To me, no issues in 2 years/17k miles between 40k and 60k is not reliability. It should be expected by almost any modern age vehicle. 90k-150k is a good barometer. Your $5k warranty most likely would get use at higher mileage, but since you drive so little per year it might be expired by then.

I bought the LX with 92k miles on the clock without a warranty. The only luxury SUV i would feel comfortable doing that. It drives brand new. Not surprising as it's just getting broken in and by many reports will last 350,000 miles easily with proper care.

I agree Toyota/Lexus can be unreliable like any other car maker. I used to have a Lexus GS years ago and it gave me issues as well. But I didn't do my homework and bought it from a small time dealer which may have been previously in an accident. I purchased the LX from a Lexus dealer with full documented service records.

Cheapest 21" tire on Tirerack for a GL550 is $270 per tire. Not sure how you'll get 4 installed for $800.

I did read about the tunes for the GL. 550hp and 650 lb ft of torque sounds exciting. To me, the thrill would dissipate at higher mileage if the car is constantly in the shop. And no real need for it in my suburbs with 40mph speed limits and 2 car seats in tow. I need to stay out of jail

I actually did drive the GL550, two of them to be exact. They drove nice. Funny you mentioned "floaty" on the LX. Thats exactly what I thought of when I drove the 550's. They did not have the Active Curve option which would have eliminated that, however that option is extremely hard to find and threads about the bars leaking fluid was just another turnoff. Third row in the LX is really only for kids. Took a trip to the mountains had a full truck. Had a 9 and 8 year old in the third row and they had plenty of room. The benefit of the LX over the GL is the first and second row (where most sit). The front seats are wider and more comfortable on long drives. The second row is wider, electronically slides back and forth for more leg space and can fit 3 adults across comfortably. 2 car seats can fit side by side and still allow access for the end seat to tumble allowing access to third row. I tried this trick at the dealer by installing car seats same way in the GL and the second row is too narrow.

I used to buy in to the "hype" that German cars are more solid and more put together than Japanese. I jumped from Nissan/Acura/Lexus to BMW/Audi and currently have a 14 ML350. They all rattle! The ML is nice and hasn't given me an issue in 50k miles i've owned it. But the steering wheel wore out at 80k miles and there's some rattle around the center console/cupholder. LX is solid as a drum with high mileage.

 

Don't think the poster mentioned TireRack. I had 4 - 21" tires for my GL63 mounted and balanced for less than $500 out the door and they are performing great. I'm on the second rear set in 40k miles. The 63 tends to eat tires while the 450 will last me 50k miles. It's all about knowing the best place to buy tires on line and taking them to a reasonable place to mount and balance.

My GL63 has been very reliable to date and I've got close to 80k miles and my X164 GL450 has been the cheapest car I've ever owned in terms of maintenance and upkeep. I put 250k miles on the 450 and and it's still kicking!

 

Not sure where my last post disappeared to....but I'll try again. Tire Rack is good for folks who don't want to pay full retail (like Goodyear or Firestone store retail) on a set of tires. But they sell only high priced big name brand tires over there. Since it's nearly impossible to get 20k miles out of a set of high priced 21" high performance tires for these heavy rigs, I'll never pay those kinds of prices again. These tires have very good customer reviews and look like decent all seasons with 60k mileage warranty. I'm going to give them a shot in the spring:

https://www.discounttirezone.com/DEL...L_p_11342.html

I've driven many LX570's over the years. The Lexus dealer that I used to take my LS430 and LS460 to for service gave those to me as loaner cars all the time (yes, the ultra reliable Lexus cars spent plenty of time in the service dept). The LX's were a lot better than the RX's and ES's I got stuck with sometimes, especially for a big man, but those LX's were slow and cumbersome and floated all over the road. Unless Lexus made some major mid-cycle changes to the suspension and handling of the LX, I would imagine that yours still performs exactly the same. The GL550 feels like a Corvette compared to the LX570....in both acceleration and handling. Active curve is really not necessary. They are big vehicles with a high center of gravity, so they aren't going to corner like a Miata. But they do handle better than almost all other full-sized utes.

It appears that you're excited about your purchase and need to keep justifying to yourself your rationale in getting the Lexus vs the Benz. That's cool. But it's probably better to have your rah-rah "Lexus is the best ever SUV" session over in the Lexus forums instead of tearing apart the used car that you didn't buy on the MBWorld board.

Would you mind posting a link to the tires you have and the place you got them? $500 out the door installed seems almost unbelievable. If they work well on a G63, I'm sure they'll work just fine on my truck.

 

Purchased on Amazon and were $400 shipped. I think they are around $135 or so now but you can also check ebay for deals. They are 21" Federals and so far they have been awesome. Great in the wet or dry and are very grippy. My tire guy hooks me up and charges around $12/tire for mount and balance.

 

You get what you pay for. Been there done that. Putting cheap no name tires on a $100k SUV? To each his own. Might as well put in regular gas vs premium to save a few pennies. Cheap tires are like cheap shoes. Put on cheap brakes and hope they perform in an emergency. If I can’t afford to put on Michelins, then I can’t afford the vehicle.

My LX does not “float” all over the road. The ride is comfortable and compliant. Considering you had them as loaners, most likely the tire pressures were set too high which causes bumpiness and wandering (common with most rentals and loaners). Properly set factory set tire pressures make a HUGE difference in ride quality, handling and driveability.

If a GL550 felt like a Corvette to the LX570, then what does a Range Rover Supercharged feel like to a GL550? All subjective. Then again, what vehicle will spend more time on the road with 100,000+ miles?

I never said the Lexus LX was the best SUV. It was the best for my needs. And I only responded because a poster asked “what did you buy?” to the thread I started so I provided the justification as to why the LX was the best for MY situation. I don’t need to convince myself of anything as I’m satisfied with my decision. When I see a GL550 pass me on the road, I’m not thinking to myself “what if”, I say “thank God I didn’t”. I’m not ******* the GL, it is a great SUV (to lease). However when life changes you realize that dependability and resale value are more important than 0-60 and handling performance.

Good luck to you if keep your GL550 past 100k with no issues.

 

I've been enjoying the back and forth between you two guys. And I had to look up a "Federal" tire. Yup, $150 each. That's a bargain, good for you. Me, I put on Pilot Sports but I have extra $$ I guess.
I currently own all 3 cars you guys are talking about. GL550, Land Crusier and LS460. Just active curve problems on the GL, otherwise, no car has sat in the shop or let me down.

 

I guess I wasn't really paying very good attention the first time I read this. But reading it again, I thought some things looked grossly "off" about your facts and figures. I've heard of many guys driving their first gen GL's over 200k miles (the ones that are supposed to be much more problematic) with very little issues. Not sure that there are very many of the 2nd gen that are old enough to have eclipsed 200k miles. No doubt that Lexus/Toyota have a long held reputation for reliability. But you shouldn't just discount MB because their reputation for long term reliability goes back many generations. Lexus has only been around since the 1990 model year.

And then you mention a $10k spread in favor of Lexus on 100k miles GL550 vs LX570 for used car prices. Sorry bud, but you are factually incorrect. According to Edmunds.com with both cars in "clean" condition, if my GL550 had 100k miles on it, dealer retail would be $30,526. A black2013 LX570 with Levinson stereo/speakers has dealer retail value of $29,700.

And to do a fair comparison of what these cars cost new in 2014, your LX570 compared much more closely to the GL450 (even though the GL had more modern tech and better performance). The GL450 had a base retail sticker price of $64,550. Base retail on the LX570 was around $83k. So Lexus was over $18k more expensive, not vice versa as you claim.

You say cheap tires, but they are DOT certified and are not no-name tires. If I can put the same performance rated tires on my car that are likely going to be down to the wear indicators by 20k miles like the high priced ones, why would I pay nearly double because of their high cost advertising? I've run Hankook tires on my S600 at the track and they performed awesome and weren't getting chewed up like the guys running Pilot Sports.

I'm not too worried about a Range Rover Supercharged. I'd blow the doors off that thing with my lowly GL550. If you want to talk about a reputation of non-reliability and rapid depreciation, Land Rover is renowned for that.

And I'll never see 100k miles because I'll be on to my next and newer vehicle after I've had this one 4 years. By then I'll likely still have less than 75k miles. But that should not be taken as a slight to MB reliability. I just don't buy high mileage cars and cross my fingers that things won't break as they age with high miles.

 

Those first gen GL's had less tech than the current generation, N/A engines instead of turbos, no Active Curve etc. Still, the air shocks were a guaranteed failure. I read these 2nd gen GLs seem to have improved the air shocks where they don't fail as frequently as the first gen. I don't discount MB for reliability. There are definitely some models that can go 200k+ miles with little issues. There are some Lexus models I wouldn't buy because they can have their nagging issues. I was just saying for the the long term, I don't think the GL550 was best for my situation reading about some of the threads on here about turbo failures, transmission issues, Active Curve problems and the cost of certain repairs along with high cost of scheduled maintenance, brakes and tires. The GL550 is a fun machine to drive no doubt about it, and no, a Lexus LX570 can't compare to its driving dynamics. But I think your endorsement for reliability of the GL is a little premature considering you've only driven it 17,000 miles during a mileage period where any modern manufactured vehicle should be trouble free.

Edmunds.com? Go by Kelley Blue Book which is what the industry uses (and even that is a little generous). Trade in value on a 13 GL550 with 100,000 miles in Very Good condition is 21k. Private Party value is 23k so dealer retail is most likely 25-26k. Better yet, go on cargurus.com to see what dealers are actually listing 13 GL550's nationwide with 100k miles based on recent sales. You'll see 25k and comparable LX570's at 32-34k.

New, a fully loaded LX570 would retail for over 92k so I thought that would be apples to apples comparable to a GL550 since you would have to option up a GL450 with the options that would be standard on a 550.

I have no experience with those tires so I can't actually dog them. Perhaps they are good and are really made at the same factory as Michelins/Bridgestone just without the fancy name. I'm just speaking on my prior experiences. I once bought some Cotsco brand vodka that some folks swore was really Grey Goose, just without the name. Yeah, it was smooth, but the next day I realized it wasn't Grey Goose!!

Since you only keep your cars 4 years or less, why don't you lease?

 

LOL to your BS flag!! Actually, Edmunds is much more in line with real world pricing than KBB every day of the week and twice on Sunday. Trade in value is much closer to auction prices than KBB...and retail prices are pretty much in line with dealer retail pricing. Sometimes both sources can be way off with MB models. When I traded in my 2007 S600 with 47k miles, KBB had trade-in value at 12k....$3k lower than a base S550 at the time...which made absolutely no sense at all since the S600 sold for almost double what a base S550 was when new. Edmunds had my car at $18k trade-in. Well guess what? Auction prices were in the $20-21k area for a car in my condition with similar miles....and I negotiated $22k on trade and paid $2500 over auction prices on my GL (they did put new tires on it). A dealer who has frequented this board many times ended up buying my S600 at auction for $23k and sold it on BAT for $36k....which I admit was about $10k more than it should have sold for. But it goes to show how far off the consumer pricing sites are. Dealers now actually encourage folks to use those sites because they end up making a lot more money on the trade-ins and the vehicles they are selling...especially used cars. "The industry" does not use KBB. It's just a consumer website and helps dealers make a lot more money. If you paid anywhere near KBB retail on that 2014 LX, you got screwed.

A 2013 Base GL450 was better equipped than a base LX570 at the time. I made a fair comparison.

I did a quick glance at the cargurus site that you seem to like. For 2013 models, 100k mile LX570's were average retail around $31k nationwide. 100k mile GL550's were around 25-26k retail. So a spread of $5-6k. But who the hell is buying high mileage vehicles like that?

I don't lease new MB's because I don't find paying $1700 a month to rent a GL550 for 3 years as very smart.....for my purposes. I let depreciation play in my favor. I see you did the same thing.

I always thought that the LX570 would crush the GL in off-road driving. But I did some research and watched some videos and it appears that they perform pretty much identical off road. I was shocked about that with the GL being a unibody cross-over type large car. If I were an off-roader, I'd definitely swap out the standard 21" wheels for 19's with a high profile.

 

I'll throw the BS flag on your comment. An LX570 will crush a GL on a real offroad trail. I watched some of the GL550 videos of "offroading". Driving through mud puddles and a graded dirt road is not off-roading. Any SUV can go drive that kid stuff. The LX / LC has real transfer cases, lockable center diff., ATRAC, and the clearance to go over rocks. There is a plethora of third party hardware to make it more like a jeep than a GL. I tried to get off road worthy tires for the GL and there just aren't any. The GL is meant for on-road driving.

 

Yeah, not many are looking to buy 100,000 mile GL550's but you'll see there are plenty of LandCruiser and LX570's with 100,000 + miles in demand that sell quickly and have maintained value. Why is that?

GL identical offroad as an LX? Mercedes wouldn't even make that claim. Wouldn't take that GL too far off road with no spare tire.

 

Mercedes does make a really nice off road package if you want to take it on the trails. Just switch to 20" wheels/tires and there are plenty of options.

 

Here's a GLS with stock 21's off road. Pretty impressive with those wheels and tires. I would imagine that it would be significantly more impressive with 19" wheels and decent deflated off road tires.


The 2020 GLS and GLE have some serious off road ability and tech built in. Lots of videos available online for your enjoyment.

Regardless.....less than 1% ever take there expensive SUV's off road.

 

Dude....you're starting to sound just like Elizabeth Warren. Make claims that you know can't be backed up and expect everybody to believe you.

No doubt the Land Cruiser was very cool in its day (through the 1990's) and used ones were in high demand.....when there really wasn't any competition. But times have obviously changed as Toyota/Lexus doesn't make very many of them any more because nobody wants to pay those outrageous prices for seriously outdated technology, a floaty ride, and performance that is way behind the competition. Not to mention one of the ugliest faces ever put on an SUV or any car for that matter. The SUV market is red hot in the US right now, yet Lexus still can't sell sell them. The GL consistently outsells the LX570 by a 5:1 margin year over year.

Facts my friend.

 

Way to go Trump. Start hurling attacks and insults when it was actually YOU who first made a claim that can't be "backed up" But my claims can be backed up. You obviously know very little about the consumer market for Landcruisers/LX's. Your assertion alone that a GL can perform identical to an LX offroad tells me how little you know about those trucks. All you have to do is go on the Landcruiser/LX forums in the classifieds and see the all of those high mileage 100,000+ mile trucks sold pretty quickly at top prices. There was even someone who started a thread looking for an LX with at least 100,000 miles. https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/201...u-got.1180475/

You keep saying outdated tech, however how much tech is enough tech? Dependability seems more of a priority than tech anyways. Your 13 GL550 was 5 years old when you bought 2 years ago as you stated, so it was outdated when you bought it and even more outdated now as far as tech goes. I feel my LX has all the tech I need.

Fact is, you're here preaching about reliability on car you haven't even put any serious miles on. Yet you spent $5,000 on an extended warranty (obviously expecting to break even or come out ahead) and don't even have the confidence to keep it past 100k miles because realistically you know the potential failures and the costs. Whereas I was comfortable purchasing a vehicle with close to 100k miles with no warranty at all and feeling confident I can drive it years down the road whenever and wherever.

I like Mercedes and respect the brand, which is why I own a ML that has been trouble free in 50,000 miles of driving (no diesel, turbos or air suspension). But I'm also not a homer and not unrealistic. You are still in the honeymoon phase with your GL. Hopefully you keep that same optimism when you're presented with a bill to rebuild one of those turbos.

 

Trump? Greatest president in over 150 years. The stats back it up. If you're one of those anti-Trumpers, I feel bad for you because you're gonna be stuck with him another 5 years.

But I digress. Thank you for finding 1 instance of a guy on some forum looking to buy a high mileage LX. You've certainly proven your point.

My 2013 GL has stuff that wasn't available in your 2014 LX....like blind spot monitoring, lane departure alert, 360 degree camera, active parking assist (it will self parallel park or back into a parking spot without touching the steering wheel), and 3 row moon roof....just to name a few. It took until the 2016 model change for Lexus to offer some of those features in the LX.

Mercedes has always been the leader in technology and safety ever since the car industry began in the late 1800's. I'm honestly surprised that there has never been 1 failure with my GL....especially at 7 years old. Age seems to play more into problems with cars than miles. Perhaps I'm lucky that I haven't had the problems with mine that have plagued some others. But if anything does come up, I do have my warranty to protect me. You purchasing a 95k mile 6 year old LX without any kind of warranty coverage seems a bit scary to me....as it is a certainty that things are going to go wrong with it if you keep it for at least a couple of years....and not be very cheap to repair. But to each their own. I hope you enjoy it.

 

You’re strictly a stats guy and one who uses stats to support your agenda. That’s why you feel the GL is obviously a better vehicle because stats shows it outsells the Lexus. How about finding the stats of those who trade in their GL after the factory warranty runs out versus those who keep their LX’s longer than 10 years?

I think the GL550 is an outstanding vehicle, which is why I even considered one in the first place. More research allowed me to come to the conclusion that it would not be the best decision for a long term vehicle. You on the other hand are obviously biased and bash the LX unfairly which makes you sound like a homer.

Blind spot monitoring is unnecessary unless you’re some old geezer. I’ve never hit a car in my blind spot in all my years of driving. Pay attention to the road, actually drive the vehicle and stop relying on “tech”. Lane departure alert I disabled on my ML it was a nuisance. Active park assist I’ve used twice in 50,000 miles and both times were for demonstrations. If you can’t parallel park you shouldn’t have a license. 3 row moon roof why do I care if I’m in the 1st row? My 4 year old in the 3rd row is either napping, looking out the window or into an iPhone, not up at a 3rd row moonroof.

All of that extra “tech” is useless and will fail at some point.

You’ve been swindled by the brand name “Mercedes” and think it’s the quality built Mercedes of old. Your 13 GL550 was assembled in Alabama USA.

Turbo failures, transmission failures and engine leaks occur with mileage, not years.

Im not saying nothing will go wrong with my LX. But I’m sure whatever does go wrong it will be far less at my Indy mechanic than it would have been if I had gotten the GL550.

The LX is not perfect, but I’m enjoying it.

 

Who said I'm strictly a stats guy or have any kind of agenda? I purchased the GL because I love performance....and the GL is a great performing car that fits the remaining kids who are still living at home and all of my stuff. Other people obviously feel the same way, which seems to explain why the GL outsells the LX 5:1. Why would I care how long other people hold onto their cars? When I get tired/bored with my car, I'll buy another newer model.

Bash the LX? Dude, I've already told you I've owned 6 Lexus', including the ES330 my daughter drives. The last one I had for myself as an LS460....that I only kept for 5 months because it was just so bland and boring...so I tired of it quickly, especially compared to the other LS's and the GS400 I had before them.

I pointed out the areas where the GL is preferred by most buyers over the LX. I'm pretty surprised the Lexus always lags years behind with the LX when their other vehicles seem to all be pretty modern.

You do realize that these cars sit up high and have some serious blind spots, especially when you've got a much smaller car next to you....right? I think blind spot monitoring is the absolute best invention for cars in the last 10+ years....especially for large SUV's. I would never buy another SUV without it. It has nothing to do with paying attention or not. It is a driver's aid....a VERY GOOD driver's aid that helps prevent accidents. What year and model ML do you have? I'm fairly certain active park assist wasn't optioned on most ML's. Also, have you had to parallel park that LX yet? I'm guessing no as they are an absolute b*tch to get into any tight spot without help from somebody outside directing you in. Why are you so averse to technology that actually works and makes you and everyone around you safer? Jeez!

Almost every Toyota/Lexus sold in the US is built in the US. What is your point? Are you so obtuse as to believe that America can no longer build a Japanese brand car as good as Japan? Or a German car as good as Germany? Didn't you say that you have an ML? Were you swindled?

False. Those failures almost always occur due to compromised seals, gaskets, and bushings. Age is the hardest thing on those parts.

I have my GL serviced at my local indy. The only reason I'd ever take it to the dealer was if it needed a warranty related repair since the warranty company doesn't have any problem paying dealer service rates.

I'm glad you like your new ride. I'm sure it's very nice.

 

For whatever it is worth, I've owned my 164 GL for close to 13 years and 250k miles. It's still going strong.

 

Nice Care to list your repair history?

 

Trunk latch, water pump, intake flap, power steering mount, power steering reservoir, ac compressor, airmatic compressor, transmission turbine speed sensor, a wheel bearing, airmatic shocks/struts, tires, oil/fluid changes, and brakes pads/rotors. The only non wear and tear items not covered by the extended warranty was the ac compressor that went out at a little over 220k miles and 12 years as well as the airmatic compressor that went out around 200k miles. The struts are Arnotts so, when they fail, they ship me new ones at no cost.

 

Your Benz is obviously a problematic piece of sh*t. That's what you get for not buying a Lexus.

 

 

You’ve repeatedly mentioned that “the GL outsells the Lexus 5:1” for what reason? Is popularity the reason you bought your GL? Even though that stat may be accurate, it had nothing to do with my decision in choosing a vehicle for my needs. Again, your agenda is to show the Lexus is inferior based on sales which is a poor argument.

I already acknowledged the LX doesn’t drive as performance oriented as the GL. It was not designed to. However I think it drives well enough for a truck it’s size and better then full size American trucks.

My ML is a 14 and pretty well optioned. Yes it has active park assist. I would have never known I had it unless the dealer pointed it out. Not once have I needed it to parallel park. Parallel parking is not difficult on any vehicle if you know how to properly gauge space.

I am not adverse to technology. My vehicle has parking sensors, surround view camera, heated and cooled seats, factory remote start, USB/Bluetooth audio, factory DVD screens, heated steering wheel, etc. Does it drive itself? No. But at some point, all tech becomes outdated.

Your GL doesn’t have a cooled refrigerator box (actually keeps baby bottles, wine bottles and drinks cold!) Neither does it have a rear split tailgate (has been super useful hiking), neither does it have an easy entry access button that instantly lowers the vehicle when shut off for easier entry and exit. So there are things your GL550 is lagging behind compared to the LX.

Yes, many foreign manufacturers have models that are built in American plants. The LX is not one of those models. It is built with the LandCruiser in the Tahara Japan plant. There are some Mercedes models built in Germany. By all accounts, even some I’ve read on this board, models built in Japan/Germany have a higher build quality and less issues than those built in the states. Not saying this is true for all cases. But I’ve also had a good conversation with my Mercedes Service Advisor and he’s said the same.

So transmissions, turbos, suspension components fail with age even if not driven much? That doesn’t make sense at all.

Likewise, I hope your GL gives you years of enjoyment and dependability. It really is a great truck under warranty.

 

All of the things mentioned that the GL does not have, can be added for not much money but I can't say the same for the other things missing from the Toyota.

The comment on the foreign built cars may be true for Japanese cars but I can't say it is true for German built. I've found the US built MB's to be light years more reliable than the German built models. That's probably because the German built models I've owned are very high end rides with lots of tech and special suspensions that are a weak point and maintenance needy as well as insanely expensive to repair. I felt for a long time the E was more reliable but the GL has won me over for its reliability and overall package. For reference, I've owned CL, E's, S, SL, and GL's and run them to over 1 million + miles with current MB cars in driveway at over 700k miles so my experience may be limited.

Pretty much any forced induction engine is going to require more maintenance and upkeep than a NA engine. There is a give and take. The turbo engine will get better mileage and more hp while the NA engine will be more reliable and easier to work on. With modern emission standards, the NA engines are being phased out so the manufacturers can meet MPG requirements as well as customer HP demands. Same can be said for standard shocks and springs vs air springs. The shock and spring is more reliable but the air springs will add adjustability and a more compliant ride. Again, give and take. If you want a simple, reliable, boring, and a less than attractive ride, the Toyota/Lexus is the car for you. To each their own but a car, to me, is much more than a reliability stat.