The new Lexus ES has premiered at the Shanghai Auto Show with new hybrid powertrains and its first-ever battery electric versions.

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Revealed as a “new saloon for a new era”, the latest generation of the Audi A6 and BMW 5 Series rival also delivers a “a clear step-up in performance, refinement, comfort and luxury appointments”.

Underpinned by the new Lexus global architecture-K platform, the latest ES is larger in every dimension than its predecessor and also delivers more comfort, refinement and luxury, said to align it with models from the next segment up. At the same time, its Clean x Tech design combines a bold presence with a minimalist approach, advancing Lexus’s vision for next-generation battery electric vehicle design.

The brand’s multi-pathway powertrain strategy delivers a choice of full hybrid powertrains and the first battery electric ES models.

Depending on the market, either ES 300h or 350h full hybrids will start off the line-up, featuring a 2.5-litre in-line four-cylinder engine with either 201hp or 247hp, an upgraded battery and both front- and all-wheel drive versions. The ES 300h will be available in western European markets, with the ES 350h on offer in the east. Performance and economy details haven’t been revealed yet.

Two battery electric ES versions will also be available: the ES 350e with a single front-mounted motor delivering 224hp, and the all-wheel-drive ES 500e with a dual-motor setup outputting 343hp and married up with Lexus’s Direct4 intelligent electric all-wheel drive system. Again, there’s no word yet on performance, efficiency or electric range and charging details for the “high-capacity” battery are also under wraps for now.

Both battery electric ES versions draw on the new global architecture-K platform, including new eAxles which integrate both the power control unit and transaxle and feature a lightweight design with compact packaging that helps optimise cabin and load space.

The new ES also benefits from technology innovations such as the Lexus-first ‘Hidden Tech’ switches – made possible by the carmaker’s Arene software platform – and the latest multimedia and safety systems.

The cockpit is based on Lexus’s Tazuna principle, intended to avoid driver distraction by arranging controls and information sources so “they can be operated and recognised with just the slightest movement of hand and eye”.

Equipment includes a 12.3-inch digital driver’s screen, a new 14-inch LexusConnect multimedia that makes its market debut and comes with over-the-air updates, and the LexusLink + app.

The new ES also gains the latest Lexus Safety System + technologies and features, marking further advances towards Lexus’s goal of zero traffic accidents.

Now in its eight generation, the ES has been a key model for Lexus in North America and Asia for more than three decades, but arrived more recently in Europe where it debuted in eastern markets with the sixth-generation model in 2010, and in the UK and Western Europe with the outgoing model in 2018.

The all-new ES will launch in the UK and Europe with the start of sales from spring 2026. Details of UK specifications will drop in the coming months.