Hello newbie here... If the answer was on the site I apologize, I did search and browse first.


Are 3rd row seats required on the GX? I am in SC and the dealer I spoke to said they were required, he did say you could order it without them but said it would probably cost nearly as much. He mentioned the requirement was due to being in a hot climate and without them no rear A/C. I tried to configure without them on the Lexus site but could not, knowing Lexus sometimes makes different pakages available in different areas I tried a couple of other zip codes but all seemed to require the 3rd row package. Are there any areas where no third row is allowed? I am so interested since the GX will spend most of its time towing our boat to the vacation home and packed with supplies/luggage. I imagine the rear seats might spend 1% of their life actually in the truck! I know it is "just" $2k but it is 2k I wanna keep and I also know it may have a negative impact on resell but we kept our current SUV 11 years and I expect to keep this one just as long, probably longer.

TIA

 

I dont believe this is an option...

You can consider it as an free gift from Lexus if you wish :-).

 

It is probably best to get them anyway. 2k is quite a lot. BUT. the rear A/C is well worth the extra money and for that handful of times when you are taking the extended family out to dinner.

I just had that experience, my family and another family all crammed into our GX to go into NYC instead of having to worry about 2 cars. What a great option it is to have the 3rd row seat I think. The fully come out and you can store them in an attic or basement until that day when you need them and in 8 minutes you are ready to go.

However, to answer your question, basically all GXs sold have the 3rd row. The only way, I think, to get it w/o the 3rd row in your area would be a special order.

Good luck on your quest to find the right GX and.. YES, you made the right choice going for a GX!

 

I understand the potential use of the third row however I have another vehicle with 8 person capacity and I have used it only once, but certainly see your point.

The other issue is I could care less if the car is available without third row just about anywhere in ConUS as I travel extensively and haven't bought a car within 300 miles of my home in over 10 years. So if it is available anywhere in the US w/o special order I would just like to know. In fact special order doesn't bother me either unless it costs more and just eats up the savings.

In any event I just find it odd, although I suppose the brochure was developed before the 05 specs were in concrete, it lists 3rd row as an option, and mentions the tonneau is not available with 3rd row. In any case it will likely make little difference in my final decision and I suppose I have become spoiled by German car companies who provide most everything ala carte and since I keep cars a long time I am used to getting exactly what I want, which apparently may be possible here but if you believe the "stealer" I would have little if any cost savings. I just suppose I am looking for a better way to justify the extra cost when given it will be a sub 5k mile a year vehicle to tow our boat and my track car a heavy duty Domestic truck makes far more fiscal sense.

In any case thanks for your time.

 

I ordered mine without the 3rd row seats. It took about a month to get it in and it was worth it! I would NOT have the 3rd row seats since they are basically worthless, there is no way to justify spending 2 grand for something that will be stored in the basement just taking up space while losing a little space in the back of the GX because of the design difference with the 3rd row seat and losing the privacy cover. Very happy with my choice! One thing to keep in mind, we rarely have anyone in the back seats so not having special vents for AC back there has not been a problem. I have heard that for people traveling in the back seats the rear AC vents are worth it. So you may need to weigh your options...

 

Not mandatory, but I think ALL of the local NE dealers decided to ORDER ONLY w/ 3rd row options. Technically they are "correct" when they say mandatory, BUT they should be more accurate by tell customers SPECIAL order w/o 3rd row seat will take longer to deliver...

Since, NE dealers already have X number of vehicles already with the 3rd ROW, it is in THEIR best interests to tell you "mandatory"...

Wheel and deal, you can order without 3rd row if you don't want, PLUS you'll get the NIFTY Tourneau cover (sliding trunk cover) that we don't have!!!

 

yeah i wish i could get that cover since my 3rd row seats are never there

 

Yeah, but don't you think it may hurt resale value?

 

Having all the option NEVER hurt the resale value

It all depends on what you want, or what your willing to do without. If having enough A/C for front and back is an issue, the 3rd row is mandatory to get it. Storing the seats is inconsenquental. If you really don't want to store them, throw them away. But having the extended A/C is worth proper climate control for more than just the front seat. And it cannot be added later, so if you don't have it at the time of purchase it will STAY that way. And if you do want to upgrade the A/C for the back seat, all you have to do is purchase a newer truck (no big deal)

 

At the end of '04, the rear seat (and accompanying rear AC) was being included at no extra cost. WHen the '05's came out, they started charging the $2K again so.... If you are willing to wait a few months you might find 05's with a similar promotion around the August timeframe.

 

I was told it would take a couple of months to get without 3rd row and my wife wasn't willing to wait. 3rd row seats would be more practical if they folded under the floor like our 2002 Acura MDX

 

Well, I ordered a GX withouth the 3rd row seat. I was never going to use it, and I wanted the tonneau cover. The cover cannot fit on GXs with 3rd row seat options. Placed the order in July 05, and it was delivered in Feb 06! And I did not have to pay for this option. Used the added money to pay for other upgrades, Sirius, spoiler, etc.

Cover works great, additional space is good, and I don't have to store the seats! I think I have the only one in the continental US to have one. I believe in Hawaii you can order without 3rd row seats.

The only negative is that the dealer said that I couldn't order the sport package (KDSS) with no 3rd row seat.

 

A 7 month wait to get the GX w/o the 3rd seat??? Must be great to have that kind of patience. I could never wait that long for any vehicle. When the 3rd seat is removed, there is the same amount of storage space back there as in your GX. I didn't belive there were any GX's made without the 3rd seat, but I have seen 1 on ebay and I think a member on this board also has one w/o the 3rd seat. Like you, I have no use for the 3rd seat and as soon as I got the new GX home, I took the seat out and stowed it in the basement wrapped in plastic. When it comes time to sell/trade, the GX with the 3rd seat will be worth more but if 1 was available w/o the seat in the color combo I wanted, I would have grabbed it in a second.

By the way, what are the part numbers for the Sirius kit that you installed in your 06 GX? I'm getting ready to order a kit for my 06 GX. Of course, I will be doing the installation. But I enjoy doing things like that. Thanks

 

I am the other member without the 3rd row seat and love it! It only took me 1 month to get mine. Having the tonneau cover is great, I would not give it up! Were you able to get NAV/ML? What other options did you get? My dealer has offered to special order a new GX for me with KDSS and no 3rd row seat, that is surprising to hear you could not get it.

 

BobsGX,
7 month wait was difficult. Several times I was ready to break down and buy the Range Rover Sport, but the service history of RRs kept me in line. I don't know what Sirius kit that the dealer installed. I will try to check the box to see if there is a model number.

CdeFabio,
I was able to get ML/NAV. Also got the rear spoiler, tow hitch, Sirius, and upgraded graphite colored rims. Did not want RSES, so did not take the option. Dealer said that they did not want to order custom car with Sport Package and no 3rd row seat because they were concerned that they could not sell it if deal fell through!?! They could probably sell it for a premium if they wanted to! Decided against the Sports Package, since I thought I didn't need it...

Since I placed the order in June 2005, I was given the opportunity to order a 2005 or 2006. They said that they were doubtful for the 2005 order because the factory may be retooling for 2006. So, I elected for the 2006. Hoped that 2006 would have upgrades such as keyless entry and ignition, but found out there were no upgrades except for Lexus Link. I had to wait for the initial rollout orders for 2006 before I could get my order processed. Thus the "late" delivery.

For anyone who wants to order the non-3rd row seats, I suggest sometime in the Spring-early Summer. Perhaps you can get a quicker delivery time.