Got my Japanese built '07 TCH the first month this hybrid became available. Today I got a new Lexus ES 300h, the first week after this new hybrid arrived.

Tomorrow I will start detailing the TCH, and then put it on the market. It has been such a wonderful experience, I doubt I will ever own a conventional ICE auto again. I am so in love (still) with the hybrid experience, that I would buy a hybrid even if the gas milage was unchanged from the non-hybrid.

Anyone here on greenhybrid.com in the Phoenix area that wants my loaded TCH with 77K miles can have it $2k below Kelley Blue Book, if they express an interest quickly, before I finish detailing it and get it advertised in car sales media at fair KBB value. If seriously interested, PM me for details.

Meanwhile, I still plan on hanging around here, since the ES and new Camry hybrids are so similar.

-- Alan

 

Glad to hear your getting a Lexus hybrid. It being new it should have this same exact synergy drive under the hood. Not sure if yours will have the 2.5 engine or a slightly larger one.

Enjoy the nice Lexus ride and i'm with you, once a hybrid owner, always a hybrid owner. I find it to be addictive. lol

 

Same engine drivetrain as the '13 TCH. Slightly larger body. Specs put it between the Camry and the Avalon. The ES used to be fundamentally a Camry upgrade, but now has a number of small dimension differences (like wheelbase), some that more closely match the Avalon. Suspension is greatly refined; much more difference between the Camry/ES this year than prior years. The ES used to have an adaptive suspension option, but that is no longer available, and is now hardly meaningful.

The biggest drivetrain difference between my '07 TCH and my '13 ESH are the four engine modes in the ESH vs the normal & ECO modes in the '07 TCH. The new modes are EV (like the new TCH) and Sport, but not like the Sport mode on the new TCH. Neither are even close to being sports cars!!!! In Sport, the efficiency monitor changes to a tach (I believe I saw the same in the new TCH), but that is not the big difference. There is an immediate stiffening of the suspension and tightening (less assist) in the steering, which is nice.

Also, rather than a B mode like the TCH, there is now a +/- shifting pattern that looks exactly like the sport shifters found on many non-hybrid cars. What this does is 1) put you in sport mode, 2) put an S1 through S6 indicator in the dash looking like a six speed tranny gear indicator, and 3) control the engine exactly like B mode does, except with six levels of "B" rather than just one. It also keeps the engine running if the car is moving, and causes the RPMs to closely approximate what you would expect to see in a non-hybrid (but not really; it is more intelligently controlled and won't let you do stupid things). Mostly fun, and I expect it will actually be useful for better controlling the mountain descents (and I do drive in the mountains a few times a year!).

Six years ago, I went to the Lexus dealer to trade my '98 GS in on the new GS. I was horribly disappointed with the changes made to the GS, walked across the street to the Toyota dealer and bought the brand new (I didn't even know it was coming) Camry hybrid instead. I totally fell in love the the drivetrain, and mostly loved the rest of the car, but missed some of the coddling included with the Lexus (and was willing to pay for those features). Now I have the best of both worlds! Also, the GS was also majorly updated last year, and most of my complaints from the previous version are all gone now. Had I not fallen in love the the hybrid, and had the price of the GS not gone through the roof(!), and had the GS hybrid been tuned more sanely with respect to efficiency vs. gross performance, I would have gotten the GS hybrid instead.

-- Alan

 

The Lexus ES 300h must be a really nice step up over the Camry hybrid. Next car buying time I will have a look at the ES 300 hybrid. Love the idea of the many selections of the brake-mode and etc. Sounds like your about to have lots of fun driving your new car.

One nice thing about Toyota they take a very popular car then stick a hybrid under the hood, can it get any better. The 39/40 mpg numbers look impressive for the ES300h.

 

Infinity M3 Hybrid.

 

congrats! I'm waiting for the LX570 hybrid if there is one.

 

Some pics of the cars may help you sale effort.

 

Thanks. I finished detailing it, and got it posted in cars.com and in craigslist.com. Already got one call within a few minutes of posting. You can read about it here on craigslist.

CamryHybrid.jpg

 

Can you give more details about your ES with regard to the hybrid system and its FE?

 

What makes you think I want to talk about my new toy?

First, the TCH sold for $14300 today (full asking price, a few hundred under KBB valuation). Got four phone calls and three emails in two days. Sold to second person to look at it, and the first person called back and is sorry he didn't leave a deposit. I think we can safely assume there is strong demand for used Camry Hybrids in the Phoenix area.

As I haven't finished the first quarter of a tank of a three day old car, it is way too soon to talk FE. Seems to be doing every bit as well as my '07 TCH, but 113 degree ambient is not a good time to do FE measurements! After a few tanks, and a moderate fall climate where the AC is not full blast, I can report back with useful numbers.

The ES is the same engine/electric setup as the new TCH, but has different displays and controls and operating modes. One nice thing is the split nav display with any nav mode on the left, and a number of other options on the right (in addition to single non-split displays). Right side options include the energy options of the TCH, but are enhanced. The energy flow diagram with the engine/motor/battery is almost 3D with smaller components and bigger, more animated arrows that vary the animation with the flow rates. The MPG bar charts have a few options, such as 1 or 5 minute bars, and an instantaneous bar on the far right. I am still getting used to all the subtle differences, and have barely begun to explore the multitude of adjustments/settings I can make to the displays and other features in the car. Nearly all settings are easily done through the nav display, but some are done through the dash display. Now that my Camry is sold, I expect to have time to peruse the 300 pounds of manuals that came with the ES (more than 3x thicker than the books that came with the Camry). The manuals virtually fill the glove box, which is the same size as the TCH. I think I'll be keep them in the trunk instead!

The ECO mode is on a **** that is ECO when twisted left, Sport when twisted right, and Normal when pressed down. In front of the **** is an EV button, which is cleared with any change with the ****. Lots of wasted space for a big **** on the center console for what could be handled with three small buttons, but it is a nice and easy to use control. Much better than the hard to see and reach ECO switch low on the dash by the left knee on the TCH. The three different modes are very different from each other, except when the pedal is pressed hard. ECO makes the throttle very lazy, keeps the RPMs low, and generally makes the car feel like it is 1000 pounds heavier (with a rather luxurious overall feel!). Normal feels just like the TCH, with normal pedal feel, perhaps a bit more performance oriented than the '07 TCH normal, but probably more like the new TCHs. Sport mode gives you the tachometer and keeps the engine spinning, and makes the throttle much more sensitive (but this is still far from being a sports car).

-- Alan