I also purchased a 2004 GX470, however unlike the other reviewer above.. I rarely base any large amount purchase on just Ad's or word of mouth. I would suggest to the other buyer, that perhaps its not the Lexus but rather his/her own preferences that maybe the Lexus didnt offer. I am not sure what other cars he/she is comparing to, but this is not a car.. this is an SUV
I have ownerd a X5, MDX, FX45 and ML320 so you can imagine the competition the GX470 is up against. I am fortunate to haved owned these cars, because my company pays for them though a fleet lease. Every few months, colleagues of ours swap cars to test each other out.
By far the GX470 is the best in this class. X5 interior is boring, and very overated jeep unless ure getting the top of the line v8 powerhouse. But other than that, i am positive it is only for the name. The MDX, is by far the worst of the class just because of its price point. Its a badged honda, so in the end youre really just getting a nicely designed honda. I think that is Acura's weakest point in sales due in part that Honda and Acura models look alike. Granted I know they are based on the same platforms/chassis, still if you just glanced at them or looking inside, there is just too close for comfort. FX45 is a great crossover, I cant say its really a suv because frankly you cant take it off road, However, I give it thumbs up for its handle and speed. Its faster than the X5, handles alot better and quality is by far top notch. Hoever, if ure looking for an SUV size, but a CAR drive, this would be the best choice. The ML320, or whicheva ML series you get is quite horrible. Overrated, underpowered, and the worst. Our Ml320, had to go to service at least 5 times, 2 because of recalls and 3 because of electrical issues. All fixed under warranty, but I find it quite unacceptable for a car of this price and class, to have that type of problems. And the ironic thing is, later I found out that ML's and X5 are both found to have many warranty issues.. so if youre going with that, make sure you have weekends to spare at the service shop.
The Gx470 overall , is the best in the class only because it offers the same top notch luxury features as expected , all while being a full off road capability vehicle. It handles great, rides quiet, and though the 3rd row is deemed useless to adults, still for that quick ride, or perhaps the kids.. it can be made for good use. The only bad thing or one thing I expected was that it should have Xenon HID lights, and with the navigation, it should have in dash cd changer. It has it standard, but when you upgrade to NAV, they cnage it to a 6 cd changer in the glove box. Go figure..
Another thing I wanted to point out is that, I know I didnt spend $45k on any of these vehicles. But the fact that I can judge them without that in notion, allows me to judge them fairly assuming cost is not any issue. But once I found out the prices of these vehicles, still Lexus offered the most competitive bang for the buck
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 45000
Condition: New Model Year: 2004 Model and Options: GX470 w/ Navigation
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