Lexus GX

Being a Lexus, the GX 460 shows no signs of dearth when it comes to the pure luxury appeal. However, while everything in the cabin of Lexus GX 460 has top-notch quality levels, the layout itself seems very dated and quite under-equipped for an SUV of this price.

The old school cabin welcomes one with a  simply styled three-spoke round themed steering wheel with a very regular looking instrument console. The boxy and protruding center console makes the dashboard look large, but at the same time, dated as well. The centre stage is taken care of by the 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system and a rectangular housing of buttons for climate control below it.

The large and bulky size of the Lexus GX 460 translates into sufficient space for seven passengers, with all the three rows of seats providing extreme levels of comfort. Also, in terms of features, while it misses out on a lot of feel-good futuristic features available in similarly priced SUVs, it still packs in enough goodies to label it a luxury SUV by all means.

The Lexus GX 460 takes forward the legacy of Toyota Land Cruiser Prado to a whole new level, by retaining the impressive intimidating road presence of the latter but with a while new luxurious approach.

At the front, the Lexus GX 460 has been bestowed with the trademark spindle-like large grille with chrome surrounds and equally themed full LED headlamps with daytime running LEDs. These components, along with boomerang-shaped fog lamps downwards make the front end look extremely sharp.

It is only when you move towards the sides that you feel that the Lexus GX 460 is one boxy and old school SUV, as the stance is reminiscent of full-size SUVs from the past. However, the squared wheel arches and the big hump over the rear wheel make it look more acceptable by modern standards.

At the rear, Lexus has kept things simple for the GX 460 by giving it large vertical tail lamps on the outer side edges of the boot lid, which also get sleek chrome garnish for the license plate housing.

Armed with Kinetic Dynamic Suspension System with electronically controlled air suspension, the Lexus GX 460 is fitted with a double-wishbone with gas-charged shock absorbers and stabilizer at the front and 4-link setup with gas-charged shock absorbers and stabiliser at the rear. The power is transferred to all the four wheels via a full-time four-wheel-drive system. The suspension has been setup on a softer side, but then, the heightened stance do make a room for slight body roll in the cabin.

The Lexus GX 460 is blessed with the same 4.6-litre naturally aspirated V8 petrol engine from the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado. This engine, coupled to a 6-speed automatic transmission, produces a maximum power output of 295 PS and a peak torque output of 438 Nm. While this is an old school powertrain combination, it still packs in enough punch to propel this mammoth of an SUV. The downside to it, however, is the low fuel efficiency.

The Lexus GX 460 is equipped with all the safety essentials like front, side, curtain, and knee airbags, ABS with EBD and Brake Assist, vehicle stability control, traction control, rain-sensing wipers, cruise control and reverse parking sensors with camera. However, the presence of more sophisticated features would have been welcomed.

The Lexus GX 460 lacks the modernity of many new age feature-rich SUVs, but then, what still makes it this desirable is the undisputed mighty road presence and extreme comfort levels which are still unmatched by many seven-seater SUVs.