I traded up from an RX330 to a GX470 about 2 years ago and was very happy, since the RX was nice, but it wasn't manly enough!

I also had problems getting the advertised Sport Package option for the GX. My dealer never had it in stock, told me it would take months to come in and even tried to steer me away from the Sports Package by saying the difference you feel is very little, so go buy one of our other vehicles in stock.

The entire Lexus Truck Line (GX & LX) are due up for a revamp in the near future and then it will be more attractive.

 

The current GX is good enough for me. Hate to wait for a new model with a bunch of bugs that will not get worked out for several years. I think now is the time to by a GX if you want one.

 

IMO, I think the LX's looks are actually pretty timeless as far as most SUVs go. I can't say that about many of the SUVs out there. It still has a lot of presence. But the technology is unfortunately archaic relative to the rate of updates and new things coming out in vehicles every year.

Why in the world Lexus chose to spec 17" wheels on the GX when a 4Runner can get 18" wheels is beyond me. And ditto on the looks of the GX. I really like the front and the side profile. But when I look at it from the back, I can only shrug my shoulders to myself.

The drive and overally quality of the vehicle makes up for its questionable rear aesthetics for me.

 

Yup, whenever the Special Edition comes out for a model, that's pretty much the death knell for the current generation. But at least you'll feel special driving your Special Edition.

 

Timeless is another way of saying plain looking and boring looking.

 

The $20K price difference is mainly in the overbuild/over-engineering of the LC/LX. The GX (Prado overseas) isn't as overbuilt and is much lighter duty (ligher frame/suspension, etc.). The only way we can really notice the difference here is less body flex, which should translate to fewer creaks over time.

Keep in mind that the LX is the luxury version of the Landcruiser. Both are international spec vehicles, meaning the equipment is virtually the same for 150 countries (one reason why you still get the cassette player). Unlike in the US, Toyota is very conservative on their bread-and-butter offroad platforms overseas. Designs are tested for years (the next LC/LX was sited being tested in Oman). The emphasis is on a tried-and-true design, not the latest gadgetry. In the Middle East or Australia, the LC/LX are king. If you break down, you basically die. So naturally, they are resistent to new-fangled trendy devices and emphasize reliability in all conditions. In those parts of the world, the daily highs are often 130F, so the LX/LC has to be able to climb uphill offroad w/ A/C cranked, for example. People in those parts of the world also buy a vehicle like once every 10-30 years, so the design life of the LX/LC is 30 yrs and 300K miles between overhauls (also goes for the older versions built in the 80's and 90's...you still see the mid 80's LC being used in terrorist training videos shown on CNN). It doesn't pay for Toyota to build them in the US due to low volume. Sales of the LC/LX combined are on the order of 12,000 units per year here but 39,000 units per year in the Middle East, 15K units for Australia (small population). When the current landcruiser was introduced in 1998, we got the 4.7 liter V8 while the rest of the world got the tried-and-true 4.5 liter inline-6 found in the LX450. Australia & the Mid East didn't get the V8 until several years later after it had proven itself. Australia just got independent front suspension on their hilux pickups back in 1998! We got 'em in 1986! The 18" wheels on the LC/LX is toyota's way of adding bling to the vehicles to compete in North America.

Oh, yeah, and the $70K price tag is a bargain compared to overseas. In Australia and Canada, the LX goes for $90K USD!! (123K AUD)

 

I agree with rklages, the LX is dated. The GX is sleek. When I compared the LX and GX for room, you did not get that much more with the LX, especially for the price.

 

just want to give some opinion,
last time i drove 2001 Toyota Harrier Aero Tourer TRD Edition (RX300) , last year i got bored with it and looking for a bigger replacement prefferably a 3-row seater.
I bought a secnd hand Toyota Land Cruiser Cygnus (LX470) and use it for about a month
before trying my friend Toyota Land Cruiser Prado (GX470) and fell in love with the Prado in the end i sold my Cygnus and bought a Brand new Prado but the diesel variant.


INMHO the prado or GX have the best rides for rough roads in my country.
and i like the stying better than the more conservative Cygnus or LX.

I never regret my decission and also the Prado or GX is more rare in my country where the Harrier (RX) and Cygnus (LX) is very common :P

IMHO for off roading, daily city driving GX is the best bet, the LX is nicer on highway though, but if your prefference is for the highway, the real winner is the RX but it doesn't have 3 rows seats and the new model look like a station wagon to me , that's why i chose prado (GX) anyway there 's no perfect car for everyone, but i love my GX and i can say that it's almost perfect for me the only complain is 3rd row seat to cramped , they can actually make it better by putting some sort of mechanism so that the 2nd row bench can move forward to make larger 3rd row seats's leg room. and another complain is that the GX or Prado rides a little bit too "unstable" on the highway.

Actually my dream car is Hummer H2 but that car is very expensive in my country cause hummer don;t produce right hand side steering. and the conversion is not neat and expensive the cost of 1 Hummer H2 can buy you 2 Cygnus (LX470) in my country .

Anyway does anyone ever compared how the H2 drive compared to GX ? just curious :P

 

Hummer H2 was rated as one of the worst full sized SUV's for reliability/quality while the Toyota landcruiser is the best (for quality/reliability). LC was also the best used 3 yr old vehicle. In general, by the time the H2 hits 100K miles, it will be falling apart. The H2 is basically the chevy Tahoe (same chassis, different body). The only thing in common w/ the H1 is the Hummer name. Design life of US consumer-grade vehicles is typically around 120K while the Landcruiser line (international market Toyotas like the GX/Prado, LC/LX) is much more. The chief engineer of the Landcruiser 100 (Kondo) said the LC100/LX470 design life is 30 years. Same for the LC80/LX450. In those terrorist training clips you see on tv, the terrorists are still driving Landcruisers and Toyota hilux pickups (same chassis as our 4 cyl 4runners from '85-89) from the mid 80's.

 

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder my friend. It's conservative styling for sure, but I'd still take it any day over my GX, just didn't have the $$.


You do have a good point on the gadgets versus "bones" of the truck. When I said the LX was relatively archaic in terms of technology, I did mean the gadgetry. No doubt the LC/LX platform is overbuilt and is much more of a world car than a made-for-U.S. spec.

What more exactly do you get when you move up from an LC to an LX? I know the headlights are different and the inside cabin of the LX certainly looks more luxurious and I'm sure there is probably more sound insulation material. But are there that many material differences in this generation's vehicles?

Ditto on the H2. IMO, it is junk compared to an LC/LX. Nothing wrong with the Tahoe (I owned a Suburban before my GX) but it is not really built to last. My Burban was only 2 years old and had 22k miles before I sold it and it was already showing its age in terms of developing creaks and rattles. In contrast, my GX has 33k miles and I really can't tell the diff b/w this and the new ones I test drove.

 

Not really that much more. In Japan, they don't sell the LX. It's instead called the Landcruiser Cygnus. There, the Landcruiser is available w/ cloth seats and no navi for $45K, while the fully equipped Cygnus is $55K. Oh, the Cygnus and LC there didn't get vvti in '06 while the overseas LC's and LX's did.

Besides exterior appearance, you get projector low beams/fogs, 18" wheels (most LC's overseas come w/ 17"), maybe nicer leather, nicely finished real wood vs. fake wood that fades from sunlight, memory seats, superior levinson audio, side/curtain airbags are standard ($800 option on the LC), optional infra-red night vision. You also get the AHC suspension, but now the LC's sold here from '06 have it as a $4K option (LC's overseas have had them from the start). In reality, the LC's you can buy here are fully equipped (DVD navi, side/curtain bags, upgraded JBL audio, AHC suspension, etc.) and list for about $60K...not much less than the LX. By the time you get all the optios, the price is virtually the same, so why buy the LC? Now you know why the LX outsells the LC 2:1! The lexus dealers are also much more willing to deal on the LX's while toyota dealers aren't willing to deal and hardly sell any. When gas was $3/gal, some guys bought new LX's for $60K.

 

FWIW, I have 77K on my GX and there are NO squeaks, rattles, vibrations, noises, etc. I can't tell that it has loosened up any compared to a new one. It's holding up even better than my LS430.

 

Have you taken it offroad yet? Drive it a couple hundred miles offroad including some washboards and see if it rattles afterwards.

 

As far as handling, the GX with KDSS (sport package) will outhandle the LX. But without it, yes the LX wins.

I could never justify the cost difference with the LX because of the fact it is outdated in terms of platform. Yes, it has gadgets, but in the end you'll feel buyers remorse with it has been revamped in the next year or so.

We have two kids and we are finding the GX to be tight. Even thought about a Sienna since we really don't know what other direction to go to.

Bottom line, with the new Tundra out, I am sure this will make way for some larger, revamped SUV's in the Toyota/Lexus family. The question for me is whether I can afford them.

 

If you can wait, the new Landcruiser/LX is supposed to debut in 2008. It will supposedly have KDSS, larger engine, larger nav screen, etc. From the spy shots of vehicles being tested in Oman, the LC looks like the current LC w/ a GX front and a rear that's a cross between the current LC (clamshell hatch) and Sequoia-like lights. Fender mouldings appear to be stamped steel like the current LC/LX. Those test vehicles had the '03-05 LX 18" wheels, but I'm sure they are for decoy purposes.