bunka

An if you already have the new Plasma TV and a Bluetooth compatible phone? Does it make spending the extra $'s worth it? Hmm, I still have a hard time spending $6K more. Now if it was $2K more, i think it's a done deal... Really wish we knew more on the pricing but probably will not until the 04's are mostly off the lots...

jeremysm

I talked with one of the Lexus dealerships today and they reported to me with some information that thier Sales Manager received while in California.

The base cost of the GX for '05 will be increased by $1,500. The 3rd row seats will not be included. The Navigation will be integrated with bluetooth. The engine will be 270 hp. There may be more little items but I didn't get the information from him on those.

He also said that they probably wont have firm pricing until mid November, but that was a guess.

Jeremy

sickman

jeremysm,

I had 2 dealers offer me $500 over invoice for a GX with Nav/MLS - Cerritos & Longo. Did everything through email and then phone so I didn't have to work too hard. If I negotiated a bit more, I think I could have had another couple hundred off but I was pleased with my deal. Both dealers were telling me $43.3 was invoice, but pricing the truck on KBB, invoice was listed at $42.7 after adding the Nav and accessory package. I am assuming the $600 difference was advertising and not just them bumping up their invoice price.

Also, for those who are thinking of waiting until late Nov/early Dec when the '05 models come out hoping to get the best deal on the very last '04 trucks, you may want to look at getting one a little earlier as the salesman said there will be a rush of end of year buyers due to the section 179 tax break (even though it was recently decreased for 1st year write off). He said the deals now are about as good as it may get - but of course this is from a salesman looking to sell now, not in Nov or Dec.

bunka

The $600 Invoice BUMP appears to be a pretty common practice among the dealers. The sales reps are CLAIMING that their invoice is ACTUALLY the KBB PLUS the built0in MU. I would bet you big $'s that not one dealer is going to give you a contract stating anything like "Invoice + $500" because if you get right down to it, the extra $550-$600 is NOT Invoice but is rather a method of "pre markup". I guess in the end it doesn't really matter as all the dealers are doing it. Only difference is that the $500 over invoice actually becomes more like $1K over invoice and is still a pretty good deal in the end.

bunka

Here are the details on the difference between KBB Invoice and the standard Lexus "Dealer Invoice". Toyota dealer advertising (TDA) of approximately $600 on these guys is added to the actual invoice figure. Apparently some dealers also add a few other things in there while they're at it. Appears to be common practice among the dealers.

jeremysm

I have no buyers remorse regarding the 2004 GX470. After receiving the vehicle two days ago I am thoroughly impressed with the handling, the Navigation and ironically the engine power. As you know, I had considered waiting for the 2005 model to come out partially because of the upgraded engine---but it really is unneccessary. The bluetooth would be nice, but definitely not worth more than a few hundred dollars--thus the 2004 proves to be a great selection.

I ended up getting a blizzard pearl with tan interior, Michelin tires, Navigation/Mark Levinson Stereo, Rear Seat Entertainment System, Third Row seats (obviously), Hitch Bracket, Preferred Package, Rear Spoiler, Exhaust Tip and Tow Hitch with Ball Mount. He gave us 4 wireless headsets too.

When I negotiated the deal I didn't even consider the hitch and items related to it and they pretty much threw that in (at least that is what I thought---it must have already been in their pricing model for my sale). My purchase price was $46,700. MSRP was $51,939 (the sticker) before they tack on the advertising fee.

It has the 04.1 Navigation software, was built in 09/04 and is a 9700G model. Now the problem is that it's my wifes vehicle and I'll have to wait for the weekends to drive it. All in all, when you factor in the "free" third row seats this car was a steal. Considering the rumor that the 2005 base price will rise $1500, you'll once again have to pay for the third row seats and the fact that they probably wont deal for many months---you just can't go wrong. And that's coming from me--a person who was on the fence.

Great website and such knowledgable and helpful people. Thanks for helping my decision!

Rx900

regarding the third row seats, it's not obvious becuz Lexus still makes a base Gx up to now, except they are really special order!

steevr

Jeremy,

We took delivery of our Silver Pine on Tuesday this week. It is loaded up same as yours and we paid within $200 of yours. I too was really going to wait for the '05's but considing the fact it would have cost us $9,000 more to get into an '05, we couldn't pass up the deal. I wanted the Blizzard White, but my wife's dad just got a Blizzard White GX a few months ago and my RX300 is pearl white. The white just looks so elegant on the GX's. Silver was my next favorite. My wife works this entire weekend, so I convinced her to take my RX. Now I'll be making excuses for places to go this weekend....hee hee. Kids, take a stack full of DVD's with you. Best of luck with you're new baby.

bareyb

Congratulations and welcome to the club. We just got ours about a thousand miles ago and we are loving it. It's really an elegant ride. I couldn't wait to get a 2005. I wanted to get it now, and not have to deal with the first of the new model year rush. We paid about a thousand over invoice for ours. We decided to take the 7 or 8 grand we saved and use it to buy a Plasma TV.

jeremysm

I also really like the Silver Pine, but my E55 is silver and my wife's Audi A4 (that she drove for several years) was silver so she vetoed that color from the start. My Acura MDX is black with tan, but we ruled out black because in Arizona black gets dirty so quickly with all the dust and dirt flying around.

The money saved is going towards baby furniture and Lasik for me. Now that's value!

As a side note, some of the local dealers believe I am still in the market for the '05, so when they call me with information pn the '05 I will post it here. My bet is that the '05's still havent gotten on the ship in Japan yet because a few of them told me they would call me when that happened (A-freight I think its called). It takes about 20-30 days from that time to arrive in Long Beach so my guess is that they will show up in early to mid-December.

lexguynj

If it's cost savings, it's a no brainer to get a 2004. However there are still buyers like me that hate to buy the last of the current model year and then find out that there are significant changes only a couple of months later for the new model year. That is why we scour these forums for the latest and greatest info.

Sure it's not a revamp or totally new redesign for the 2005 GX, however Lexus is holding out on giving us any 2005 info for a reason. And based on the other threads about this subject, there will be significant changes in 2005.

If it were the difference between and 2003 vs. 2004, I'd save the money and get the 2003 leftover, since the 2004 had little changes (same engine, etc), but 2004 vs. 2005 is a totally different story.

I remember when I was looking into buying the RX, people said save the money and get a leftover 2003 RX for a great deal, since the new 2004 RX330's would have a long waiting list and would be selling at MSRP. Sure I paid more for my 2004 RX330 as compared to a 2003 RX300, but there is now way that feeling of saving money and driving an old GEN RX300 would have kept me happy for long. Of course this is a slightly different case than the GX above since it was a revamp of the RX.

gs400jon

In my case, there was a big difference between the 2003 and 2004 models, namely, KDSS and the backup camera. The engine change for 2005 is for sure, along with the Sports Package. I am perfectly happy with the 235 HP and the Sport Package, in its currently described form, is not something I would want. I'll wait to see if the 2006 offers options like laser cruise control, intuitive parking assist and maybe bigger brakes, improved seats/controls, 6 speed transmission and fancy door closure electronics. I'm with you on your reluctance to buy a 2004 and it's a model year old in two months, then Lexus comes up with stuff we haven't even heard of yet for the 2005. If I were you, and I'm not, I would wait for the 2005 official announcement and take my chances on there being an acceptable 2004 on the lot, as a fallback position.

lexguynj

GS400jon,

I forgot about that huge difference in 2003 vs. 2004 (KDSS). You were right to be patient and wait for that great option to come around, since I see you and others on this great forum raving about how good the KDSS is and you have convinced me of this too!

I will still wait for the more info on the 2005, but my big hang up on not pullling the trigger on a 2004 is the additional HP in 2005. This is significant to me.

jacksonian

lexguynj,
Everything is personal and subjective, but I can't see how 35 more HP is significant. I spent 6 hours in my '04 GX yesterday going up into the Virginia mountains, the last 10 miles almost straight up a curvy mountain road. The GX had such smooth and strong acceleration that I had to back off of it to keep from getting to fast. I gunned it several times merging into highway traffic, navigating between semis, etc...

I just can't see how any more power could be used safely in this vehicle. If you tap the 235+ range, then you're either towing a house, or you're driving way too fast, imo. Is it nice to have psychologically, sure, but I don't think you can really use it. But, to each his own.

jeremysm

All the points mentioned in this thread are valid and had weighed me down considerably until I finally decided that the differences in the '05 were not significant enough to outweigh the cost savings. If Lexus has a trick up their sleeve I'd be surprised. The Japanese manufacturers always tweek their products between model year (engine, wheels, grille) but wait 4-5 years for their makeover.

The Lexus RX 300 versus the Lexus RX330 comparison IMHO is not a fair comparison because of the major exterior redesign that is noticable to anyone. I would liken the '04 GX and '05 GX to the '02 RX versus the '03 RX.

My E55 is an '02 with a 349hp engine, the '03/'04 has a major exterior upgrade with 469hp engine. The wait time coupled with $15k additional in price combined with the purpose of the vehicle made my decision relatively easy. 349hp gets me 0-60 in 5.4 seconds and I have not yet failed to blow away all Mustangs and the like when wanted. My father-in-law has the new E55 and it is sweet, but if the engine alone were the difference 349hp would have been plenty (I can deal with the exterior for a little while longer too).

We are so close to getting the information on the 2005 so waiting shouldn't be that difficult if you can do the following: 1. Be willing to be shut-out of your desired color or features in a 2004 2. Be willing to pay close to MSRP (with a couple thousand dollar bump up in base vehicle cost) 3. Risk not obtaining your vehicle for the year-end tax incentive (might be able to purchase in Dec and take delivery in 2005 and still get tax credit--need to talk to your CPA). 4. Pay the additional dollars for the upgraded packages.

For me not having buyers remorse is a pretty good indication that I made the right decision and feel good about the product. If the money in the pocket is also a high priority, then I suggest taking out a 2004 for a day and give it a go, wait for the 2005 info and be ready to pounce on either.