@mikeinnh Yes but like the Avalon the ES-350 is a 6cyl, not the Hybrid 4 they are going to put into the Avalon Hybrid. The V6 is 268HP VS 178 in the 4-cyl (plus Hybrid power), and 248lb feet of TQ VS 170 in the 4-cyl… BIG difference… Yes I know the Hybrid will make the difference smaller, but it will not erase it.
I did say that more gas powered cars are going CVT so I have to get used to it, but I still don’t have to like it 
As was already discussed, the lady who was facing a $8500 bill for the Hybrid controller on her highlander would disagree with you. In her case probably because she had the car dealer serviced its whole life Toyota is picking up the tab, but still on the gas version of this car for that price she could have gotten a brand new motor and trans and been good for another 300K !!
My point was though, that most local garages are afraid to work on Hybrids at this point (besides oil changes, tires and brakes)… This kind of forces you to go back to the dealership for major work, and that is going to drive up the cost of ownership. ALSO as we all know dealerships don’t like to work on older car, we see it all the time on this board. So what happens in 5 years or 10 years when the dealer is the only guy who can work on the car, but the techs don’t know how, or dont really want to??