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Where I live , most everyone drives trucks , F150 Silverados and other big 80" wide SUVs
I'm wanting to buy something that matches the big boys in terms of an accident .
The GX is 74" wide , less protection compared to the big boy rides .
The Gx is no slouch , though, it's heavy and pretty big
Just thinking out loud , better off in a full size pickup , or would a 2013 or 2014 GX survive just as well ??
I am embarrassed to say , my wife drives a Chevy Trax
Where I live , most everyone drives trucks , F150 Silverados and other big 80" wide SUVs
I'm wanting to buy something that matches the big boys in terms of an accident .
The GX is 74" wide , less protection compared to the big boy rides .
The Gx is no slouch , though, it's heavy and pretty big
Just thinking out loud , better off in a full size pickup , or would a 2013 or 2014 GX survive just as well ??
I am embarrassed to say , my wife drives a Chevy Trax
So this is pure speculation here so disclaimer lol.
The GX feels like a tank, and has the BOF underpinnings to be quite safe for most things imo. If your coming from an older Trax or, any other older vehicle before 2010 or smaller vehicles (cars mini suvs etc), its gonnna be a decent safe upgrade.
Having said that, we really cant hide the elephant in the room which is the GX is an older design, going on 10 years at this point. A brand new F150 has been designed to withstand a whole lot of new requirements (small overlap test comes to mind). The GX also lacks any independent/IIHS tests that (not the governing body) stress test designs in new ways.
Closest on tests you will find are the Australian ANCAP ratings on the Prado. I put a link in that other thread.
Yup saw the ANCAP and JNCAP results for Frontal, Side, Rear crash testing from 2010. Unfortunately no other global organization has done any recent tests with newer tests like front and passenger overlaps, moderate overlaps, or roof strength. It would be nice if IIHS or other organizations did some, since the GX, and by extension the Prado are still on the market and moving units.
Look at this list ... proof that it's not all about mass ... it's about crumple zones ... the intelligent design for energy absorption. Anyone can design a battering ram, but that does not absorb energy as well as properly designed crumple zones. Big and heavy is not always better.
I do remember back in 2010 when the 2nd gen GX came out, there was a stop sale campaign after results of the vehicle turning over. I believe they fixed the software or something, but we vaguely remember it. We were actually at the dealer preparing to buy a 2010 RX at the time and even the saleman mentioned they weren't allowed to sell the GX and to not even look at those.
Since then, it's a rock. No worries at all.
Lexus unfortunately dumbed down the suspension for "comfort" at the expense of handling ... so the above was the result. To compensate, they (software) updated the stability system ... the anti-lock brake response to recover the vehicle when at an extreme level of body roll. Why was this necessary ? ... because Lexus installed marshmallow (AVS) shocks to keep the "Luxury" crowd happy with a plush (dumbed down) ride ... increasing body roll to dangerous levels under extreme (or even spirited) maneuvering. Yes, the software update compensated ... but this does not change the fact that the AVS shocks suck-a$$$$$$ compared to real shock absorbers that can better balance ride comfort (at a fraction of the cost) without throwing handling out the window to the point of being unsafe.
"These dongles emulate the presence of a 2.2Ω airbag or seatbelt pretensioner when plugged into a Toyota/Lexus/Scion, to help filter out false-positive airbag warnings when seats are removed,"
07-15-20, 01:18 PM
