Interesting, this makes no since for the Lexus brand. The 7th generation ES looks to be a carbon copy of the 2018 Lexus LS500 with the exception to the transverse layout. The 6th gen ES is already a bigger car than the 4th Gen GS in regards to interior space so making it a larger car would only allow it to compete even more with 2018 LS. Adding a FWD bias all wheel drive system probably won’t make the ES the least bit sporty. Based on what I’ve seen from the 2019 Toyota Avalon, the ES will be a 300hp 8spd Auto FWD luxury car designed to be comfortable for masses. It will probably adapt adjustable dampers and a wishbone rear suspension setup. If Lexus does decide to abandon the rear wheel drive midsize luxury sedan segment it will be serious jab to the brands legitimacy as a hard core true luxury automaker.

The ES can’t hold a candle to the likes of midsize segment leaders such as the 5 series and E-class.

If anything Lexus should be giving the ES the axe. The ES has continuously been cannibalizing the GS sales for decades making it fight for sales with the cheaper to manufacture economy sedan shrouded in high end sheet metal and the interior sprinkled with decent quality leather and leftover scrap wood veneer pieces left over from the LS’s woodshop. When consumers enter the Lexus dealers showroom and ask to see the midsize Lexus sedan the sales consultant is forced to explain and show we have two midsize sedans, one of them costing $8k more than the other even though it’s stlightly smaller. Once the consumer test drives them both back to back on a busy road they end up driving home in a ES because they weren’t shown the benefits of owning a GS over the ES. It’s also likely the average consumer shopping in this segment isn’t all that interested in a cars sporty handling characteristics, they just want the car to be fast and comfortable.