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The 2016 Lexus ES 350 is an overripe banana: Soft and old

With a ride on the softer side of pillowy, but with a high cost of entry and an appallingly low number of standard features, the ES 350 might have you leaning toward a fully-loaded Camry instead.

Andrew Krok
Cars are Andrew's jam, as is strawberry. After spending years as a regular ol' car fanatic, he started working his way through the echelons of the automotive industry, starting out as social-media director of a small European-focused garage outside of Chicago. From there, he moved to the editorial side, penning several written features in Total 911 Magazine before becoming a full-time auto writer, first for a local Chicago outlet and then for CNET Cars.
Andrew Krok
2016 Lexus ES 350
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Do you like dinosaurs? You'll probably like the 2016 Lexus ES 350.

2016 Lexus ES 350
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Despite a small facelift for 2016, the car is largely unchanged, and it feels like it's been around for nearly a decade.

2016 Lexus ES 350
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If you've seen one of these on the road, you've seen 'em all.

2016 Lexus ES 350
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The ES 350 is powered by the same 268-horsepower V-6 that powers the Camry's higher trims.

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Both vehicles receive EPA fuel economy ratings of 21 mpg city and 31 mpg highway.

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Thankfully, it's easy to exceed the highway rating, but staying true to the city rating takes a light foot and concentration.

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The whole thing drives like a Lexus should -- softly and slowly.

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The "vault" trope that describes a Lexus interior is no less true, even on this somewhat cheap model.

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Sadly, with lacking equipment on the base model, it's hard to make a value argument for the ES 350.

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For the same $40,000 you'd spend on a base ES 350 with no options, you could buy a fully loaded Camry with a few grand left over.

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