2023 Lexus ES 300h with F Sport package yields a sheep in sheep’s clothing

2023 Cadillac CT4-V vs. Lexus ES 300h Ultra Luxury F Sport vs. BMW M340i: Small luxury sedan battle.

This week: 2023 Lexus ES 300h

Price: $54,015 as tested. Premium paint added $595; power trunk with kick sensor, $550; LED headlamps, $1,215.

Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver likes the “efficient powertrain, much-improved infotainment, spacious interior,” but not the “sluggish acceleration, numb steering, not right for F Sport treatment.”

Marketer’s pitch: “Striking style.”

Reality: Striking compromise.

Catching up: Last week we tried out the Cadillac CT4-V, enjoying a mostly fun ride but cramped quarters in the rear. How will the ES 300h F Sport compare?

What’s new: The high-performance F Sport package comes to the Lexus ES 300h. If I remember my algebra correctly, combining an F with an h would result in a G, as in “Gee, why did Lexus do this?”

Otherwise, the ES 300h gets minor updates for 2023 and 2024, which it has since this generation launched in 2019. It received some subtle styling updates for 2022.

Up to speed: When it comes to a premium PHEV, especially one wearing the F Sport badge, one expects there to be some momentum with the fuel efficiency.

But the ES 300h is the watering down of the F Sport. With just 215 horses, 0-60 requires some patience — Motor Trend measured a 2022 model at 7.3 seconds.

The 300h also comes as a front-wheel-drive unit only, and the wheels would spin a lot when the accelerator was buried, so much that I presumed the horsepower number would be much higher. So this also restricts forward momentum.

Hence, compromise.

Competition: In addition to the Cadillac CT4-V and BMW M340i, other competitors include the Acura Integra, Genesis G70, Alfa Romeo Giulia, and Audi A4.

Shiftless: Another part of the issue could be the drivetrain. The continuously variable transmission feels very golf cart-like, lacking pep and not really sounding like it’s ready to roar. I hear traces of a 1985 Plymouth Reliant I once owned — and that’s never a good thing.

On the road: The Toyota Avalon underpinnings definitely shine through in everyday driving. There’s not a lot of fun to be had if you’re just bopping around on regular roads.

The ES 300h does have a sweet spot, when curves seem fun and there’s a little bit of oomph. But with the acceleration lacking and the overall sedan-iness of the ES hybrid, the fun can quickly dissipate.

Going further, pushing the ES 300h to its limits is not a great idea. The car starts to tilt pretty hard and feels like it’s going to lose its grip.

It’s fun on the uphills, because the front-wheel drive really pulls you into the slaloms. But otherwise, it doesn’t feel like much.

To enjoy the ES with all-wheel drive, buyers must choose the gasoline-powered ES 250.

Driver’s Seat: Like all Lexuses, the ES 300h is awesome to touch. The seats are covered in some fine, soft surfaces — NuLuxe, Lexus calls it — as is the dashboard and all the rest. The silver knobs and switches have a touch of matte in them and add to the luxury feel.

The ES 300h brings with it the Lexus speedometer and gauges I’ve come to love — a nice circle surrounded by digital readouts for everything else. The tach is in a ring around the speedometer.

Friends and stuff: Rear-seat passengers enjoy roomy accommodations, although somewhat less than the lower-end Avalon. Legroom is generous and headroom is good.

Cargo space is a modest 13.9 cubic feet but still beats the CT4-V. And there’s no folding down the rear seat here.

Play some tunes: The 10-speaker premium stereo system sounds like a million bucks as well, even though no fancy name was mentioned in the press materials. It boosts the songs you know, finding many of the buried notes at the edges. It’s about an A- trending A.

Control of the system includes a few buttons and the huge 12.3-inch touchscreen ($1,030, which includes some other features), plus a volume knob. Gone are the console lever or touchpad system, neither of which is missed.

Keeping warm and cool: The system is operated from buttons and toggles underneath the infotainment screen, but above the infotainment buttons. It’s easy to follow and to control without losing focus on the road.

The vents sit fairly low, though, so cooling the dashboard on a not-so-hot sunny day seemed a problem; I wonder how it feels in Arizona this summer.

Fuel economy: Here’s the payoff for the vague handling and underachieving acceleration — the vehicle averaged 37 mpg in the Mr. Driver’s Seat week of driving, making it by far the winner of this aspect of our contest.

Where it’s built: Georgetown, Ky.

How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts the reliability to be a 4 out of 5.

In the end: The ES 300h offered far roomier rear seat accommodations and better fuel economy than last week’s Cadillac.

Next week: How will the 2023 BMW M340i xDrive compare?