The ES is a low-volume file — between 10 and 57 complaints a year across twelve
scored years — and at those counts one busy year moves everything. The label
names 2013 and 2019.
The 2013 car is the worst at 2.78 times the model’s own median on 57
complaints, with speed control leading at 10 reports; owners describe a
hesitation of one to three seconds when accelerating. Lights and visibility
sits second at 7, and the accounts there are about the panoramic sunroof
shattering while driving rather than about lighting. That year carries 21 crash
allegations.
The 2019 car is the other, at 2.48. Fuel system leads at 14 reports, and the
recurring subject is the fuel pump — a matter that reached a recall, which is
why the category carries more weight here than its size suggests.
The recall record is front-loaded. The 2010, 2011 and 2012 cars carry five,
three and three weighted campaigns, and no year since has carried more than
three. The 2011 car grades D on 21 complaints, which is close to the model’s
own median rate — on this file the recall column does much of the work the
complaint column cannot. At least thirteen distinct campaigns touch the model
overall.
The 2021 car is worth reading carefully rather than as a bad year: airbags and
restraints accounts for 23 of its 35 complaints, a single category taking
two-thirds of a year, which usually indicates a recall population rather than
something owners met on the road. It still grades B.
2018 and 2020 are the quietest years, at 11 and 10 complaints — quiet enough
that the grades show little reported rather than much proven.
Reviewed Claude, 30 September 2026, against the model's own record and NHTSA campaign filings
