GXArch

Today is both a joyous and a somber day for me. I'll get to the somber part in a minute.

I am picking up my 'new to me' 2003 Lexus GX470!

It is Ash Blue Mica and has 120k miles.

- Nav/Mark Levinson Sound
- Towing Package
- 3rd Row Seats
- Rear DVD Entertainment

Pics!













I am very excited about this truck, but unfortunately I am selling my pride and joy in the process.

The new owner for my 2001 BMW M5 is flying in on Saturday. This has been my most favorite car I have ever owned. I will definitely own another one at some point in my life.












I am an avid car guy and DIY'r, so I hope to learn a great deal from this forum.

Cheers!

470SNC

That M5 is gorgeous, congrats on the Ash Blue Mica, best GX color out there! welcome!

GXArch

Thanks! I am pumped that I was able to find an Ash Blue in good shape. For awhile it seemed all I could find were Silver/Tan/Gold.

NTH

Arch- congrats on your new GX. Such a nice color combo there. I'm also a bmw fanatic as well. In my book, the E39 M5 is the best looking of them all.

Ali SC3

iTrader: (10)

As someone who has silver and gold GX's I am going to second the blue is one of the best colors and that M5 is super clean, I bet it moves quite nicely. Welcome to CL and if you have any questions post them and be sure to check out some of the stickies at the top of the forum there is alot of good info all around to keep these GX's in tip top shape.

GXArch

Thanks!

I agree about the E39, i absolutely love that car.

I had an E36 M3 before the M5. Fantastic handling, just needed a bit more powah!




Thanks Ali. The M5's acceleration is just brutal! and the sound... oh the glorious sound hah. It's hard to believe it has 151,000 miles on it. Pulls harder than when I bought it 3 years ago. I would post a video of the exhaust, but I don't want to clutter up the GX forum with too much Bimmer content.

I read through almost all of the sticky's in this forum before I started searching for a GX. It was extremely helpful and I think I found a solid truck because of it.

Timing belt, Water Pump, Spark Plugs, Both Differential fluids, Transfer Case Fluid, Transmission Fluid all done in the last 5k miles.

Hoping to drive it for many many years.

GXArch

I picked up the GX Friday evening. I have to say, I am thoroughly impressed. The truck is in fantastic shape and drives beautifully.

The only flaw I have found so far is that I am pretty sure it has a small exhaust leak. I can hear a Tick, Tick, Tick when the car is cold, it goes away once the exhaust warms up.

From the research I have done, it seems to be a fairly common problem on this engine. The front runner on both sides seems to develop a crack where the runner meets the flange. I need to do a little more investigation.

Other than that it seems to be a solid truck and I hope to get many years of enjoyment.

ALAN553

crack in manifold gasket probably...mine did that for years and 100K . never got better, never got worse.

chreesto

Glad to hear that your vehicle is great. I just picked up a 2007 ash blue mica, it seems to have the same issue. Just a slight tick or click. Is that something that will cause the engine to deteriorate or is it just a little annoying? I can only hear it when I'm standing outside and the vehicle is idling.

GXArch

Depends how bad the leak is.

Mine goes away once warm (the metal expands and closes the gap). I have heard you don't really need to address it till you hear it all the time.

You can find arguments on both sides of the coin (I know shocking right?). Some will say that if the exhaust leak is bad enough, the cool air being sucked in the crack can eventually wreak havoc on the exhaust valves.

I wasn't planning on addressing it till it got worse.

GXArch

I have a question for some of you that have more experience with the GX.

My 2003 has the Nav/Mark Levinson Audio and the RSES.



Can the RSES read dvd's from the 6-disc changer in the glove box?

My 6-disc changer seems to be on the frits. It will eject but when you place it back in, you can here it clicking and cyling, but it can never seem to load a cd. I am thinking it is a problem with the changer itself, not the cassette that holds the cd's




Thanks

Kaneeast

Got my first Lexus 3 weeks ago, amazing vehicle! 2010 GX took a road trip to Florida 1500 miles was a great ride.

ALAN553

And I always thought 09 was the last year for the 470....

GXArch

Just ordered the foam repair kit for the ML 6x9 speakers up front. Both are torn.

I can't tell if the sub in the back is torn or not. It doesn't sound the best.


Also, I am trying to decide between the VAIS MML and the GROM USB3.

I had the GROM unit in my M5 and it worked great. But it seems most people on here use the VAIS unit.

Need to do some more research on the differences.

chiph9

I don't know if Lexus swapped the changer out over the years. Look for the DVD or CD symbol on the front of your changer or on the cartridge. No DVD symbol means no DVD support.

Chip H.