2005 Lexus GX 470

2005 Lexus GX 470 Test Drive

Big, capable and solid feeling, the GX470 also carries a big sticker price.

Lexus sold 14,652 GX470 SUVs through the first six months of 2003. That's 14,652 Lexus vehicles (base price of $44,925 a piece) not sold last year, when there was no GX470. And the GX470 alone has played a huge part in boosting Lexus SUV/crossover sales by 30% so far in 2003.

More amazing, GX470 numbers are only slightly behind Ford Motor's sales of the Lincoln Navigator and General Motors' Cadillac Escalade sales (not including the stretched, Chevy Suburban-based Escalade ESV). That's pretty impressive for first-year sales of any vehicle, nipping right on the heels of the segment leaders. You might claim that Honda's Acura division spanked all comers, selling more than 27,000 MDX crossovers in the first six months of 2003. But we're not talking crossovers here; we are talking about truck-based luxury SUVs.

It probably helps Lexus a great deal that the company once again got top marks in a recent J.D. Power survey, this time for long-term reliability. Customers clearly will pay a premium if they think a vehicle is going to last and not give them headaches, hence one reason Toyota and its Lexus brand combined now claim 12% of the SUV/crossover market. Also helpful: eight crossover/SUV products in the Toyota/Lexus pantheon.

But all those offerings start to look a lot alike. How different is the seven-seat Toyota Sequoia that sells for $31,625 with a 4.7-liter V-8 from a GX470 with the same engine? And why get the Lexus when the Toyota 4Runner ($28,000-$35,530) is so less pricey?

Indeed, this has become quite a crowded marketplace, and not just with truck-based offerings. Oh sure, the truck-based vehicles have their place. But that's really about towing boats and campers, not about off-roading. And since chassis construction technology has improved greatly, some car-based crossovers, like the $34,900 Volkswagen Touareg, can actually tow more weight than the truck-based Lexus GX470.

Although a true frame construction would be better in certain off-roading conditions, we doubt even Lexus would claim its owners take their GX470s anywhere near bowling ball-sized boulders.

So why would you get the GX470? Well, in contrast with the VW, the Lexus gets third-row seats, and its V-8 is simply one of the smoothest engines on the market period. Then there's this: In great contrast to Lexus, which came in at the top of the 2003 J.D. Power & Associates Vehicle Dependability Study, Volkswagen landed near the bottom, just below Isuzu!

That makes buying a Lexus product quite attractive, even if there is a big price premium. What about driving the GX470, living with it for a week as we just did? Read on to see what we thought.