Inside, the ES 300 is what we've all come to expect from a Lexus--quiet,handsome and, thanks to the wheelbase stretch, roomy, fore and aft.
It's not quite as quiet in the rear seat area as the larger Lexus, but
it ranks at the top of this class nonetheless. It's also as good as any
in terms of standard comfort/convenience equipment. Although our test car
had extra goodies--leather upholstery, part of a package that also includes
a position memory feature for the power driver's seat ($1650), an in-dash
auto CD changer ($1050), and a power sunroof ($1000)--we suspect life in
an ES 300 would be perfectly tolerable without them.
It will certainly be more tolerable for rear seat passengers. Although
the increased rear legroom doesn't look like much on paper, it feels bigger
in the real world, and comfortable for two adult-size people--provided
they're not basketball players. Headroom is no better than average in this
car, particularly sunroof-equipped models like our tester.
Overall, the ES 300's stretched rear seat legroom moves it up a couple
of notches compared to its competitors. Although it's not as roomy as the