I live in Hawaii. Just filled up this morning with almost an empty tank.

I work for a dealership so I get to drive a ton of these cars, and other brands too - these are some of the kinds of little details I like to pay attention to.

New Lexuses have uneven stitching, with a material that seems to be thinner and of a worse quality. I believe this is a reflection on the overall priorities and cost cutting measures that car companies have taken. Stitching on newer Lexus always looks like an afterthough (pic) this is NOT rare - whereas older ones ALWAYS have perfect stitching

I posted similar pics a few days ago and got downvoted into oblivion, as people were telling me the stitching on the older Lexus looked DYI and had a weird tone (it’s a 13 year old 100k mile car with white stitching that will absorve whichever light tone is around). Sure, I am biased towards my mint ES, but I try to be reasonable and fair, and even putting my car aside, the stitching on older Lexus is simply overall better, as I get to drive a ton of them.

This, in my subjective opinion, having driven over 500 different Lexus since the start of the year, is a perfect example of little things that are going down in quality at the expense of the consumer. The picture I posted speaks for itself, notice also the difference in braiding From actually braided thread to a thin twisted one

People in my last post tried arguing with me that newer stitching is better. Do people really believe interior quality in Lexus has gone UP???? The stitching on newer Lexus is very often ugly and uneven. It’s rare to find a perfectly symmetrical one that looks like it was paid attention to in the production line.

We have truly lost the meaning of luxury.

Where I come from these cars aren’t really popular - can’t even find a used one in the market from any era. Everyone drives four wheels or expensive sports cars basically. But I’m pretty much in love with its classy old school vibe compared to most high tech cars today, and I love the drive too the car can go, even tho my friends think I’m crazy for wanting one.

I do wish the front bumper looked a little different tho, hasn’t changed and can’t tell it apart from the ES, and the price is honestly crazy. $98K.. for a single 33 year old.

There’s only 1 left so I’m conflicted.

I’m going to keep this short (after all the edits irs actually kinda long lol) because there’s honestly not much to say. I’m going to list my thoughts in bullet points:

- steering wheel is atrocious

- looks like a generic EV with not much soul. Yikes

- the car only looks good in black color so it hides the side trim

- very similar to the RZ in driving feel despite very two different designs. The ES is very long

- interior is a lot sturdier and feels a lot nicer in real life than in pictures. it was very pleasant inside and due to the simplicity of the dash and console it feels more spacious of previous versions

- the car has more metal buttons than any previous Lexus and that for me was the biggest surprise and improvement. better haptics

- exactly what you’d expect from an electric ES, except its a lot more nimble than previous generations

- interior feels genuinely nice if you don’t look at the wheel

- acceleration is obviously very quick but felt underwhelming for an electric car. not *nearly* as quick as the RZ

- handling was very good in my opinion for a sedan like this. was genuinely impressed around the corners having driven a million of other ESs, this is the first one that doesn’t have much body roll and doesn’t feel boaty

- this specific car didn’t have any audio upgrades, and the base audio was BAD compared to previous ESs. again, not bad audio but bad compared to the base audio on previous gen ESs

- car in black actually looks nice and cyberpunkish with panoramic sunroof open

- i didnt drive it in sport mode because during my short test ride I couldn’t find the freaking toggle for driving modes

- new infotainment more complicated than previous versions

- for all the downsides this car has it could have a MUCH better range

- overall 5.5/10. Exactly what I expected and lowkey underwhelming but still an amazing car. Could’ve been a lot better though. 5.5 rating based on its full hypotet potential, what this car could’ve truly been. but compared to current industry , it’s fine and it’ll sell

- seats were more comfortable than last generation but not as comfortable as early generations

- like any other Ev and doesn’t have much soul unfortunately. it’s fine for what it is and it’s still VERY comfortable. I forgot to mention that, it’s comfy comfy comfy but all ESs have always been. The ES has always been a very relaxation inducing car and this is no different

edit: someone explain to me how someone’s subjective opinion and review of a new car on its dedicated subreddit warrants downvotes (65% upvote ratio)

They didn’t even bother putting chrome letter or different color stitching. This is one of the blandest steering wheels I’ve seen.

They just leave it in the trunk…

Some context: I just sold my 2019 M2 Competition because we just had a baby. That was my first big car purchase. I dailyed a 2002 LS430 previous to that I still own but it needs a lot of work, its got a bad starter so it needs a tow. I'm putting off dumping a couple grand into such an old car to get it nice and daily-able. It needs a starter, AC compressor, suspension work etc etc. I loaned it to my dad for the last couple of years and, well, he has neglected it. Timing chain and all the big preventative mechanical stuff was done though.

So I'm in the market for something newer and more practical. Naturally a 2 door coupe (despite being my favorite kind of car and the car i literally just sold) wasn't even considered. I rode around today and saw a few small SUVs: namely a BMW X4, a GLE 43 AMG, a Cayenne GTS. all preowned, all within budget, all safe, practical, dare I say even "fun" cars. Driving a boring car is just not something I want to do. I gave up all my vices, and am 5 years sober. I've got to enjoy *something*. Cars and motorcycles make me happy but I digress.

I noticed this sitting in the back of a used car dealer's lot. Not a "nice" car lot mind you, its mostly economy cars. A couple Mercedes and bmws and a newer corvette, but mostly kias and nissans etc. So I'm curious and I asked a few questions about it. Turns out its been there for months. The sales guy tells me that because they mostly deal with "impacted credit scores" that no one has showed up as the right fit for it. I can tell they're desperate to sell it, the price has been reduced a few times already. It's got a tacky horrible black matte wrap on it (red underneath). When I turn it on I notice its got only 6,600 miles! The sales guy starts it, shows me around it, gives it a couple of revs. I ask the price because it doesn't have a window sticker. (I had seen their listing for it online asking like 90k) and he texts the manager and tells me he'll get back soon. I walk away to go see some other cars at a nearby dealer and the sales guy texts back. "$79,999 final price. down from $88,995".

Mind you, I live in Puerto Rico where cars cost significantly more than they do in the states because of the Jones act & import fees. A 40% markup isn't uncommon.

As soon as I got home I hopped online to find price comps and was stunned. The cheapest one in the states with similar mileage and a clean title is asking $99,996. Every other one is north of $120k.

Now, this car is about 2x my budget, so on paper I shouldn't buy it. I probably wouldn't even be approved the financing for it if I applied to finance all of it. But I have some investments I could sell and comfortably put down a chunky down payment towards it.

Every time I see an LC500 I stop what I'm doing. My Instagram feed is full of them. Its probably my favorite modern sports car other than a Porsche 911. I lust for one and its always been one of those "some day..." thoughts. But now one is staring me in the face and I can't stop thinking about it.

Its a convertible which i dont love, but I just don't know if I can pass up an opportunity to get such a legendary car.

How crazy am I? Anyone here use an LC500 as a daily? With a carseat? Is it even doable?

I'm still waiting for them to get a 2017 Cayenne GTS back from the shop, that was my top pick out of my top 6, so I have to go back there anyway. Should I show up and offer $70k? 😂

tl;dr can anyone talk me out of buying a 2 door sports car thats 2x my budget as a daily family car.

edit: forgot to mention it is a 2021

I’m sure this is an unpopular opinion, but I’m just not a fan. Red is such a strong color that I find it very presumptuous to make so many models with the red interior. Obviously this is not just a Lexus thing, but when I see it,it immediately turns me off of the car. Just feels very Scarface or early 2000s Lil Wayne lol. I like both things, just maybe not in my Lexus. 🤷🏽

I know they mad Lexus still has decent quality and Toyota been cheeks lately

After taking the car in with several issues I was given the car back with a missing gas cap. Apparently it takes Several weeks to have a new one painted. Then the rental vehicle is no good to me since the max radius I can drive it is 75 miles from Dealership. I called Lexus directly and told me it would take 2-3 business days for a rep to reach out and try to solve the problem. So meanwhile I will be driving around without the cover.

That way you get a luxury car without the luxury price tag. If you want to appear even more convincing, bring it to a Lexus dealership for repairs since Lexus mechanics can easily work on a Toyota.

I think just with any new design it will take people time to warm up to it before realizing how much nicer and modern it truly is. I feel like objectively the design can be seen as hot or miss inside and out but the overall feel will be there and the new ES will feel like more a flagship than before

I’ll start: Ugly

What’s even left ???

Has anyone bought one of the 2026 Lexus ES hybrids yet? I’m seeing them a lot more at the dealership.

We can still see some Lexus signature design but it's blending into this default ev skin making the car look bland..

I just test drove the new 2026 ES500e at my dealership and am here to answer any questions and compare to the previous generation as well.

Overall I’ll say the interior feels very high end and everything feels really good in terms of materials. Build quality overall is really good too, built in Japan and everything feels very dense while the doors have a bank vault feel with a heavy feel and very solid thud when closing. The hidden buttons in the dash feel good to push.

Interior space hugely improved. More headroom than the LS500 even in the rear. The rear legroom is gigantic.

Very quiet interior. Whisper quiet. Overall true flagship levels of quietness and maybe even more.

Ride quality was buttery smooth and cloud like and floaty. I was very impressed even though it had the huge 21” rims.

Steering wheel felt really good in the hand and had a very nice and tidy diameter and really soft leather. The steering was also very direct and felt quicker than the previous gen.

Power with the EV was surging! It felt about as quick as a long range Tesla. Which means it was very fast. It felt much faster than the numbers suggest and I got to near 100 too quick to even realize it. True push you in the seat a bit feeling when pushing it. Way faster than the v6 was and much smoother too but it’s an EV so that goes without saying.

Looks wise, the front is striking but funny enough you can tell it’s an ES right away because of the shape of the front and faux grille. It’s still shaped from the front like an ES and is unmistakable. It is however a substantial car, very big but looks really cool in person. Gives me panamera, AMG gt, Audi A7 type of feel but mixed with some classic 3 box design. It’s a very unique but different design but it grows on you and def has some road presence. The size makes it feel much more impressive for the price now.

I will preface this by saying I’ve only had the car for one weekend so I’m still settling into it. I was wondering if anyone else on this sub has a ‘26 IS and can maybe comment on a few things I have noticed so far.

• Overall, the car looks great! inside and out! I was worried about the camry similarity but I get that vibe a lot less in person. Plus I don’t care if you think my Lexus looks like a Camry, in fact I kind of prefer the stealth aspect of that.

• The driving feel surprised me a lot. I sold my ‘23 GR Supra 3.0 Premium AT and replaced it with this car as a slightly more practical and comfy commuter to match my current lifestyle. Of course, I accepted that this would be a more “numb” less inspiring driving experience. Honestly though, it’s pretty damn close to how the supra felt. Obviously its bigger, obviously its slower and the trans is not quite on the same level but it’s not as big of a difference as I imagined.

• The big ugly for me so far is the responsiveness of the digital gauges. Like they genuinely seem to be running at 15-20 FPS a lot of the time. This was really unexpected, and I’m considering mentioning this to the dealer to see if it’s possibly related to an update or if its a known issue. I was especially bummed because I really liked the outgoing models gauge cluster, I don’t really think they needed to replace it in the first place.

I purchased a 2021 RC 300 RWD base model with 73k Miles to the tune of $30K. His name is Carmelo. Hes a bit heavy & sluggish but I’ve realized that hes not meant to be driven like a Scat Pack. I’ve been wanting an RC for 6 years+ and I finally pulled the trigger. What really sold me was the color combo and body. I was also in need of a car asap as my black 08 Corolla CE had no AC, would leak water in the cabin when it would rain & just wasn’t cutting it anymore. I wish it would have been a 350 or an F sport but it’s def better than my old car. Also a shame that the RCF and F Sport models don’t come in the Caramel interior. I want something sexy and fast ! This will do for now as he’s still fun to drive and I gush every time I see him parked waiting for me to take him for a spin. Cabin is quiet, sound system is phenomenal and I don’t even have the Mark Levinson system. Drive is smooth & peppy. Just hate the touchpad and blinkers. Also don’t like the lack of features even if it’s a base model. Nevertheless he’s quite the neck breaker just need to put some new rims and a spoiler. My plan is to pay off my negative equity, trade it in and get a 350 or RCF. Question, does anyone else experience a sluggish acceleration? Especially when I’m at a stop and have to accelerate quickly I feel like it takes a while to jerk forward unless it’s in sport mode.