Saar: It will go on sale in several markets, including India, later this year.

We’d like to start with an apology. We reported earlier that at the 2018 Beijing Motor Show Lexus will showcase a facelift of the ES sedan. We were wrong. Very wrong. It is, in fact, the seventh-generation of the ES sedan that Lexus has uncovered in China and it does look good. In its new avatar, the Lexus ES promises to be roomier, quieter and safer than ever before. How? Let’s uncover that, shall we?!

Built on an all-new GA-K (global architecture – K) platform, the seventh-gen Lexus ES is 66mm longer, 51mm lower and 46mm wider than its predecessor. The wheelbase, front track and rear track have also increased by 51mm, 10mm and 38mm respectively. The company confirmed that the wheels are now closer to the four corners of the car. That simply translates to lesser overhangs at either end.

As far as the design is concerned, it is still very Lexus-y. At the front, the spindle grille has found its way into the recipe. The ES 350 and the ES 300h feature vertical metal bars that spread outward from the center of the grille. The ES 350 F Sport, on the hand, ditches the metal bars for a blacked-out cross-hatch pattern. It is the first time that the Lexus ES will be sold with an F Sport trim. Obviously, the front bumper has been redesigned to accommodate the bigger grille. The foglamp housings are different and more flashy this time around.

At the rear, the wraparound LED taillamps have been restyled and the boot lid has also been to the drawing board. The F Sport variant gets the addition of a boot-mounted spoiler and some more badging. For wheels, the ES 300h and the ES 350 get 17- or 18-inch options. Whereas the F Sport comes with 19-inch alloy wheels as standard.

For the body paint, a dozen shades are available, including two new options – Moonbeam Beige Metallic and Sunlight Green. In a bid to accentuate the F Sport’s character further, Lexus will offer an exclusive Heat Blue colour option.

The cabin feel is typical Lexus too. Everything just blends in quite well with each other. Even the surroundings of the dash-mounted display have been carved to make it blend in seamlessly. The digital instrument cluster is now leaner in dimensions to keep almost everything concisely visible in the driver’s view field. Lexus says that the position and angle of the steering wheel and the brake pedal were tinkered with to deliver a natural driving position. Thanks to the longer wheelbase and a lower hip point, there’s generous legroom and headroom for the rear passengers.

As you’d expect, the choice of colours for the interior theme has also been extended. Along with Black, Chateau and Topaz Brown, the new ES will be offered with a new Rich Cream option for the upholstery. In the F Sport trim, Lexus has added metal inserts to various panels inside the cabin. The dual tone, black and red theme of the cabin just reiterates its sporty credentials.

Underneath the pretty body and the comfy cabin lies more newness. As mentioned earlier, the new GA-K platform has been specifically designed to accommodate a dual-engine, front-wheel-drive setup. For the F Sport trim, Lexus will offer Adaptive Variable Suspension and a Sport+ mode in the Drive Mode Selection system. As soon as the latter is activated, an engine sound enhancement feature kicks in.

The new Lexus ES has also improved on safety. The Lexus Safety System+ (LSS+) has now been upgraded to accommodate more tech such as bicyclist detection. Courtesy of enhanced sensitivity and range of the onboard radar, the car can also identify a cyclist at right and take evasive measures. Other new safety features include a two-stage high beam system. Apart from turning on or off the high beam automatically, the LED light array can adjust its intensity to reduce glare for oncoming traffic.

For the powertrains, Lexus will offer the ES 350 with a 3.5-litre V6 petrol that produces 300PS/355Nm. That’s 32PS and 19Nm more than before. Transmission duties will be handled by an 8-speed automatic transmission. In select markets, an ES 250 will also be on sale, which will borrow only the petrol engine from the ES 300h. Speaking of which, the power figures for the hybrid ES remain identical – 205PS/215Nm. As before and because of the electric motor in the configuration, the 300h will have an e-CVT mated to its dual-engine powerplant.

Lexus will put the new ES on sale later this year. Since it comes to India as a direct import, expect Lexus to waste no time at all to bring to our shores as soon as possible. In India, only the 300h variant is on sale. The F Sport trim is likely to make it here too but will the gutsy V6 come as well? Only time will tell.