Compare the2024 Lexus ESVS 2023 Toyota Crown

Both the ES and the Crown have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the ES the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 54 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Crown has not been tested, yet.

The ES comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Crown’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Lexus’ powertrain warranty covers the ES 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Crown. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Crown ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The ES’ corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Crown’s (6 vs. 5 years).

J.D. Power and Associates rated the ES third among midsize premium cars in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Crown isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Lexus vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Lexus above average in initial quality. With 23 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

The ES has more powerful engines than the Crown:

The ES can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 1.6 miles. The Crown can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Lexus ES uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Crown Platinum requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The ES’ standard fuel tank has 1.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the Crown (15.9 vs. 14.5 gallons).

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the Lexus ES, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a six-speed automatic is available for the Crown.

For better traction, the ES’ optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Crown (235/45R18 vs. 225/55R19).

The ES F Sport’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Crown’s optional 45 series tires.

For better maneuverability, the ES’ turning circle is .8 feet tighter than the Crown’s (38 feet vs. 38.8 feet).

The Lexus ES may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 550 pounds less than the Toyota Crown.

The ES F Sport uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Crown doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The ES has .3 inches more front legroom, .3 inches more rear headroom, .3 inches more rear legroom and 1.2 inches more rear hip room than the Crown.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the ES’ power trunk can be opened or closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Crown doesn’t offer a power or hands-free opening trunk.

The ES uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Crown uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Lexus service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Lexus first in service department satisfaction. With a 49% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

The ES offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Crown doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the ES offers optional adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Crown doesn’t offer cornering lights.

A power rear sunshade is optional in the ES and manual rear side window sunshades are standard in the ES Ultra Luxury to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Crown doesn’t offer a rear or rear side window sunshades.

The ES’ standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Crown has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The ES is available in both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive configurations. The Crown doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Lexus ES, based on reliability, safety and performance.