Lexus GX vs. Toyota Land Cruiser: Compare SUVs

The Toyota Land Cruiser and Lexus GX SUVs share a platform, measure up in size, employ a similar full-time four-wheel-drive system, and carve out a relatively narrow SUV niche aimed as much for luxury leanings as off-road ambitions. This is no badge engineering, however. They use different powertrains, offer different optional features, and chisel out different styles.

These SUVs both ride on Toyota’s truck-based platform that’s also used on everything from the Toyota Tacoma and Tundra pickup trucks to the Lexus LX and the forthcoming Toyota 4Runner. Now sold as a hybrid only, the reborn 2024 Land Cruiser differs greatly from its larger predecessor.

The redesigned 2024 Lexus GX presents a more accessible and off-roadable SUV for Toyota’s luxury brand, but it can be overshadowed by the larger Lexus LX and the all-new Lexus TX three-row crossover SUV.

The number of SUV siblings running in its big family almost seems Irish Catholic. The closest relations, however, are the Land Cruiser and Lexus GX, at least until the 2025 Toyota 4Runner goes on sale late this year as the last of Toyota’s truck-based vehicles to get redesigned.

Here’s how the Toyota Land Cruiser and Lexus GX match up, and how best to reconcile their differences with what you want out of an adventure-seeking SUV.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

2024 Lexus GX 550

Toyota Land Cruiser vs. Lexus GX styling

Both SUVs build out boxy, truck-like profiles
If Lexus had a truck, it would wear the jarhead face of the GX
The new Land Cruiser distances itself from its larger, costlier predecessor

Is the Toyota Land Cruise a good-looking SUV?

Though it won’t be mistaken for its larger, overlanding icon of a predecessor, it retains a classic SUV presence for a new era. The trims walk through Land Cruiser history, with the base 1958 model sporting round headlights with Toyota stamped across its flat black grille, while the mid-level trim swaps in rectangular headlights that evoke the 60-Series Land Cruiser of the 1980s. Vertical taillights flank a tailgate sheltered by a spoiler extending from the flat roof that can be optioned as a white top. Flared fenders bulge its sides, which are 4.4 inches narrower than its predecessor, and it’s 1.2 inches shorter in length.

Boxy durability repeats inside, with a rectangular upright dash flanked by round vents, like the 1958’s headlights, and topped with a small 8.0-inch touchscreen. Toyota fills the sides of the screen with cheap slats easily replaced by the available 12.3-inch touchscreen. Otherwise, buttons and toggles and grab handles complete the retro package.

Is the Lexus GX a good-looking SUV?

If Lexus had a truck, it would look like the GX, with its large side mirrors and massive cow-catcher grille pinched by chunky headlight housings. All this truckiness belies the first full redesign in 15 years, and its burly profile swells with bulging fenders and available 33-inch all-terrain tires studded around 18-inch wheels. It hardly looks like a Lexus at all.

The interior is more forgettable and an odd compromise of ruggedness and Lexus luxury. The modular dashboard orients similarly as the Land Cruiser’s, and all the off-road controls await logically in the console. Aside from the 14.0-inch touchscreen, there are no luxury hallmarks that justify the Lexus badge.

Advantage: Toyota Land Cruiser.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

Toyota Land Cruiser vs. Lexus GX prices, trims, features, and warranty

The Land Cruiser comes in three trims, starting at $57,345
The Lexus GX can be had six ways, starting at $64,250
Best picks: Mid-grade Land Cruiser ($63,345); GX Premium+ ($70,350)

It’s a $7,000 toss up, but the Lexus GX can be equipped with far more luxurious options, for a price. If you want some town-and-country veneer for your overlander, pick the GX. Otherwise, the Land Cruiser stays more true to its mission.

How much is a Toyota Land Cruiser?

The base Land Cruiser 1958 honors the first year of the Land Cruiser nearly 70 years ago, but Toyota equips it with modern conveniences for a reasonable price of about $58,000, including a $1,395 destination fee. Standard features include an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cloth upholstery, a heated steering wheel, and heated front seats that require manual adjustments. There’s some retro charm there, but we’d take the $64,000 Land Cruiser mid-grade model with its power front seats that are heated and cooled, and the larger 12.3-inch touchscreen that better fits the housing. It also has a power tailgate and roof rails.

Skip the $76,345 First Edition Land Cruiser and its 14-speaker JBL audio, a console-mounted cooler, a wireless smartphone charger, leather-trimmed seats, a head-up display, and a rear camera mirror. Off-road additions included a cargo basket, rock rails, and mud flaps.

What is the Toyota Land Cruiser warranty?

Land Cruiser owners get a 3-year/36,000-mile warranty and two free years of scheduled service. It’s a toss up versus the warranty package on the Lexus GX.

2024 Lexus GX 550

How much is a Lexus GX?

The base Lexus GX 550 Premium comes better equipped than the Land Cruiser, as expected, and also costs more, as expected. For about $65,000, the GX has a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster, a 14.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a sunroof, a towing receiver, synthetic leather upholstery covering power adjustable front seats that are heated and cooled, and 20-inch alloy wheels.

The $5,000 Premium+ package adds power-folding third-row seats, a heated steering wheel, a wireless phone charger, and the option for second-row captain’s chairs, which aren’t standard on any trim level.

We’d skip the GX Luxury+ for $81,250; there are more luxurious three-row SUVs with off-road capability for that price, including the Grand Cherokee L and Land Rover Defender 130.

What is the Lexus GX warranty?

The Lexus benefits from a 4-year/50,000-mile warranty and LexusCare, which takes care of the first and second scheduled maintenance visits through the first year or up to 10,000 miles.

Advantage: The Land Cruiser is a better value.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

Lexus GX vs. Toyota Land Cruiser performance, specs, and towing

Every Land Cruiser has a hybrid 2.4-liter turbo-4 rated at 326 hp and 465 lb-ft
Every Lexus GX uses a twin-turbo 3.4-liter V-6 rated at 349 hp and 479 lb-ft
Both SUVs have full-time four-wheel drive with a 2-speed transfer case
Land Cruiser tows up to 6,000 pounds
Lexus GX can tow 9,063 pounds

Forget the V-8s. That era is over. But turbochargers and hybrid systems with smaller displacement engines provide more torque than with the outgoing V-8s. More notably, both models are bona fide off-roaders, but the Lexus GX requires the Overtrail trim to match the Land Cruiser’s prowess. The GX is wider and longer, ceding narrow ground to the Land Cruiser. Because it can tow 50% more than the reimagined Land Cruiser, and because it has a more robust twin-turbo V-6, the Lexus GX gets the nod for heavier duty applications and calmer everyday use. So which one is better depends on how you use it.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

How does the Toyota Land Cruiser perform?

The 2-speed transfer case provides plenty of low-end torque, and Rock, Mud, Sand, and Auto modes vary the torque distribution depending on the 4Hi or 4Lo setting. Locking center and rear differentials combine with an electronically front disconnecting sway bar for sure-footed traction in the muck and off-road articulation over logs, rocks, and what else may come. Ground clearance is a typical 8.7 inches, and even though the approach and departure angles aren’t as generous as the outgoing model, they’re better than the GX’s.

All these off-road bits and the Land Cruiser’s boxy, vertical shape make for a daily driver with a commanding road view but the handling of a buffalo on roller skates, despite its independent suspension. The turbo-4 hybrid system has plenty of power and a surge off the line, and the 8-speed automatic is a quick reactor, but the Land Cruiser can start to protest on uphill climbs laden with gear or people.

2024 Lexus GX 550

How does the Lexus GX perform?

The GX Overtrail has the same off-road setup as the Land Cruiser, while other grades lack the disconnecting sway bar and rear diff. The Land Cruiser is a better off-roader.

The heavier, smoother GX performs better on-road and when towing. The twin-turbo V-6 hooks into a 10-speed automatic, and this big beast can sprint to 60 mph in 6.5 seconds. Despite riding on a truck frame, the GX feels lighter on its rubber soles, and top trims come with adaptive dampers that offset some of its heaviness while cruising.

Advantage: Lexus GX.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

Toyota Land Cruiser vs. Lexus GX gas mileage

The Land Cruiser rates at 22 mpg city, 25 highway, 23 combined
The GX rates at 15/21/17 mpg
Both 4WD models gain efficiency over their V-8 predecessors

Advantage: The Land Cruiser’s hybrid system.

2024 Lexus GX 550

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

Toyota Land Cruiser vs. Lexus GX size and cargo space

The smaller Land Cruiser seats five passengers
The larger Lexus GX seats up to seven passengers
Second-row captain’s chairs cost extra for the Lexus GX

Both models sit tall and have good passenger and cargo space, but they’re outsized even in their own families. In terms of large SUVs, Lexus now has three to choose from, with the GX positioned as the rugged one versus the larger but more luxurious LX, and the new TX as the more family-minded three-row crossover SUV. Toyota dizzies the large SUV proposition with six models, listed here predominately by size if not frame type: Highlander, Grand Highlander, Land Cruiser, 4Runner, Sequoia. Here’s how these two stack up by interior space.

2024 Lexus GX 550

How big is the Lexus GX?

197.1 inches long; 112.2-inch wheelbase; 78 inches wide; 75.4 inches tall
Cargo volume in cubic feet behind row 3/row 2/row 1: 10.3/40.2/76.9
The third row is tight, but its versatility and overall roominess gives it an edge

The redesigned GX comes with three rows of seats, including a second-row bench that seats three and two in the way back that power-splits 50:50. They’re best folded down, as the 32.0 inches of legroom and raised floor leads to knees sitting at elbow height. In a pinch, for gradeschoolers, it’ll do the job. The front seats function best, with standard power adjustments and available massagers, though the controls reside in the touchscreen, too many clicks away. Captain’s chairs can be swapped out for the second-row bench, but they’re optional on every grade and not as luxurious as it may sound compared to most other rivals. The seat bottoms sit near the rear axle, and are raised higher than the fronts. With the third row flat, expect 40.2 cubic feet of space but with the second row folded it’s not a flat floor. Note that the power tailgate on most grades lifts up like a traditional tailgate, not like the swinging gate of the outgoing GX.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

How big is the Toyota Land Cruiser?

193.8 inches long; 112.2-inch wheelbase; 77.9 inches wide; 76.1 inches tall
Cargo volume behind row 2 is 37.5 cubic feet
Rear legroom and overall passenger volume come up short

There are better choices for passenger comfort and cargo volume in Toyota’s extensive lineup of crossovers and SUVs, and you can count the Lexus GX as one as well. The Land Cruiser offers only two rows of seats. It’s tight in the back seat, though it feels roomier than the official spec of 26.7 inches of rear legroom. The toe room leaves something to be desired as well, and the seats fold down and tumble forward instead of sliding or having any power mechanisms. Up front, a wide center console with deep pockets can feel trucklike, but it also brings to mind the narrowness of the new Land Cruiser. The front seats are comfortable enough, though power adjustments aren’t standard, the pump-like manual adjustment is a throwback in the wrong way, and the cloth upholstery can seem less than at this price. Cargo volume is good but the raised floor hides the hybrid battery.

Advantage: Lexus GX.

2024 Lexus GX 550

Lexus GX vs. Toyota Land Cruiser safety

Neither model has been tested by the IIHS or the NHTSA
Both come with automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control, and blind-spot monitors
Options include surround-view camera systems and head-up displays

Advantage: Tie.

2024 Toyota Land Cruiser

Which is better: Toyota Land Cruiser or Lexus GX?

The Land Cruiser cashes in on the retro off-road look that’s popular right now, and it proves it on the trail. It’s about $7,000 less than the GX and its cost of ownership should be lower due to its hybrid powertrain. This adds up to a TCC Rating of 6.4 out of 10 versus 6.2 for the GX, and both ratings will improve once safety scores are finalized. (Read more about how we rate cars.) The ratings don’t tell the whole story, however. The GX is a more polished and powerful on-road vehicle with an exceptional tow rating and a third row that can be called upon to haul the kids’ friends to the lake house, along with the boat. The difference is in the way that you use it.