When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I’m contemplating on buying a GS 350 and wondering if it’s a good family car. I have an infant and would need to put a rear facing car seat in there. Does anyone have any pictures or experience with this?
I’m contemplating on buying a GS 350 and wondering if it’s a good family car. I have an infant and would need to put a rear facing car seat in there. Does anyone have any pictures or experience with this?
I had rear facing carseat in IS350 and in M235i lol....GS is huge in comparison. I have forward facing now and there is alot of space in the back, plus trunk is huge too....I fit 2 bikes in there ))
Yup makes for a good family sedan. The interior is pretty spacious and it's a very comfortable car. Plus you get a bit of performance for when you want/need it.
It is not.
It holds rear facing seats worse than a small VW Golf.
Rear facing child seat in the backseat will render the passenger seat completely useless as it needs to be so far forward and upright.
Trunk is decent, nothing special.
Forward facing child seat is preferred in this car.
It is not.
It holds rear facing seats worse than a small VW Golf.
Rear facing child seat in the backseat will render the passenger seat completely useless as it needs to be so far forward and upright.
Trunk is decent, nothing special.
Forward facing child seat is preferred in this car.
But with all that negativity I must say that I absolutely love it.
I didn’t mind all the troubles with a rear facing seat in mine because I genuinely like the car. If I wouldn’t have liked it I would’ve definitely hated it with child seat.
It is not.
It holds rear facing seats worse than a small VW Golf.
Rear facing child seat in the backseat will render the passenger seat completely useless as it needs to be so far forward and upright.
Trunk is decent, nothing special.
Forward facing child seat is preferred in this car.
Finally! A topic I can speak on with confidence! Overall, I agree with the assessment above. I think the GS would not make a good PRIMARY family car. The GS is my daily, and we have had a car seat (both rear and front-facing) installed in it since April 2020. Luckily my wife's MDX is what we drive as a family most of the time. The GS works fine for quick trips around town etc. but it would not be ideal for long road trips with the car seat. As mentioned above, with both rear and front-facing seats the passenger seat needs to be pushed pretty far forward. You do get more passenger room with front facing, but only just. My wife at 5'2 still fits comfortably (according to her) but your mileage may vary. I know I at 6'1 certainly would not be able to comfortably sit in the passenger seat with the car seat behind me. Last but not least, the position of the seat and the relatively low roofline in the rear make it more difficult to pull the kiddo in and out without clonking their head on the roof.
@lmfboingy - The safest position for a car seat is in the center of the rear seat, but the GS 350 does not have the center car seat 'Latch' system - and while there is a center seat belt the center seat is raised and definitely not comfortable for an adult. But if you really must use the center seat for a car seat there is a way to use it even though it doesn't have the Latch system latch hooks.
Latch hooks have required spacing, and Lexus has installed them in the left-hand and right-hand rear seat positions, but not for the center position. Most car seat's Latch connectors will not reach the inboard left-hand Latch hook and the inboard right-hand Latch hook in order to install the car seat in the center position because the [two inboard hook] spacing is a few inches too far apart, and also because the center seat is raised. The car seat's web straps that have the Latch connectors on the ends are often about 1" shy of being able to connect to the two inboard Latch hooks. However, if you want to use a car seat in the center position (without using the seat belt to strap the car seat in-place), you can add a heavy duty chain link to the inboard left-hand Latch hook and the inboard right-hand Latch hook so the car seat's Latch connectors will then reach and latch to the added links. The chain links are rated at a higher tensile strength than the Latch hooks. Works like a charm!
The front passenger seat of the GS 350 is not comfortable for most any adult, regardless of their size, if a car seat is used behind the passenger seat. Even the small sized Toyota Corolla is a much better car for car seats in the rear seats- either rear-facing or front-facing.
Last edited by bclexus; 04-27-23 at 07:54 AM.
Reason: orthography
Now I remember, after first year we switched to center mounted front facing in IS350 and both passenger and driver seats were comfortable enough. I am like 5'6-5'7, wife is shorter
I've always been surprised at how different people's experiences are on this one. We moved up to the GS because it fit our rear facing car seat so well. It allowed us to finally use the front seat comfortably with the rear facing seat behind it. I can only assume that this comes with the great variability in car seats and the size that they take up.
For us, the GS has been a wonderful family car. I'm glad we're finally just in the booster seat stage now, though. I've always hated having to have child car seats.
My wife's 2009 Honda Accord has more room in the rear seats and a much bigger trunk thank my 2013 GS 450h. GS is manageable and sufficient for a small family, but if we had 2 kids we would probably take her car for longer road trips.
2009 Honda Accord LX
Rear head room 39 in.
Rear leg room 37.2 in.
Rear shoulder room 56.4 in.
Rear hip room 54.3 in.
2013 Lexus GS 450h
Rear head room 37.8 in.
Rear leg room 36.8 in.
Rear shoulder room 55.7 in.
Rear hip room 54.1 in.
Finally! A topic I can speak on with confidence! Overall, I agree with the assessment above. I think the GS would not make a good PRIMARY family car. The GS is my daily, and we have had a car seat (both rear and front-facing) installed in it since April 2020. Luckily my wife's MDX is what we drive as a family most of the time. The GS works fine for quick trips around town etc. but it would not be ideal for long road trips with the car seat. As mentioned above, with both rear and front-facing seats the passenger seat needs to be pushed pretty far forward. You do get more passenger room with front facing, but only just. My wife at 5'2 still fits comfortably (according to her) but your mileage may vary. I know I at 6'1 certainly would not be able to comfortably sit in the passenger seat with the car seat behind me. Last but not least, the position of the seat and the relatively low roofline in the rear make it more difficult to pull the kiddo in and out without clonking their head on the roof.
The last part has me burst out laughing.
my kid has quite a few dents in his head due to this. But he’s from my gene pool so there’s nothing there to lose anyway.
I've always been surprised at how different people's experiences are on this one. We moved up to the GS because it fit our rear facing car seat so well. It allowed us to finally use the front seat comfortably with the rear facing seat behind it. I can only assume that this comes with the great variability in car seats and the size that they take up.
For us, the GS has been a wonderful family car. I'm glad we're finally just in the booster seat stage now, though. I've always hated having to have child car seats.
The GS has also been a wonderful family car for us, even with a rear facing seat. Similarly, we upgraded from the prior generation IS because the front passenger seat was useless with a rear facing infant seat installed. My daughter is older now in a front facing seat and the GS continues to be a great family car.
04-26-23, 05:59 PM
Is the GS a good family car?
