JamesAZ

I have driven both Avalon Limited and 7th Gen ES and here's my perspective from a 2018 Camry owner whose done a 24-hour test drive (and took full advantage of that 150 mile limit) for both of them.

Avalon, really like the door panels. Adds a nice feel of character and design to them. I personally love the design of the Avalon. Grill and all. It's equal in design to the ES but for different reasons ("Cool" vs Luxurious) to me. The drive was very nice and the ride was pretty quiet. The new Avalons have Laminated glass so that really helps. But comparing it to my 8th gen Camry, it felt like a nicer Camry. Definitely nicer in every single aspect, but it's like adding some salt on saltless fries. They're still the same fry, just better.

But man, the moment I sat down in the 7ES... Hot damn I was instantly in love. You forget it's the same car as the Camry and Avalon. Like, wow... That screen is amazing... It's beautifully integrated into the dash, unlike the awkwardly placed Avalon screen. I actually personally think the screen in the Camry looks better than the Avalon but that may be an unpopular opinion. HVAC controls are perfectly laid out compared to the Avalon. The door panels look a lot like the Camry, just nicer. Not the same character you find in the Avalon. But I didn't care. They're door panels. But the drive was very smooth even on stock tires. I can't imagine if you throw some proper riding tires on them how smooth that car can be. No Lexus LS, but it's damn well good enough and I'm very picky about my ride quality. It's better than the Avalon, but honestly, the Avalon was good enough for me too. But the ES is definitely noticeably better. As for quietness, it's the same thing as the ride quality. It's better than the Avalon, but the Avalon was pretty close enough.

So the conclusion to my input to you deciding between the Avalon and the ES:

The Avalon will meet the needs of everyone whose looking for a quiet smooth ride. Unless you're coming from a $100k+ luxury car and are hypersensitive to tiny bumps or little noises, you won't miss out on much compared to the ES. BUT, what you will miss out on the ES is the design language of the interior and the sturdiness of the interior. I pushed around on the Avalon on every surface and managed to get a handful of creeks and crackles from certain areas with very specific methods. But I didn't notice any while just driving the car normally. But the ES, I only got 1 from the center console. But it was very faint and I had to put my ear to it to actually hear it. The way Lexus is built compared to Toyota (even the Avalon) is a completely different process. Only people who have "earned" the right by being promoted from Toyota itself are allowed to work with Lexus vehicles. So you only get the best people from Toyota working with Lexus vehicles. And that's not to downplay Toyota at all either, they have very high expectations even for the Corolla. So at the end of the day, just get whichever car fits your budget better and you like the look of more since for the most part they both have the same feature set.

ionian

That was my initial impression as well as soon I sat in the ES. The moment I pluged in my iPhone and see the 12.3" screen with CarPlay in HD I was in love. My ES is equipped with the 360 degrees camera and that's also my other favorite tech feature. I did test drive the Avalon and that damn screen right away made a first bad impression. I couldn't get over it and knew it would drive me nuts overtime.

E46CT

I think Toyota should change their logo. I think it's overdue for a refresh and it doesn't sit well with higher cost models. Even if the Avalon was nicer, just staring at that ugly *** emblem on the steering wheel every morning would drive me nuts and made me think I had wasted my money. Fine on a Corolla but not a model exceeding 40k. I still don't know who pays 40k for an avalon. I even see Avalon leases (even during the time I got my car) for $200 more a month than my car. lol. like nope.

gotta love residual value for Lexus.

AllinCLE

Historically, part of the appeal of the Avalon (and vehicles like it) was as a sort of covert (entry) luxury car. There's a lot of people who want a quiet and luxurious vehicle with lots of features, and are willing to pay for it, but do not want the attention or baggage (social, workplace, etc) that comes with a luxury badge. Sure the Avalon's segment is nearly dead now, but the phenomenon lives on. It's the reason for the Platinum F150, and why someone might option a Tahoe north of $80K instead of buying the Escalade. To the uninitiated, you're in a sensible mainstream vehicle. They aren't making the same assumptions

The ES has the more sophisticated design language, inside and out. Should be quieter too, when comparing apples to apples trim and equipment-wise. Upgraded materials in lots of places too in the ES. Beyond that, they're essentially the same car.

ionian

Years ago Avalon was the "flagship" sedan of Toyota. For those looking to fly under the radar it is the one to get if they don't want to get the ES as that could come across as a bit pretentious. Those days are long gone.

LexFinally

Confused. Why do you say that?

E46CT

I think we all know that. I think what he was trying to say is the core BIW and architecture/powertrains are different. And honestly build quality isn't anything to be too proud of. I caught numerous manufacturing defects on both my 21 ESes. Everything from uneven gaps, paint defects, finishing defects, rattles etc. There's a higher standard for Lexus materials and parts for sure, but lets not treat it like it's Rolls Royce or anything like that haha.

The suspension tuning differences are extremely minor. Just damping and rebound rates. Toyota is not in the business of wasting money so they'll re-use as MUCH as humanly possible.

But agree obviously to your overall point the ES is nicer. But at it's core, essentially it's a fancier Avalon and Camry.