Wife wants a GX 550

I agree with others that say to look for a 460 rather than the 550, or at least until they have the engine issues worked out.
I was luck enough to find a buy a 21 Tundra and 23 GX460 new when they were available. Sure, they have their issues too but not like the latest generation engines leaving you sitting.

 

late last year we shopped for an SUV for the wife.

LX600 it's a 4runner that costs 115k...HUGELY disappointing.
GX550 it's a 4runner that costs 85k
LC it's SMALLER than a 4runner that costs 75k
Sequoia - very nice but...89k
GM...no way
Ferd...no way
Stellantis...no way

of all the Toyotas....
Sequoia is the only vehicle that Texans can fit in the rear seats. that's not an exaggeration.
GX550 was the best looking


don't bring the hate, but....we settled on a Tesla MX Plaid.


the best SUV we EVER had was the 2006 Sequoia. 12 cupholders!

 

Earlier this year we were shopping for a bigger vehicle for our family - we had outgrown my wife’s 4runner (it was a rad truck tho).
My test for whether we could buy the vehicle or not was: if I could touch the rear seatback from the drivers seat, it was a no-go.
We also needed a “large” hatch. We’ve got 2 labs and toddlers need a bunch of shit during road trips.
I sat in a GX550 at Westside Lexus. It felt like the same size at the 4Runner but with more headroom. As much as my wife loved it, I couldn’t justify getting this as a new family car even though they’re so damn sexy.
We found a ‘21 LX570 with 50k miles on it and the luxury pkg. She’s smitten.
If you’re hellbent on the new GX, I’d open up a nationwide search on autotrader, and query via mileage, then find a specimen that’s priced well and head to a local dealership and beat them up with it.

 

2nd row on the new LC has more legroom than a 5th Gen 4R in pretty sure. I compared my 5G side by side with an LC and, without measuring mind you, the 2nd row seemed to have more space behind my seating position.

 

I love the looks of the new Sequoia. Don’t love the engine or the price.

Also, one of the great parts of the last gen Sequoia was the Torsen diff and locker. Now you are stuck with just part time 4WD. Sad that they went that direction.

 

not my observation.

we have a '15 4Runner. (it was mine, passed down to my son)

to the eye, The LC was the SAME vehicle


here was our test:

we were at the Lexus near the Woodlands....very nice place.

I sat in the passenger seat - comfortably...as I should be able to do in a $115k vehicle.

My son..6'2" could not, under any circumstances, get into the back passenger seat.

.......in a $115k top of the line LC600.

shameful.

 

the '21 LX570 is a primo vehicle. last of the great ones.




and has an available S/C.

 

I wanted to buy me wife the GX550 but she stubbornly didn't like it. I LOVE the look of the GX and money wasn't an issue. Me wife ended up buying her 3rd Honda Pilot, this time went for the TrailSport rugged look. The Pilot is nice as well don't get me wrong. Honda is a great car and as solid as the Toyota reliability and maintenance wise. I had 3 pilots and me kids both drive new CRV's. And we got the Pilot at $47K which is not a bad coin for a great SUV, innit? The GX is double of the Pilot

https://www.carpro.com/vehicle-reviews/2025-honda-pilot-trailsport-review

 

Get your wife scheduled for a psychiatric evaluation ASAP and test her drinking water too

 

That’s funny. I tried very hard to get my wife to trade in her 23 Sequoia for the GX550 but she wasn’t having it. She’s not in love with the Sequoia but doesn’t want anything smaller, even though our kids are grown and she’s by herself in it 99% of the time.

 

The rear seats in the new Sequoias are nowhere near as comfortable as they were in the last gen. I guess they took up all the legroom for the battery.
Other than the looks and the entertainment system, our 2019 Sequoia was superior in every way.

 

Those new CRVs are nice. We almost got one over the RAV4, but hybrids were in short supply on both CRV and RAV4 and the Toyota dealer wasn’t adding any crap on (bought in early 2023) so we went with a non-hybrid RAV4. My wife and I both liked the CRV better though.

 

Really Charles, just do a brake, tires, and suspension upgrade. Throw on a Whipple, full detail and invest the rest wisely. Compromise and balance are important!

 

O for sure they're nice and I did look at the RAV4 but I didn't care much for the interior and they have some electrical harness problems as well. Besides I managed to get the CRV at $28K which is around $3K under MSRP. I pulled the trigger on two of them not knowing what the tariffs will do (face palm here)

 

We'll be looking to replace my wife's 2017 RAV4 in the next couple years. She really wants a Lexus this time around, but we looked at a Crown Signia and will likely go that direction.
I don't want her to see the GX550.

 

Bingo. They replaced our lovable fat pig of a 200 series with 3 flavors of the same dressed up 4Runner.

None of them have seatbelts for 8 (all three of my kids can still fit in the 3rd row of our 570). They are just as big as a 200 on the outside but with 5th gen 4Runner-sized interiors. And the bones are nothing like the fat 200s/570s.

Disappointing is right.

 

My wife had the same reaction to seeing one of these in person. What is it about the new boxy Prados that women like so much? I told her, “you know that’s the same size as our old 4Runner on the inside, right?” She deflated right away.

And it really is. It has the same tiny jump seats that fold flat that my 3-row 4Runner had. Abysmally small. Worst part was my 4Runner had no rear air lol

 

I will run this by the boss. Pretty sure the only thing approved will be the full detail.

 

You can add some new diamond jewels, a nice trip, and more, and still be ahead.

 

What's your social media info so I can follow for more marital bliss advice?

 

The conversation seems to be mostly around body-on-frame SUVs, but we just picked up a Grand Highlander, which has more 3rd row leg and headroom than even a Sequoia. Super comfortable vehicle and tons of power with decent gas mileage (with the Hybrid Max powertrain option).

Definitely not as good looking as a GX550, but it's not bad!

 

LOVE That Color!!!
Kinda reminds me of the FJ Blue but it's a bit more Vibrant!!

 

My wife sometimes falls in love with vehicles that make no sense for us. I have to describe why they would be a problem, financially, physically, or practically. She usually gets it and tries to be more practical. She can't shake the Mercedes G wagon for some reason. This GX is the closest thing I would consider.

 

Happy wife Happy life

 

Well neighbor, in this case I wasn't only thinking of your wife, yourself, and your marriage. I also factored in your children and their safety and such. Just an opinion though, nothing more, so take it or leave it.

 

Was just pullin your chain.

 

My wife buys her own vehicle (or at least she thinks she does) and one day she got tired of her 2017 highlander platinum that was about 6 months old and brought home a Nissan Armada, i literally flipped out, colossal melt down about how big of a piece of crap it was and how i was about to lose $30,000 in 12 months on resale. It made her cry in our driveway when i told her to take it back immediately.
She came back home with the highlander and about a month later brought home a Honda Accord sport with the black wheels out of the honda catalog. I wasnt as mad about it but i did honestly lose my ass on the highlander. I think we had it 11 months and i lost $13,000 on it from the purchase price. She doesnt do numbers real well and doesnt really tell me whats going on but after the fact when i look at the paper work i figure out how much money i lost. For about 5 years there she traded in her vehicle about every 11-12 months. I finally got her in something she really wanted and shes been in it 24 months now. I lost almost $20k on the last vehicle, a dam Jeep grand cherokee Limited X. She had it about 16 months. $43 purchase, $24 trade in. Shits nuts.