Need another DD for the wife. Trying to decide between the two. MPG doesn't really matter to me as she only goes through about a tank a month. More concerned with reliability.

 

I'd have her drive both, and let her pick.

'10-12 Toyota Highlander would have been my choice, but my wife wanted a GX since 2003, made it an easy pick for us.

 

I have a 2004 gx470 I bought in july of 2013 89,000 miles. Had the truck in this past week for service they gave me a 2013 loaner rx350 with 19,000 miles . Boy was I not impressed. Its ride was awful Felt very light did not have the velvet smooth ride that I am used to in my gx470. I was so unimpressed I even told the service manager and he agreed with me that the gx470 even though its a truck it rides better then the rx350. My 2 cents
worth

 

If I were buying a vehicle today and choosing between the GX that I own and an RX, my likely choice would be the RX. My main reason for that choice would be fuel economy, but you say that fuel economy isn't a factor to you. But, for me, when I bought the GX in 2005, I wasn't anticipating that gas prices were going to be varying between $3.50 and $4 a gallon.

I've driven RX loaners for several days. My main complaints about the RX would be the interior design and the quality of materials used on the interior. I especially dislike the way in which the shifter comes out of the dashboard and not the floor in the RX. Also, while the materials used in the GX interior strike me as being "Lexus-like", in terms of quality, the materials used in the RX interior strike me as being more "Toyota-like". In fact, the interior of the Highlander impresses me more favorably, both in terms of design and quality of materials, than does the interior of RX.

All of that said, I'm with Lmcqueen. If your wife is going to be the primary driver of the vehicle, I'd suggest going with the one that she likes better, and that is especially so because likes and dislikes in vehicles are so highly subjective, and what appeals to one person can be a complete turn-off to another.

 

Only good thing about this process is she doesn't care which one I buy her, just that I buy one pretty soon.

 

I wouldn't touch the RX. Transverse mounted V6s equal very high labor costs for simple things, and if you do the work yourself, you are going to hate life!

I don't know about the newer ones, (i imagine they are similar) but the 1st and 2nd generation, as an example, require that you pull the intake manifold to get to the rear spark plugs and coils, which have a tendency to quit working and make the engine run rough as hell. Then something that should take 10 minutes ends up taking much longer and running you hundreds in labor costs.

The GX with its Engine mounted in the "Normal" position, is a lot easier to get repaired, and work on yourself if you are into that kind of thing. Plus it's 4WD system will run circles around an RX's, should you live in an area with snow. Larger truck tires with more meat do MUCH better than low profile tires as found on the RX!

 

Adding a bit to my earlier post and commenting on ride quality, even though the GX has a firmer, truck-like ride quality, I find it to yield a very comfortable ride. While you feel imperfections in the road surface, they are very nicely damped. With the RX, even with its "softer" ride quality, I found it to have a very choppy ride that was immediately noticeable and not particularly comfortable. I suspect that the choppy ride quality is at least partially the result of a shorter wheel base.

 

When I was car shopping, I thought I wanted an RX. Drove several 09's and 10's. One day, I was at a Toyota dealership looking at an RX and saw a 2004 GX470 in the front row. The sales guy was very friendly and to my surprise, he did not try to dissuade me from test driving the GX, even though I'm sure there was more profit in the RX. Long story short. After driving that GX470 with close to 150,000 miles on it, I never again considered buying an RX. I didn't buy THAT GX, but found one to purchase about 3 months later.

 

+1 had a loaner a few weeks back, put 300 miles on it and dreaded being inside of it. The dashboard was massive, the bits felt cheap, and the seat was narrow (or the 'tunnel' was too wide, just remember my right leg being cramped for space and every-time I tried to use it as an arm-rest I hit poorly executed buttons turning off traction or something, and the heated seat buttons were a fun find ). The boot space was equally lacking. And all this for just me averaging 20mpg, not a great deal more that the v8 powered BoF GX.

 

I also had a loaner RX recently. I found the ride to be very firm, and uncomfortable over road imperfections. Didn't like it. I think it's because the marketing department wants every vehicle to have a "sporty character", when for a entry-level luxury SUV like the RX, a more compliant ride is appropriate.

So far as the interior - It was really nice - better than a Toyota. Yet ... it lacked the "Olde World" leather and walnut that a luxury car should have.

Chip H.

 

I have an 06 GX and wife has a 08 RX. I have offered her the GX to drive but I think she likes the smaller SUV. She drove a Sequoia prior to this so parking is much easier.

When I took it in for servicing the dealer gave me a 2014 RX to drive. It was nice but not great. I enjoyed the 2014 GX they gave me when I brought in my GX to service.

My advice is similar to others. Let her drive them around, go to tight parking lots and narrow streets, and figure out what she would haul around on a daily basis. Then decide. Maybe they can loan you the vehicles for a day each.

Good luck

 

I have both 10 RX 450H and 06 GX. I like GX more than RX450h.

I'd say go for GX, it is more superior in term of build quality and ride.

On the other hand, RX will save some gas and drive like a car.

 

RX is ok but no contest GX is 3x better cargo room, more seating, ride quality, power & wow factor... think about it this was lexus sells 8 rx for 2 gx