I had an 2009 X5 twin turbo diesel that was a total lemon. I liked the way it drove, but it spent more time in the
dealers garage than in mine, so I would stay away from the X5. What I like best about Lexus, it's not full of problems and at the dealer. I have had zero problems with my GX 460.

 

Here's another SUV to compare.




~ Cap

 

^^^ Thanks for that video and all the other replies. The performance, speed wise, sounds a little underwhelming based on what I've read thus far. If my wife were to get either the X5 or Cayenne, I was definitely leaning toward the diesel offerings.

If we have time this weekend, we're going to try to test drive a GX. At this point the "wants" are far greater than our "needs" as we do not have kids (yet) and the vehicle will likely never see any offroading - maybe a trip to the snow every now and then. The only consideration we have at this time is our ~25lb dog.

Does anyone here have experience with the RX? Is the ride quality similar? We had a loaner RX over an extended weekend back in 2011 and my wife hated the ride and hated driving it. She thought it felt very floaty and had too much body roll; I think her words were more along the lines of "it feels like it's bouncing too much over dips and like its going to tip around corners," but that was how I interpreted it... haha

 

The GX doesn't ride like the RX. The RX is a cross over and the GX is truck based. I prefer the ride of the GX over the RX. I've driven several RX's when I have my vehicles in for maintenance and wouldn't want to own one. BMW has had problems with the diesel engine in the X5. The X5 was also terrible in the snow, so that's something to think about. The GX is great in the snow. I wouldn't own another BMW. BMW offered me a trade assist and I declined their offer and traded for the GX 460.

 

We have an RX in addition to a GX. Your wife is correct. The GX is also much quieter inside than the RX, and the RX backseat ride is not great for long distances.

 

If your wife didn't like the ride of the RX she may not like the ride of the GX even more. To me the RX handles better since it is not truck based and because of the GX being truck based, the GX has a lot of body roll. We had a 2001 RX a while ago and my wife wouldn't even consider one again. She loves the truck-like ride of the GX (this is our second one) which is strange to me since she isn't really a truck type person.

The other truck my wife loved was the LR4 which is in the same price range (even a little cheaper) with similar options. However, the reliability, expense of wear & tear items and horrible gas mileage (even compared to the GX) was the reason we didn't buy one of these. The other SUVs we cross shopped were the Mercedes GL and Porsche Cayenne but we didn't even test drive these because with similar options they were way over our $60k price limit (over $80k). We looked at the Audi Q7 but didn't like the interior that much and the BMW X5 which looks and drives great (steering is a little heavy) but as noted above, after doing some research reliability was concerning and it isn't great in bad weather. I really like this SUV but is seems like more of a car with SUV body which is evident when they put summer tires on a SUV (sport model) but the stance of the sport model is awesome. The new 2014 X5 looks pretty nice too and it will be out in a few months.

The one thing about our GX that my wife absolutely hates is the pedal pressure of the brakes, especially at a red light. It takes much more effort than our 08 GX470 and some of the other SUVs we looked at. I would recommend taking the GX for a long test drive to really get a good feel for it to see if it is the truck for you.

 

I agree the RX handle more like a car but the GX has a much better/smoother/solid/quieter ride. I do not understand how you can say there is a lot of body roll. I am very amazed at how little body roll (almost none) the GX has considering it weighs 5300 lbs. and I push my GX very hard. The AVS and KDSS systems work outstanding! I personally think that the GX has the smoothest solid ride out of just about any other mid-sized SUVs on the market (including crossovers). Again, my personal opinion.

PS - The last vehicle on the planet you would want is a Rover. My brother is a service manager for Rover and he has told SOME of the horror stories about them and the money needed to keep them running. He could not believe how easily customers will lay out huge money for repairs and that they cannot get enough of them to sell (even the $100K models).

Koz

 

^^ I just personally feel that it is a little top heavy around turns and exit ramps and feel I have to go a slower than the RX or another car based SUV. Maybe that isn't really body roll, I don't know.

As for the Rover I agree, I know someone as well and even they laugh at how many people love those trucks even with the problems. I was even sent a pic of them fixing something where the whole body was taken off the frame to fix something. The other issue with them is some of the maintenance items being very expensive (tires and brakes) and having to be replaced earlier than I am used to. With all of that being said, there is something that really draws us to them and it takes being sensical to have us not buy one.

 

I have both a Cayenne and a GX. I can tell you all about the Cayenne. It may not look it, but it is wider and slightly longer than the GX, but if you wan a more sportier ride with acceleration, great interior quality, go for the Cayenne. Also, which Cayenne are you looking for? v6, Diesel, S, GTS, Turbo? Each has its own personality.

 

You certainly cannot compare the handling between the GX and a Cayenne or any other HP SUV (apples and oranges). Just like, you could never compare the off-road and bad weather ability between these two. What I was referring to is the overall quality and comfort of the ride. The GX is buttery smooth and quiet, maybe too fluffy sometimes.

Koz

 

If we went the Cayenne route, we'd most likely get a diesel. The MPG people are getting on that vehicle is pretty amazing and all that tq. makes me My wife wants a brand new vehicle and we'd like to stay under $70k and with the options that are "must haves" for her, we priced one out to about $66k. If this were going to be my vehicle, I'd probably opt for a slightly used, low mileage GTS. I also recently found out an old friend of mine is a service director at a Porsche dealer so while service prices may be high, I'll at least know I'm dealing with someone I can trust - again, if we go this route.

We've researched the E70 X5 and Cayenne quite a bit, and I was surprised to see that the GX is shorter and narrower than both! I knew the GX was taller, but didn't think it was going to be shorter in length,

Rovers are no where near our radar - not in the least bit. My wife's friend owned two brand new Rovers and one was a lemon and the other almost a lemon - he traded it in after the second time it randomly decided not to start.

Out of curiosity, does the rear door on the GX ever pose an issue for you any of you? Obviously, if you were to back into a spot opening that door could be problematic, but any other instances you've experienced?

 

I also prefer how GX rides as it has that very solid "tank-like" feeling to it. The GX has almost no body roll due to KDSS.

I think this video shows that KDSS is surprisingly stable during cornering:
So one is a "flimsy" crossover-type vehicle (RX) while the other is a solid truck-based platform based on a very capable Prado. Also 100% of GXs are still assembled on the most advanced plant in Japan and the build quality on these is second to none.

However, remember that GX is a heavy full-time 4WD truck. After driving it in Canadian winters with lots of snow I will never trade the confidence full-time gives you in inclement weather conditions for a couple more MPG but some people might think differently.

 

Surprisingly the GX was the mid-sized luxury SUV, MPG, class leader (gas engine). I've gotten 22 mpg under ideal condition and 17.8 mpg towing over 4K lbs.

Koz

 

Cool video! If my wife were to get one of these, it'd probably never see dirt like that or very many inclement weather conditions. Not where we are in California... haha The reality, for whatever vehicle we end buying, is that it will mostly be driven for her 50 mile daily commute, half of which is in stop and go traffic. Again, "wants" far exceed "needs," BUT I think many of us buy based on our "wants" more so than "needs"!

 

I recently picked up 2014 Acura MDX. It has tons of tech features, reliable, nice 3rd row seating (for kids). I like the jewel headlights and tail lights. The MDX rides real smooth and really quite to my suprise, coming from mostly Lexus. I recommend Advance Package, I think leather alone is worth the extra $$$. I got SH-AWD Tech cause Advance was not available and little out of reach. Good luck, I feel the styling is bit boring on GX, only one Luxury SUV automaker does boxy desgin well, and it's not Lexus.