Toyota's hybrids just got a MASSIVE upgrade.
#toyota #lexus #hybrid
Toyota and Lexus just announced the final specs on the 2026 Lexus ES. It will be offering all new hybrid tech classified as 6th generation. Here's why I'm excited.
Powertrain, Suspension, and Steering | Sixth-Generation Hybrid System
The 2026 ES 350h is the first Lexus model to adopt the brand’s sixth-generation hybrid system. Compared to the 2025 ES 300h, which utilized Lexus’ fourth-generation hybrid system, the 2026 ES 350h delivers more total output and, for the first time, the ES hybrid offers optional all-wheel drive. Front-wheel drive is standard on the ES 350h.
Similar to the previous-generation ES 300h, every 2026 ES 350h uses a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine combined with a starter generator, a front motor generator, and an electronically controlled continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) to power the front wheels. For 2026, the engine’s output increases from 176 hp and 163 lb-ft of torque to 186 hp and 173 lb-ft, while the motor generator’s output increases from 118 hp and 149 lb-ft of torque to 201 hp and 199 lb-ft.
ES 350h models equipped with all-wheel drive add a third motor to the system. Mounted at the rear axle, the AWD ES 350h’s 54-hp e-Axle unit provides power to the rear wheels, allowing for additional traction on demand in adverse conditions. All-wheel-drive ES 350hs’ effective front-to-rear torque distribution can be varied between 100:0 and 20:80. This distribution is informed by vehicle wheel speed, acceleration and steering angle sensor information.
Total net combined hybrid system output is 244 horsepower on both front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive ES 350h trims, up from 215 hp on the front-wheel-drive-only 2025 ES 300h.
Sixth-generation hybrid improvements include a simplified cooling circuit for the CVT, which also adopts a new multi-axis layout of the front starter-generator and motor generator, along with a simplified cooling system, resulting in a more rigid and compact transaxle casing. The motor generator is also larger and more powerful.
In its blending of gas and electric power, the sixth-generation hybrid system favors that larger and more powerful electric motor more than before, keeping engine revs lower and quieter during everyday operation. A microfiber sound absorbing material has been added to the engine’s air intake box, as well, to help quiet the engine’s higher-frequency noises at higher rpm. Similarly, the exhaust system adopts a larger muffler to further quiet the engine, while a flexible coupler between the exhaust manifold and the front exhaust piping suppresses the transmission of vibrations from the engine to the exhaust system itself. Active Noise Control in the cabin uses the counter frequencies played through the audio speakers to suppress engine booming sensations.
The A25A-FXS 2.5-liter engine also benefits from increased block rigidity, as well as a new multi-hole direct fuel injector, which expands the fuel spray area in the combustion chamber and works with straightened intake ports for a cleaner and more efficient air/fuel mixture and combustion. A new variable cooling system enables precise control over cooling pathways based on the engine’s running condition and ambient temperature, improving cooling efficiency by prioritizing or blocking coolant flow to the heater core and metering the electric water pump’s flow rate and the opening or closing of the thermostat. The oil pump, too, is an electronically controlled, variable-capacity unit, which helps reduce engine friction and improving fuel efficiency.
The front-wheel-drive ES 350h has a 46 MPG EPA-estimated combined rating, and the all-wheel-drive ES 350h has a 44 MPG EPA-estimated combined rating. The full EPA-estimated fuel
source:
https://pressroom.lexus.com/2026-lexus-es-350h-hybrid-joins-battery-electric-es-350e-es-500ein-eighth-generation-es-lineup/
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