00:00 G'day, I'm Paul.
00:01 Lexus has just taken the wraps off the new Lexus GX.
00:04 That's exciting because it's a new Lexus four-wheel drive, but it's also exciting because
00:08 the Lexus GX is very closely related to the Land Cruiser Prado.
00:13 And the Land Cruiser Prado here in Australia has been feeling very old and sad, so it is
00:17 definitely time for a new one, and we've been waiting for this information.
00:21 So today I'm going to run you through all of the details that we have.
00:24 It is all fresh, hot off the press, so some of this is going to develop as we go, but
00:28 I thought we'd get the video out and have a little look at some of the pictures.
00:30 Now, if you haven't done so already, please make sure you subscribe to our channel and
00:33 press the bell icon as well so you can find out every single time we do one of these sit-downs.
00:38 Let's get started.
00:39 Okay, so I've got my iPad here in front of me.
00:43 I'm going to flick through some pictures while we're talking as well.
00:45 We'll start off with just the, I guess, the regular version of the GX.
00:49 Tell you what, this thing looks sensational.
00:52 I like the look of the 300 series, but this just, I don't know, it just looks really cool.
00:56 They've done a great job there with the headlights up the front there, and even things like this
01:00 grille.
01:01 It isn't over the top like you do find on the LX.
01:03 It is sort of nice and conservative and still sort of does the job.
01:06 And I love the profile of this vehicle.
01:08 It looks significantly bigger than a Prado if you have a look at that wheelbase, and
01:12 that's because it is.
01:13 So if I have a look at my notes here, it's basically on the same wheelbase as the LX,
01:17 and the LX shares a platform with the 300 series.
01:20 It is 96mm shorter than an LX, so it means those front and rear overhangs are going to
01:24 be a little more tucked in.
01:26 It sits on the TNGA-F platform, so that is the platform that the Land Cruiser and subsequently
01:31 the LX uses.
01:32 So they really are looking to consolidate a lot of this off-road equipment into these
01:36 platforms so they can get a lot of bang for buck.
01:39 Traditionally in the US, the GX has been available with a naturally aspirated petrol engine.
01:44 This time around, they're going to a turbocharged petrol V6, so 3.4-litre twin-turbocharged
01:50 petrol V6, 260kW of power, 650Nm of torque, and that is also mated to that 10-speed automatic
01:57 transmission.
01:58 Let's have a little look here at some of the other pictures of the rear of this.
02:04 Love what they've done there with the taillights as well, so that extends all the way along
02:08 the back of the vehicle there, big Lexus lettering up the top there as well, and then the GX
02:14 badge down the side there.
02:15 Looks really cool because this whole rear section opens up.
02:18 Check out those wheel arches, they are nicely flared as well, so it gives you just this
02:22 very cool-looking stance out on the road with some stealth black up the top there.
02:28 Have a look at these wing mirrors as well, so they're sort of like a square look.
02:32 So again, just breaking away from that sort of soft-edged appearance, this really has
02:37 a Tonka truck appearance out on the road there, which I like.
02:40 What I really like though is this right here.
02:44 Have a look at this.
02:45 This is called the Overtrail.
02:47 And have you seen that colour?
02:48 Sandy Taup, last seen on the 70 Series Land Cruiser, so I love the fact that they've integrated
02:53 it here on a Lexus.
02:56 Headlights there with LED daytime running light, and then full LED lights in there as
03:00 well.
03:01 Little headlight washer there too.
03:02 This is something we're seeing disappearing from these big off-roaders, but if you do
03:05 get mud splashing up on those headlights, you really want to be able to clean it off
03:09 with that high-pressure jet.
03:10 Again, sort of black grille there without too much chrome.
03:14 These wheels look cool, so it's sitting on 33s.
03:17 I can't quite tell what brand of tyre that is, but it kind of looks like a BFGoodrich
03:22 KO2 from a distance.
03:24 Rock sliders on the side there.
03:25 This looks like it is built to go off-road, and you can imagine when this is eventually
03:29 launched as a Prado, and we think the Prado is going to be significantly bigger and probably
03:34 sit on this same wheelbase and this platform as well.
03:37 You're going to have a really good option there to trick this thing up so it is ready
03:41 for off-road driving.
03:42 And look, if I was Ford at the moment, I'd be pretty worried about this because Toyota
03:46 has just gone smart with vehicles like the Overtrail here by giving punters a lot of
03:51 options.
03:52 You can go down the sedate path, or you can go for the hardcore off-road version.
03:55 Then they've crammed some incredible engines under the bonnet there.
03:58 So in addition to that petrol V6, they also have a hybrid coming.
04:02 It is likely to be the hybrid that's used in the Lexus RX500h, and if you do want to
04:06 see our review of that, click up here to watch that.
04:09 Pretty impressed with that, so it's a 2.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine mated to a hybrid
04:14 system.
04:15 So that really will give vehicles like the Prado a lot of flexibility when it comes to
04:20 not only fuel economy but performance as well, and that is something the Prado has been desperately
04:24 lacking.
04:25 After they killed the petrol V6 and went down the path of the diesel that's shared with
04:29 the Hilux, kind of is an amazing package there, and you can see in our towing and off-road
04:34 videos with the Prado, it is desperately in need of a little bit more grunt behind the
04:38 wheel.
04:39 Other key thing here as well, 3,500-kilo brake towing capacity.
04:42 It does vary depending on the grade that you go for, but that is a step up from the Prado,
04:47 which is currently limited to under 3,500 kilos.
04:50 Have a look inside the cabin.
04:51 This is probably where this has stepped up to really lift the game for Lexus and eventually
04:57 Toyota with the Prado.
04:58 Big infotainment system there, so it's a 12.3-inch infotainment system.
05:03 We've tested this one before on other Lexus products, and I love the fact that all of
05:07 these things are built into that screen.
05:09 So they're all backlit LCD displays, and it's all quite easy to use.
05:13 All of your call functions are down here, and then if it is like the other products,
05:16 they actually have physical controls a little further down as well, so you're not only relegated
05:21 to using the touchscreen.
05:23 Terms of off-road controls, just while I have this screen open, center diff lock, it also
05:27 uses a Torsen limited-slip center differential with the ability to lock.
05:32 On the Overtrail model, you'll also have the ability to lock the rear diff, so you can
05:36 see the button for that there, along with low-range and high-range four-wheel drive.
05:40 It'll be a full-time four-wheel drive.
05:42 Crawl control, you also have multi-terrain select.
05:45 This is stuff that we've seen before on Land Cruiser and also LX as well, so both great
05:50 features, give you a bit of flexibility there.
05:52 Wondering what this is, it's like a little cubby hole or something.
05:55 I think your phone sits on there, but I'm not entirely sure what that function does.
06:00 In terms of the rest of the interior, cameras there for off-roading.
06:03 It's one of the things we like about the 300 Series and the LX, you really have a lot of
06:06 visibility when it comes to off-roading.
06:08 You can see clearly what's happening, and then over on the left here, you can see some
06:12 more of those off-road controls as well.
06:14 The other interesting thing inside the cabin, in addition to seven seats, it's also going
06:18 to be offered with captain's chairs, so it means you have a six-seat layout, but there
06:22 is a bit more luxury and comfort there.
06:24 Given the wheelbase has increased as well, it should also mean that you have more leg
06:28 room here in the third row.
06:30 That's somewhere that the Prado has suffered previously, you don't really have a great
06:34 deal of room.
06:35 Disappointingly, if you have a look at the cargo shot here, it's not on sliding rails
06:39 there for the second row, and that was probably the thing that frustrates me the most with
06:42 the LX and the 300 Series, that you can't give yourself more room in the third row by
06:48 sliding the second row forward.
06:49 So if they haven't afforded enough space in here for the third row, it is probably still
06:54 going to be a little bit cramped.
06:56 So we'll reserve judgment for when we see that, but that is just something I thought
07:00 I'd point out.
07:01 And this is what some of the configuration looks like there.
07:03 So you can see you've got the standard layout there, and then if you go to dropping your
07:09 seats it sort of moves it up a little bit, but still, look at this, I mean that is a
07:14 huge step up there when it comes to loading things.
07:16 So I don't know, packaging will be interesting here, hopefully they sort some of that stuff
07:20 out before it goes on sale.
07:23 Really liking the look of this overtrail version though, you can see some underbody protection
07:27 there too, so pretty excited for that.
07:30 A little sticky beak under the bonnet there, looks like there's plenty of room for a turbo
07:33 V6 and plenty of room for hybrid and all that sort of stuff.
07:37 Just slightly off topic, it actually surprises me how much room they have here in these crash
07:41 structures in modern cars, you can really sort of go to town on that and potentially
07:45 even drop a big old V8 in there if you want to.
07:49 OK, so that is your first look at the new Lexus GX.
07:53 I'm excited for this because it really does signal where we're going to be heading with
07:56 the Prado.
07:57 We don't know specifically that the Prado is going to be shared with this, but we know
08:00 that traditionally the GX and the Prado have been virtually the same vehicle, just with
08:04 different powertrains.
08:06 So the fact that they've gone to town here offering a 3.5 litre twin turbo petrol V6
08:12 means they can probably easily fit the diesel V6 out of the Land Cruiser 300 series in Prado
08:18 as well.
08:19 I tell you what, if you're Mitsubishi at the moment, Isuzu with the MU-X, Ford even with
08:23 the Everest, you are going to be a little bit concerned that Toyota has this arsenal
08:27 of stuff coming for Prado, and I'm genuinely excited to drive it because the Prado at the
08:32 moment is still a fairly capable vehicle, but moving to things like e-pass for the steering,
08:37 adaptive damping, electronic rear diff lock, even e-KDSS as well, I think is really going
08:42 to be an exciting prospect if you are in the market for something like a Prado, especially
08:46 at the current price tag of like $100,000.
08:49 So let me know what you think about the new Lexus GX and subsequently what we think the
08:53 Prado will be in the comments section below.
08:56 Are you as excited as I am for it?
08:58 I am very keen for your feedback, so let me know down there in the comments section.
09:01 What would you like to see out of the new Prado as well?
09:03 Are you a fuss by plug-in hybrids and the hybrid tech, or do you just want a big old
09:07 V6 diesel?
09:09 Let me know what you think.
09:10 Now, we have actually shot a stack of videos with four-wheel drive SUVs.
09:13 We're doing drag race, off-roading, a little bit of towing as well, so make sure you subscribe
09:18 to be notified.
09:19 All that goes live.
09:20 If you haven't done so already, subscribe to our channel, press the bell icon, and if
09:23 you did enjoy this video, like it and share it with your mates.
09:26 But until next time, take it easy.
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