2025 Lexus ES update caught on camera – but where is the next-generation model?
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The current Lexus ES luxury sedan is set for one more styling and technology update before it bows out – but how far away is the next model?
The 2025 Lexus ES luxury sedan is poised to undergo its third styling update since this generation was unveiled six years ago, leaked photos have revealed.
It is now unclear where it leaves plans for the next-generation ES – which was previously expected in 2024 or 2025 – amid slowing sales of sedans globally.
Lexus has confirmed a new ES is in development – and teased its styling nearly three years ago – but it appears it has been pushed back to give the current model a longer run.
Japanese media reports claim the next ES may arrive as soon as this time next year, with a choice of hybrid or battery-electric power.
MORE: Lexus says sedan market isn't dead yet, as it shifts gear in China amid new rivals
Leaked images posted to social media – including South Korean website Autospy – last month showed illustrations from an owner’s manual for the updated ES, with revised headlights and tail-lights, and an overhauled interior.
Now photos have surfaced in China of the real deal, confirming a new Z-shaped LED daytime-running light signature, and LED tail-lights that now stretch across the bootlid, with ‘LEXUS’ script replacing the ‘L’ badge.
Also visible in the diagrams was a new front grille pattern inspired the latest RX SUV, but it is out of sight in these photos.
Inside, the ES looks to gain the 14-inch infotainment touchscreen from the NX, RX and GX – incorporating the air-conditioning controls, and axing the analogue clock – as well as a widescreen digital instrument cluster.
The mild exterior changes – and major interior upgrades – bring the ES into line with newer Lexus models, and should keep the current generation fresh until it can be replaced by a new-generation model.
It is unclear if the updates will be exclusive to China – where the ES accounts for half of Lexus’ sales, and is the country’s top-selling imported car – or will be marketed globally.
The ES300h badge on the boot lid suggests there will be no changes to the 2.5-litre four-cylinder hybrid drivetrain, which produces 160kW.
The Toyota Camry – on which the ES is based – has switched to a more frugal fifth-generation hybrid system for its latest iteration, which a new generation of the ES would be expected to inherit.
It remains to be seen if the petrol-only power options for the ES – the 2.5-litre four-cylinder ES250 and 3.5-litre V6-powered ES350, the latter not sold in Australia – continue with the latest update.
A teaser image released by Lexus in 2021 appeared to preview the next ES, with tick-shaped LED daytime-running lights and cleaner surfacing, including a sharper crease running along the side of the car.
MORE: Electric Toyota Camry a chance after new Lexus ES trademarks
As previously reported by Drive, Lexus has trademarked the ES350h badge, as well as ES350e and ES500e monikers – hinting at a new-generation ES line-up offering a choice of hybrid (h) or electric (e) power.
Japanese publication Mag-X claims the next-generation ES is due in October 2025 with front-wheel-drive ES350h and ES350e variants, plus an all-wheel-drive ES500e which could wear F Sport branding.
It will reportedly use an updated version of the current model’s TNGA-K petrol-car platform, adapted to support an electric model with batteries under the floor.
Mag-X reports “development began before the COVID-19 pandemic”.
The post 2025 Lexus ES update caught on camera – but where is the next-generation model? appeared first on Drive.
