SW17LS

I sat in a 2014 GX today (drove by the dealer and the one sitting out front was left unlocked, dealer was closed. Whoops!). I like the exterior changes more in person as others have said, I wouldn't call it beautiful, but its attractive to me now where the previous one looked awkward to me.

Maybe Creig can chime in here since he just made the swap, do you note any reduced quality of materials in the interior? I was underwhelmed by the one I sat in (it was a $63k Luxury model). Leather was okay, but not as high quality or as well stitched as what is in my GS, and the interior had a fair amount of hard cheap plastic, most notably the two bottom spokes of the steering wheel and the lower door panels/console materials. These materials were a definite downgrade from whats in the same areas in my GS, and is more similar to an IS or ES. I was really surprised because I do not remember feeling the same way after sitting in the GX in 2010, and I have several colleagues that have the previous generation GX and their materials are better in these areas.

I also drove an Infiniti QX60 yesterday (wife was out of town so I've bummed around some dealers this weekend), I felt overall the materials in the Infiniti were better, leather was certainly better with attractive piping vs the plain single stitching in the GX. The Infiniti still has some crappy plastic, mainly the top of the dash near the windshield, the steering wheel material is some strange coated leather or leatherette.

Thoughts?

Craig B

I haven't noticed any difference in materials over my 2010. The leather is the same quality and I don't notice the plastic being any different either. The steering wheel angle is different on the 2014. The brakes work better on the 2014. I had a leather dash on my BMW X5. It was an option along with softer leather. I don't notice the stitching is any different on the seats, but will have to look. The radio ***** are smaller, people were complaining they were bumping into the old *****. That's an improvement in my opinion.

SecPole14

The leather in the GX is probably made to be "tougher" considering the intended use/capability of the vehicle, so it's no surprise it doesn't "feel" quite as soft/luxurious as the leather for the car models. I guarantee you that the interior of the Lexus trucks (GX and LX) will hold up and look better longer, with less maintenance, than the car models (IS, ES, GS). I'm willing to trade some "softness" and perceived quality for ACTUAL quality and material that hold up better for longer. The GX is, at its base, a $50k truck, not a $63k truck. Compare its cabin to other real BOF/trucky $50k SUVs and the GX comes out ahead.

And for what it's worth, the mahogany used in the 2014 GX Premium and Luxury trims is the exact same as the mahogany used in the $92k LX.

SW17LS

If anything I thought the leather felt thinner than what's in my GS. The GS is at its base a $47k car, even though mine was $60k. This was the luxury package leather upgrade, no excuse for it being lower quality.

The one I saw in 2010 had the Ecru interior, I suppose maybe that's why I felt it had better materials. Very disappointing.

SecPole14

Well I agree with you on the last point, I think the black and sepia options do look a little "plasticky" which is why I went with Ecru.

SW17LS

That's why I went with a Parchment on my previous ES, ivory/white hides issues with material quality.

SecPole14

Exacerbating matters is that the GX has relatively flat seats and interior surfaces. Which is fine, however, it's hard to make dark leather look classy without contours, contrast piping, quilting, etc. The lighter color Ecru brightens the interior, contrasts nicely with the wood, and as you mentioned (contrary to popular belief), the lighter colors actually hide issues better. To each their own, of course, but my opinion applies to other brands like BMW, Audi, MB....all have the same issue in the dark colored interiors. Plus, I live in the southeast. Dark interior is a no-go.

SW17LS

I too noticed the flat seats...

Quadro

Shouldn't you be test driving 2014 Grand Cherokee instead? It sounds like you're constantly trying to convince yourself why you don't need or want the GX. I've sat in the LX and materials quality looks comparable to me between the both.

patgilm

I don't have a problem with the material quality, the semi aniline leather seems to be the same quality as my LS but a little softer. The issue I have with the seats is I think they are cheaply made. While they are more comfortable than the prior gen GX, they are noticeably lighter feeling (side and lower bolsters) than the previous GX and the material under the lower part of the seat folds upon entry/exit and I have seen this in many of the second gen GX's. I have had several Lexus' over the last 10+ years and I have never seen this happen so this isn't an issue of us getting in and out of the truck improperly. This is the only Lexus I have noticed this on.

SW17LS

Thats really not the case, don't be so sensitive. We've more or less decided not to get another Jeep because of the reliability issues we've had with ours, and we really want three rows. I'm kind of at a loss on what to buy because I don't love anything in that segment. The QX60 would be a home run if it weren't for the CVT.

My issues with Lexus' direction with interior material quality is well documented on other forums here, thats the main reason I went to the GS from the ES this time.

And no, there is no comparison in material quality between the GX and LX, as there shouldn't be given the price difference. There is not one piece of hard plastic in the LX, everything is padded leather, padded vinyl or wood. I was surprised to see that they went the same direction as on the IS, ES & RX given the GX's price point. All you have to to is tap on the materials to see the difference. I just expected the GX's interior to be similar to that in the GS because the pricing is similar, but its not.

Toys4RJill

[QUOTE=SecPole14;8230332]The leather in the GX is probably made to be "tougher" considering the intended use/capability of the vehicle, so it's no surprise it doesn't "feel" quite as soft/luxurious as the leather for the car models. I guarantee you that the interior of the Lexus trucks (GX and LX) will hold up and look better longer, with less maintenance, than the car models (IS, ES, GS). I'm willing to trade some "softness" and perceived quality for ACTUAL quality and material that hold up better for longer. [ /QUOTE]

Yup, totally agree. The materials in the GX will hold up far longer than the GS. The leather is leather, no big deal to me as it will age in any vehicle. I am just not a fan of the faux leather.

SW17LS

I think thats a cop-out quite frankly. Leather is not leather, there are different grades of leather. Lexus has three grades here, the one I sat in had the highest available grade, it should be as good and as well stitched as it is in my $4,000 cheaper GS (which also is the higher grade), and quite frankly as good and as well stitched as an UL ES at $14,000 cheaper. I thought it first it was NuLuxe and had to check the sticker. Theres no reason to think that padded vinyl dash and door materials will have a shorter life or be less durable than hard plastic, my 2003 ES is still in the family, going on 11 years old and 170,000 miles and the padded dash and interior materials are as new, as is the double stitched leather which IMHO is higher end than whats in the new GX. I just cannot stand the cost cutting. None of these materials feel more durable, in fact they feel thinner and more fragile.

Its not a Wrangler, its a luxury vehicle, it doesn't need materials that can be beat on and hosed off. I just simply did not feel like I was sitting in a $64,000 vehicle when I was sitting in it, which is disappointing. Other people are alluding to the same issues here so I'm not alone. I sat in a new X5 yesterday too at a similar price point and while its not as capable off road as the GX, nor is it as spacious, the exterior detailing and interior design and quality absolutely blow the GX away. As a Lexus enthusiast that really bothers me.

Quadro

I'm not being sensitive. The way it looked to me is you first didn't like that GX is BOF truck and you want unibody. If that was still the case why would you look at materials let alone test drive one?

Now I understand it much better.

I think perception plays a lot in this. I'm almost sure if I go and sit in 13 GS I might feel it "lacking" too but simply because the interior is done differently. The dash and windows trim on GX is not hard plastic... I can easily press it with my thumb and it flexes. What exactly is hard plastic on GX which isn't on the LX?

SW17LS

I don't really care whether its BOF or unibody if it suits my needs. My point was that a unibody vehicle has certain plusses when it comes to drivability and people space that is more in line with what today's consumers want, and that a unibody vehicle can be just as capable as a BOF vehicle off road while not having to force the buyer into making certain tradeoffs. But, lets not get into that discussion again.

You seem to think I'm a Jeep fanboy and I'm REALLY not. I like many, many things about the Jeep, but from a reliability and dealer support perspective I'm very unhappy.

Styling, and material quality are two different things. The GX' interior is definitely styled to portray an idea that it is more utilitarian and more rugged than something like a GS. The dash is flatter and more upright, the controls are beefier and chunkier. Thats a matter of taste.

The issue though is cost cutting when it comes to materials. If you feel down the lower door panels towards the map pockets, the lower dash area, and the console area as well as the lower steering wheel trim on the bottom two spokes, and tap on those areas with your fingernails, you will see that its the same grainy hard plastic that is used in the CT, IS, ES & RX. There is a nicer, padded vinyl material that is used in these areas in the GS, LS & LX. That same material used to be used on the GX, ES, RX & IS, its not anymore.

Next look at the general trim around the door handles and the transitions to metal and wood trim, and the additional use of leather on the door panels, dash, console, etc on the LX. That sort of thing is to be expected with the price difference.

The next difference is leather and carpeting quality. You expect that between the GX and LX because of the price difference, but you don't expect that between the GS and GX.