A while back I posted a query to the hive mind about selecting an SUV that was good off road but also had towing chops, and the GX550 was the best recommendation.
Then after my local dealer broomed me (I'm guessing because I came in wearing work boots and jeans), I posted a question asking if anyone had a contact at a Lexus dealership.
Well, thanks to y'all, I followed up on that lead and took possession of my new GX550 today. It's an Overtrail+ with pretty much all of the options thrown at it (rock rails are on order).
Bam.
Tom1200
PowerDork
10/30/24 9:40 p.m.
Nice. I like the alot. If I ever got an SUV that would be high on my list.
These and the new LC look sharp! Congrats!
Your post was the first I'd heard of them and then today I saw one on the road for the first time. Sharp looking truck! Enjoy it.
Was it Jeremy that got you in it?
docwyte
UltimaDork
10/31/24 8:40 a.m.
Looks great! I think a better choice vs the Land Cruiser, I'd rather have a v6 twin turbo than the 4 cylinder...
In reply to yupididit :
Yes it was! He was a good guy to deal with: Straightforward and no typical sales BS. Way better than the dealership with which I tried to deal locally.
In reply to docwyte :
I suspect I'll be debadging this because I don't want to show up on job sites with a big L on the front. The LC is attractive and I'd have likely gone with the Toyota offering if it had better towing capacity. My enclosed trailer, however, is 3700lb by itself and the LC only has a 6k tow capacity; the GX is rated to pull over 9k, which means it is much more versatile to me.
It's too bad there are no American offerings that have reasonable off-road capacity while also having the ability to tow decent weight.
rb92673
New Reader
10/31/24 1:25 p.m.
Congrats, nice looking SUV. Does the GX550 have a dedicated transmission cooler? The last generation of 4Runners did not have a dedicated transmission cooler. I would often see 250 degree F transmission temperatures when towing over grades.
I'm not sure if it has an external transmission cooler, tbh. I'll keep an eye on trans temps when I start to tow with it, though there aren't grades around here over which I plan on pulling anything (at least in the short term).
brandonsmash said:
In reply to docwyte :
I suspect I'll be debadging this because I don't want to show up on job sites with a big L on the front. The LC is attractive and I'd have likely gone with the Toyota offering if it had better towing capacity. My enclosed trailer, however, is 3700lb by itself and the LC only has a 6k tow capacity; the GX is rated to pull over 9k, which means it is much more versatile to me.
It's too bad there are no American offerings that have reasonable off-road capacity while also having the ability to tow decent weight.
Great looking SUV! Agreed on the towing capacity. I have held onto my 2012 X5 because it tows 7700 lbs. I really don't want to have to buy a pick up!
That's pretty cool. If you were local, I'd send you the link to TEQ Customs meet and greet tonight, that thing would cause a bit of a frenzy there.
I saw one of these on the highway the other day and look even better than the photos.
brandonsmash said:
I'm not sure if it has an external transmission cooler, tbh. I'll keep an eye on trans temps when I start to tow with it, though there aren't grades around here over which I plan on pulling anything (at least in the short term).
If it stays in lockup, temperature isn't too awful. Most of the trans heat is generated in the torque converter.
Downshifting to keep the converter higher than its stall speed also helps a bit, if the converter unlocks.
In reply to Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) :
I'd love to do a meetup with it! It's a seriously slick rig, and I can't wait to get it dirty.
You're on the opposite side of the country from me, though NC is very high on my short list of states to which I'd like to move.
I just got the GX back from the wrap shop. I went with Inozetek Gloss Blue Raspberry. Also had the front "L" tinted over and the rear debadged.
One way or the other I wanted either a color wrap or a PPF, because taking this off-road and scratching the hell out of it would make me sad. This is a PPF wrap and happens to look (and feel) almost exactly like paint; it's quite impressive!
In reply to brandonsmash :
Now you need to craft a backstory for people who ask about the unique color.
I would go with "I have a buddy who is an executive at Lexus and he was able to pull some strings" or you could of course tell them it's a wrap. But what fun would that be?
In reply to Loweguy5 :
I quite like that. I think I'll just say that "Akio Toyoda owed me a favor" and leave it at that.
Loweguy5 said:
In reply to brandonsmash :
Now you need to craft a backstory for people who ask about the unique color.
I would go with "I have a buddy who is an executive at Lexus and he was able to pull some strings" or you could of course tell them it's a wrap. But what fun would that be?
It's a great color, but 99% of the people who see it will just assume it's the factory blue.
Sonic
UberDork
11/27/24 8:36 a.m.
Looks excellent. How much does a wrap like that go for these days?
brandonsmash said:
In reply to docwyte :
I suspect I'll be debadging this because I don't want to show up on job sites with a big L on the front. The LC is attractive and I'd have likely gone with the Toyota offering if it had better towing capacity. My enclosed trailer, however, is 3700lb by itself and the LC only has a 6k tow capacity; the GX is rated to pull over 9k, which means it is much more versatile to me.
It's too bad there are no American offerings that have reasonable off-road capacity while also having the ability to tow decent weight.
Have you towed your trailer with it yet? If so how did it do? I'm thinking about making a similar move. My wife is due for a car soon and wants an X5 with the 7700 tow rating. My 8x20 enclosed race trailer is 4700lb fully loaded. Well within the weight rating but I'm a little worried about the bad aerodynamics of the trailer and the short wheelbase of the X5. Guess a WDH would probably help. The only thing I use my F-250 for these days is towing the trailer, it would be nice to get rid of it and have one less vehicle around.
