If you do your part to forget about your (grand)father's Buick, we'll do ours to refrain from picking the low-hanging fruit when it comes to smart remarks in this comparison test of the 2010 Buick LaCrosse CXS and the 2009 Lexus ES 350. There will be no references to forgotten left-turn signals or Murder She Wrote. Instead we'll ensure our focus remains on how well each car fulfills its promise of entry-level luxury.

Rather than our usual 20 percent emphasis on intended acceleration and other track performances, we'll count those only as 10 percent of the total score for this comparison. Instead, we'll reward these cars more heavily for their ability to coddle, pamper and supply the kind of features a modern luxury car should — increasing this component of the final tally to 25 percent from our normal 20 percent. And in light of this era of doomsday economics, we've made the price 25 percent of the final score, up from 20 percent.

The Luxury Landscape
What started in 1989 as a gussied-up Toyota Camry has matured over 20 years into one of the best-selling luxury sedans in the U.S. It might surprise you that the low-profile front-wheel-drive Lexus ES historically has been the sales leader for the high-profile Lexus brand, outselling its more expensive rear-wheel-drive Lexus siblings like the GS and IS, not to mention the range-topping LS. The expectation of super reliability, solicitous service writers, loaner cars and projected resale value had much to do with the success of the entry-level Lexus, which is perceived as a great value for the luxury received.

We also believe one of the reasons for the ES's popularity is the relatively thin field of competitors in the segment of entry-level luxury sedans. The Acura TL has gone all beak-nosed and high-tech, alienating those in search of simple luxury. The Cadillac CTS is conflicted and needs a singular concept ("Standard of the World" might be a good one to dust off). Infiniti is still trying to establish itself, though neither the G nor the M sedans seem to fit the luxury segment. Lincoln has failed so many times with rebadged Fords that nobody pays much attention anymore, and any differentiation among the cryptically described MKS, MKT, MKX and MKZ devolves into a case of brand glaucoma. As far as the German sedans go, choices for buyers not interested in Nürburgring lap times have been limited.

Meanwhile, Lexus has been quietly reaping the rewards by satisfying buyers looking for a comfortable, reasonably priced luxury sedan, and so the 2009 Lexus ES 350 is the latest in a long line of sedans that have trudged along essentially unchallenged in this market segment. But now GM — and more specifically, Buick — wants some of that action, and the 2010 Buick LaCrosse is its answer.