SC4004ever

I've owned two SC400's (IMO, the greatest car Lexus ever made), but the advent of twin boys makes the car impractical.

I'd appreciate any advice or warnings that those of you who are familiar with the LX470 might give me. Is it as great as its hype and price imply? What are its strongest points? What are its drawbacks? Is it a close call between the GX and the LX? Do any of you know if the 470 will be discontinued when the 570 is rolled out?

Thanks in advance from a loyal Lexus lover.

V8_Fan

LX570 will replace the 470.

I did a road trip last summer in my LX w/ a 1 yr old and 80 lb labrador in a 36"x30" kennel. In the back, I can fit the kennel, jogger stroller w/ wheels removed, plus the dog's stuff and food (no icebox). The baby is in the child seat in the 2nd row center. Our personal gear in duffles plus a photo backpack goes in the 2nd row empty seat next to the baby plus on the floor. Wife sat in the other 2nd row seat, grandma in the front passenger seat, me driving. GX will be way too small for a family of 5 on a road trip, IMHO. The problem is, infants require so much gear when travelling...strollers, diaper bag, bathtub, bouncer chair or low chair for dining, bottles, toys, etc.

One more thing. The drop down clamshell tailgate on the LX is great as a diaper changing table. The rear window is tinted and UV absorbing, so baby doesn't roast in the sun. Plus the dog is in the kennel and, thus, can't escape. We recently did a trip to CA in our old 4runner (since the spare on the LX was being chromed, and I didn't want to cross the desert w/o a spare). Changing diapers was a real chore, as the dog was in back w/o kennel (won't fit), we left the stroller and low chair at home, basically brought hardly anything and the car was still backed.

On the 570, the 3rd and 2nd row seats are powered w/ side air bags, meaning you probably can't remove them like on the 470. We have our 3rd row seats stripped out...a lot more room w/o them. You can also buy aftermarket steel bumpers like you see on my LX if you need extra protection against rocks or deer.

SC4004ever

Thanks for the detailed response. Much appreciated. I'm planning on taking out one of the 3rd row seats, which should leave sufficient storage room. I guess the concern is that the 570 will hurt the resale value of the 470. An argument for leasing rather than buying. What was your favorite feature? Them, the thing that annoyed you most?

V8_Fan

Favorite feature I thought I'd never want: adaptive damping system/AHC...set it to comfort on the straightaways, set to sport on twisty mountain roads. The AHC in the new 570 is KDSS based, supposed to be better than that on the 470.
Favorite feature I know I wanted: Mark Levinson audio
Also nice feature: memory seats, ability to raise front seats (wife is short), seatbelt attachment at wall can be adjusted (again, for wife). No other vehicle we've seen has the adjustable shoulder belt, but most in Japan have them.

Most useless feature(s): moonroof (have yet to open it; don't like the sun hitting my head), auto retracting steering wheel (solution: had dealer disable it; also saves the motor from unnecessary wear).
Also useless: auto side mirror tilt down in reverse. Disabled it myself by setting mirror switch to the center

Likes from what I've seen of the 570 (photos only): interior, KDSS-based AHC
Dislikes of the 570 based on photos/articles: body styling, elimination of the transfer case manual shift **** to an electronic switch in the center console (less reliable when you need it, especially if you seldom use it like most of us), non-removeable 3rd row seats (or at least they require one to unplug harnesses and remove bolts from the vehicle...not user friendly). I'm sure it has the useless moonroof, auto tilt side mirrors, etc like the 470.
Useless feature: the 4wd low cruise control...lame, IMHO.

I believe if you lease, you are better off getting the earliest new model (e.g., a '08 model in Sept 07). The reason is, the residual is based on the year, so you'd have a larger residual and, thus, lower payments. Worse thing to do is to lease a '08 model in, say, Dec '08...bad! If you buy, the best thing to do is the opposite for the better deal. The guys on the GX forum are real lease wizards. You could always ask them.

I believe with the last year models (from what I've seen in graphs in Landcruiser magazine based on past history), the last year is over-valued in terms of resale, but once the new model debuts, prices tank big-time. If you plan to buy a 470, there is no advantage to buy a '07 over a '06, as both have the vvti engine, same generation of nav (gen 4?). Some people just have to have the newest body-style. The risk is there are always problems associated with a new vehicle. This is one major advantage of the 470...it's been out for 9 yrs already, and many vehicles have 100-200k miles, so the problems are already known (starter contacts @ 100K mi, exhaust manifolds crack, rattle on cat converter shield on early models). If you're going to keep the vehicle for a long time, maybe wheel it offroad and/or modify it w/ bumpers, etc, the 470 is good. According to the chief engineer of the LX470/LC, the design life is 30 yrs. The main risk of any new car nowdays is the electronics. The newer they are, the more electronics. In this sense, I'd think the 570 would be riskier to keep for a long time. If you're going to trade it in within 5 yrs, the 570 would be better from a financial gain/loss standpoint, IMHO.

SC4004ever

Thanks for the detailed response. Much appreciated. Did you pull the third row seats out? I'm inclined to get the 07 and need to act in the next few weeks, so waiting for the 570 is out of the questions. Are there any other differences between the 07 and 06? Thanks again.

V8_Fan

Yes, I did. Believe it or not, I made custom seat covers out of this stretchy khaki fabric, but ended up pulling the 3rd row once we determined we'd be crating our labrador retriever in a kennel, which will fit in either lateral or lengthwise configuration (will actually fit w/ 3rd row folded, but there's no other space in this config). You can check the lexus website for differences, but I can't think of anything between the '06 and '07 other than the '07 is available in a special edition. As in your case, I had to buy because of the arrival of a newborn, so I didn't have the option of waiting another year, etc.

Check out http://www.lexus.com/cpo/model_library/index.html for specs from year to year. Keep in mind that hp is calculated differently in '07, so it really didn't decrease (I think it's now SAE HP).

SC4004ever

Thanks. I'm 6'4". What is your experience with the front legroom. My SC400 was awesome.

TWQ83

FYI: you may not want to wait toooooooooo long since the supply of LX 470's is quickly disappearing. They have stopped manufacturing them as of 1 May 2007. what is out there and in holding is all there is and shortly there will be a noticable difference in the availability of the 07 LX 470. Right now I only have 3 on the lot and 2 inbound .......... and that's it!!!! when there gone there gone............

Leg room should be NO problem... I'm 6'2" and can't even touch the fire wall with the seat all the way back..........

Good luck in your search and the LX should fit your new family just perfect!!!!

SC4004ever

Big thanks for the availability heads up. I was going to wait a few days, but think I'll head over to the Dealer this afternoon.

V8_Fan

You just missed the end of the month! You can usually get a better deal on the last weekend of the month; dealers are more motivated to move the vehicles since they have sales targets and get paid bonuses based on sales for that month. If you want an extended warranty to 100K, you can often get a huge discount. I bought my CPO LX on the last weekend of the month in the afternoon just before closing...got the 3yr/100K platinum extended to 5 yr/100K for only $300! List was $1.8K.

SC4004ever

OK. So how close will these guys go to the Invoice? I'm looking at an LX fully loaded at $72,845 with, according to Edmunds, an Invoice of $60,834.

V8_Fan

Last year when demand for full-sized SUV's was extremely low, I heard of some guys buying new 06's for about $60K, so pretty close to invoice!

SC4004ever

Thanks. Lexus seems to give its dealers a lot of room, but I live in NYC where prices for luxury vehicles trend higher. The price-premium is going to play a role in my decision.

SHOE

Check out the legroom on the drivers side if you are over 6ft. Yes the firewall is way back but the gas and brake pedals are close. I'm 6ft and I think the legroom is tight.

V8_Fan

You could also buy from an out-of-state dealer and have them ship the vehicle! The day I bought mine, the salesman (also the internet sales manager) was shipping a vehicle sold to a guy cross country. NYC prices are a rip-off. Best deals/selection on new vehicles might be LA...lots of lexus dealers there.