Lexus ES300H vs BYD Shark 6

What's the difference?

What’s the closest thing we have to a modern-day Holden Statesman/Caprice?

If, like General Motors, you obliterate Australia’s Own from existence altogether, you’re left with time-honoured rivals also made in this country, like the Ford Fairlane, Chrysler by Chrysler and Toyota’s Crown and Avalon.

But they’re also all in history’s dustbin (well, the American ones, anyway), leaving the humble Camry as the sole living nameplate with any connection to Australian manufacturing.

And since the Lexus ES is a close relative, we’re going to take a fresh look at the latest version, with a view of it as a bit of a survivor of a bygone era – where aspirational vehicles were created from normal family sedans.

Just like the Fairlane, Crown and of course, the Caprice.

Launched in mid 2018 but facelifted in 2021, we test the ultimate version of the seventh-generation ES, the 300h Sports Luxury – or SL, if we’re to make yet another tenuous connection to long-gone Holdens.

Let’s go!

Chinese manufacturer BYD was the first to launch a plug-in hybrid ute in Australia with its Shark 6 PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle). And it has recently become the first to launch a cab-chassis PHEV variant, to boost the Shark 6’s 'workhorse' appeal for tradies and other buyers who prefer their own choice of trays or specialised service bodies. We recently put one to the test to see how it measures up.