Best And Worst Aspects Of Gx470 Vs The Competition

[strindl]

I just bought a GX 470 a week ago, and am waiting anxiously for my dealer to call and tell me it has come in. It's supposed to be here any day now. Meridian Blue with all the options. I looked at several other vehicles before deciding on the Lexus, the VW Taureg, Cadillac SRX and Escalade, Lincoln Navigator, etc.

I decided on the Lexus after the dealer let me take it for an afternoon and really give it a nice test. I took it on my "rattle road", a rather rough strecth of road near my house guarenteed to make any rattles show themselves, as well as on some twisty country roads and the freeway. The Lexus had no rattles at all, and was smooth a quiet at 75 on the freeway.

I am trading in my 04 Cadillac CTS with 4,700 miles on it . I decided I needed something a bit bigger, and with 4wd. I like the exterior and engine/drive train on the Cadillac SRX, but every one I drove rattled, and my experience with Cadillac customer service with my CTS has been rather disappointing. The interior on the SRX was several levels of quaility beneath the GX470 as well.

The Escalade had the same dash as my Chevy pickup truck, with a bit of fake wood added. It was fine in a $28,000 Chevy, not acceptable in a $60,000 Cadillac.

I liked the VW Taureg overall, but it's V8 engine and transmission just seemed a bit flakey in the way they accellerated. There was a momentary delay after I pressed on the gas, before it would go. very disconcerting. VW service and reliabilty didn't inspire confidence either.

The Lexus features that won me over were:

An exceptionally smooth and refined engine and transmission.

A very quiet and luxurious interior that just oozes quality.

The Lexus reputation for reliability and outstanding service.

Not having taken delivery of mine yet, I'd be interested in the experiences of those who have driven theirs for a while. What are the best and worst features?

[GS400jon]

Other than the features you mention, here's my list.

Best Features:

- KDSS

- Backup camera

- Tilting mirrors

- Ease of entry and exit

Worst Features:

- Trip computer controls mounted too high on the dash (as opposed to

instrument cluster display and mode switch on the steering wheel)

- Audio, Climate, etc. controls use the Navigation display (instead of dash

mounted switches)

- Minimal center console storage space (with Rear Entertainment)

- Side opening rear door (ala RX330 power rear door would be nice)

These are not necessarily bad features but more a matter of preference.

[denslexusgx470]

how about bad experiences??? :cries:

1. thump "clunk"

2. vibration

3. creaking seats

4. claddings rattle

5. kdss possible leaning(04s)

oh btw, 05's get a 270 hp engine, improved kdss, bluetooth integrated into nav, and some other options. i'll post em up when i get the time. ;)

[gx470forme]

Best Features:

-Mark Levinson Stereo system ( It just plain rocks for a stock setup)

-Interior Quality (Ivory against that [real] maple wood) looks absolutley stunning

-Lexus Service is top notch

Worst Features:

-Driveline is NOT Lexus smooth and was under-developed and has just received bandaid

updates to date

-Transmission inconsistant. Shifts smooth as glass some times and jerky/rough other times

-No Indenpendant Rear Suspension (With today's modern technology it is possible to have

off-road capability/robustness and car like drivability with a IRS setup)

Overall I give it a 7 out of 10

While not one of Lexus's best products, it is still one of the best choices for its class, but needs some added "pursuit of perfection"

If VW had a better reputation for customer service, I might be driving a V-8 4-corner air Touareg (sp).

[GS400jon]

Good list. Personally, I liked the Nakamichi system in my previous GS400 better than the Levinson. My transmission has been shifting perfectly since day one. It still boggles my mind that there are so many inconsistencies with this vehicle.

[strindl]

how about bad experiences???:cries:

1. thump "clunk"

2. vibration

3. creaking seats

4. claddings rattle

5. kdss possible leaning(04s)

oh btw, 05's get a 270 hp engine, improved kdss, bluetooth integrated into nav, and some other options. i'll post em up when i get the time. ;)

I'm hoping none of those problems crop up in my vehicle. I test drove two different ones at the dealership and noticed none of them, but you never know. My hope is that Lexus took the initiative to correct those troubles in the later model year production.

[smaislin]

I just bought a GX 470 a week ago, and am waiting anxiously for my dealer to call and tell me it has come in. It's supposed to be here any day now. Meridian Blue with all the options. I looked at several other vehicles before deciding on the Lexus, the VW Taureg, Cadillac SRX and Escalade, Lincoln Navigator, etc.

I decided on the Lexus after the dealer let me take it for an afternoon and really give it a nice test. I took it on my "rattle road", a rather rough strecth of road near my house guarenteed to make any rattles show themselves, as well as on some twisty country roads and the freeway. The Lexus had no rattles at all, and was smooth a quiet at 75 on the freeway.

I am trading in my 04 Cadillac CTS with 4,700 miles on it . I decided I needed something a bit bigger, and with 4wd. I like the exterior and engine/drive train on the Cadillac SRX, but every one I drove rattled, and my experience with Cadillac customer service with my CTS has been rather disappointing. The interior on the SRX was several levels of quaility beneath the GX470 as well.

The Escalade had the same dash as my Chevy pickup truck, with a bit of fake wood added. It was fine in a $28,000 Chevy, not acceptable in a $60,000 Cadillac.

I liked the VW Taureg overall, but it's V8 engine and transmission just seemed a bit flakey in the way they accellerated. There was a momentary delay after I pressed on the gas, before it would go. very disconcerting. VW service and reliabilty didn't inspire confidence either.

The Lexus features that won me over were:

An exceptionally smooth and refined engine and transmission.

A very quiet and luxurious interior that just oozes quality.

The Lexus reputation for reliability and outstanding service.

Not having taken delivery of mine yet, I'd be interested in the experiences of those who have driven theirs for a while. What are the best and worst features?

Mine is close to perfect. :D

The engine and transmission are silky smooth and I am always surprised when I hear someone express a different opinion. The vehicle moves well and never has failed me when I needed some punch. I don't drive it like my Audi 46 4.2 and would not expect it to take on the charactistics of a high performance sedan.

I think the ride is perfect. Not too soft, just right. Rough roads are made smooth and I never, never spill my coffee.

Great visibilty when driving, love those big side mirrors and tall side windows. I like that both mirrors tilt down when you put the vehicle in reverse.

Interior is wonderful, materials and fit and finish are superb. Love that maple and all of that sound insulation.

Seats are very comfortable and their is plenty of room for everybody. Those rear seat are tight, but I don't care as my kids are off on their own.

The navigation system is easy to use and it works. However, it would be nice if you could do more with it and see the radio station messages while driving. I am looking forward to the next update so the BIG DIG in Boston is included.

Stereo are a very personal choice, but this one is very, very good. When the jazz is blasting there is wonderful clarity and plenty of bass. It would be nice if there was an input for an MP3 player, but that is not a big deal.

I like the big sunroof.

The headlights provide great visiblity and I like them better than the Xenon lights on my Audi.

My MPG is quite acceptable at 16.5 to 18. I am not one to slam the accelerator to the floor. I use the odometer to calculate this and not the computer which reads a bit higher.

Easy entry and it is nice to have the steering wheel get out of the way.

Automatic everything: headlights, steering wheel, climate, seats, wipers; all I do is drive.

It is a nice looking vehicle: Meridian Blue with Ivory interior.

Lexus of Northborough in MA is wonderful. They are always willing to go the extra mile to get things right. You can tell that they want you to buy another car there one day and they truly care that you enjoy the one you drive.

_________________________

:(

I would like a power rear window and power controls for those rear side windows.

The seat heaters need to get hotter. My wife's BMW will cook you if you put them on high. It helps get them hotter faster.

I don't mind the side opening rear door, but a power one like in the RX would be nice. You can stand under it in the rain. And if you load something that is too long, you can drive with it open.

They could have put power washers on the headlights, but that is picky.

Rear seat heaters and rear reading lights would be nice. One again, not a big deal.

I am not sure, but if you leave a door ajar I think the interior lights stay on forever. Maybe they eventually turn off, but I am not sure.

It would have been nice if they options for the wheels. A little customization.

They did put in a campaign item that eliminated a buzz in the steering wheel at about 1700 rpm. Now it is just right! This fix was incorporated in mid-2004.

[denslexusgx470]

how about bad experiences???:cries:

1. thump "clunk"

2. vibration

3. creaking seats

4. claddings rattle

5. kdss possible leaning(04s)

oh btw, 05's get a 270 hp engine, improved kdss, bluetooth integrated into nav, and some other options. i'll post em up when i get the time. ;)

I'm hoping none of those problems crop up in my vehicle. I test drove two different ones at the dealership and noticed none of them, but you never know. My hope is that Lexus took the initiative to correct those troubles in the later model year production.

well i wish u luck bro! Hope that urs won't have any probs. ;) it could be that my Gx was one of the first built, but on the other hand I'm hearing complaints from 04 gx owners. I hope ur's won't have any (since you won't notice any of em till after 1k miles)

[gx470forme]

Good list.  Personally, I liked the Nakamichi system in my previous GS400 better than the Levinson.  My transmission has been shifting perfectly since day one.  It still boggles my mind that there are so many inconsistencies with this vehicle.

I don't have a problem with the transmission shifting, it is more of how it shifts.

Sometimes it shifts so smooth that the only indication that it has shifted up a gear is by looking at the tach. and there is absolutley no lag in accelaration or movement from inside the car to indicate a shift. Totally seamless

While other times when it shifts the car lurches forward and/or has a momentary dead spot in accelaration. Very un-seamless

Now you may be thinking about different accelaration rates, but I have tested this by accelarating at the same rate and making it shift at the same rpms and some times if shifts smooth and other times not. I have even played with ambient temps., car temp. and have found no pattern.

[strindl]

I don't have a problem with the transmission shifting, it is more of how it shifts.

Sometimes it shifts so smooth that the only indication that it has shifted up a gear is by looking at the tach. and there is absolutley no lag in accelaration or movement from inside the car to indicate a shift. Totally seamless

I just picked up my meridian blue GX470 at 3 this afternoon. They had it sitting in a special indoor delivery area, all shined up with metalic paint sparkling under the lights, tire sidewalls dressed, even a dozen roses and a spiffy blue Lexus cap. Very well done first impression. Bravo to Lexus of Brookfield, Wisconsin.

It hasn't rained here in the Milwaukee area for over two weeks, but as luck would have it, it started raining just before I pulled it outside and started to drive it home. I've only put about 10 miles on it so far, basically from the dealer to home, but it is everything I hoped it would be. Quiet, smooth, refined, and surprisingly quick off the line.

The dealer did a great job of showing me how everything operates, which with a vehicle like this is certainly required. I used my leaf blower to dry it off after I got home, and Meguiars detailer and a soft cotten towel to remove the small bits of road dirt that were on it, and it's sitting all clean and sparkly in my garage as I type this. Tomorrow and the rest of the weekend are supposed to be dry and sunny, so I'll take it out then and check for any potential vibrations/thuds/etc that some vehicles have experienced. I didn't notice anything like that on the drive home, but I didn't have it over 45 mph either. There isn't a rattle to be heard in it, and I was on some rough roads.

I have about ten pounds of manuals to read through tonight, but that's always fun to do when you get a new car.

[denslexusgx470]

enjoy!

[strindl]

I had the GX out for a nice long drive this morning, on city streets, freeways, parking lots, and here are my impressions.

First and foremost, I had it up to 80 on the freeway, and experienced no vibrations or odd handling at any speed. It ran smooth, VERY quiet and straight. I couldn't hear the engine at all, and just a slight wind rush around the A pillars at 80, but certainly nothing objectionable at all. Mine came equipped with the Bridgestone Dueler H/T tires.

I also did not experience any of the driveline "thunks" that others have mentioned, nor did I have any abrupt shifting of the transmission. The shifts were always silky smooth and almost imperceptable.

Either I just got lucky and got a good one, or Lexus has resolved some of the problems that have been experienced by owners of earlier builds. Mine is a 9700G btw.

[SW03ES]

Enjoy! Buying a new Lexus is a great experience.

[strindl]

Enjoy! Buying a new Lexus is a great experience.

I think back to when I picked up my brand new Cadillac CTS on 3/31/04. I special ordered my car in Jan, and it was shipped from the factory on 2/17/04, arriving at my dealer prior to 3/01/04. Somehow, the dealer never noticed that it was my car, even though I was in there once a week checking on its staus. They had it sitting on their lot for a month before I happened to notice it sitting on their showroom floor. In the mean time, they had added $9,000 of dealer added garbage to it. Everything from pimp wheels and tires, to a dash full of fake plastic wood.

I accepted the car anyway, which was a mistake, but even then they couldn't get things right. When I arrived to pick it up, it wasn't ready. I waited around that dealership for two hours while they did what they should have already had done.

Then I had the fun of trying to have the car De Rattled. Rattles drive me crazy, and the CTS had them. It took me two months, 7 trips to the dealer, and many arguments with the service manager. They simpley didn't want to fix it. The service managers exact words to me were... "it would take too long for us to track down the rattles, just live with it". That soured me on Cadillac pretty thoroughly.

What a difference with the Lexus delivery experience. The car was ready earlier then promised, it was spotless and freshly detailed and waxed, and I have not heard a single rattle. That's what a car buying experience is supposed to be like.

[denslexusgx470]

I had the GX out for a nice long drive this morning, on city streets, freeways, parking lots, and here are my impressions.

First and foremost, I had it up to 80 on the freeway, and experienced no vibrations or odd handling at any speed. It ran smooth, VERY quiet and straight. I couldn't hear the engine at all, and just a slight wind rush around the A pillars at 80, but certainly nothing objectionable at all. Mine came equipped with the Bridgestone Dueler H/T tires.

I also did not experience any of the driveline "thunks" that others have mentioned, nor did I have any abrupt shifting of the transmission. The shifts were always silky smooth and almost imperceptable.

Either I just got lucky and got a good one, or Lexus has resolved some of the problems that have been experienced by owners of earlier builds. Mine is a 9700G btw.

vibration happens at 65-70 mph 2000-2200 rpm. clunk or "thump" happens when ur at a stop light, you feel like someone has rear ended you.

[gx470forme]

I forgot to make a very important point in my above post about the transmission inconsistancy and driveline roughness.

When I bought my GX it was also very smooth, from driveline to tranny. However at about the 3K to 4K mark is when the issues started popping up.

My GX was smooth as glass in every aspect when new, but after the parts have worn in is when the driveline and tranny started getting slop in them.

Also the transmission inconsistancy started after I had a couple of aggressive near full throttle accelarations getting out into freeway traffic.

[strindl]

vibration happens at 65-70 mph 2000-2200 rpm. clunk or "thump" happens when ur at a stop light, you feel like someone has rear ended you.

I had it on the freeway again today, and did quite a bit of driving between 65-70, and no vibration. I am somewhat familiar with the kind of thump you are talking about, as I had something similiar with a 2000 Silverado that I owned. It felt like something in the back end of the truck drive train was loose, and caught up to the front of the car with a thump when you came to a stop. The dealer greased something in the drive shaft and that fixed it. I havn't experienced it at all in the GX 470.

Were these problems evident on yours from the time you got it, or did they develop after some miles were acuumulated?

[ADVocate]

Congrats on the purchase, Strindl.

I have not had the issues about the vibration other say they have had. But, I have felt an occasional clunk after braking. I think it is the KDDS resetting itself. I have not brought it up to the dealer yet, but I will soon enough. I look at it this way, new technology will always have that development curve. But, I am happy with it all so far. Benefits outway the negatives.

Have a good time with it....

[strindl]

Congrats on the purchase, Strindl.

I have not had the issues about the vibration other say they have had.  But, I have felt an occasional clunk after braking.  I think it is the KDDS resetting itself.  I have not brought it up to the dealer yet, but I will soon enough.  I look at it this way, new technology will always have that development curve.  But, I am happy with it all so far. Benefits outway the negatives.

Have a good time with it....

←

I have been. :) My dealer wants me to bring it back after 30 days to have them check everything over and address any concerns I may have. So far, absolutely nothing has gone wrong or misbehaved.

It does seem that Lexus makes changes and improvements throughout the model year, as evidenced by the different build model codes. Mine is a 9700G.

[denslexusgx470]

AHHH! My GX is back in the shop for the clunk, at the 3rd try! :chairshot: :chairshot: :chairshot: :chairshot: :chairshot:

[strindl]

AHHH! My GX is back in the shop for the clunk, at the 3rd try! :chairshot:  :chairshot:  :chairshot:  :chairshot:  :chairshot:

←

Keep us posted on the outcome. I havn't had mine back for any service yet, but am always looking for feedback on the service experience of others.

[denslexusgx470]

well so far, the first try back in april was 80% successful. then brought it back to get the 20% missing (still coming back like once in a long while) but when i had the 20k service, they found a brake leak in one of the rear wheels. now they fixed that, i have my thump back! <_< :chairshot: now i wonder wat else they're gonna break this time. dealers like us coming back to them for warranty work, cuz it's sure $$$ so they never fix it 100% the first time! :chairshot:

[gx470forme]

I forgot to make a very important point in my above post about the transmission inconsistancy and driveline roughness.

When I bought my GX it was also very smooth, from driveline to tranny.  However at about the 3K to 4K mark is when the issues started popping up. 

My GX was smooth as glass in every aspect when new, but after the parts have worn in is when the driveline and tranny started getting slop in them.

Also the transmission inconsistancy started after I had a couple of aggressive near full throttle accelarations getting out into freeway traffic.

←

Ok, an update is in order. Lexus just replaced my driveline, as the first fix (vent hole and lapping) didn't take for long. After the driveline replacement the transmission is a lot smoother and lots more consistent as well as the thumping being gone.

I am not holding my breath though on this fix being permanant. It seems the drivelines only stay smooth for about 2K to 3K miles.

Until Lexus finds a permantant fix, I will be requesting a new driveline every 3K to 5K miles.