UZ214

hi everyone,

i am no stranger to lexus ...my family is growing and soon i will be having my first kid.

i need something which at least decent in gas mileage, lets say 21 hwy.

but i think all these cars have pretty rough gas mileage except for the rx i used to get 24-25 hwy on a all wheel drive RX. We traded that in for the ISF. i also have a GS400 modded but that has to go and i will get an suv in its place.

i need a suv with the 3rd row seat..

i am thinking of getting the GX, or 4runner or q56 / land cruiser or the lx. My price range is anywhere from 20 to 33k. my wife hates the ISF cause its too bumpy/hard suspension ...

the infinity sucks, its too big and bad gas mileage. don't like the look of land cruiser and the older LX. the new ones are more $$

i see few of GXs with nav and backup camera... i also like the newer 4runner my question to you guys is what would you guys pick a 4runner or GX and why?

i know GX is more luxurious but the 4runner gets little better gas mileage + its newer not sure i am confused!

what are the major problems with the GX?

The G Man

If you dont need to go off road, I would not pick either the GX nor the 4R. You can get a new RAV4 V6 with 3rd row seat for that kind of money and the gas mileage is better.

98Nav400

I have some real world experience with a few these:

I have had a GX for 4 years now
In-Laws drive a 4Runner (V6)
Wife drove an Armada LE until last week

GX470: It has been a great car, 45k and no problems. Clunk was fixed by TSB and never heard again. Mixed mileage @ 14-15, freeway mileage @ 70 about 19 for me. Third row taken out after first use since we have a bigger vehicle with 3rd row, but it seems more of a novelty than an actual space to be used regularly (could be wrong)

4Runner: The V8 has the identical drivetrain/tranny so really no difference except for the trim stuff and headroom which is much better on the GX. I have never been able to get used to the funky climate controls. In laws have a V6 which unlike the GX or V8 4runner can be switched into true 2 wheel drive. It gets a couple mpg better in the city but surprisingly not any better highway. We took a two car 300ish mile trip and from fill up to fill up his took slightly more gas. So same road/speeds about equal.

Armada (QX56): We had a loaded up Armada which is virtually a QX56 without the huge grill and center clock. It got HORRIBLE gas mileage; 10 or less mpg city driving / 15mpg highway. I tend to drive 70-75 so at 55 you would get better mileage but no way with a 4wd version you would get 20mpg and in the city much worse. Also, it drove like a truck and not in a good way. The plus side is that it was huge. Tons of space for stuff, leg room, and even a third row seat adults could fit into. Wife didn't like it, and I didn't like it.

If you need to use the third row regularly I think you will need to stay with a bigger rig than a GX. We replaced the Armada with a used Sequoia. Still big but smaller motor, better MPG and drives much smaller than it is. No experience with an LX/Landcruiser but think if you could find a nice one it would fot the bill perfectly. I couldn't find one in the short window I was looking.

Good luck, no real advice here just my experiences with a few choices you mentioned.

GatorGreg

The only problem I can think of with the GX is the so-called "clunk". Fortunately, Lexus has a TSB for it and last I heard still fixes it if the vehicle is under warranty. However, it's one of those things that until I read about it here I never even really noticed it. But once you're aware of it you'll want it fixed. Note that the 4Runner also has the clunk (at least the V8 4x4 versions, not sure about the 2x4 and V6 versions) but Toyota does NOT have a free TSB for it.

As far as which is the better choice between GX and 4Runner - do a search and you will find MANY threads here that fully discuss this. IMO the main advantage of the GX (besides the pampering treatment at the Lexus v. Toyota dealer) is it has a more airy and luxurious feel to the cabin and it has an excellent 14 speaker sound system (if you get the optional Nav/MarkLevinson system). The 3rd row is only good for kids, and whle mine are usually stored in the garage they do come in handy several times a year when relatives with small kids come to town so it's a nice thing to have.

The main advantage of the 4Runner IMO is it's hatch design with the retractable rear window as opposed to the barn door style of the GX with no retractable rear window. You do get used to the barn door but it makes trips to Home Depot frustrating at times.

V8_Fan

I rented a V6 4runner w/ part-time 4WD for a week earlier this year. Most driving was around 50-60mph (local highways in N. FL) with some driving on dirt roads and soft dirt in 4WD mode. I got 20mpg on one tank, 21mpg on the second tank, 87 octane. If you drive 75mph, I suspect you'd get maybe 19mpg. A co-worker has a FJ cruiser w/ the same 4 liter V6 and gets 19mpg on the highway (better than another co-worker's Saturn SUV at 18mpg). The 4runner I rented didn't have a moonroof, so there was plenty of headroom (6'1"). If it had a moonroof, headroom may have been limited. The LX has lots of headroom w/ the moonroof.

My LX gets around 18.5-19mpg at 70mph on the interstates using chevron 91. I don't expect the 4runner v8 to do any better on the highway, maybe 1mpg better in the city since it has 800 lbs less weight to drag around. To me, the slight difference in gas mileage wasn't significant enough considering the LX is much larger inside. This becomes important on road trips, which is the vehicle's primary purpose. In the LX we can fit 3 adults + 1 baby, a 36x30" canine kennel in the rear, a BOB Ironman jogger stroller w/ wheels removed(much larger than one of those collapsable cheapie ones), plus all the myriad accessories needed for a baby. I don't even know if the kennel will fit in the rear of the 4runner; it isn't very big. At either rate, I'd say the LX is big enough for a week-long road trip for a family of 4 plus a large dog and gear or family of 5 plus gear w/o dog. Subtract 1 person for the 4runner/GX.

For a DD, the 4runner is more nimble than the LX, which feels like you're driving a tank.

pagemaster

Just curious as to why you feel you need a third row seat?

pagemaster

Either the GX or the 4runner you will do fine with. It all depends on what you want. The GX is luxurious, taller, more expensive, has a stupid rear hatch, costs more to insure, cost more to service while the 4runner is more truckish, less costly to insure, less cost in servicing, better rear hatch, little smaller, designed with the third row as an afterthought, firmer ride.

You can't go wrong either way as long as you make the correct choice.

pagemaster

I would stay away from the LX or Land Cruiser. Not because they are bad vehicles but because they are very costly to maintain, repair and drive. If you have the budget to service, insure and keep these vehicle going then by all means go for it.

djspawn00

I just picked up an 07 4Runner V6 4wd, so far I have no gripes with the vehicle, the climate control struck me as a lil weird... I was originally in the market for a GX470 but I'm pretty happy with the 4runner and the money I saved. I also get great mileage... 20mpg which is better than i get in my 02 GS300. This is also the first vehicle I've owned without leather interior but the seats are comfy and the driving position is great for me.

pagemaster

I never felt that LX felt like a tank at all with the extensive use of the 2006 LX that I was using. It felt sliightly overweight. The second generation Sequoia feels like a tank due to its size and weight.

What I didn't notice is that LX felt underpowered because of a little too much weight up 30mph but felt much better in the 50mph range. Perhaps this was help with the vvti that my SUV had.

As for in the city. The LX was pretty easy to drive thanks to the electronic suspension that really smoothed out bumps and the VGRS made the LX pretty easy to move around in parking lots.

UZ214

i had that clunk/thump issue with the rx330, no sure if its the same with the GX but the RX came when shifting it was pretty annoying...i saw the front transfer case leaking at 62k i had a 2005 rx330, with A+ condition. i was out of warranty lexus quoted me around 3500$ for the replacement and stuff, all they had to do is replace the seal but in order to get to the seal they had to drop the transmission. i was not impressed so i traded that in for the is-f. i am leaning forward to the 4runner, so far. you get the warranty low cost to maintain cheap gas..

pagemaster

You mentioned you need a third row seat. The third row seat is really bad in the 4runner.

UZ214

is it good in the lx?

GatorGreg

The 3rd row in the LX is not great but it is a bit better then the GX470/4Runner. Still only suitable for children IMO. My '03 brochure for the LX470 says the 3rd row has 27.3" of legroom (should be the same for years '98-'07, not sure what the measurement is for the redesigned '08 LX's). The GX470 on the other hand is listed as having only 24.9" of legroom in the 3rd row (according to my '03 brochure).

The LX also has more 3rd row shoulder room (61.1" v. 56.7" for the GX) but the GX has slightly more headroom in the 3rd row (36.5" v. 36.3" for the LX).

V8_Fan

If you have long legs like me, I find the LX has plenty of front (driver) legroom while the 4Runner feels a tiny bit cramped, like it could use another inch. In the second row seats, the LX is adequate for me (a tad tight if a taller adult is up front). I didn't try riding in the 2nd row seats in a 4runner. LX has space behind the 3rd row seats for stuff like groceries, a folding stroller, etc. GX has little useable space behind the 3rd row.