Lexus Malaysia has officially launched the 2013 Lexus ES in Malaysia – the sixth-generation sedan, which was introduced this morning at the Life Centre in KL, slots in between the sporty IS and the GS executive sedan, and Malaysia has the honour of being the first market in the region to introduce the right-hand drive version of the Toyota Avalon-based FWD luxury sedan.
As mentioned in earlier reports and revealed through photos of the brochure, the made-in-Japan ES, which offers the Camry crowd a means to move upscale without breaking the bank account, arrives in three variant forms – the ES 250, ES 250 Luxury and ES 300h hybrid. The ES 250s are powered by a 2AR-FE 2.5 litre Dual VVT-i twin-cam four-cylinder engine offering 181 hp at 6,000 rpm and 235 Nm of torque at 4,100 rpm.
The mill is mated to a six-speed Super ECT auto transmission with AI Shift, and performance specs include a 0-100 km/h sprint time of 9.8 seconds and a 207 km/h top speed. Three drive modes are offered – Eco, Normal and Sport.
The Lexus ES 300h, meanwhile, is equipped with a 2AR-FXE 2.5 litre single VVT-i twin-cam Atkinson cycle four-cylinder unit, with output numbers from the unit being 158 hp at 5,700 rpm and 213 Nm at 4,500 rpm. It’s paired to a 105 kW electric motor that is fed by a 650V nickel-metal hydride battery, and total combined output is 202 hp.
Paired with an eCVT system, the ES 300h manages the 0-100 km/h dash in 8.5 seconds and has a 180 km/h top speed. It adds a fourth drive mode, EV, to the three seen in the ES250.
The ES measures in at 4.9 metres long, 1.82 metres wide and 1.45 metres tall, and has a 2,820 mm-long wheelbase and a kerb weight of 1,615 kg for the ES 250s and 1,705 kg for the ES 300h. Other numbers include a boot volume of 490 litres for the ES 250, and 425 litres for the ES 300h.
All variants wear 17-inch aluminium wheels and 215/55 tyres, but each gets a different wheel design – the ES 250 has a six twin-spoke wheel, while the ES 250 Luxury gets a ten twin-spoke unit, and the ES 300h features an aerodynamically optimised ten-spoke alloy.
The ES comes dressed in a wood and leather interior, and standard equipment includes LED DRLs, auto adjustable and folding door mirrors, puddle lamps, keyless entry/start, a sunroof (or as Lexus tags it, a moonroof), automatic rear sunshade, an eight-inch Electric Multi-Vision Screen and auto tri-zone air-con.
Other common kit to all three models is cruise control, 10-way power adjustment front seats, a Remote Touch Controller, reverse camera and Bluetooth connectivity.
The ES 250 comes dressed with smooth leather seats and halogen headlamps, while the ES 250 Luxury and ES 300h adds on semi-aniline leather and self-levelling HID headlamps with washers, as well as a sat-nav system and manual side window sunshades.
As for entertainment systems, both ES 250 versions are equipped with a Lexus Premium Audio eight-speaker, eight-channel Class D amplifier system, while the range-topping ES 300h gets a 12-channel, 15-speaker Mark Levinson sound system. It also adds Hill Start Assist to its kitbag.
Safety kit is standard across the range – 10 airbags (including driver and front passenger knee as well as front and rear seat-mounted side and curtain airbags) VSC, traction control, EBD, tyre pressure warning system and whiplash injury-lessening front seats.
Five colours are available for the ES, these being Straight Black Glass Flake, White Pearl Crystal Shine, Mercury Black Mica, Platinum Silver and Fire Agate Mica Metallic, along with three interior colour trims – black, ivory and light gray.
Pricing was announced last month when the order books were opened for the car, and are RM259,800 for the ES 250, RM279,800 for the ES 250 Luxury, and RM353,000 for the range-topping Lexus ES 300h hybrid, on-the-road excluding insurance. The Lexus ES comes with a three-year warranty.
With the launch of the ES, Lexus Malaysia is offering three-years free service and one-year free road tax with insurance to its first 200 ES customers. The company is planning to sell 100 units of the car by the end of this year, and is targeting sales of 600 units for 2014, which it says will account for 40% of the overall sales for the brand in the country.
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Can’t help but get the feeling Lexus design is always missing something. They have much higher reliability and user-friendliness. But just falls a few inches short of garnering a cult-following like BMW.
When BMW break down often, fans will say if you can’t afford the repairs, then you don’t “deserve” a BMW. When Audi has some weird ergonomic issue, fans say so what, the drive is awesome. When Mercedes depreciate like a rock falling into water, they say, Mercedes buyers don’t care about depreciation.
Why are there less people who would say to haters who complain that Lexus=Toyota, OK, so what, Lexus is very reliable amongst the luxury brands?
Is it human nature? Die die (in terms of depreciation and reliability) also want to look cool?
Its toyolta… Better buy new vios kawan
“BMW depreciates faster” – Merc fanboy.
Lol.
This one way better than Audi A6, and both are FWD.
As you said “Can’t help but get the feeling Lexus design is always missing something” – that’s right. There’s always a “hidden” design details or quality you might say that the Japanese or other car makers fail to notice or copy but the buyers are aware that these “hidden details” are there on BMW, Mercedes, Ferrari, Porche and other super cars coming from Europe. Up till now they failed to put the brand synonyms with luxury, prestige and the urge to own one.
So, it’s always design > reliability?
Compare the drive. Conti cars are very compose and always ahead of jappy.
Besides, no wrong for Lexus being a Toyota. But at least they don’t share so many of the parts. Look at the engine. What makes you feel so luxury for paying extra on something you can get in a Camry?
At least Audi & Volkswagen don’t share their parts too obvious.
If Toyota really want to bring Lexus up. At least they split everything to a very minimum of sharing. We don’t mind technology transfer like TFSI to TSI on VW & Audi. But it’s a completely different creature by themselves.
What makes Toyota different from Lexus apart from just better furnishing?
Are you sure?! Look at the A3, it is actually the Golf in a pretty metal sheet. Both use the same engine, gearbox, suspension, chassis, wipers etc and the list goes on and on.
Very simple and clean design but need to look a bit sporty and premium feel! will be perfect if it’s a Camry.
What!!? 9.8 second. Gonna get smoke by bm320i. Heck even the new 116 is faster than this crapz. Handling? Still lose to bm. I guess those gong kia that gives thumb down must be a Lexus car salesman or the brain cannot function properly to see which is the better car. Merz also better. Jgn nak tipu diri sendiri …
I agree!! Those fanboys like to cheat themselves. Like how I see alot of vios and camry with lexus emblem nowadays.
Even Passat is better than this junk!
How can a camry look-alike be desirable? Unless you are above 60 yr old bald grandfather.
That is what lexus is lacking. Desirability in which Audi,BMW and Merc has. No one with a sound financial mind gonna pay premium dollars for a low class camry.
Want reliability, better just buy the cheapo vios.
What are kimchis lacking?
The obvious answer is Resale Value. In fact, in used car community term, the RV is close to none when it depreciates 50% in a year
I’m probably gonna get smack but Toyota/Lexus fanboy…to me this car has no soul in its design and I test drive the previous gen ES – no joy to drive – and look at it center console, those buttons look no difference than buttons on my old VHS player at home.
then u should go test drive the latest ES (or LEXUS), u ll be surprised how good the handling is( athough the engine spec is another issue)… dont live with the past.
The past is where lexus belongs. Engine? From the past, Gearbox, from the past, Chasis, from the past. Only the only thing futuristic about lexus is its shell.
Then Lexus must be commended for doing such good job with their latest models, using only their “past” technologies.(the chasis r all new, but BMW fans wont bother to know )The new GS, IS especially, hv won the hearts of many intetnational critics over continental competitors such as BMW in terms of driving dynamics. By the way, the 3 series’s steering feel isnt that good anymore compared to previous gen.
How many times wanna launch this same old junk? Next…
just a glorified camry with tech and more airbags….. and higher pricing…
It’s based on the Avalon, dude. If you just look at the Avalon itself, you’d know it’s not a Camry despite still being a Toyota.
Think that not many have seen the Avalon in Australia and the North American market, so can’t compare
They need to know more before commenting..
Interior and exterior are light years ahead of the Camry (and I drive a Camry myself). I think it’s worth the extra price for much higher quality stuff. Yes, the drive might not be very exciting, neither is the Camry but it’s damn comfortable especially for families with young children. Not everyone needs a sports car.
Off course.
As staff of mine in Taipei has the 2004 Lexus ES300. It has the reverse camera built into the rear view mirror plus a compass showing which direction the car is heading.
It reminds me of the interior of the ACV 40 Camry.
Suppose all the good designs go into the Lexus first before trickling down to the Camry. Thereafer they are copied by the rotten cabbages
Competitive pricing…rivals the likes of the A4, 3 Series and C Class but engine displacement and performance/dynamics is behind its German rivals.
The reverse camera, good sound system, keyless entry, moonroof and 10 airbags as standard kit is really good when the 320i, C200 and A4 1.8 TFSI (exception for BOSE and keyless entry now standard on the A4) does not have either of those! Only thing lacking is the omission of HID lamps in the basic ES.
The ES is a big sedan. I don’t think there’s any direct competitor here yet. The 3-er, C-klasse, A4 and such competes with the IS. And to a certain extent, cars like the CC and S60.
The ES for those who’d like a big sized sedan (similar in size as the 5-er, E-klasse, A6, GS) but at a lesser price and didn’t mind a few setbacks (FWD, lower specs, slowww).
When I was in the US, you can see the ES everywhere. They loved the car there. But I noticed that most of the drivers are only people in their 40s and above. I have not seen any younger person driving one.
Perhaps that age group is Lexus’ target in Malaysia too. Made perfect sense for uncles in Camrys and Accords to upgrade to a 260k bigger Lexus. Rather than downgrade in size to a C-klasse, 3-er, A4 and such,
it’s rivals are 5 series, e class and a6
I think that’s more likely a GS jobs, ES is a S-Class, 7 series and A8, counterpart..
The E-Segment from Lexus is the LS460 and LS600H to compare with 7, S & A8
Got confuse ES and LS, their sedan profile look similar
LS is the long and wide bugger flagship Lexus
Interior and Exterior dimensions and luxury-ness, this new GS/ES is in its class of its own. Its dimensions are nearing the previous generation S-Class.
The 5 Series is really cramped inside, especially the rear seat with the massive tunnel for the drive shaft. E-Class is much better for front and rear legroom
How do I know? Because I have sat in one in Taiwan.
True. The new 5 series is quite cramped at the back.
the 5 series might be cramped at the back but if the owners are driving , especially the lucky ones with the straight six engines, they will never look at any other rival.
drove a 528i once. never could look at my camry the same way again. sigh.
Glorified Toyota or not, Image ID – 203219 is very the gorgeous!
oh common..its use camry engine and gearbox..not a V6 engine..even toyota mark x and toyota crown use a 2.5l V6..not worth it.
Agree.
Why cant they use the silky smooth v6 used in their IS250 or Mark X. The next generation of drivers and luxury car owners will miss the sound of 6 cyl engines, sacrificed at the altar of fuel economy.
This would be the perfect vehicle if it were to come with a V6 engine at the same capacity. But I wonder what happens to the price if it were.
Any news for the ES350? Drove the last generation IS350 before as a rental in Houston. Awesome engine.
The 2.5 V6 in the IS and GS is silky smooth and sounds better, but the 2.5 four-banger have better low end torque which suits this car better… The 3.5 V6 is a different story though..
Would love the V6 2.5 used in the Mark X as well.
Forget the car…who’s that in black?
While I respect the IS, LS and GS as proper luxury/premium cars, this ES is just a glorified Camry/Avalon. The FWD architecture also is not conducive for good handling. Dont waste your time on this. Get an IS instead. Or save money, and just buy a Camry :)
Having said that, the 3rd gen ES was a looker. One of my favourite Lexus designs. Hard to believe it started life as a Camry.
Did you even read the article? It’s based on the Avalon, not the Camry. And Avalon is not the same as the Camry, the Camry is much smaller in size.
Could it be that this was why UMW Toyota originally introduced the Camry without stability control? So they can market it as a premium feature of this premium Camry?
260k car without Xenon? Even the low spec Camry does have it too….
Tested Lexus ES before, only thing I like about it is the car refinement and sound insulation, other than that, the car doesn’t leave me a memorable feel on drivability like what I can find in a conti car.
If you had read the review on the Lexus LS about 10 years ago, the US reviewer call the quiteness of the Lexus Tomb Quiet, as if you are in the underground Egyptian Pyramids.
Agree, the Lexus I tried was the old SG registered ES300, it is very quite but lacks feedback.
It is a passenger’s car, meant to have a Ahmad driving and the taukeh sitting at the rear seat
So racist you are SamShowedMeTheHilux…it should you who drove the car, and let Tan Sri Ahmad, Prof Alias, Mr Ahmad or even the orang putih sat at the back!
Obviously, you are someone that I have shown the Hilux to.
Still want a good price for your kimchi?
its a full spec Camry. Nothing to proud of, better buy Audi A6 Hybrid price start from rm280k.
Japanese reliability is second to none.
Read the 6 sigma book. Then you know why.
Image ID – 203250 side mirror button, almost the same with another toyota car, so its difficult to design the button to look more ‘luxury’ because its a lexus rite? for the engine, even toyota mark x recond from Japan use V6 engine, its a stock clearance engine from toyota by giving this 2.5 litre inline 4 engine? nice cheating Toyota.
toyota front wheel drive platform uses the four cylinder for that engine size. mark x recond is rear wheel drive thats why it use v6.
Impressive, 10 airbags.
When we listen to people or read any articles, we must pay attention to what is mentioned and what is not.
that analog clock designed by which company? seiko or casio? :D :D :D
Bentley and Rolls Royce also using analog clock
I think the pricing is a bit too high for what essentially an upscaled Toyota Avalon, unlike Lexus IS and GS which were built as true luxury cars from the ground up.Even by looking at the dashboard, you can tell that this car is not really worth the premium price tag (unlike the IS & GS), although I must say the overall design is much nicer than the Toyota Camry.Price-wise,this car should be above Toyota Camry but below Lexus IS.
Safe to say that the Audi A6 hybrid is a much better car than the ES. The pricing is similar, the A6 has a more powerful engine and it looks and drives stunningly
A6 is as boring as this ES, but at least the ES reliability is top-notch.
At least most people agree with Japanese reliability.
Too many horror stories on sui kwan euros
I think this car has its own niche and has no direct competitor (in Malaysia)…I do think the car is underrated though… Space, luxury, serene ride, well equipped car under 300k, good bang for buck… Maybe its not “driver centric”, but then how many people drive their car like they stole them.. For me it suits the target market… Worth a look..
Lexus ES is marketed primarily in US and China which it competes with Buick LaCrosse, Lincoln MKS and others…. The car is meant for full-size luxury space, without paying much like Lexus GS/LS, at the cost of “platform sharing” with front-heavy FF econobox like Camry/Avalon, not true sporty FR platform like Lexus GS/LS…
For me still I prefer Lexus IS…. Though quite a lot smaller provides more feel and engagement, more balanced FR chassis…. If space is priority, ES is better for you… Test out and compare with other makes as well….
Dear Anthony,
There are 5 colour options – White, Black, Grey, Silver, Brown-ish
For the leather, there’s Black, Ivory, and Light Grey.
The article says 4 colours and doesn’t include Ivory as leather option.
I just saw these from their official website. Somehow, I really like this model but can’t afford yet.
downsys, I did type in five colours (Straight Black Glass Flake, White Pearl Crystal Shine, Mercury Black Mica, Platinum Silver and Fire Agate Mica Metallic). As for the three interior trims, yes, my bad, typed grey instead of ivory. Corrected. Thanks for spotting it.
Anthony,
It’s Mercury Grey Mica, not black. I was wondering why they had two blacks so I went to the site to check it out. Turns out they don’t. Hehe.
So this is where the rest of camry air bags goes.. hehe..
Go to Sam’s car yard. He will show you the Hilux
this lexus the Chick in Black lace and coat, is very very hot, melting away…
oh my gawd!! whos that chick!! she’ freaking hot!!!!
i wan the all chic not lexus car!
At First do considered GS and this ES300H and that should be around 200k in labuan(my hometown) due to its quiet cabin large space, But when called lexus it seem like they do not interested in doing buisness. Tried BMW and they really provide great service which a luxury car company should be. Then booked the 2014 528i m sport that price at rm300k. There are alot lexus in labuan, hope you do provide better service to us !
now this is a much proper car from toyota but with this kind price, despite maintenance, more would prefer BMW, VW
This Design and spec should be on the new Camry. Enough Said!!
Then buy 1 lor
Saw the car and i must its huge. Better get the luxury line
This car RV sure extremely hailat. After 1 yr drop more than 100k become same value like camry 2.5v.
Better save you money and just buy camry. Don’t cheat yourself. Just change to lexus emblem and u can save 100k.
Obviously, a kimchi owner that is stuck with the rotten cabbage
With this price range the battery should be offered the lithium type battery instead nickel type…continental rivals are offering lithium type of battery…
Sorry to say this.. in term of design wise.. external POV.. K5 far prettier
The Hailat face of the K5 owner will look excellent on facebook
this brand is so perasan bagus.. lexus is still toyota.. lexus is still toyota not at par with bmw/merc/audi.. sorry la lexus.
I was waiting for Hyundai to bring in the Genesis and Kia to bring in the K9.
These cars will depreciate at least 70% in the first year. I should be able to profit from them easily.
Would be difficult for the Lexus though
Sam loser is only one very junior sales man that talk bodoh like small kid. That is the reason he is still staying in his dream. It is waste of time to se his blog as Sam still need to work very hard for his living. Sometimes, i do pity a guy who is not livig in reality. Work harder Sam to pay your 7 yrs 90% car loan first and save money to buy a house rather than wasting your time writing bodoh story here.
support !! sam looser should concentrate selling toyota n not wasting time talk sxxx here.
It’s quite a nice car to be driven in although not as good as the S-Class/7 series/A8/LS. But one thing I cannot justify is the price. At RM260k base, that is just 20k short of an Audi A6 which comes with LED headlights & a hybrid motor. Maybe if it was around Rm200k that would have been a steal but at RM 260k, na you have better options out there. Because at the end of the day it’s just a more luxurious Toyota Avalon( UMW should bring this car into Malaysia).
The car’s skin & trim is Lexus, until you pop up
the hood & see for yourself. Wow! sound familiar
to Camry! When you test drive it, the car seems not up to mark as far as Lexus refinement is concerned. The ambience feel “hollow”, engine and
surrounding noise is obviously noticeable. You feel like a Camry. Also, the front door is alright; but the rear door is very light – a sign of not enough insulation padding. My 2 cent opinion.
Talking about test drive, please do not think that Lexus M’sa being a premimum marque, the sale advisor would be professional & of reasonable quality. They tend to look down on people.
Recently armed with the necessary budget, I am in dilemma whether to go for this new ES250 or a recond RX350. IF I go for ES, it is a new car, but of lower spec. If I go for RX350, it is a recond but better spec. So, decided to go to Lexus M’sia for a test drive. That ended up with a “good lesson” for me to learn.
First, the SA will try to know if you are a “Da Gong Chai” (salaried man) or a boss. If you are a boss, yes, maybe you are a potential customer & will layan you.
Hey, this is not go to pasar to buy
sayur. With this asking price, customers have many choices out there. Careful evaluation is unavoidable, unless you are born with a rich father and have unlimited money to splash.
After first test drive, when you request for the 2nd, they will use all sort of excuses to turn you down. No test cars already lah, bla bla. So, if you are still keen, can only go to their so-called Lexus Center to “touch” & “smell” the car. What sort of service is this? So, if you think being a premium marque, you will get the Lexus hallmarked excellence customer service, please think twice. They are not as good as the common Joe might think.
Lastly, of course, I didn’t tell them I actually run a company & have a 2006 Lexus parked at home.
I am a Lexus fan.
I agreed that Lexus service is great only when you are seen as potential customer.Recently lost a new Lexus RX. Called Lexus to understand how it can be stolen in open air parking with lots of people around (esp given that when buying the car, I was told the original security is good enough and not to add on any other security, else I would loss the warranty).
Got past around. Nobody seems keen to talk to me. Waited for return call which never happens. Finally, it took a receptionist to understand my frustration and link me to an engineer.
Don’t get me wrong. I am a Lexus fan. Like the car but not the service.
Test driven the ES250 at the Sg Besi showroom. My first impression of the car is the spaciousness in the front and rear. Handling was superb. Being a six footer myself, I do find this car suitable for me. However, if I want a six cylinder rwd I will go for the IS250 Luxury.
Anyone whom is an owner who currently owns this Lexus ES care to comment on the overall performance, maintenance, after sales service etc of the car? Really would appreciate as I am considering this and a VW CC. Appreciate your feedback if any.
hai, does anyone here knows the bolt pattern/PCD of this 2013/2014 es250 rims? Appreciate your feedback.