Motor Trend has produced a curious comparison — an on-paper head-to-head with the new Lexus ES 350 versus the Acura TLX, Infiniti Q50, Lincoln MKZ, and Buick Lacrosse:
After a week in the Lexus I understand why the ES continues to outsell these four competitors by between 40 and 212 percent (Q50 and LaCrosse), and why its rate of sales decrease year-over-year was less than half what the others suffered from 2017 to 2018.
It’s a faithful automotive valet—solicitous, never argumentative, seen but not heard. Toss in a strong record for reliability and resale value, and what non-car enthusiast could resist?
So in a consumer-focused Big Test focusing on packaging, safety, reliability, refinement, and the like, I boldly predict that Lexus would grab the gold. Second place might be hotly contested by a heavily optioned 300-hp Q50 Luxe AWD and Acura TLX SH-AWD. I see a Lincoln MKZ 3.0 Reserve II AWD finishing a close third and Buick’s LaCrosse Avenir AWD bringing up the rear.
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