Lexus predicts ES 300h hybrid will sell 15,000 a year in U.S.

Just how popular is Lexus expecting the ES 300h hybrid to be? Popular enough to move 15,000 units a year once the sedan is debuts for the 2013 model year, Wards Auto reports. Toyota's Luxury badge says the hybrid version will account for about a quarter of the ES 300 sedans sold, largely because its mark-up will be less than those for Lexus's GS and RX hybrids, the later which sells for a $6,600 premium compared to the gas-powered version.

Lexus unveiled the new version of the 300h at the New York Auto Show in April. The car will have 200 horsepower and will have an EPA rating of about 40 miles per gallon combined. Lexus is expected to set a price for the car in August.

Through May, Lexus hybrid sales were up 38 percent from a year earlier to 13,197 units. Last year, Lexus sold 28,334 hybrids in the U.S., about half of which were CT 200h compacts.