Home›Lexus›ES›2021

Lexus · Midsize car

2021 Lexus ES

HybridGas

Midsize Cars
4 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-09-11

Safety Signal

92 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record

RecallsNHTSA campaigns1

Complaintsowner reports to NHTSA35

Crash ratingNHTSA overall5★

Fuel economybest combined, EPA44 mpg

2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016

The 2021 Lexus ES is sold in the U.S. as a hybrid and gas midsize car with 4 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the ES 300h, is EPA-rated at 44 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of A. Owners have filed 35 complaints, most often about the air bags. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov

Configuration	Powertrain	Drive	Engine / motor	City	Hwy	Comb	Annual fuel*
ES 300h	Hybrid	FWD	2.5L 4-cyl + 259V Li-Ion	43	44	44	$1,400
ES 250 AWD	Gas	AWD	2.5L 4-cyl	25	34	28	$2,250
ES 350	Gas	FWD	3.5L 6-cyl	22	32	26	$2,400
ES 350 F Sport	Gas	FWD	3.5L 6-cyl	22	31	25	$2,500

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 43078, 43079, 43076, 43077.

Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.

Recalls (1)

Source: NHTSA recall database

▲high

Air Bags

23TA15, 23LA03

999,901 vehicles

ProblemToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Lexus ES350, Lexus RX350, Lexus RX450H, 2021 Sienna Hybrid, Lexus ES250, 2020-2022 Camry, Camry Hybrid, and ES300H vehicles. A short circuit may develop in the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor, preventing the front passenger air bag from deploying.RiskAn air bag that does not deploy during a crash increases the risk of injury.FixDealers will inspect and replace the sensor as necessary, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed in February 2024. Some final remedy owner letters were mailed October 31, 2024. Letters will continue to be mailed in phases through January 2026. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 23TB15/23TA15 Lexus 23LB03/23LA03.

NHTSA campaign 23V865000reported Dec 20, 2023Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing

NHTSA defect investigations

Electrical System:Propulsion System — Pedestrian alert sounds closed

NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt

Opened Jan 27, 2023 · closed Aug 7, 2023 · action DP22005

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database

35complaints filed

2 involved a crash · 0 a fire · 1 injuries · 0 deaths reported

Filed per year: 2021: 2 · 2022: 3 · 2023: 2 · 2024: 13 · 2025: 14 · 2026: 1

Most-cited components

Air Bags25

Forward Collision Avoidance3

Wheels2

Steering2

Structure1

Exterior Lighting1

What owners describe

“The contact owns a 2021 Lexus ES350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair.…”Mar 14, 2025 · Air Bags · NHTSA owner report

“I received a DMV notice of Vehicle Safety Recall, I contacted the Dealer and they notify me that as of now there is no repair for it. That it is on "Interim notice". That if you need a documentation from the that they can provide it for me. Please let me know how to go about it asap. I like to renew my vehicle registra…”Jan 25, 2025 · Air Bags · NHTSA owner report

“The contact owns a 2021 Lexus ES 300H. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V865000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repai…”Jan 24, 2025 · Air Bags · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP

Configuration	Overall	Frontal	Side	Rollover	Rollover risk
4 DR AWD	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	10%
4 DR FWD	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	10%
4 DR FWD	★★★★★	★★★★☆	★★★★★	★★★★☆	10%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program. Standard driver-assist: lane departure warning.

Other ES model years

2026 Lexus ES

0 recalls · 0 complaints

2025 Lexus ES

1 recalls · 4 complaints

2024 Lexus ES

2 recalls · 9 complaints

2023 Lexus ES

2 recalls · 12 complaints

2022 Lexus ES

1 recalls · 14 complaints

2020 Lexus ES

3 recalls · 24 complaints

2019 Lexus ES

4 recalls · 40 complaints

2018 Lexus ES

2 recalls · 15 complaints

2017 Lexus ES

1 recalls · 25 complaints

2016 Lexus ES

1 recalls · 37 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

JSON for this page · API