chikoo

lol rofl lol

yakim

I'll drink some Stoli vodka to that, sir

Aron9000

I'm not hating on all the new Lexus models, just the LX, because it is freaking ugly and ridiculous to the point that you can't off road it because the styling has to be so overwrought. The new design language works a lot better on the sedans and coupes than it does the SUV's IMO.

SW17LS

But nobody off roads it. You certainly can off-road it, the departure and approach angles are compromised though because of the styling. That just means you can't hardcore off-road it as well. But, who buys a $95,000 SUV and rock crawls with it? Almost nobody. It will get to the ski lodge or the cabin in the woods, that's all anybody's ever going to do with it.

mmarshall

Well, except for the Jeep Wrangler and Toyota 4Runner, some of the best off-roaders DO cost big bucks. The 100K The Range Rover, for instance, has a reputation for going anywhere from jungle to mountain-peak, and doing it with comfort. The Mercedes Gelandewagen was built to German/Austrian military standards of durability (just feel the doors shut, and you'll get an idea of what that's like) and locks all three differentials....front, center, and rear, besides having the approach/departure angles of a shoebox. And the LX.....well, of course, that's what we're discussing in this thread.

SW17LS

But nobody takes them off-road. The G Wagen isn't really a competitor, it's a niche vehicle and doesn't have much of the comfort of the other vehicles in this class. The closest competitor is a Range Rover. Which again, nobody takes off-road.

Toys4RJill

In North America, people do not take G-Wagons, LX, or Range Rovers off-road. Its all image and manufacture marketing that has led people to attach this stigma. In other parts of the world, yes people take Land Cruisers (Australia) and Prados all over the place. I believe Jeep even has a Wranger type of model that you cannot get over in North America. The Untied Nations even uses Land Cruisers for work in Third World Countries in case you were not aware. However, if you have even been to some of these countries (like I have) you will see there are Ford Rangers that people use, Toyota Hilux models, Isuzu, and well as a lot of Nissan models. A lot of them are diesels. In the Australia, modified Land Cruisers old and new are everywhere. So are Nissan Patrols. People in Australia use their 4WD vehicles for expeditions a lot.

If any of the vehicles were mentioned above, the G-wagon is the most ready and capable. The LX570 is a show vehicle to the rich, and G-wagon is a show vehicle for the mega-rich with their $230K V12 variant.

In North America, the 4Runner Trail, the Tacoma along with Jeep Wrangler are the most affordable and most popular, easy to modify 4WD vehicles. The Dodge Powerwagon is a good choice. All of these models will out perform the LX,and Range Rover models.

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

Anybody that wants to take one of these offroad will most likely do it in a few years when they cost less, slap on some Slee or ARB armor on it and laugh their *** off at this thread.

You guys are aware that you can remove and modify bumpers correct? People have been doing it for almost a decade on the original 200 series....problem solved.

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

Most people maybe.... you are clearly not aware at all of the offroad scene here so I would completely refrain from commenting any further. Enthusiasts make up a tiny percent of any car buyer group. MOST people don't modify their Lexus yet this forum is full of people that do. Do you see my point? MOST people with Wranglers in my area are all for show and have never seen a trail, does that mean it's an incapable car because people don't use it offroad here?

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

um, right...

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

97-SC300

iTrader: (17)

That's the same vehicle as the LX570 with aftermarket bumpers.

SW17LS

So are you saying that a large enough population buys Lexus LX570s brand new and does with them what you are showing here? Enough for Lexus to take that into consideration when styling the LX?

Just want to be clear.

Certainly people do, but very few. Mostly people that buy them when they are older and depreciated.

Your summit Jeep has a compromised departure and approach angle from other GC trims. You chose that. Do you miss that? I think not. Nor do LX570 buyers because like you by and large they don't take them off-road.

mmarshall

That's the case with most SUVs in he U.S., not just the big-money ones. Except for the Jeep Wrangler, which had a good-sized group of dedicated off-road owners, about 4 or 5% of all other SUVs go off-road regularly. In fact, some insurance policies won't cover off-road damage.

Most people, though, don't pay ay attention to the cowboy/rancher image of SUVs. They buy them for three basic reasons.....winter, space-efficiency, and ride-height (many people just like to sit up high).



Jill, I'm well-aware of the LC and Prado's role in the Third World, particularly in the Middle East. Not only that, but some of the regular posters here on Car Chat are from Middle-Eastern countries, especially Qatar, and actually own and drive them there.

Land Rovers also has a reputation for being able to go virtually anywhere off road, in comfort, but their reliability is not in the same league as Toyotas, so the U.N. generally can't depend on them.

Were you familiar with the now-discontinued Camel Trophy series rally, which was a yearly event sponsored by Land Rover? It was held in some of the most inhospitable conditions imaginable for an SUV. Land Rover crews in the event carried factory technicians and spare parts with them, partly because of the unreliability of the vehicles, but also because of the extreme conditions.

The G-Wagon, unlike the others, was built to then-military specs, and had to survive punishment that the others would probably not be subjected to.

There's also an AMG version of the G-Wagen (G65)....I assume that's the one you are talking about with the V12.

The LX, like the Escalade, Navigator, Yukon XL Denali, and Range Rover aren't necessarily just country-club vehicles. They are (increasingly) being bought by well-heeled suburban housewives and used for everyday shopping errands and driving the kids around.

The (current) Powerwagon, like the Tacoma, is not a traditional SUV, but a pickup. It is a version of the Ram 2500.

mmarshall

Yes, agreed....probably 95% of SUV owners in the U.S. don't go significantly off-road, except for the Wrangler, and, to a lesser extent, the 4Runner. Like I said before, a lot of insurance policies don't even cover off-road damage. Jill brings up the point of image-advertising for these vehicles, but, as I see it, even that is not much of a factor when you see what people actually buy these products for...all-weather traction and space-efficiency. But, as 97-SC300 pointed out, one cannot totally ignore the enthusiasts, either, and that's why the best of these vehicles, if desired, can be like mountain goats.