Everyone in the open-air Toyota Land Cruiser 79 safari vehicle held their breath as the lion drew near.
He stopped at a safe distance, got comfortable and allowed his luxuriant mane to get tousled by the Eastern Cape dusk bluster, as if accustomed to the ritual of posing for the many tourists who frequent the high-end Shamwari resort and game reserve.
It's a perfect snapshot to sum up the kind of experience that Lexus envisages for the average GX 550 buyer. We sampled the 4x4 at its launch this month, on a trip from Gqeberha into the wilderness of the Friendly Province.
Being a well-educated motoring consumer, you probably know by now that the GX has close kinship to the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, introduced in 2024.
Yes, most buyers would get the same level of utility from the less expensive Prado. But we ought not to forget the tranche of shoppers who are willing to pay more for exclusivity and a deeper sense of luxury, which is what the Lexus delivers.
Visually, it is set apart by an entirely different character that will ensure passers-by never confuse the two — unless their view is limited to the side profiles, where the vehicles’ window lines and other attributes are identical.
Front and rear though, the Lexus boasts all those typical brand hallmarks, from the wide girth and length of its signature grille, to the L-shaped headlamps and elegant sliver of illumination spanning the tailgate’s width.
Go for the standard five-seater Overtrail (R1,766,000) if serious off-road pursuits are on the cards. It has the appropriate wheels for the application, with chunky tyre tread and 18-inch alloys.
The pricier SE meanwhile (R1,829,000) has massive 22-inch rollers wrapped in road-biased tyres and tricks such as side steps that deploy electronically in slick fashion.
We spent time with both. Because of the bundu-friendly rubber, the Overtrail errs on the choppy side, but the SE delivers a texture befitting that of a Lexus product.
Inside, the GX has a tangibly superior layer of sophistication over the Prado. Its redesigned fascia has fewer buttons, while the large, touch-operated infotainment system boasts a cleaner layout. A three-spoke steering wheel with a sculpted, contoured fit is a familiar appointment from the rest of the Lexus range. Virtually every touchpoint has a textured veneer and the seats are upholstered in sumptuous hide.
The defining ace up the tailored sleeve of the Lexus is its powertrain. Whereas the Prado makes do with a 2.8l, four-cylinder turbodiesel, the Lexus packs a potent 3.5l V6 petrol armed with two turbochargers.
That translates into creamy on-road progress and effortless grunt for surmounting low-speed off-road obstacles. Its 260kW/650Nm is transferred to terrain by a buttery 10-speed automatic.
If you plan to be liberal with the accelerator pedal, expect fuel economy to be far off the claimed 12.3l/100km. And that brings us to the biggest downside of the GX: because of the larger engine, the fitment of a 110l fuel tank (as featured in the Prado) is not possible. Instead, the Lexus has a belly good for 80l.
The brand is developing a more specialised off-road version based on the Overtrail which will solve the fuel storage solution in the form of side panniers.
On rough stuff, the Prado-derived credentials shine through. With its intelligent electronic aids, including a semi-autonomous crawl function, the GX makes light work of tough obstacles. Complemented by adaptive dampers, the suspension setup delivers a towering 220mm ground clearance.
Brand representatives cited one rival to the GX — the venerable Land Rover Defender in 110 P400 X-Dynamic HSE trim, which also comes with a six-cylinder petrol engine.
But it seems that buyers who appreciate the mystique and cachet of the Prado-based Lexus have not wasted time: we were informed that the allocation for the year is already spoken for.
