BlueWhale

I definitely feel the difference when I set the sports mode - nice pickup. Don't care about steering feedback and road noise (unlike bmw lovers!)
Assuming it will have an impact on mpg,any idea how much.

Also, the rated 0-60 in 6.6secs, is that with normal or sports mode?

Moisture

I can't expect a Lexus ES driver to be very concerned with 0-60 times, much less steering feedback and precise road feel.

Have you considered that maybe you bought the wrong car for how you like to drive? 0-60 acceleration is incredibly stressful on your torque converter not to mention completely stupid and unnecessary.

LeeSoFL

How about 40 to 70 which is the way I like to enter a highway? The ES in Sport+ does that very nicely.

Moisture

doing aggressive kickdowns and forcing the transmission all the way up to near the rev limiter before shifting hard into the next gear still isn't good for the transmission if you do it really often. I would use maybe half throttle or so, and when you actually need to go full throttle make sure to shift like 500rpm before redline.

If you are maintaining your transmission filter/fluid past 60k miles you don't have much to worry about. But it's simple a principle of driving reasonably - the way your car was intended to be operated.

With a 3.5L v6, I really don't see the need to have your foot in the floor very often at all.

mikemu30

I'm with you - I'm in no rush and accelerate in a way that I don't even feel the shifts unless I need a quick shot of caffeine to get out of the way of something. They do say however that an occasional launch start is good for the injectors.

Moisture

I think you're causing more wear to your driveshaft and torque converter by launching (especially if you brake torque) than anything else.

If you want to clean your injectors, add a strong concentration of fuel system cleaner into your tank (so that it can do it's job during the full throttle pull, when the injectors are fully open and spraying at maximum capacity) and while merging onto an empty highway, using manual mode, ROLL onto the throttle, gradually increasing throttle application as the RPM's build until you are close to redline. Gentle upshift AFTER easing off the throttle a bit.

Obviously you can be abusive, especially with a Lexus and not run into any issues, but over time I've learned to respect my vehicles and treat them with care. It's all about the risk to reward ratio. This way you're causing the least amount of wear (unless you're past 60k miles on original transmission pan filter, then I cant recommend it at all)

kalel2127

Mine is leased which means I get to drive it like it's stolen... LOL

Moisture

Why would you lease a Lexus ES if you are that sort of driver? I just don't understand.

kalel2127

Because I have more than 1 vehicle...

95bat

It will likely cut your mpg by up to half. When I baby it as much as possible I can manage 22mpg in 100% city driving and a lot of stops.
If I let accelerate up to 3500 rpm in 1st and 2nd gear my mileage drops to 15 mpg. With harder acceleration from every stop I'm sure that could be lowered to the 13-14 range.

Usually 0-60 times are measured in the fastest possible setting, so probably in sport mode. I don't think there is a huge difference between the two, though.

A new member asked a question about mileage and driving modes and you felt this was helpful for them? Replies like this create such a toxic environment in the ES sub-forum I'm surprised we even have new members anymore. Go for help and get insults

CJS57

I don't feel any difference in acceleration between sport and regular mode. I do accelerate a lot at wide open throttle. Love the feeling of the g force. My new 2019 is not as quick as my 2010 ES 350. I bought that one new and drove it 170,000 miles with zero problems. Only routine maintenance. It never went back to any dealer, not even once. I punched it (0-60) out at least several times daily and took it over 100 at ever safe opportunity. When sold it still drove like new, just not quite as tight on the body.
I am a non typical Lexus owner the way I hot rod this car. Love the looks, interior, great ride, smooth and quiet too. I also like a quick and agile car as well. Lexus fits all of this at a price point I like. The 8 speed transmission on this new model does not feel as robust as the 6 speed on the older model. We shall see how it lasts. My next car if I live long enough (I am 73) will be electric, probably Tesla.

mikemu30

Try this - start accelerating and then switch to SPORT during the punch - you will instantly feel a difference. I also wonder why six speeds isn't enough for a trans these days but I suppose it's related to CAFE stds etc.

BlueWhale

Thanks for the info, yes looks like it will set gear changing aggressively and mpg might sufffer. Although on this board, I traded in my 2007 ES350 that only had 120K miles,,,, so a longtime loyal of Lexus!! Yes, replies are more about me wanting to do 0-60 in shortest possible time!!

95bat

FWD limits us so much when doing 0-60 the driving modes don't help as much as one would hope When the car hits peak torque range it starts spinning the tires and wrecks the 0-60 time. It does alright once it gets to 2nd gear, the 40-60 pull is decent for a FWD sedan.

mikemu30

Any ES owners really looking to drag race🤔🤔🤔