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2023 Lexus ES

Hybrid Gas

Midsize Cars
4 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-10-26

Safety Signal

91 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record

RecallsNHTSA campaigns 2

Complaints3 crash reported 12

Crash ratingNHTSA overall 5★

Fuel economybest combined, EPA 44 mpg

Starting MSRP8 trims · manufacturer $42,490

2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016

The 2023 Lexus ES is sold in the U.S. as a hybrid and gas midsize sedan with 4 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the ES 300h, is EPA-rated at 44 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 2 recall campaigns for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of A. Owners have filed 12 complaints, most often about the service brakes. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall. Manufacturer pricing runs from $42,490 to $49,985 across 8 trims.

Lexus ES — photograph via Wikimedia Commons — Lexus ES · Photo: Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Trims & pricing

Source: manufacturer press kitWhich trim should I buy? → Compare a trim →

Trim	Powertrain	Drive	MSRP	HP	Torque	MPG comb	Seats	Cargo (2nd row)	Wheels
ES 250	Gas	AWD	$42,490	203 hp	184 lb-ft	28 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	17 in
ES 250 F SPORT Design	Gas	AWD	$47,075	203 hp	184 lb-ft	28 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	19 in
ES 350	Gas	FWD	$42,490	302 hp	267 lb-ft	26 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	17 in
ES 350 F SPORT Design	Gas	FWD	$47,075	302 hp	267 lb-ft	25 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	19 in
ES 350 F SPORT Handling	Gas	FWD	$48,950	302 hp	267 lb-ft	25 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	19 in
ES 300h	Hybrid	FWD	$43,690	215 hp	163 lb-ft	44 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	17 in
ES 300h F SPORT Design	Hybrid	FWD	$48,075	215 hp	163 lb-ft	44 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	19 in
ES 300h F SPORT Handling	Hybrid	FWD	$49,985	215 hp	163 lb-ft	44 mpg	5	13.9 cu-ft	19 in

MSRP excludes destination. Open a trim for the complete spec sheet and standard/optional equipment. Have the car in front of you? Decode its VIN to see which of these trims it is and what it was priced at.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov

Configuration	Powertrain	Drive	Engine / motor	City	Hwy	Comb	Annual fuel*
ES 300h	Hybrid	FWD	2.5L 4-cyl + 259V Li-Ion	43	44	44	$1,500
ES 250 AWD	Gas	AWD	2.5L 4-cyl	25	34	28	$2,400
ES 350	Gas	FWD	3.5L 6-cyl	22	32	26	$2,600
ES 350 F Sport	Gas	FWD	3.5L 6-cyl	22	31	25	$2,700

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 45862, 45861, 45935, 45936.

Emissions & certification

Source: EPA emission certificates

Configuration	Smog rating	Emission standard	Where it can be sold new	SmartWay
ES 300h	7 / 10	Federal Tier 3 Bin 30 / California LEV-III SULEV30	All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards	SmartWay
ES 250 AWD	6 / 10	Federal Tier 3 Bin 50 / California LEV-III ULEV50	All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards	—
ES 350, ES 350 F Sport	5 / 10	Federal Tier 3 Bin 70 / California LEV-III ULEV70	All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards	—

Certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S.

The smog rating scores tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, 1 (worst) to 10 (best), and is comparable only within a model year. The standard is the federal bin or California tier the configuration was certified to. Both come from the EPA certificate behind the window sticker.

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Recalls (2)

Source: NHTSA recall database

●moderate

Back Over Prevention

25TB13/25LB06/WRE25

1,024,407 vehicles 81% reported repaired built Sep 20, 2022 – Oct 1, 2025

Problem Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2022-2026 Toyota, Lexus, and Subaru Solterra vehicles equipped with a Panoramic View Monitor (PVM) system. Please see the recall report for a complete list of models. A software error may cause the rearview camera to freeze or display a blank screen when the vehicle is in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility." Risk A rearview camera that fails to display an image can reduce the driver's view behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash. Fix Dealers will update the parking assist software, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed January 2, 2026. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 25TB13 and 25LB06. Subaru's number for this recall is WRE25.

Filed with NHTSADefect report PDF Owner letter PDF Remedy instructions PDF

NHTSA campaign 25V744000 reported Oct 30, 2025 Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing the full filing, and every vehicle covered →

○minor

Back Over Prevention

24TA01 / 24LA01

18,616 vehicles 94% reported repaired

Problem Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2023 Mirai, Lexus LS500, LS500H, 2023-2024 Lexus ES250, ES300H, ES350, 2024 Lexus LC500, and LC500H vehicles equipped with a Panoramic View Monitor (PVM) system. Due to incorrect programming of the parking-assist electronic control unit (ECU) software, the rearview camera image may not immediately display within a couple of seconds after the shifter is placed into reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility." Risk A rearview camera that fails to display an image can reduce the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash. Fix Dealers will update the parking assist ECU software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 10, 2024. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 24TA01 and 24LA01.

Filed with NHTSARemedy instructions PDF

NHTSA campaign 24V124000 reported Feb 21, 2024 Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing the full filing, and every vehicle covered →

These are vehicle campaigns — the ones the automaker filed against this model. NHTSA also records equipment recalls, filed by a parts maker against a component (a tyre, a child seat, an aftermarket part), and those are not listed here or counted above. nhtsa.gov/recalls shows both for a VIN.

Whether any of this applies to one specific ES

A campaign covers a build range, not a model year, so two identical-looking cars from 2023 can differ. Both of these check a VIN against the manufacturer’s own list, free, in about ten seconds. Lexus publishes its own lookup because federal rule 49 CFR 573.15 requires it to, and to keep it current to within seven days.

NHTSA VIN check →Lexus’s own VIN lookup →

Hear about a recall before the letter does

The manufacturer’s letter is the last step of a recall: it has up to 60 days after filing to mail owners, at the address on the registration. We email you the day NHTSA posts a recall on the 2023 Lexus ES, with what to do next. Nothing else, ever — no newsletter, no marketing, one-click unsubscribe in every message.

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database

12complaints filed

3 involved a crash · 0 a fire · 0 injuries · 0 deaths reported

3.8 per 10,000 built · Lexus reported 31,860 ES built (its Early Warning production report to NHTSA)

Filed per year: 2022: 1 · 2023: 3 · 2024: 2 · 2025: 2 · 2026: 4

Most-cited components

Service Brakes 2

Electrical System 2

Unspecified 2

Tires 1

Vehicle Speed Control 1

Forward Collision Avoidance 1

In owners' own words

Filed with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, one per problem area. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed.

The car was taken into Lexus under warranty January 2026. There a loud noise coming from the car when it is going down the road. Lexus tried to say it must be the tires. The car was under 3 years old. I replaced the front tires any way. There cars noise even louder and it was not fixed. I feel the car is un-safe.

Wheels Jul 15, 2026 NHTSA owner report · ODI 11750663

The contact owns a 2023 Lexus ES 300h. The contact stated that while sitting idle with the engine powered off in a local parking lot, the vehicle suddenly began to roll back independently into the nearby underground garage and crashed into the rear end of another parked vehicle's front passenger-side bumper that was unoccupied.

Power Train at 32,186 miles Mar 13, 2026 NHTSA owner report · ODI 11724137

The contact owns a 2023 Lexus ES 250. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle abruptly stalled. During the failure, the vehicle lost power brakes and power steering functionality, with the messages "High Power Consumption Temporarily Limited", "Braking Temporarily Disabled", and "Power Steering Temporarily…

Electrical System at 67,995 miles Feb 17, 2026 NHTSA owner report · ODI 11718537

While driving on the highway, whenever you approach an exit or an intersecting part of a highway, the lane keep assist will jerk hard towards that exit or towards the direction of the nonexistent line on the right or left side of the lane. Weather that line of that lane has faded out or is part of a type of highway intersection.

Lane Departure Nov 10, 2025 NHTSA owner report · ODI 11698670

Car stoped warning lights repaired told fuel pump defective fuel line and fuel sensory replaced also cat convered broken replaced

Fuel/Propulsion System Jun 5, 2024 NHTSA owner report · ODI 11592612

The ES model and LS, the brakes squeak while ONLY going in reverse at a slow speed. I asked the mechanic at the Lexus dealership and they responded that this was common with the newer models. This is a manufacturer defect. Very embarrassing while backing up

Service Brakes Mar 28, 2024 NHTSA owner report · ODI 11579911

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Reported by Lexus itself: 18 death-or-injury claims on this model year in its quarterly Early Warning reports to NHTSA (49 CFR 579.21): 22 injured, as claimed, not verified — about 56 per 100,000 built. Every ES model year, by year and system → Dated and by system, they are exhibit F of the defect dossier.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP

Configuration	Overall	Frontal	Side	Rollover	Rollover risk
4 DR AWD	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	10%
4 DR FWD	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	10%
4 DR FWD	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	10%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: forward collision warning, lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking.

Service bulletins & campaigns

Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications

Communicationsfiled with NHTSA 156

Most recentmanufacturer date 2026-09-22

Kindsas classified by NHTSA 142 service bulletins, 8 service campaigns, 4 emissionss

Most often about: Electrical System, Structure, Equipment, Unknown Or Other, Engine.

L-SB-0026-26 Service bulletin
2026-09-22 · Engine
This bulletin includes basic procedures for performing a rescue charge at battery on high voltage (HV) Ni-MH and Li-ion batteries. This bulletin should be used in conjunction with the applicable model and model year Repair Manual while performing the battery rescue charge. The GRX-5100 should be used wherever the Repair Manual references the Toyota Hybrid System (THS) charger. The charging instru
L-SB-0040-20 Rev2 Service bulletin
2026-09-22 · Engine
OBSOLETE NOTICE September 22, 2026: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see L-SB-0026-26
26LF01 Emissions
2026-09-10 · Fuel/Propulsion System
Under certain conditions, debris can accumulate inside the fuel cap causing potential fuel vapor leaks that can cause increased evaporative emissions to exceed the regulated limits. This issue will not trigger the M.I.L. (Malfunction Indicator Lamp).
L-SB-0021-25 Service bulletin
2026-03-10 · Engine
OBSOLETE NOTICE February 27, 2026: This bulletin is no longer applicable and is now obsolete.
L-SB-0021-25 Service bulletin
2026-02-27 · Engine
OBSOLETE NOTICE February 27, 2026: This bulletin is no longer applicable and is now obsolete.
L-SB-0030-24 Rev2 Service bulletin
2025-12-15 · Structure — Body
Some 2005 – 2026 Lexus vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. Follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. The purpose of this Service Bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures for odor remediation. This Service Bulletin provides a guide on how to prepare and treat the interio
L-SB-0039-25 Service bulletin
2025-09-09 · Electrical System
A new head unit software update is available for 2023 – 2024 model year ES 250, ES 300h, ES 350, LS 500h, and UX 250h; 2023 model year LS 500; 2024 model year GX 550, LC 500, LC 500c, and LC 500h vehicles equipped with Lexus Multimedia earlier than version 2170 (earlier than 2172 for GX 550). This software update includes the following improvements: •User Profile. •User interface. •Cloud naviga
L-TT-0326-23 Rev2 Service bulletin
2025-08-19 · Electrical System
Some customers may experience operational difficulties with some telematics features which they cannot resolve on their own. These resources, in conjunction with the Repair Manual, are for dealership personnel to assist those customers with user issues, user errors, and compatibility issues with other vehicle systems and external applications encountered while operating telematics features.

A service bulletin is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a known condition. It is not a recall, not a finding that the vehicle is defective, and the work is not automatically free — though a bulletin is often what a dealer works from when you describe a symptom, so quoting the document number can save a diagnosis. The count is every communication filed; the list shows the most recent, one entry per campaign, because a single campaign is usually filed as several documents on the same day. The summaries are NHTSA's; the full documents come from the manufacturer.

At the New York inspection station

Source: New York State DMV

New York inspections 0.83%

failed emissions

965 initial inspections of 947 vehicles.

Measure	The 2023 ES	Every 2023 vehicle	Behind it
Failed the emissions check	0.83%	1.6%	964
Failed the safety inspection	1.5%	1.1%	965
Air-bag warning lamp stayed lit	0.10%	0.16%	965
Miles driven a year	7,519	10,038	odometer at inspection
Average odometer	24,909	32,673	odometer at inspection

New York’s emissions test on these model years is an on-board diagnostics check: it fails a car whose check-engine light is on or whose self-tests have not finished. First inspections only, so a car that failed and came back is counted once; private and special plates, not taxis, livery or commercial plates. A rate appears only where at least 200 inspections stand behind it. “Every 2023 vehicle” is every 2023 model-year car, SUV and pickup inspected in the same window, all makes. This is the state’s record of test results, not a reliability score by itself. Source: New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Vehicle Inspections (data.ny.gov, Open NY terms).

ES by model year

all years, side by side →

Year Safety Recalls Complaints

2026 A 0 1 307 mi 2025 A 1 5 44 mpg 2024 A 2 9 44 mpg 2023 this page A 2 12 44 mpg 2022 A 1 16 44 mpg 2021 A 1 35 44 mpg 2020 C 3 24 44 mpg 2019 C 4 40 44 mpg 2018 B 2 15 40 mpg 2017 A 1 26 40 mpg 2016 A 1 37 40 mpg

Common questions about the 2023 ES

Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kits

How much does the 2023 Lexus ES cost?

Manufacturer pricing runs from $42,490 for the ES 250 AWD to $49,985 for the ES 300h F SPORT Handling FWD, across 8 trims. Those are MSRPs from the manufacturer's own press material; they exclude destination, options, taxes and whatever the dealer adds. Every trim and price is listed above.

Does the 2023 Lexus ES have any recalls?

NHTSA has posted 2 recall campaigns for the 2023 Lexus ES. The most serious on file is 25V744000, covering Back Over Prevention. Check your own VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a recall applies to specific build ranges, not every car.

How safe is the 2023 Lexus ES?

NHTSA gave the 2023 Lexus ES 5 stars overall in its New Car Assessment Program tests — 4-star frontal crash, 5-star side crash, 4-star rollover. WhichTrim also grades it A (91/100) on its recall record, which is a different question from crash protection.

What is the fuel economy of the 2023 Lexus ES?

Across the 4 EPA-rated configurations of the 2023 Lexus ES, the best EPA combined figure is 44 mpg. Figures are the EPA's own, per configuration, and every one is listed above.

What do owners complain about on the 2023 Lexus ES?

Owners have filed 12 complaints with NHTSA about the 2023 Lexus ES, most often about service brakes, electrical system, unspecified. Of those, 3 involved a crash. Complaints are unverified owner reports, so treat the pattern as a signal and the individual report as an anecdote.

How clean is the 2023 Lexus ES?

The EPA smog rating for the 2023 Lexus ES runs 5 to 7 out of 10 across its configurations. That score covers tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, and it only compares vehicles within the same model year. It is certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S. Its configurations were certified to different standards — California LEV-III SULEV30, California LEV-III ULEV50, California LEV-III ULEV70, Federal Tier 3 Bin 30, Federal Tier 3 Bin 50, Federal Tier 3 Bin 70 — which the table above lists per configuration.

Are there service bulletins for the 2023 Lexus ES?

The manufacturer has filed 156 service bulletins and related communications with NHTSA for the 2023 Lexus ES, most often covering electrical system, structure, equipment. The most recent is dated 2026-09-22. A bulletin is not a recall: it is the repair procedure a manufacturer sends its dealers for a condition it knows about, and the work is not automatically paid for. It is still worth knowing — if the symptom matches, quoting the bulletin number at the service desk can save a diagnosis. The document numbers and summaries are listed above.

How does the 2023 Lexus ES do at state inspection?

In New York’s inspection lanes over the 12 months to Oct 10, 2026, the 2023 Lexus ES failed the emissions check on 0.83% of first inspections — lower than the 1.6% for every 2023 model-year vehicle inspected; and the safety inspection on 1.5% (every 2023 vehicle: 1.1%). The figures are New York State DMV’s own inspection records, first inspections only, and the table above sets each one against every vehicle of the same model year.

Which 2023 Lexus ES trim is the best value?

$7,495 separates the cheapest of the 8 trims from the most expensive, so the answer depends on which of the differences you would actually use. Every trim has its own page here with the manufacturer's full specification and equipment list, plus a short summary of exactly what it adds over the base trim — worth reading before a dealer frames the walk-up for you. The trim-by-trim ladder shows what every step up costs and what it makes standard.

What we hold, and what an empty row means

Paid vehicle-history reports will not tell you the difference between “nothing happened to this car” and “we never received that record” — both of the big two say as much in their own help pages. Most of what is on this page comes from complete federal registers, so we can tell you which is which, row by row.

Data	Held	Source	What it covers — or what empty means
Fuel economy & configurations	4 configurations	EPA certification records	Every configuration the EPA certified for sale, with its own test figures.
Emission certificates	4 configurations	EPA emission certificates	Smog rating, standard and the sales area that decides where the car can be sold new.
Recalls	2	NHTSA recall campaigns	A complete federal register: every campaign covering this model year, with severity and advisory flags.
Owner complaints	12	NHTSA complaint database	Also complete, but unverified: these are reports owners filed, not findings. Counts scale with how many were sold.
Crash ratings	3 tested	NHTSA NCAP	Only the configurations NHTSA chose to crash-test, which is never all of them.
Service bulletins	156	NHTSA manufacturer communications	Everything the manufacturer told its dealers about a defect or malfunction, short of a recall.
Investigations	none	NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation	No defect investigation has been opened.
Driver-assist crash reports	none	NHTSA Standing General Order 2021-01	No report has been filed. Only entities named in the order report, and only crashes they hear of — so this is also what an unequipped car, or a manufacturer without telematics, looks like.
Specifications filed with NHTSA	none	NHTSA vPIC, decoded from VIN patterns	We had no VIN pattern to decode for this model year, or the manufacturer filed nothing usable.
Trims, pricing & equipment	8 trims	Manufacturer press kit	Transcribed from the manufacturer's own press material, every value carrying the document it came from.

Rebuilt nightly; this page was generated 2026-10-26. Every figure above is traceable to the source named beside it, and the JSON for this page carries the same values with their identifiers.

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). The most serious recall counts in full and each further one counts 85% of the one before, because a vehicle sold in millions is recalled more often than a rare one without being more dangerous — and because a flat subtraction bottomed the scale out, scoring a vehicle with 22 recalls within a point of one with six. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Read it as what it counts: recall campaigns on the federal record, weighted by severity. The damping reduces the sales bias by roughly 40% but does not remove it: like our complaint counts, this is not normalized by how many were sold, so a best-seller still scores somewhat worse than an obscure model with the same real risk. NHTSA crash ratings, do-not-drive and park-outside advisories, and the crash, fire, injury and death counts in owner complaints are reported separately on every page and never blended into the letter — a vehicle can hold five stars and a poor letter at once, and where that happens we say so rather than leave you to notice. Because the scale subtracts from a clean sheet, a model year too new to have been recalled, complained about or bulletined scores full marks on an empty record; we label those grades provisional rather than present them as earned.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed nightly. Trim-level specifications and pricing are transcribed from the manufacturer's official press kit; every value carries its source in the data file.

JSON for this page · API

2023 Lexus ES

Trims & pricing

Specs & fuel economy

Emissions & certification

Factory warranty running out?

Recalls (2)

Back Over Prevention

Back Over Prevention

Whether any of this applies to one specific ES

Hear about a recall before the letter does

Parts & accessories for the 2023 Lexus ES

Owner complaints

Most-cited components

In owners' own words

Crash ratings

Service bulletins & campaigns

At the New York inspection station

failed emissions

ES by model year

Common questions about the 2023 ES

How much does the 2023 Lexus ES cost?

Does the 2023 Lexus ES have any recalls?

How safe is the 2023 Lexus ES?

What is the fuel economy of the 2023 Lexus ES?

What do owners complain about on the 2023 Lexus ES?

How clean is the 2023 Lexus ES?

Are there service bulletins for the 2023 Lexus ES?

How does the 2023 Lexus ES do at state inspection?

Which 2023 Lexus ES trim is the best value?

What we hold, and what an empty row means

Where to go next

Sources & method