually ever use it, and well, I can't remember the last time I took a physical bank card out with me – everything now lives in my phone.

The ES I drove came with the Hazel interior, one of three available interior colours, while the exterior is offered in seven paint finishes.

The ES immediately feels premium stepping inside the cabin. From the quality of the materials and leather-finished seats to the redesigned steering wheel with its Lexus wordmark – and the large sunroof – all the details come together to create a cabin that feels genuinely luxurious.

Electric variants also feature a bamboo-like trim across the doors, with a small section extending into the centre console. It looks like a simple finish at first, but it’s actually a printed film with ambient lighting built into it, which is a pretty neat touch.

One of the biggest changes inside is the move towards a more minimalist layout. When I first climbed in, my immediate thought was 'Oh no, another brand removing physical buttons and dials in favour of the minimalist look'.

But there was a sigh of relief when I realised there was more to it. Lexus has introduced responsive hidden buttons for the first time, keeping the dashboard clean without completely doing away with standalone controls.

The switches appear on hover or touch, revealing buttons beneath – a smart middle ground for those who like a minimalist design, but still want the convenience of traditional controls. More to come on this.

Another thing worth mentioning is the 14-inch infotainment screen. It’s sharp, easy to use, and lets you customise the layout with widgets. There’s also a built-in dashcam feature.

Connecting my iPhone and setting up Apple CarPlay was quick and straightforward, and I didn’t have any trouble finding features.

Storage is decent, with two cupholders and door bins up front. The double-hinged centre compartment isn’t particularly large, but there’s additional space underneath the console area that’s handy for storing a small bag.

The longer wheelbase translates to more space in the second row, with generous leg room and head room. Rear passengers also get two charging ports, air vents and well-sized door bins.

The boot offers 517 litres of cargo capacity, with a wide opening for easier loading.  It falls just short of the Polestar 4’s 526L, but comfortably beats the Volvo ES90’s 424L with the rear seats in place.

Behind the wheel, the first thing I was most keen to test was the hidden buttons. I shared an instructional video on social media and the response was mixed, with some questioning whether having to look down to activate the controls could become distracting while driving.

Thankfully, they can be set to remain illuminated through a menu in the touchscreen. Do I find them easier to use than digging through the screen for functions like climate control? Yes.

Would I still prefer the physical buttons from the previous ES? Absolutely.

The drive itself was fairly short, taking us from the Mornington Peninsula into the city, but it was enough to get a good sense of what the ES500e is like on the road. 

It’s exactly what you’d hope for from a luxury sedan – smooth, comfortable and refined. 

The seating position feels spot on and visibility is excellent. Surprisingly, the view out the rear is better than I expected given the sedan’s sloping roof line.

Under the skin lies a dual-motor all-wheel-drive system with a total system output of 252kW.

It delivers plenty of power, with an instant response off the line, but a premium sedan isn’t really about chasing outright performance. It’s about a refined, comfortable drive and, of course, arriving in style.

And that’s where the ES feels at home. The suspension is tuned with comfort in mind, offering a soft and supple ride that does a good job of smoothing out some of the rougher roads I encountered on this drive.

It’s also impressively quiet, and not just because it’s an EV – road noise is well isolated from the cabin.

The steering is nicely weighted, with a direct response that makes the ES easy to guide through corners, and despite its weight, it doesn’t feel like you’re hauling around a large EV – it feels composed and easy to place on the road.

The head-up display is easy to read, with large navigation arrows making directions simple to follow. There’s a lot of information displayed through the digital instrument cluster, which can feel a little busy at first. However, there are different layouts to choose from depending on your preference.

I’m always impressed when car brands nail augmented visuals, and this system does a good job of accurately showing the vehicles around you.

Lexus has also loaded the ES with plenty of safety tech. The adaptive cruise control was one of the systems I tested, and it’s easy to activate with the push of a button. The lane-keep assistance system is also well tuned – if you start drifting towards another lane, it gives a small vibration through the steering wheel and a gentle correction rather than aggressively pulling you back.

I returned with a reading of 17.5 kilowatt-hours per 100 kilometres. My ride from the Peninsula was mostly freeway driving, with a small amount of urban driving mixed in, and for a luxury sedan like this, that’s about where you’d expect it to sit.

The ES500e is fitted with a 74.7kWh lithium-ion battery, supporting 22kW three-phase AC charging and up to 150kW DC charging. 

Lexus claims the battery can be charged from 10 to 80 per cent in as little as 28 minutes using a DC fast charger.

The ES is covered by Lexus's five-year/unlimited-kilometre vehicle warranty, along with an industry-standard eight-year/160,000km high-voltage battery warranty.

Roadside assistance is complimentary for the first three years, while capped-price servicing is listed at $625 per service, with 12-month or 15,000km intervals, whichever occurs first.

Over five years this totals $3125, which is costly for an EV. To put this into context, the first five years of servicing for the Volvo ES90 are included in the upfront price of the car. 

One of the benefits of buying a Lexus, however, is the range of inclusions that come with the Encore program, which are tailored to each vehicle. You can see the full list here.

I came away impressed with the ES500e. Luxury sedans don’t always get us excited, but this one makes a strong case with its technology, styling and overall premium feel.

If you're shopping in this price bracket, you're buying into a brand with a proven reputation for reliability. $84K is a lot of coin, but the ES500e feels like a well-rounded luxury sedan that offers plenty of car for your money.

The 2026 Lexus ES will arrive in Australian showrooms shortly, with the electric variants launching first, ahead of the hybrid versions later this year.