Knicksfan

My dealer (Difeo Lexus, Bound Brook, NJ) is having a cocktail party to preview the GX on October 15th @ 7pm. Unfortunately, my timing is bad and I probably cannot attend. Does anyone know of similar events being scheduled at other dealers (especially in NY or NJ)?

I would really like to see the car close up as I am #1 on the list and wondering if I should be looking at other vehicles too.

Johnny Mo

From what I have been told, there will be 1 GX making its way around to the various regions in order to allow dealers to host preview parties for the vehicle. My guess is that if DiFeo is having it on the 15th, that the rest of the NY/NJ/CT area dealers will all be nestled in around that time. I thought I heard they'd each get the GX for a week in-house to drum up some orders, but I could be wrong. Maybe Eddie at Lexus of Manhattan can shed some light on this for us.

SteveD

Ray Catena Lexus in Larchmont, NY wil have the GX470 in their showroom on 10/26.

pbm317

My dealer always does things like this. They did it for the SC, the LS, almost every new car I can remember.

jimmit

I got an invitation for the GX preview for the 11th of oct. That seems kinda hard to do. From Florida to ny in 4 days? I guess it can be done but they're showing a GX in Tampa and Clearwater in the same day so maybe they have a few GX's. I think it would be easier to have a GX at all the dealership and just sell them after. What do I know tho

Lexus of Manhattan

Knicksfan, we're having the intro meet on 10/21 at 6:30-9pm, which is Monday. Check out https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...threadid=59805 for more info.
Eddie

Knicksfan

Went to the preview at Difeo last night. Very very nice. Lots of people and nice atmosphere, food, wine etc. Very well done. I recommend that people attend these previews if at all possible.

on to the vehicle:

Pros:

I like it even more in person than I thought I would. I don't usually like the look of SUVs in general but I must admit I am impressed.

Inside was roomy and plush as expected. Lots of toys and gadgets.

My dealer said that DVD movies WILL PLAY on the front screen when in park and that someone will be able to add/change destinations FROM THE BACK to the NAV system. Somehow these two screens are linked. Cool.

Cost is a bit better than expected. Dealer expects fully loaded to be about $50K.

Cons:

I can't get past the side opening door. Apparently this design is geared towards women who don't want to lean over the bottom half (as in LX type) and cant reach top of top opening hatch ( RX type).
It means you cant open the door completely unless you have 4 feet of clearance behind you. In NYC where I live - that is ridiculous.

Also, with rear hatch open fully, car is 20ft long!!. Most garages are 20ft long, so unlikely we will be able to open door fully inside closed garages. Seems like something I might want to do but maybe I'm being hyper-worried.

Also - cup holders are not deep enough to hold tall cups/bottles (will they ever learn?)

Bottom line:

I am more perplexed than ever. I love the look and feel but the side hatch is killing me.

SteveD

Knicksfan,
Thanks for the post. I'm with you, the swing out rear hatch is a big drawback. The third row seating configuration is also a big negative.

I look forward to seeing it for myself on 10/26 in Larchmont.

Have you looked at the XC90 yet? If so, how would you compare the interior of the GX470 with the XC90 (e.g. quality of materials, design/layout, space/cargo area, etc)?

SW03ES

I have not seen the GX yet, but I did see a XC90 and was very unimpressed.

Skulinex

I was afraid of that rear door being big but didn't know it was going to make that much difference.. I wish they offered an option like on the landcruisers back in my country, you could get them with either type of doors

Lexus of Manhattan

FYI, yes, you can play DVD's in front while the car is parked..One thing I'm not sure of is if you can play DVD's in front on a GX w/o the Rear seat entertainment..I would imagine so...Once you start moving, the screen shuts, but you would still hear the sound. Another cool thing is that you can watch the Navi map on the rear seat DVD screen too! The car would come with a wireless remote and 2 cordless headphones.
Eddie