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The GX460 that Lexus loaned us, see video review, cost $66,715. That seemed like a lot, but it has 10 airbags and a paragraph of safety features that includes a driver-attention monitor that is supposed to see if your face is pointed at an oncoming obstacle. We didn’t test that. The video shows lights in the sensor that are not visible to the naked eye. Who knows how the video camera could see it?
The GX has a 4.6-liter V-8 that Lexus claims makes 301 horsepower, but it’s pushing 2½ tons. It has Toyota’s ECO mode, where cylinders shut off to save gas.
The radar cruise control worked well; you can leave the cruise set when traffic slows down, and it will slow you down, maintaining a distance you set. When the traffic speeds back up, the GX will automatically.
The traffic warnings on the GPS get a pass; it’s not going to put any KSL traffic reporters out of a job anytime soon. It warned of some delays, but not all.
The lane departure warning does not work so well. We drifted all over the road (not near traffic), and it gave nary a beep; drivers might have to actually pay attention while driving.
If you're buying a Lexus, you're probably not doing a lot of off-roading.
–Chris Garff
While up, the power fold-down third-row seats are OK. Claire Champagne, 11, said, “There’s room to the sides, but not vertically.” She clarified that “vertically” meant head and leg room.
Down, the seats give a flat loading area. We easily loaded up with groceries, an IKEA dresser (which means two flat boxes) and lots of video camera gear.
Cameras to the front, side and rear make parking easier, though the front camera gives a very distorted view.
Finally, it was time to take the GX off-road. Chris Garff agreed to drive, saying, “I’ve driven a few Jeeps, taken some pickups off-road.”
We set out to push the Country-Club SUV to its limits and see where it failed. “If you’re buying a Lexus, you’re probably not doing a lot of off-roading,” Garff said.
We started out easy, on rolling trails, and moved on to the medium hills. We activated the automated off-road system. After pushing the console-mounted levers, the car will go by itself, uphill and down. You can drive with feet off the pedals.
“I was covering the brake in case I had to stop, but for the most part the car did everything,” Garff said.
Finally, we threw the Lexus at “The Mound.” It’s a 20-foot-tall pile of dirt with steep inclines on either side. If your vehicle has too much overhang at the wheels, or not enough ground clearance underneath, you won’t make it up.
Garff started up with the Lexus working its automatic systems. “It started to slip and I was like, ‘Here’s where the Lexus is going to fail,’ but all the automatic settings the buttons that you push, everything that you push compensated and it got up that hill,” he said.
There was a little departure scrape coming down (the exhaust pipe dragged), and the belly rubbed in the dirt a little, but it got over the biggest hurdle we had to throw at it.
We failed to fail the Lexus, but Garff can still whine because it stole his chance at some adrenaline: “I like to get a little scared when I go off-road, and the buttons just kind of took that anxiety away because honestly it does a very good job.”
Brian Champagne has reported on cars for more than nine years. He holds a master's degree in communications from the University of the Pacific and teaches at Utah State University.
