I received a Lexus HS 250h as a loaner car from my dealer, so I can add to what's been said already above.
It was interesting for me to drive the HS 250, since I've never experienced a hybrid before, either as a driver or passenger. I was excited to have the opportunity to try out this vehicle.
First off, I was impressed by the car's technology. Hybrid technology is cool. The Lexus HS 250h I drove had the technology package with Nav and XM Radio, and it was cool looking at the information screens showing the power and fuel economy. The joystick used to control the on-screen display is easy to use, and I actually prefer it over the touch screen since it's less distracting. However, I dislike having to navigate through the menu so much to actually do anything! For instance, in my own vehicle, I often switch between viewing the Navigation screen and the Audio display to see what's on XM Radio. I can do this by the push of a button. But on the HS 250h, it seems I can only see the audio display by going via the Menu, which takes several clicks. This is very annoying.
Now for how it drives.
I'm both impressed and disappointed.
I'm impressed when the hybrid does what it's supposed to do -- which is drive off battery power. When cruising or coasting, it's great to be running (seemingly) powerless, without using a wasteful combustion engine.
What I'm not impressed by is the lack of power and the unimpressive actual fuel economy.
My daily drive is a long drive -- 60 miles each way, which is mostly freeway driving, at a steady speed. No traffic. With my Lexus GS 350, I average 27-28 mpg. I was naively hopeful that the Hybrid would give amazing fuel economy, something like 40-50 mpg, and that would be something I'd actually be pretty excited about, considering how much driving I do.
However, with this kind of driving, the Lexus HS 250h was only giving me around 35 mpg average. That's not a whole lot better than the 28 mpg average I get with my much more comfortable, much more powerful and much more fun to drive GS 350.
The handling of the HS 250h is okay. I hadn't really tested it.
The power is disappointing. It's okay on POWER mode, but on normal mode or ECON mode, it's really slow to accelerate from a stop and really poor at passing.
For me, the trade-off for the Hybrid isn't worth it. Why would I give up so much for a measly 5-7 mpg improvement?
I'd say a hybrid should have either: a) really good mpg (50-60+) but compromised power, or B) slightly improved mpg (maybe 35-40) but full power. The HS 250h has neither.
I'll stick with my combustion vehicle!
I do hope (and am optimistic that it will) that hybrid technology will continue to improve. Lighter materials, better batteries, more powerful electric engines -- these improvements will hopefully one day give us a hybrid with improved performance AND decent fuel savings.
